Tomato Rice Balsamic Soup
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Posted:Sep 29, 2013 6:33 pm
Last Updated:Jan 24, 2016 8:04 am
7678 Views
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This is my favorite tomato soup and I hate tomato soup. So I developed a recipe that I liked!
1 1/2 lb tomatoes, about 3-4 tomatoes
1 medium onion, sliced
3 garlic cloves sauteed in olive oil
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 tsp salt
1-2 tsp brown sugar
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
fresh basil chiffonade cut for garnish to each bowl
optional Luvli Juice - Smashing tomato, has a bit of a bite, 1/4 cup
1/2 cup corn, cut from cob, cooked in microwave for 6 mimutes
Put everything into a pot and cook until tender, puree some with a hand blender wand but not all. I like a hearty soup.
The balsamic vinegar is the key to this soup.
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Tomato Soup with rice
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Posted:Sep 25, 2013 6:38 pm
Last Updated:May 1, 2024 8:7 am
8161 Views
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I hate tomato soup! I refuse to eat it anywhere! However, my girlfriend loves tomato soup. Because I hate it so much, and I love making food for people that hate something and then having them love it after I've redesigned it, re-reciped it, I decided to make a tomato soup for me that I LOVE!
I actually came up with two tomato soup recipes, this is the first one before I came up with the other.
Put into a 2 quart pot
first saute 4 cloves of garlic in olive oil, then add
2 lb of diced fresh tomatoes, the riper, the better! I go to a local farmer's market and get their through aways. Skins and all. If you don't want the skins, then blanch the tomatoes and peel. Too much work for me.
2 medium carrots, finely diced, adds sweetness and offsets the acidity of the tomatoes
optional 1 celery rib finely diced, adds a nice flavor
orange zest
1 tsp fresh thyme
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp fennel seeds, very important!
1 bay leaf, remove this before eating! Do not let it crumble, it will choke you!
2 cups water
2 cups homemade chicken broth
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
pinch of saffron threads, adds a very nice flavor to the soup
1-2 tsp sugar to offset the acidity of the tomatoes
1/4 cup white rice
1/4 chopped fresh basil
1/4 finely diced fennel bulb
1/2 cup of Lavli Juices Smashing Tomato, more than 1/2 cup is ok also
this tomato juice has a bit of a bite and an unusual taste compared to regular tomato juice or V-8
Cook this until the carrots are soft.
And if you want, at the end, put a wand blender in it and blend as finely as you want, less for chunky tomato soup. You can also remove half the soup and blend the other half and then add back the unblended soup.
I sprinkled some cheese on top of the bowl when I served it.
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Tomato Basil Vegetable soup - EASY!
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Posted:Sep 23, 2013 6:18 am
Last Updated:May 1, 2024 8:7 am
8115 Views
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Yesterday I was busy. I went to a picnic, went for a bike ride, and I was on a ladder in the late afternoon and early evening, I worked until dark, painting the outside of the house. I did not have time to cook.
Since I wasn't too hungry from the afternoon picnic, I only wanted something light, and quick because it was now 7:15pm. So for dinner, I grabbed a can of Progresso Tomato Basil soup from the cabinet.
This one can made 3 decent serving sizes or 4 smaller servings.
I heated a 2 quart pot, put in some olive oil or EVOO and canola oil. I put in the pot, finely diced 2 stalks of celery, slitting it lengthwise in 3 parts then cross cutting, same for 2 carrots, 1/2 onion, 2 Tb garlic. Stirred, let it sit for a few minutes cooking, then added the can of Progresso Tomato Basil soup, plus one can of water, and 1/2 cup of elbow macaroni. This made a very chunky soup. If you want to extend it further, add another 1/4 can or 1/2 can of water. I added no other spices.
The soup will be done when the macaroni is done, the celery and carrots will be tender but not soft. Otherwise, delay adding the macaroni for a few minutes while the carrots and celery have time to soften more, then add the elbow macaroni.
For serving, sprinkle on some dried, powdered, parm romano cheese.
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Fresh Corn Salad
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Posted:Sep 22, 2013 7:13 am
Last Updated:Aug 24, 2015 2:06 pm
8073 Views
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This is terrific, very tasty, easy to make. I wanted to post this corn recipe before the summer corn season ends in New Jersey. This recipe came from The Food Network, Sunny Anderson. I've made some adaptations and comments.
The recipe calls from the corn to be grilled, I use the microwave, wrap the corn in wax paper and cook for 6 minutes on high. I then cut the kernals off and put them in a frying pan with some butter and olive oil, not much, 2 TB of each, for only a few minutes. NOT TOO LONG!
I then mix the corn, 4 ears, in a bowl with freshly ground pepper, 3 oz chopped cilantro or less, I don't like cilantro so I use less, 1/2 finely diced red onion for the sweetness, regular will also work, 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese, blue cheese will also work but it will give it a much stronger taste, 1/2 lime juice but lemon will also work, lime goes better with cilantro, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper.
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Monday dinner - Pasta w broccoli, tomatoes, garlic and chicken
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Posted:Sep 16, 2013 6:06 pm
Last Updated:May 1, 2024 8:7 am
8349 Views
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This is an easy dish and so good. Most of the recipes are made up on the spot in the kitchen, This one is the same. Never made this before and Wow, this was so good. Blowout. I stood in front of the stove and put stuff in the pan. Really. I'm not trying to be obnoxious or egotistical, but this is how I cook.
The idea for this is an Italian dish, cavatelli, broccoli, and garlic. That was what I was going to make and just add the fresh diced tomatoes.
I steamed the broccoli, sliced very thin, when almost done, I removed it and then dumped the water and salted the water to boil for the penne pasta. You must salt the water. When the water was boiling and I added the pasta, I then sauteed the thinly sliced chicken, seasoned with Italian dressing then I sprinkled some 4C Chiptole and seasoned bread crumbs on the chicken and fried in olive oil. Towards the end, I added some Freshingly Pink wine, a sweet blush, and added the freshly diced tomatoes. When the chicken was done, I removed and covered with a plate to keep warm, and put the broccoli in the same pan, added a lot of olive oil, and a lot lot of minced garlic, for 1 chicken breast, probably 3-5 Tb of garlic, stirred it around, when the broccoli was heated, and the tomatoes were starting to break down, I added some more blush wine, a white zinfandel can be used but this blush wine is becoming my go to wine now. I added the pasta, and stirred, then added a little heavy cream, maybe 1/4 up, plus I added basil, oregano, a touch of chili powder, and salt. Stirred to mix and covered for a few minutes, then served. An almost one pot dish that was outstanding.
If you like artichokes, you can add or substitute them but go GREEN! Green is good.
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Monday dinner - mustard brushetta chicken w sauce and cheese
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Posted:Aug 13, 2013 12:01 pm
Last Updated:May 1, 2024 8:7 am
8993 Views
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This was the first time I made this and it was WOW. A really good dish. I was in front of the stove thinking about what to do with the brushetta I made. Maybe topping the chicken, maybe stuffing the chicken with cheese and then rolling it and putting it in the oven. Then I got the crazy idea of covering the chicken with mustard and putting the brushetta on top. Mustard and brushetta? Yeck. Maybe it will work. Worth a try. Whatever, it still will be edible. But I don't want the mustard to overwhelm the dish so I spread just a small amount of yellow mustard, 1 tsp, on a very large boneless chicken breast. When served, I asked my girlfriend if she tasted the mustard and she said she tasted something but didn't know if it was the mustard or something else. Good, exactly what I wanted.
I then dropped some Italian salsd dressing on both sides, I used Wegman's Italian Parm dressing with some Italian seasoning and black pepper. I put this in a hot pan, cooked one side, flipped it and added some minced garlic, put some blush white zinfandel, this time Berringer's, plus just a touch, maybe a 1/4-1/2 cup of crushed tomatoes on top, with some grated cheddar cheese, any tasty cheese would be good. Optional is add some heavy cream, just a touch. I did not.
When it was done, do not overcook!, I then served with brushetta on top of the sauce and cheese.
Wow, this was good, the mustard worked well.
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Monday dinner - mustard brushetta chicken w sauce and cheese
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Posted:Aug 13, 2013 11:57 am
Last Updated:May 1, 2024 8:7 am
8964 Views
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This was the first time I made this and it was WOW. A really good dish. I was in front of the stove thinking about what to do with the brushetta I made. Maybe topping the chicken, maybe stuffing the chicken with cheese and then rolling it and putting it in the oven. Then I got the crazy idea of covering the chicken with mustard and putting the brushetta on top. Mustard and brushetta? Yeck. Maybe it will work. Worth a try. Whatever, it still will be edible. But I don't want the mustard to overwhelm the dish so I spread just a small amount of yellow mustard, 1 tsp, on a very large boneless chicken breast. When served, I asked my girlfriend if she tasted the mustard and she said she tasted something but didn't know if it was the mustard or something else. Good, exactly what I wanted.
I then dropped some Italian salsd dressing on both sides, I used Wegman's Italian Parm dressing with some Italian seasoning and black pepper. I put this in a hot pan, cooked one side, flipped it and added some minced garlic, put some blush white zinfandel, this time Berringer's, plus just a touch, maybe a 1/4-1/2 cup of crushed tomatoes on top, with some grated cheddar cheese, any tasty cheese would be good. Optional is add some heavy cream, just a touch. I did not.
When it was done, do not overcook!, I then served with brushetta on top of the sauce and cheese.
Wow, this was good, the mustard worked well.
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Brushetta
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Posted:Aug 13, 2013 11:14 am
Last Updated:May 1, 2024 8:7 am
8907 Views
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Making brushetta is easy, and making great brushetta is easy. Most restaurants fail miserably at this and I don't know why. I will share with you how I do it and some say it's the best they've tasted.
You want to get the right amount of portion of ingredients.
First, I like to add an ear or two of sweet corn, preferably the smaller kernel white corn but it has to be sugar sweet! I wrap the corn in wax paper and microwave for 7 minutes. Letting it cool before I cut it off the cob and into a bowl. While the corn is microwaving and cooling, I then dice the tomatoes.
I use very ripe large tomatoes, soft or near soft but not rotten of course. I diced these fairly fine but not incredibly fine. You must use a very sharp knife to cut through the skin. Always skin up when cutting. If the knife presses into the skin and flesh, you need to have your knives sharpened. If close to me, bring them over, I'll sharpen them for you for free and I'd like to meet you and thank you for reading my blog.
I take these diced tomatoes and put them in a colander and then salt them using kosher salt, regular salt will also work and then mix incorporating the salt into the tomatoes. You then let the tomatoes sit for about an hour, periodically stirring, to allow the juices to drain out. If making soup, then pour the juices into the soup pot. I also made soup yesterday.
I then put quite a bit of EVOO extra virgin olive oil in a pan and heat and add minced garlic, quite a bit. I do not cook the garlic, I almost turn it off in seconds. I want to infuse the garlic into the olive oil. I also add any dry spices I want to use to the heated oil, such as dried basil, oregano, ground pepper.
I add the corn to a bowl with a finely diced onion adding the garlic and olive oil, then stir.
When the juices have drained from the tomatoes, I add the tomatoes and mix again. Adding freshly cut basil.
To cut the basil, I stack the leaves one on top of each other then rolling as if you were rolling a, um, ahh, a cigar! Then I cut length wise into strips. You can use the basil cut into strips technique for a garnishment to other dishes. For this dish, I then turn the basil 90 degrees and cut again across the strips. Now the basil has been diced and I add this to the now becoming brushetta. Optional, add some EVOO especially if you have a really good EVOO that uses arbequino olives.
You can serve this on crackers, on top of dishes, or a nice Italian bread. I sometimes use this on garlic bread. To make your own garlic bread, cut a slice of bread, THIN, and put this in a hot pan with olive oil and minced garlic, let it sit and soak on each side. Butter is optional. Let it brown and harden. If you are in a hurry, then put the bread into the toaster and toaster but be careful, the bread has oil on it and it may catch fire! and the oil may drip out of the bread. I've used this technique and it works fine for me though I prefer to plan my time and do it in a pan. When done, put the brushetta on top. I sometimes have this for an evening snack.
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Cold salad with a vinaigrette
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Posted:Aug 9, 2013 6:39 pm
Last Updated:Jul 10, 2014 3:06 pm
9029 Views
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Here's a very nice cold salad using a vinaigrette that is versatile, used as a main dish, or a side dish, or for lunch, or for hiking, beach, traveling, as it does not need to be refrigerated for the day. Fact, it's better warm than refrigerated cold. It is also very adaptable as to your own individual tastes and you can change it every time you make it, trying different spices and ingredients. Also good for those who don't have time to cook, don't have a.c. in their apartments, for those who are busy and stressed looking for a house! (Hint) Thanks for reading my blog. Maybe we'll get together sometime?
I will share some of my secrets to enhance the flavors.
Whoops! No longer a secret. Oh well, I ain't going to die keeping my recipes a secret. The 3 Rs - Read, Retain, Release.
This is two parts, the vinaigrette and the body of the salad.
For the vinaigrette, it's always 2 parts oil to 1 part acid. For the oil, I most always use EVOO extra virgin olive oil, and for the acid I almost always use white balsamic vinegar which has a golden color. In the supermarket aisle, you'll see lots of vinegars but most likely, you will only see one bottle of a white balsamic vinegar, which unlike white vinegar, has a golden tint to it.
In addition to the white balsamic vinegar, I usually add 1/2 lemon. I bring out the lemon earlier to allow it to warm to room temperature and then before I cut the lemon in half, I roll it under my palm on the countertop to break up the internal cells to more easily release the juice. I also like the taste the lemon provides to the salad. On occasion, I will squeeze the lemon into the already made salad as it adds a distinct lemony flavor. When I cut the lemon, I pick out the seeds with a paring knife, and then squeeze the lemon into a small bowl to remove any more seeds. Sometimes I squeeze the lemon between the fingers of my other hand as the fingers will act as a strainer for the seeds. Clean hands please!!!
At this point, you can also add a little wine to the liquid. I like a white zinfandel but you can also add a fruit wine, just not too strong. A local NJ winery, Cream Ridge Winery, makes an Almond-Berry wine which is excellent for chicken and fish when using toasted sliced almonds. Also great for rice pudding! or a vanilla pudding for a flavoring. Recently I bought a blush, Barefoot Refresh, which was great and had an effervescence.
You now add the spices you want. Do you want Italian? Go of course with basil, oregano, I don't usually use thyme. I almost always add just a touch of curry, so little you don't taste it. If you want a middle eastern flavor, add curry, cumin, and cinnamon.
Before I mix the oil and acid together, I put all of the oil I'm going to use in a frying pan and I heat the oil on the stove. To this, I add minced garlic, flavoring the oil. I also now add the spices, oregano, basil, curry, and I add sometimes, some mustard, just a touch. I don't want to taste the mustard so I add very little, as I don't generally want to taste the curry, so I add just a little. I also add honey to the heated mix so the honey will melt. I like the taste of the honey over the taste of sugar. I then put this in a stainless steel bowl, adding to the white balsamic vinegar, salt, and freshly ground pepper, and whisk. At times, I may add a touch of dark balsamic vinegar. I sometimes sprinkle some red pepper flakes into the oil, to taste of course!
As I wrote, this recipe is very flexible. You can play with it trying different ingredients and it will be very tasty.
For the body of the salad, it's composed of two elements, either a grain or a pasta and then the addition of the vegetables. Though I think asparagus and broccoli are some of the healthiest vegetables, I tend towards milder vegetables for this salad. I want the taste to come from the vinaigrette and the healthiness from the vegetables.
I prefer quinoa (keen-wah), one of the oldest grains known, but last week I used orzo, a small grain shaped pasta. We were invited to a friend's house for a BBQ. No, they don't play, swap, swing, Damn, she is cute, I would like to bed her but she is very SHY, not the slut I desire for my sexual/life partner.
To cook the quinoa, use 2 parts water for 1 part quinoa, bring the water to a boil, then simmer covered, eventually turning it off. It will be done in 20-30 minutes when the water is absorbed and the quinoa is soft.
For orzo, cook as you would pasta, in salted water, and then drain in a colander.
I then decide what vegetables I want to use. Generally it is finely diced onions, chopped tomatoes, corn, zuchinni or yellow squash. Sometimes I add green and red pepper, but any vegetables can be added.
I finely diced the tomatoes and let them drain in a colander. I microwave the corn for 7 minutes, cut it off, and then put it in a pan with butter and just let it cook for 1 minute, any longer the corn will toughen. I also lightly saute the squash/zuchini but not letting it cook too much and get soft where it doesn't have any shape and falls apart.
If you like peas, throw some of them in. If you like green beans, go ahead. The latter I despise!
I add all the ingredients to the grain or pasta while it's warm. This salad is so much better warm than it is cool or cold.
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Thursday dinner - Chicken and broccoli w lemon cream wine tomato sauce
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Posted:Aug 8, 2013 6:23 pm
Last Updated:May 1, 2024 8:7 am
8995 Views
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Tonight's dinner was excellent. Really good. Never did it before. Didn't know what I was going to do until I stood in front of the stove.
I'm not sure what the key ingredient was but I'd like to think it was the blush winek, %6.50 for a bottle, I bought at Wegman's supermarket, a terrific Northeast regional chain. I bought Barefoot Refresh - Perfectly Pink.
I steamed the broccoli florets, Shop Rite, .99/lb., cheap.
No carbs tonight because we all eat too much but this is a great dish to be used over penne pasta, or rice, just make a little extra sauce, add some chicken broth to make a little more besides increasing the other ingredients.
I made extra sauce because I wanted to use it for the broccoli besides the chicken.
I took the chicken, sliced it thin, sprinkled wih 4C seasoned bread crumbs, then Italian seasoning, put some olive oil in the pan, specifically Spanish olive oil, it may have arbequina olives, a very sweet tasting olive. I cooked it one side, flipped it, then lightly cooked it on the other side, added some minced garlic, diced tomatoes, about 1/2 cup blush wine, 1 Tb butter, 1/4 cup of heavy cream, brought to a boil, plated and served drizzling the sauce over the broccoli and chicken. Wow! Sex tonight!
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Tues dinner White wine White chocolate sauce over fish, egg noodles, carrots w coconut
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Posted:Jul 31, 2013 10:15 am
Last Updated:Nov 29, 2015 6:29 am
9155 Views
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This is a terrific dish, ranking right up among my best, a great Valentine's dish. There's nothing hard about this, it's easy, just a few steps, a few ingredients. I've posted this dish twice before and have changed it each time, search for "white chocolate" at the top of my blog. One of the times that I made this I rolled it in crushed toasted pistachio nuts, this time I did not. Next time I will try crushed hazelnuts.
I first made the white chocolate sauce, this recipe called a beurre blanc, using wine.
Start this at the beginning of the dish as it does take time reducing. Upon serving, I poured this over the fish, carrots, and missed it in the egg noodles.
This recipe serves two.
For the sauce, add 1/4 cup of white chocolate, preferably coursely grate the block white chocolate and not the chips, but the chips can be used and it will still be very good, not spectacularly good. Add 2/3 cup of a light colored sweet wine, white zinfandel or a pink blush, the latter is what I used this time, and reduce by half. Then add 1/4 cup coconut milk, 1/2 cup heavy cream, and some optional nutmeg, use freshly grated if you have it, and again reduce by half.
Take the fish, and you can do a number of things. You want to coat the fish so the chiptole panko crumbs will stick, you can coat with a little bit of honey and olive oil, butter and olive oil, or mayo. I used melted butter and olive oil. I then also sprinkled on some packaged shredded coconut flakes and seasoned with nutmeg.
Then I put the fish into a pan with melted butter and olive oil and cooked on both sides, serving this on the plate with the fond in the bottom of the pan.
I cooked egg noodles in salted water, then put this in a large frying pan with some melted butter, nutmeg, heavy cream, little bit of coconut milk, canned diced tomatoes, and grated cheddar cheese or any other cheese, a parm or romano would be good also. Mix in the egg noodles and stir.
Pour some of the white chocolate sauce over the fish, a touch over the carrots, and mix some in with the noodles. This will make a killer noodle, just killer, blowout, outstanding. Then eat, let the dishes sit, and go into the bedroom and wait to be thanked by your honey.
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Chiptole Chicken with broccoli, noodles, curried lemon butter wine sauce
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Posted:Jul 22, 2013 6:00 pm
Last Updated:May 1, 2024 8:7 am
9339 Views
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The makes this recipe sound complicated but it isn't, and it's so so good.
Tonight was the first time I made it. I had too many lemons and wanted to use it so I was going to make a lemon sauce. What do I add? Butter. Ok, lemon butter sauce. Wait a minute, I'll add some wine. What do I want to do with the chicken? Encrust it with 4C chiptole bread crumbs, just a little, to give it a taste and bite. I coated the chicken with Italian salad dressing so the bread crumbs would stick to it.
I sliced and steamed the broccoli.
I made the egg noodles in salted water!
The curried lemon sauce goes on everything, chicken, broccoli, egg noodles. The egg noodles get sprinkled with grated cheese.
I squeezed one lemon in a frying pan, grated the rind aka zest, added some white zinfandel, white merlot or blush would work well, added 1/3 stick of butter, some chicken broth, freshly ground pepper, and sprinkled some curry, then heated, then added some heavy cream, stirring bringing it to a boil.
When the chicken was done, sautee in a pan with olive oil, plated everything, and poured the sauce over everything.
This was a winner! And restaurant quality.
I'm putting this recipe on my private chef's list.
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Anyone want to give me a ride to Gunnison
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Posted:Jul 22, 2013 5:52 pm
Last Updated:May 1, 2024 8:7 am
9311 Views
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Looking for company going to Gunnison. My gf hates the long walk to the beach. I'd be happy to share expenses of course. I'm just a few minutes off I-295 and I-195 which takes you the GSP Garden State Parkway to go to Gunnison. Plus I know some back roads to get there and get off at the Red Bank exit.
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