Second Breakfast

My husband didn’t “get” this dish, but it was easy, tasty, and a great way to use up the remains of a good loaf of bread you might otherwise discard or turn into breadcrumbs. With a side of simple pasta, this is a great vegetarian main course.

Items

• 3 28oz cans whole tomatoes (I used Muir Glen fire-roasted organics, which are quite good)
• 8 or so 1/2″ thick slices good-quality crusty bread (e.g. sourdough)
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 3Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3Tbsp butter
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp reshly-ground black pepper
• 1 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1/8 tsp ground allspice
• 1/8 tsp ground clove
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 cup grated mozzarella
• 1/2 cup grated Parmiggiano-Reggiano

Method

1. Preheat oven to 425F.
2. Drain tomatoes, reserving 1 cup of the juice.
3. Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Sautee the onions with 1/2 tsp salt 8-10 minutes until golden brown.
4. Add garlic, clove, and allspice and cook a minute or two more.
5. Add tomatoes with the reserved juice and the brown sugar and pepper, and simmer over medium heat about 20 minutes, until thickened somewhat.
6. Melt the butter in a small dish, and brush the bread on both sides with the butter.
7. Transfer the tomato mixture to a 9×13″ baking dish. Top with the bread so the entire casserole is covered with bread slices, overlapping a bit. Top with the mozzarella and Parmiggiano cheese.
8. Bake 20 minutes or so until the top is browned and bubbling vigorously.

Serves 6.

This meatloaf - rich with vegetables, savory spices, and fresh bread crumbs, and three kinds of meat - is a favorite in our house, and is taken from Julee Rosso’s “Silver Palate Cookbook” and is apparently a rather famous dish from the 72 Market St. restaurant in Venice, CA (a Google search for this recipe yields lots of hits).

It is a somewhat labor-intensive dish if you’re in a hurry, but if you have the time to make the loaf ahead of time (even a day ahead) and cook it when you’re ready, it is definitely worth the effort. Based on the reviews on other sites, I’m not alone in my estimation.

This recipe makes two medium-sized loaves. I like to eat one and freeze the other. The leftovers are fabulous.

Items

• 3 Tb unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup finely-chopped onion
• 3/4 cup chopped scallions, white bulb and three inches green (the bottom part)
• 1/2 cup finely chopped carrots
• 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
• 1/4 cup finely chopped green pepper
• 1/4 cup finely chopped red pepper
• 2-3 tsp minced garlic
• salt (to taste, at least 1 tsp)
• 1 tsp freshly-ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp white pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp freshly-grated nutmeg
• 3 eggs, well-beaten
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/2 cup cream or half-and-half
• 1 lb ground chuck, 1 lb ground veal, and 1 lb ground pork
• 1 cup fine fresh bread crumbs, toasted

Method

1. Melt the butter in a large sautée pan over medium heat, and cook the veggies and aromatics (everything up to and including the garlic) until most of the moisture is evaporated, around 10 minutes. The point here is to cook the veggies and get rid of their extra moisture.
2. Remove from the heat, place in a medium-size bowl, and stash in the freezer to cool down rapidly, at least 10 minutes. You can do this while you’re working on the rest of the dish. Maybe now is the time to make a gin and tonic?
3. In a large bowl (big enough to hold the meat and knead it), beat the eggs with the spices, cream, and ketchup until well-combined.
4. Place the meat on top, along with the bread crumbs and cooled veggies. With your hands knead everything together, about five minutes. If at the end of the kneading the mixture seems a little loose, add some more bread crumbs. If desired, top with more ketchup, or ketchup and Worcestershire sauce.
5. Divide and place into two 8-inch loaf pans. Set in the fridge to rest for 30 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 375F. Place each of the loaf pans in a larger baking dish, and fill the larger baking dish with an inch or so of water. Place both on the middle rack of your oven.
7. Bake for 35-40 minutes, swapping and rotating the loaf pans about half way through baking to ensure even cooking. Rest for 15 minutes or so before slicing and serving.

Serves a bunch (10 good-sized slices per loaf, or 20 slices total)

Meatloaf Gravy:  By the way, the drippings (which were rather modest in volume based on the lean meat I bought) make a wonderful gravy.  Once the loaves have rested, remove them from their pans and pour the drippings in a saucepan with a cup or so of stock, broth, milk, or even water.  Bring to a boil, and add 1 cup of cold milk with 2 Tbsp cornstarch mixed in (just mix it in with a fork before adding to the hot liquid).  Turn the heat down to low and cook 5 minutes, whisking occasionally.  Delicious!

Squash and sage are a perennial autumnal pairing, and for good reason. This easy dish is good for a weeknight supper, or elegant enough for an impressive pasta course. We thought this paired nicely with a South African Shiraz, but a sturdy Chardonnay would work well too.  While there are a few extra steps, you can do them all while everything is cooking, and the extra effort is definitely worth the added flavor.

Items

• 1 lb butternut squash (1/2 typically of what you’ll buy in the market), peeled and cut into 2″ cubes
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 lb gemelli, penne rigate, or similarly-shaped dried pasta
• 8-12oz chicken or tomato-free vegetable broth
• 4Tb butter (or 2Tb butter and 2Tb olive oil)
• 1 cup pecans or walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
• 12-15 fresh whole sage leaves
• 1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
• 2oz freshly-grated Pecorino Romano

Method

1. Heat 2Tb of the butter, or 2TB olive oil, over medium-heat in a large sautée pan. When hot, sweat the onion until translucent, 5 minutes or so. Add the garlic and stir for another minute.
2. Turn up the heat a bit and add the squash, and stir so the squash is at the bottom of the pan. Let cook for a few minutes and turn the squash over. The idea is to caramelize a little bit the sides of the squash to deepen the flavor. Do this for 6-8 minutes or so.
3. Add enough broth to cover the squash, along with half of the sage, finely chopped. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, 6-8 minutes until the squash is tender.
4. Cook the pasta in salted water carefully according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water when draining the pasta.
5. While the pasta is cooking, heat the reserved 2TB butter in a small pan over medium-low heat. Add the reserved sage leaves, and cook whole until the sage leaves are crispy and the butter solids have precipitated out of the butter. The butter will turn a golden brown color and emit a nutty fragrance. Remove from heat. Extract the sage leaves and chop finely.
6. When the squash is done, mash roughly with a potato masher. The idea is to incorporate some of the squash into the sauce while not creating a soup. Check seasoning and add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Stir in the cheese, half of the brown butter, the chopped sage, and half of the toasted chopped pecans or walnuts.
7. Add the cooked pasta to the sauce, turn up the heat, and cook a minute or two until the flavors are combined. Add some or all of the reserved pasta water if the dish looks a little dry.
8. Serve topped with the reserved nuts, the reserved brown butter, and more grated cheese.

Serves 6-8 as a first course, 4-6 as a main course.

I remember swiss chard being one of those weird, vaguely “old world” vegetables that my great-aunts (”the Nanas”) grew in the family garden at their house (which was essentially a ‘victory garden’ that we continued after the war). The strong, bitter green flavor was something I disliked as a child, but as an adult I have come to almost crave. Apparently our taste buds gets less sensitive as we age, and so stronger flavors are more pleasant for us old folks.

This is another of my “one pot entrees”, which we like in our house since they make tasty lunches for the rest of the week. Its also a good way to use beautiful chard, which is something you’ll find in-season at the farmer’s market right now.

Items

• 1 lb swiss chard, washed well to remove any sand or dirt.
• 1 lb fusilli or similarly-shaped short, substantial dry pasta.
• 3 Tb olive oil
• 3/4 - 1lb of pork sausage. This could be hot or “sweet” or even chorizo (or a mixture) depending on your preferences and what you have on hand. I used some sweet and a little rather mild chorizo I had in the freezer.
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded, halved, and cut into thin slices (or to taste)
• Red pepper flakes, to taste
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3/4 cup chicken or tomato-free vegetable broth
• 3/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Parmagiano-Reggiano or Pecorino-Romano cheese for serving

Method

1. Cook pasta carefully according to packet directions. Reserve 1 cup of salted cooking water.
2. Toast the pine nuts in a little pan over medium-high heat so they’re slightly browned on the outside.  This will intensify their flavor considerably.
3. Heat oil in large sautée or chef’s pan over medium-high heat. Remove sausage from casing (if required) and brown in the oil, breaking sausage into small pieces and stirring often.
4. While sausage is cooking, cut the ribs out of the swiss chard and set aside. Roll the leaves up, and chop into thin strips.
5. Cut off the bottom third of the chard ribs (I find the bottom to be sometimes too bitter), and finely slice the remaining ribs (much like you would with celery).
6. When the sausage is browned, add the garlic, and cook for a minute or two. The add the chard, chopped stems, and broth. Cover.
7. Wilt the chard, stirring occasionally, until the chard is bright green but isn’t completely soft. Season with salt and black pepper to taste, and red pepper if you like it hot.
8. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup water, and add the pasta, pine nuts, and a little of the water to the sausage and chard mixture, tossing to combine. Add more of the reserved pasta water if the dish seems too dry to you.
9. Serve with freshly grated cheese.

Serves 4-6.

The weather has turned decidedly cool and rainy this week, which got me hungry for some good, old-fashioned comfort food. So I whipped up a yummy Shepherd’s pie (with meat this time) and this Chicken and Biscuits recipe. It was quick, easy, and pleased the hubby. It looks like a lot of items, but I usually have most of this stuff in the house so its just using up odds and ends.
Items

• 8 (or more) store-bought frozen biscuits
• 3 whole chicken breast tenderloins
• 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp flour
• salt, pepper, and paprika
• 1 1/2 + 1 Tbsp butter and 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1 large carrot, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 large stalk celery, finely chopped
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
• 1/2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1/2 cup heavy cream or half and half
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• juice of 1/2 lemon

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven and cook the biscuits according to the directions. When done, turn off the oven, let cool, and put back in the oven to keep warm. Everything else can be done while the biscuits cook.
2. Season the chicken breasts in salt and pepper, and then dust in flour mixed with a little paprika, being sure to press it firmly into the flesh and under the tenderloins.
3. Melt the 1 1/2 Tbsp butter and olive oil over medium-high heat. The goal here is to keep the pan as hot as possible without burning the butter (the olive oil raises the smoke point of the resulting fat mixture) — this will give the chicken a nice crispy outside without taking so long to cook that it will be dry and tough. Place the breasts tenderloin side down in the pan and cook for four minutes.
4. Turn the breasts over and cook on the other side for another 4-6 minutes depending on the thickness of the meat. You’ll know its done when milky juices start coming out of the top, or the internal temperature is about 155F. It will “coast” the rest of the way, and is going to heat a bit more in the sauce, so no need to get too excited about totally cooking the meat.  I’m shy about undercooked meat, so my tendency is to overcook chicken.  Resist that temptation.
5. Take the breasts out of the pan and put them on a plate to cool. When cool, chop into bite-size chunks.
6. Keeping the pan on the heat (and the yummy fond in the pan) turn the heat down to medium-low, let cool for a minute or two, and add the remaining pat of butter.
7. Add the onion, carrot, and celery with a little salt, and sweat over low heat until the veggies are almost tender, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes.
8. Add the broth and the herbs, turn the heat up to a boil, and then turn down to simmer another five minutes. I add a little more paprika here as I like the flavor.
9. Add the peas, cream, and chicken chunks, and let everything warm up together.   Keep the heat under control, as we don’t want to boil the dish at this point, or the cream will curdle and the chicken will get tough.
10. Finish with the lemon juice and parsley. Check seasoning and add some freshly ground black pepper.
11. Serve alongside or over the biscuits.

Serves 4. Doubles easily.