Returning to My Roots

    

     Sometimes, you have to work with what you have. That sometimes is pretty much all the time regarding cooking and me lately. I need to start shopping based on things I want to make. Instead I shop like this: I need a fruit (bananas), I need a cheese (this takes the longest), I need 2 vegetables (mushrooms!...and something random), I need 2 frozen foods because I know I will not cook once I get home from Trader Joe's after starving all day today, bread, sandwich meat...and there we have the constants of my ten things I buy every week (I leave room for a little miscellaneous..eggs? pasta? what don't I have at home? Toothpaste. You know, that kind of thing).

     The issue with this grand new shopping system is that while I have the ingredients needed to throw together my everyday meals (there's been a lot of omelettes lately), I never seem to have the right things for a Recipe. But then I had a revelation. Isn't that what I used to blog about when I blogged everyday oh so long ago? I just used to write about my everyday meals because isn't that The Point. That everyday meals can be made in college, that they can be super simple and not require a Recipe? No more capitals in the middle of sentences from now on, promise.

 

 

     Here's another revelation. I totally missed my one year anniversary of blogging. I feel like I don't deserve it anyway due to my winter break hiatus... But this is my 100th post. Wow. You know, I constantly contemplated my 100th post, and how I would make something super fancy and super special. But in a way, this is much more fitting. Here am I, college student with fridge full of my 10 weekly items, telling you that a little thinking out of the box and scrounging around your apartment is all you really need to make a special meal just for any old weeknight.

     So, here's what I actually made: mushrooms (obviously) and pasta. Simple. But no jars of tomato sauce because just because we are in college doesn't mean we can't make sauce! It doesn't take that long, I promise. Here's what it took me: I chopped up mushrooms, I cooked the mushrooms, I took them out and used the same pan to cook down some red wine, chicken broth, and spices. I added my pre-cooked pasta (which I cooked to just al-dente) and my mushrooms, and simmered everything together. Grand total: 20 mins. Use what you have on hand! Google recipes and find new ideas! But keep cooking, and your everyday meals won't seem everyday anymore, they will be 100th post worthy.

Red Wine and Mushroom Pasta

Note: Feel free to use any seasonings you like. Thyme, oregano all go well with basil, or as substitutes. Red chili flakes are of course optional, but they don't add a lot of heat to this just a little flavor. Also, I used the honey because my wine was Super acidic and I really didn't like its taste that much, so honey is a good...rounder-outer of the flavor. Use your taste buds to guide you! Also, use spaghetti or any other long/strand pasta you like, I just do think the long-strand types would work better than other kinds.

1 tsp Crushed Garlic (or 1 Garlic Clove, minced) 
2 tbsp Olive Oil 
10 oz Baby Bella Cremini Mushrooms (or really, any kind of mushrooms you like)
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Dried Basil
1 tsp Italian Seasonings
1/2 tsp Red Chili Flakes
1/2 cup Red Wine
1/2 cup Chicken OR Vegetable Broth (Or 1/2 cup Water and 1/2 bouillon cube) 
1/2 tsp Honey
2 servings Linguine, Just-Cooked (i.e. take them out when they are still rather al-dente)

     Roughly chop your mushrooms, including the stems. In a very large frying pan, heat 1 1/2 tbsp of olive oil at medium high heat. Once it is hot, and 1/2 tsp of the crushed garlic, and allow it to sizzle for a minute. Then, add in the mushrooms and salt. Stir them around well, and then let them sit evenly on the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes, only stirring occasionally. Once they are darker and tender, and releasing some juices, transfer the mushrooms into a separate bowl. Try to the get the juices to stay in the pan.

     Add the remaining 1/2 tbsp of olive oil, and the remaining 1/2 tsp of the garlic to the same pan at medium-high heat. Allow them to sizzle for a minute, then stir in the basil, Italian seasoning, and red chili flakes if using. Stir in the pan for a minute or two, then add the wine and broth (or water and cube). Mix everything together well, adding the honey if needed, and then leave for 5 minutes. Allow the alcohol to evaporate off and the sauce to become thicker. Once it looks slightly (not A lot, just slightly) more viscous, add in the just-cooked pasta. Stir the pasta into the sauce, it will absorb the color and should start absorbing the flavors. Leave at a simmer for a few minutes, until the sauce has reduced further and most of it seems absorbed into the pasta, and then add the mushrooms. Simmer everything together for a few minutes until the mushrooms are hot again, and serve!

An Invasion Part II

     So, I have a confession to make. Today's dish is not all mine, it is mainly my mother's. It's just, I did do some of it (the topping)...and it is too good an opportunity to pass up. An opportunity to talk about something oh so wonderful and new and exciting that I have never done before: fresh pasta.

Look at all the pretty pasta!

     Is fresh pasta hard to make? Not really. It doesn't take a lot of ingredients, just flour and eggs. It does also take a pasta machine, which I'm sure all of you don't have. You could roll the pasta out by hand. Yes, it would probably be frustrating and take a long time. But I think I might do it back at school one day, probably a day right before a midterm when I just cannot study....you will just have to wait and watch.

     The mushroom topping was actually a spur of the moment thing. The vegetarians in the house (my father) obviously could not enjoy the boeuf bourguignon I made earlier, so I was thinking of making a mushroom bourguignon. But, with my mother's inspired pasta making, we came up with something new! No mushrooms in bourguignon, but a mushroom sauce / topping, whatever you would like to call it, for the pasta. Something light and fresh and summery - mushrooms and tomatoes and parsley.  

     Even with its vegetarianism, the pasta was much appreciated by my brother and his friends who came over for dinner yesterday. In all its mushroom and tomato glory, they gobbled it up. Hurrah! But how could anyone not appreciate fresh pasta? Soft and silky and not overpowered by the slightly sweet tomatoes and soft mushrooms and bright parsley. Light and so easy to eat far too much of, I do love remembering a good meal. 

Pasta 

5 Eggs 

6 cups Flour 

Pour the flour into a large bowl so it is a large mound, and make a well in it. Pour in the eggs, and stir them together thoroughly (you can also mix them together in a food processor). Flour a surface and turn the dough onto it. Knead it a couple of times (not too much), and then put it back in the bowl and let it rest for about an hour. Once it has rested, divide the dough in two, roll it a little flat and start running it through the pasta roller. Run it through until you get a sheet of pasta about 1/6 of an inch thick. You may want to sprinkle it with flour to keep the sheet from sticking to itself. Once all the dough has been rolled out, cut it into thin strips (about 1/4 in thick). Sprinkle flour on the strips so they don't stick together either, and let them rest. Meanwhile, boil a large pot of water with a spoon of salt, and add the pasta. Let it cook for about 8 minutes, until it is al dente, and you are done! Drain the pasta, and then top it with the sauce. 

Mushroom Topping 

1/2 tbsp Olive Oil 

1 cup Mushrooms, diced 

1 Garlic Clove, minced 

2 tbsp Red Wine 

1 cup Parsley, chopped 

1 Mid-Sized Tomato, Diced 

1/2 tsp Salt 

1/2 tsp Pepper 

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan at medium heat. Add the garlic and the mushrooms and allow them to cook down until they are soft and browned. Add the red wine and stir it in, allowing the mushrooms to cook for a little longer. Then, add the parsley and tomatoes. Stir them in, until the tomatoes are softer and the parsley is wilted. Sprinkle on the salt and pepper to taste and stir them in.

Put the pasta in a large serving bowl and add the topping. Toss them together, and you are ready to serve! 

The Most Comfortable Foods

Because you need comforting foods on dark dark nights. And the moon is beautiful. 

     I have a philosophy. It is that, in cooking, nothing can go wrong. You probably don't agree. You are probably looking at me like I'm crazy. Because you're thinking, of course things go wrong when you cook! You could not add enough of something or add too much of something and now you're left with a mess instead of something delicious. Well, to clarify, I'm not saying that everything always turns out absolutely mouth water-ingly delicious. But, I think you can end up with good, satisfying food nine out of ten times that you cook. This is probably why, whenever I read a recipe for something I want to make yet don't have all the ingredients for, I just substitute away until I can make it out of things in my pantry. And if I have things I want to use that aren't called for in a recipe, I just throw them in. If you always do this within reason, knowing what flavors tend to taste good together, things really will be all right.

My dinner: An experiment in substitutions     

  
     This is a good philosophy to have when you sometimes buy ingredients you don't know what to do with. For example, when you end up up buying an entire gallon of whole milk because you were not thinking. Somehow, my mental notes that I needed three cups of whole milk for chocolate pudding and that I was out of milk for my oatmeal and cereal eating got muddled in my mind. Ah well. So, what could I use whole milk for? Mac and Cheese! But, I didn't have the other -perhaps you would think absolutely necessary- components for Mac and Cheese: cheddar cheese (which everyone says is the best for this purpose) and elbow macaroni. 

     So, maybe its not a traditional Mac and Cheese. But, it is penne pasta baked in a creamy mozzarella sauce with chicken and topped with cheese. That is comfort food enough for me. And, it was easy enough to make, bake, and admire in the hour between my lab and work. Yay! The saddest thing though was that I didn't have time to eat any of it before I left for work. And, though it was creamy, and the chicken moist, and the top crunchy and golden when I finally got to eat it, I missed out on that bubbly just-out-of-the-oven cheesiness. That and the remaining cups of whole milk mean there might be a less healthy Mac and Cheese coming up shortly. Still, I now have one, filling, not-too-unhealthy, protein-inclusive (I have to say it, its making me feel better that my dinner consisted of delicious oozing cheese and pasta) Mac and Cheese that-bakes-up-to-make-a-good-dinner-and-lunch-for-the-next-day recipe in my repertoire. And that can never be a bad thing.

And...this is how much was left after my dinner....I was hungry OK. 

Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Chicken
Very Loosely Adapted from Southern Living 

Serves 2 (Double Recipe for a Square Pan if you are a normal person who doesn't only cook in loaf pans. This will allow you to save it up for more than two meals or share it with someone! Hurrah) 

1 cup Penne Pasta (or Elbow Macaroni) 
1 piece Chicken Thigh 
1 cup Milk (not skim) 
1 tbsp Butter
1 tbsp Flour
1/4 tsp Salt 
1/8 tsp Black Pepper 
10 oz Shredded Mozzarella Cheese (or Sharp Cheddar, which is more traditional)

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Then, lightly grease your loaf or square pan. Next, boil the water for the penne pasta and cook it. Set the pasta aside. Also, trim the excess fat from the chicken thigh and cut it into bite-sized (approximately 1 inch) cubes.

For the sauce, first microwave the milk for 1 minute. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Then, whisk in the flour until smooth and cook, while whisking constantly, for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the warm milk and cook the mixture for five minutes while whisking constantly, until it has thickened. Next, whisk in the salt, pepper, and 8 oz (1 cup) of the cheese. Spoon in the cooked pasta and raw chicken cubes. Pour the pasta, chicken, and sauce into the pan. Top with the remaining cheese. Bake for twenty minutes, or until it is golden and bubbly.