Author Archives: sacco150

About sacco150

Love to cook, love to eat, love to feed my people!

Sunday brunch…

My daughter recently moved out, into the big world! We had her and her boyfriend over for Sunday brunch today, it was fun to again cook for more than two people (I may have gone a little overboard). We started with mini-quiches followed by fresh banana bread, a Stromboli and a tossed salad.

I cook the mini-quiches in a cupcake tin. I put whatever fillers I’m using (these were filled with spinach, feta, olives and artichoke hearts) into a buttered cup then top off with scrambled raw egg. Bake for 20 minutes until egg is cooked through and serve immediately.

Pro-tip: Sauté freshly chopped spinach slightly before adding to tins. Also make sure all fillers are roughly chopped.

The banana bread – truth – from a box mix – and there’s not a crumb left so I guess it was good.

Stromboli is super fun to make. You can use any ingredients that you have on hand and you can make it either sweet or savory. The one I made today used only half a pizza dough (from our local pizzeria) and was topped with ham, mozzarella, artichoke hearts, spinach and cherry tomatoes. Bake for about 40 minutes, cut and serve!

Appetizers, Mezze, Antipasto, Tapas…

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We’ve been into little dishes lately. Usually meatballs are reserved for Sunday sauce but this week we turned them into an appetizer. For this batch I used a mix of ground beef and ground pork (you could also use veal or ground chicken or turkey). I seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic powder, crushed red pepper and fresh minced mint. For the binder I used an egg and panko bread crumbs. (I would advise you to add some fresh grated parmesan cheese…which I can’t do because SOMEONE doesn’t eat cheese…)

I baked these babies in the over at 350 for about 30 minutes and served with a side of spicy mayo. They smelled great and the pop of mint was amazing.

Low carb and yummy…

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Spaghetti squash is our new go to lately. It’s super versatile, easy to prepare and low carb/calorie. The hardest part of this squash is cutting it open!

To prepare this dish I halved a spaghetti squash and removed the seeds. I then seasoned with a little EVOO, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes (you can add whatever seasonings you’d like). Place cut side down in a baking pan and toss in pre-heated 350 degree oven for about an hour (depending on size). You can tell it’s done by poking a fork in the squash – if it goes in easily it’s done.

The fun part is the toppings – we’re trying to empty out our freezer so I’m using everything in there. I sautéed some sausage and shrimp (adding garlic, red pepper flakes, salt & pepper). I also had some left over escarole and frozen peas which I added.

To plate this dish I first scooped out the spaghetti squash, topped with escarole, then topped that with the shrimp & sausage, pea sauté. Of course a healthy sprinkling of parmesan makes everything better. It was super flavorful and filled us up!

Freshness overload

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Last night’s dinner was a go-to for us. Chicken cutlet with bruschetta. My bruschetta changes depending on what looks fresh in the produce department. I was lucky enough to be in Astoria the other day and shopped at my favorite grocery store (shout out to Berry Fresh on Ditmars). So for this bruschetta I incorporated fresh cucumbers, dill, tomatoes, red onion, chopped Greek olives, a fabulous feta cheese and a good quality EVOO. I mix this all together with a little kosher salt & pepper and let it get cozy in the fridge for about an hour so that all the flavors come together. Take it out of the fridge about 20 minutes before serving.

You can use this bruschetta on top of any protein you like. Last night I fried up some chicken cutlets and plated it all on top of some of steamed broccoli rabe and a side of tzatziki.

Pro-tip: when you steam the broccoli rabe add a bullion cube to the boiling water, this takes the bitterness out of the broccoli rabe. Also, I drain the cooked broccoli rabe then quickly sauté it with a little garlic, salt, pepper and crushed red pepper flakes (just long enough to incorporate all the spices).

Comfort food…

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Life is chaos right now so I needed comfort food dish that would not be stressful to make. Orecchiette, sausage, shrimp and broccoli rabe was just that dish last night.

Start by blanching coarsely chopped broccoli rabe (add a bullion cube to the boiling water to take the bitterness away). Then sauté de-cased sausage, shrimp, a little crushed red pepper and of course a little (or a lot) of crushed garlic. Once the sausage and shrimp are cooked through add the cooked (al dente!) orecchiette and mixed it all together. Add a few ladle fulls of the pasta water to create a bit of a broth.

Voila! Super flavorful, satisfying and easy to do. You can totally switch out the proteins here (think chicken, lobster, cod…)

Pro-tip: Add a touch of cream or mascarpone to thicken up the broth and deepen the flavor.

A BBQ Kind of Night…

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I have been jonesing for a BBQ. I don’t ever BBQ for myself because I never seem to figure out temperatures, so I leave that to my hubby. I’ll throw anything on the grill and just know it will taste better. So for this BBQ, we started with some fresh clams with butter. Literally just soak the clams for 30 minutes before cooking to get them to release any sand and toss them on the BBQ until they open. A little melted butter for dunking just makes it even better. And of course we had to throw some shrimp on the barbie too…

After that yummy appetizer, we prepared some steaks (don’t forget to leave them out before cooking – never cook a steak straight from the fridge). Simply salt & pepper and ready to grill. I love a ribeye and hubby goes for a filet mignon so we need to adjust our cooking times. We also wrapped up some potatoes in aluminum foil – get these on the grill way before the steaks as they’ll need more time to cook.

As a side dish, I made an old school recipe that I haven’t made in million years – escarole with white beans. I actually had to call a friend to remind me how to make this. You really have to clean the escarole well as it tends to be sandy. After that, roughly chop and blanch for 7 minutes (I add a bullion cube to the boiling water, which takes some of the bitterness out of the escarole), strain the cooked escarole and immediately rinse with cold water to bring back that pretty green color. Sauté minced garlic in a little EVOO, add escarole, warm through, add a can of rinsed white beans, warm through, season with salt & pepper and serve. I could have this as a main dish, it was really flavorful and filling.

Bean, beans, good for the heart…

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I have a funny memory of my Italian grandparents getting into an epic fight about burnt lentils. They were both great cooks so kitchen disasters were not common, maybe that’s why I have never cooked lentils before. It’s a cold miserable day here today, so I experimented with lentils, making a super flavorful, hearty soup. Here’s what I used:

Ingredients:

Trilogy (all diced: 1 onion, 2 stalks celery and 2 carrots)
1 clove of garlic diced
2 cups red lentils
8 cups of vegetable broth
4 cups of roughly chopped baby spinach
1 cup of coconut milk

Here’s how to make the magic happen.

In a large pot, saute the trilogy in a little EVOO. Season with salt & pepper. When barely soft (about 7 minutes) toss in rinsed lentils (just put them in a strainer and rinse under cold water). Add the vegetable broth and stir to incorporate. Under fairly high heat bring soup to a boil. Stir together and cover pot and reduce heat to low. Let this cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. After 30 minutes the lentils will be tender and the consistency will be on the thicker side. Remove from heat and add the spinach, stirring into the soup and cover for 5 minutes. Stir again to blend the now wilted spinach and add coconut milk. Warm up on low flame for another five minutes and voila!

I really liked this dish. It was a hearty lunch and something I’ve never made before. I think my grandparents would be proud LOL.

Protein Bowl Kick…

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I seem to be on a protein bowl kick. I think they’re super fun to make and have endless variations. Low carb, full of flavor and fresh veggies and protein.

This yummy bowl started with blackened shrimp (my new obsession – I use Old Bay Blackening mix, it’s great and not super salty). I simply sprinkle the shrimp with the seasoning and saute them quickly in my wok. When cooked, I removed the shrimp from the wok and quickly stir fried the black beans, diced tomatoes, red bell pepper, red onion, and jalapeno.

For the layers I started with spaghetti squash (which I had leftover and just warmed up) followed by the stir fried veggies, shrimp, avocado and a little cheddar to top it off.

Protein Bowl…

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What to do with leftover steak, shrimp, chicken or other protein? Make a protein bowl (inspired by my favorite quick eatery – when we actually had to leave the house to work – Dos Toros). It’s very easy to prepare and assemble. I warmed up my leftover steak (cut into small cubes) in a pan. I also warmed up some black beans in a separate pan. When it’s all warmed up simply layer ingredients in your bowl: first beans, then steak, then top with whatever you like. I topped this bowl off with san marzano tomatoes diced up, diced red onion, chopped fresh avocado, fresh chopped jalapeno then a handful of shredded cheddar. I also added a few julienned fresh mint leaves from the garden just to give it a pop. You can toss this all under a broiler for a few minutes to melt cheese or just go for it as is!

When a snack’ll do it…

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Sometimes you just don’t need a big meal. Tapas, mezze, antipasto, appetizers, whatever you call it, it’s fun to make and to share.

Last night we plated up some mortadella, prosciutto, gouda, homemade pickles, pepperoncini and fresh bruschetta.

Add a nice crusty baguette or warmed pita bread and you’re all set!

(And the wine, don’t forget the wine!)

Pro-tip: The bruschetta is super easy to pull together. I dice up some really ripe plum or san marzano tomatoes (if I can find them), add minced garlic and diced red onion to taste and season with kosher salt, fresh cracked pepper and a little dried oregano. Let it marry for about an hour in the fridge. Meanwhile, cut the baguette into 1/2 inch slices and brush one side with a little EVOO. Then to toast – I toast only one one side, leaving the other side softer. I do this so the crouton doesn’t break into a million pieces when you take a bite of it. When cooled top (the toasted side) with about 1 teaspoon of tomato mixture, plate and serve!