Does this mac and cheese make my ass look fat?

I hung out with my friend Amy on Tuesday and we made the following mac and cheese. I've been messing around with different versions trying to get the perfect mixture of the classic mac and cheese taste and a little more flavor. I think this ones does it...it uses a lot of typically Italian ingredients (herbs, pancetta, fontina, parmesean) which gives the dish great flavor and texture. Of course...the cheese alone for this recipe costs like $25-30, so feel free to substitute in other less expensive kinds. Also, you can substitute bacon or lardons for the pancetta. This recipe is FULL of fat, so don't make it unless you are prepared to actually feel your ass getting bigger while you are eating...with that said, I think it's totally worth it. ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Italian Mac and Cheese

Ingredients:

1 Medium shallot, diced
1 Stick of unsalted butter
16 Oz. small elbow macaroni
3 C whole milk
16 oz grated cheese (fontina, gruyere, and sharp cheddar)
1/4 C Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/4 C all purpose flour
1/2 Tsp fresh chopped rosemary
1/2 Tsp fresh thyme
1/4 Lb pancetta, diced
Olive oil
S&P

- Preheat the oven to 400.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add salt and cook macaroni for 8 minutes.
- Heat a few teaspoons of olive oil over medium heat in a large pot. Add diced pancetta and shallots to the pot. When the pancetta has browned add the stick of butter.
- Add the flour, mix around and allow the mixture to cook for 1-2 minutes. Turn the heat down to medium low.
- Whisk in milk and herbs and slowly continue to whisk, allowing the milk to come to a low boil. The mixture should become thick enough to coat a wooden spoon.
- Add grated cheese and stir mixture until the cheese is melted. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Add cooked macaroni to the cheese sauce and mix.
- Pour mix into a 9X13 glass baking dish. Sprinkle the top with Parmigiano-Reggiano and bake uncovered for 20-25 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Soup Soup Soup

I am a big fan of soup. I love all types...hearty, brothy, creamy, cold. Lately I've noticed how ridiculously overpriced pre-made soup is. Yes, the canned stuff is still cheap, but have you been to Whole Foods lately and seen what they charge in the prepared foods section? Even in the Pentagon Cafeteria (which is like high school food) a cup of soup is $2.99. I just think it's ridiculous, especially when soup is one of the more economical foods you can prepare at home. Plus so many restaurant and grocery store soups are full of chemicals that take away from the flavor of the ingredients. The bottom line is that even if you don't cook, making a huge batch of a soup you like will definitely be worth the trouble and cost. Plus, most soups also freeze well, so you can make a big batch then save some for a rainy day.

SIDEBAR: Writing this post reminds me that my friend Kate HATES soup, which I think is bizarre. She also hates Chinese food and anything blue (blue raspberry, blueberries etc). Yes, I make fun of her for these things.

Anyway, last week there were a few chilly days, so I decided to make a spicy and hearty potato kale soup. I also made a vegan version.

Spicy Sausage, Potato and Kale Soup

Need: 1 large pot

Ingredients:
1 LB Hot Italian Sausage
1 Medium Onion
1/4 C chopped celery
1/4 C chopped carrots
1 Bunch of kale
2 Quarts vegetable or chicken stock
2 Medium potatoes
Olive Oil
1/2-1 Tsp crushed red pepper
1/2 Tsp Italian seasonings
1 Bay leaves

1. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat
2. Add in chopped onion, celery, and carrots
3. Dice potato and add to the pot. Add salt and pepper.
4. Add sausage and break up with a wooden spoon. If the sausage comes in links, remove the casing and then add into the pot.
5. Add crushed red pepper and allow mixture to cook until sausage and potatoes are browned.
6. Remove the thick part of the stem from the leaves and chop greens until they are bit sized.
7. Add a cup of the broth into the pot and begin adding kale in small bunches. The kale will cook down considerably.
8. When the kale has cooked down, add the remaining broth, Italian seasonings (usually a mixture of rosemary, thyme, oregano etc), and a bay leaf.
9. Allow the soup to come to a boil then reduce heat and let simmer for 20 minutes or until the vegetables are soft.

* Healthier Alternative: Use Hot Italian Turkey Sausage
* Vegan Alternative: Omit the sausage and add a can of cannellini beans at step 8.

So, not everyone has to love soup as much as I do, but I highly recommend giving it a try. You can play around with your soups too. For example, you could add orzo pasta or a can of tomatoes to change things up a bit with the soup above. Anyway, happy soup making to all 2 or 3 of you out there who may or may not ever read this blog!

I spent this past weekend with my best friends from high school (see picture above which I pirated from Corinne...it's Liz, Corinne and Suzanne from left to right). They are great friends and all three of them are, in my opinion, particularly gifted in very different ways. Since I love them equally, I'll go in alphabetical order: Corinne is a driven, ambitious person who maintains the ability to empathize with all of the people who touch her life, which is a rare and beautiful combination. She is one of the great communicators in both the written and conversational sense - she can convey her thoughts in a beautiful and powerful way without losing the substance. Liz is incredibly creative to the point that I'm not even jealous...and I DO tend to be jealous of people who are good at things that I can't do. She is one of the only people I know who has true vision. She's also a perfectionist which gives her the tenacity she needs to drive her visions to completeness. Suzanne is the most patient and understanding person I know. She's also the kind of person who always makes your guest list because her sheer presence will make whatever you are doing more fun. Additionally, she's probably one of the smartest people I know - she's able to pick up on things and truly understand them faster than anyone I've ever met. So...that is a recap of the friends I spent the weekend with! We did a lot of eating, cooking, chatting and drinking. I had a great weekend and there were some epicurean highlights! Everyone cooked some great food. Below are a few recipes that I brought to the table.

Lemon Caper Branzino

Ingredients:

4 Branzino filets
3 Lemons
4 TBL butter
1 C dry white wine
3-4 Cloves garlic
2 TBL capers
2 TBL fresh thyme
Vegetable Oil
S&P

1. Dry the filets with paper towels and salt and pepper on both sides. If the filets have the skin on, lay them flesh side down (skin side up) and refrigerate until the skin is completely dry...or in my case, until you're ready to cook/too impatient to wait.

2. Heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large non-stick skillet. When the oil is starting to smoke, carefully put two filets into the skillet flesh side down. Do NOT move the fish around because you want the skin to get nice and crispy. After 2-3 minutes, flip the fish over for an additional 2-3 minutes. The skin should be crispy and the meat should have a golden brown sear. Remove to a serving platter and put in the oven on the warm setting...you don't want to cook the fish anymore, just keep it warm so use your best judgment about the temp of the oven. Repeat with the other two filets.

3. Scrape any large pieces of skin out of the skillet and discard. Add butter and garlic (diced or pressed) into the skillet on very low heat being careful not to let the butter burn. Once the garlic has started to cook, pour in the white wine and allow the alcohol to evaporate. Add in the capers and allow the mixture to simmer for a minute or two. Turn the heat off and squeeze in fresh lemon juice making sure to reserve half a lemon for garnish. Add in fresh thyme (you can use any herb you want...dill is also nice). Taste the sauce and adjust salt and pepper and more lemon if necessary.

4. Spoon the sauce over the Branzino filets and place extra in a pourable container...most would use a gravy boat...I use a measuring cup or whatever quasi ghetto container I have close by. Garnish the platter with lemon slices and fresh sprigs of thyme.

* An alternative to using a gravy boat for the extra sauce is placing the filets on garlic mashed potatoes or rice, which would absorb the extra sauce nicely.


Pesto, Egg, Cheese, and Puffed Pastry

Ingredients:

4 Eggs
4 Sheets of individual puffed pastry (you can also do with one large sheet, but the other ingredients might vary in quantity)
4 TBL pesto (store bought works just fine)
1 C grated cheese (I recommend guyere but I used a mix of leftover gouda and Manchego and it worked great)
1-2 TBL Parmigiano-Reggiano
1 small onion
S&P

1. Preheat the oven to 375.

2. Defrost pastry and place on a cookie sheet. Score each square about a half an inch in from the edge- this creates a barrier to help keep the egg in place. Put the pastry in the oven for a few minutes (less than 10) and remove when everything is puffy but not yet brown. Take a took pick and deflate the center of the pastry leaving the center lower than the edges.

3. Caramelize the onion using butter, salt and pepper and a tiny bit of sugar towards the end.

3. Turn on the oven's broiler.

4. Spread a table spoon of pesto on each square of pastry. Sprinkle the squares with grated cheese and place under the broiler until the cheese melts and browns slightly...this takes only 2 or 3 minutes so watch closely and be careful not to let the pastry crust burn.

5. Turn the broiler off and put the oven back to 375.

6. Remove the pastry from the oven. Add caramelized onions and crack an egg over each one of the squares. Depending on the size of your pastry squares, you may have to abstain from using the entire white of the egg because it will run over onto the cookie sheet.

7. Put the cookie sheet back in the oven and cook until the white of the egg set which will take 5-10 minutes. Be careful not to let the yoke cook because it should be runny when cut into.

8. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano, salt and fresh cracked black pepper and serve immediately.

This recipe sounds much more labor intensive than it actually is and it's totally worth whatever work is involved. The multiple layers of flavor, texture and color make it pleasing to all the senses!

Catfish...yes they eat poop in the wild

I have a catfish specific obsession. I grew up spending my summers on the Mississippi River where plenty of people eat the dirty ass cat fish that comes from the Muddy Mississippi, BUT my mother was a proper east coast woman and she drilled it into my head that catfish are dirty because they eat poop therefore I should steer clear. It wasn't until I was much older that I figured out that most of the cat fish served at restaurants (versus random shacks on the side of the Great River Road...it's in Illinois) are farm raised therefore they are eating plenty of shit, but just not literal shit (or at least here's to hoping). Anyway, I LOVE catfish!

Last weekend, Kyle and I went to our favorite Burmese food restaurant, Mandalay Restaurant and Cafe...and by favorite, I mean the only one we've been to, but it is delicious. You can order food from mild to spicy to so spicy that you want to die. I am usually an extremely adventurous eater, but every time I go to Mandalay I order the "Sea Food Number 2". I feel like such a tool ordering the same thing time after time, but I LOVE it. The dish contains pieces of catfish lightly fried then mixed with a thick and spicy tomato based sauce and sauteed peppers and onions. The fish has a lightly crunchy outer layer and inside it's flaky and moist. I order it "spicy" because I like to punish my ass, but you can order the dish at any level of spice.

Mandalay also has a ton of great vegan entrees. They even have two vegan desserts which are both incredible...sticky rice made with coconut milk and brown sugar as well as rich and creamy coconut milk ice cream.

Spinch, Fennel, Potato Goodness

Spring is officially here, but since soup is my favorite category of food, I'm going to squeeze a few more in before it gets DC swamp ass hot! I found out about the recipe below because my co-worker, Erica, brought in some left overs from a "soup party" that she had yesterday. I had a little bowl for lunch and it was wonderful! She was gracious enough to send me the recipe and I was immediately drawn to it because it has three ingredients that I LOVE but rarely use: fennel, leeks and tarragon.

I'm thinking about making this tomorrow, but my vegan life-partner won't be able to experience it because of the butter and chevre (goat cheese). Does anyone out there have any good suggestions for substitutes for these two ingredients? And by anyone, I mostly mean Corinne because you are the only one who might look at this blog and BONUS, you're vegan too!

3 leeks, trimmed and split lengthwise
1 tbsp. unsalted butter
4 tbsp. olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
4 ribs celery, chopped
½ fennel bulb, trimmed, halved, cored and sliced 1/8 inch thick
3 garlic cloves, minced
8 c. chicken or vegetable broth
1 russet potato, peeled and chopped
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried tarragon
1 ½ tsp salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
8c. firmly packed fresh spinach, washed, drained and stems removed (two 16oz. pre-packaged bags of spinach worked fine here; just remove stems)
1c. (4 oz.) chevre, crumbled/ cut into pieces


1. Rinse, drain and slice the leeks (white parts included) into ¼ inch half-rounds.
2. Heat the butter and oil over medium-low heat in a large saucepan and add the onion and leeks. Cook and stir about 10 minutes until the onion and leeks are soft.
3. Add celery and fennel and cook and stir about 5 minutes longer. Add the garlic and cook and stir about 2 minutes more.
4. Add the broth, potato, basil, tarragon, salt and pepper and bring to a low boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer 35-40 minutes, uncovered, until the potato is tender and the flavors have developed.
5. Add the spinach and cook and stir until the spinach has wilted. Remove the soup from heat and allow it to cool slightly.
6. Working in batches, place some of the soup in the bowl of a blender or food processor fitted with a metal blade and puree until smooth.
7. Add the chevre and puree about 1 minute more, until the cheese is well-blended and the soup is smooth.
8. Return the mixture to the pot. Reheat if necessary over low heat while stirring constantly. Serve immediately or let cool and refrigerate until ready to reheat and serve.

Ft. McNair

I spent last week at a conference at Ft. McNair. It was a typical conference with lots of business card exchanges, ppt presentations and fake laughing, but there was one highlight...the dining facility of DFAC in military lingo. The food was, of course, terrible...but the atmosphere was unique!

Ft. McNair is one of few remaining military bases where their young enlisted personnel cook and serve the food. There were 4 or 5 Privates that fill your food requests as you walk down the line...high school style. They were all so tall, handsome and YOUNG. Seriously young...I sometimes forget that the people who serve our country are frequently younger than me. Anyway, they lined up in their uniforms with white aprons and little white hats and I felt like I should be in the middle of singing Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy or something.

My friend and co-worker, Bobbi, has a daughter who is away at basic training for the Air Force National Guard. She told one of the Privates that her daughter is also assigned to services and that she is serving meals too. The Private grinned and responded back, "Yeah, it's not always glamorous, but it's all a stepping stone to moving up." I liked his response...It sort of reminded me of how my grandparents thought of every job as an opportunity and never assumed they were "too good" to take any position. I spend a lot of time thinking about bonuses or promotions I "deserve", but the truth is that I have never had to work hard to do well at work...I've always had jobs that make it easy for me to succeed. Seeing these 18 and 19 year old guys serving food as part of their job, when I'm SURE they didn't join the Army to be cafeteria ladies, is a reminder of how lucky I am.

Even though I wasn't a fan of the food, I enjoyed all four of my lunches at Ft. McNair. Plus, in typical military fashion, lunch was less than $5. Sweet deal.

I LOVE CASSEROLES...Don't Judge

Lately I've been eating a lot of rich and/or ethnic food and, as delicious as these meals have been, I can't help but crave something homey...specifically a casserole. I think casseroles are a great cultural phenomenon in that they have moved in and out of popularity for decades (and maybe longer) - my favorite era is the 1950s to early 60s. When I think of casseroles, my mind immediately jumps to a "Leave it to Beaver" type house wife wearing a beautiful dress (covered partially by an apron) with pearls and modest heels taking a large glass dish out of the oven just in time for a family dinner. I LOVE this image.

Back to the casserole. I feel like it's time for this beautiful, affordable, left-overable dish to make a come back. There are even websites that have "vintage" casserole recipes! The best part about a casserole is that you can literally put anything into it...left over veggies, meat, fish, rice, noodles...the combos are endless.

Anyway, I think the real reason why I love casseroles is because it reminds me of my mom. She used to make tuna and noodle all the time and I have distinct memories of her in our kitchen creating these little casseroles in her Corning Cookware. I don't know if anyone would say that she was a "gourmet cook", but I've never had better tuna and noodle casserole!

Tuna and Noodle Recipe:

Ingredients:

2 cans of albacore tuna in water

1 can of condensed cream of mushroom soup

Splash of milk

1 package of egg noodles

1 cup of frozen peas

Salt and pepper

Directions:

Boil the pasta in salted water for about 8 minutes. Drain and return to pot. Add both cans of tuna making sure to break up large chunks. Add the can of mushroom soup and the frozen peas. Mix together. If the consistency is a little sticky, add milk a few table spoons at a time until the sauce is thick, but smooth. Salt and pepper to taste. Pour into a oven safe glass pan and bake at 350 F until golden brown on top.