Monday, October 31, 2011

A Birthday Feast....

For my sons 2nd Birthday I decided to make a special dinner feast for my family.
Thanks to a few days off work I was able to catch up on daytime televison and saw some pretty interesting recipes by my favorite star chefs. Planning the menu was easy, I paired my personal favorites with a few new dishes from very trusted sources, Each dish came out perfectly delicious and super easy to make.
Menu:
1. Corn Bread
2. Artichoke and bean spread topped with prociutto - Giada De Laurentis
3. Vegetable Lasagna - Giada De Lourentis
4. String beans with feta cheese and candied walnuts  - Claire Robinson
5. Warm potato salad with leek, celery and carrots -  Rachel Ray
6. Sweet and Sour Chicken Balls
7. Baked Salmon
8. Baked Mahi Mahi
9. Mustard and rosemary roasted pork loin - Claire Robinson
10. Freshly Baked Flat Bread
 Artichoke spread on my home baked bread
 corn bread

vegetable lasagna

warm potato salad

string beans with candied walnuts

sweet and sour chicken balls

mahi mahi

Salmon

flat bread


prosciutto wrapped mustard pork loin

Corn Bread
Ingredients
1 package Jiffy corn muffin mix
1 8 oz container sour cream or Greek yogurt
1 small can of corn – drained
1 small can of creamed corn
2 eggs
¼ cup melted butter
¼ cup sugar
Mix all wet ingredients and corn, add corn muffin mix, transfer to a 9”x9” or whatever handy pan you have. Bake at 350 for 40 min uncovered in.


Artichoke and bean spread topped with prociutto - Giada De Laurentis
Ingredients
Vegetable cooking spray
4 very thin slices prosciutto
12 (1/4-inch thick) slices rustic country bread
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
1 (12-ounce) package frozen artichoke hearts, thawed
1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup grated Pecorino Romano
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon lemon zest
3 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Put an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a baking sheet with vegetable cooking spray
Lay the prosciutto in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes until crispy. Set aside to cool for 10 minutes.
On another baking sheet, arrange the bread slices in a single layer. Using a pastry brush, brush the bread with 1/4 cup of the oil. Bake until golden, about 12 to 15 minutes.
In a food processor, combine the artichoke hearts, beans, cheese, basil, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Pulse until the mixture is chunky. With the machine running, slowly add the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil. Spoon the artichoke mixture onto the crostini. Crumble the prosciutto and sprinkle on top. Drizzle with oil and serve.

Vegetable Lasagna - Giada De Lourentis
From the food network site:
Butter, for greasing
Olive oil, for drizzling
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 medium eggplant, cut into 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick slices
2 medium fennel bulbs, trimmed and sliced into 1/4-inch thick pieces
1 red bell pepper, cut into thirds
1 yellow bell pepper, cut into thirds
1 orange bell pepper, cut into thirds
1 (26-ounce) jar marinara sauce
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan
1 cup plain bread crumbs
Directions
Put a grill pan over medium-high heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Put an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter a 13 by 9-inch glass baking dish.
Drizzle the eggplant slices, fennel slices and peppers with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Grill the vegetables for 3 to 4 minutes each side until softened.
Spoon 3/4 cup of the marinara sauce over the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Arrange the eggplant slices on top. Sprinkle with 1 cup of mozzarella cheese and 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese. Arrange the peppers in a single layer on top. Spoon 3/4 cup of marinara sauce over the peppers. Sprinkle with 1 cup of mozzarella cheese and 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese. Arrange the fennel on top and cover with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Scatter the bread crumbs over the cheese and drizzle liberally with oil. Bake until the top is golden and forms a crust, about 30 to 35 minutes
Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Cook's Note: The vegetables can also be baked in a 375 degrees F oven for 15 to 20 minutes until softened.
4. String beans with feta cheese and candied walnuts  - Claire Robinson
Although the recipe inspiration was from Claire Robinson, I make string beans all the time, usually with balsamic vinegar and toasted almonds.  This time, I added some candied walnuts and feta cheese
1 lb string beans, trimmed( this recipe is best with haricot verts, these are just thinner string beans)
1 cup walnuts
¼ cup maple syrup
½ cup crumbled feta cheese

Throw string beans into boiling water for about 5 minutes then remove and place them in an ice bath ( pour cold water into a bowl and add ice, inorder to stop the cooking process)
Mix walnuts with mable syrup in a bowl, place on a cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes, let cool
In a sautee pan, heat olive oil, add string beans, feta cheese and walnuts, cook for about 3 minutes.

Warm potato salad with leek, celery and carrots -  Rachel Ray
This recipe is from foodnetwork.com
4 large Idaho potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
Salt
Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
8 slices center cut bacon, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 carrot, peeled then thinly sliced with a vegetable peeler, then chopped into bits
2 leeks
1/2 cup dry white wine, eyeball it
1/2 cup chicken stock, eyeball it
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, 5 to 6 sprigs, stripped and chopped
Black pepper
Directions
Place potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, salt water and cook until just tender 10 minutes.
Heat a medium skillet over medium high heat. Add a liberal drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and the bacon. Cook bacon until crisp.
Reserve bacon on paper towel lined plate, removing it from the pan with a slotted spoon. Drain some of the fat, leaving about 3 tablespoons in the pan. Add celery and carrots to the pan. While the vegetables cook, cut leeks lengthwise then into half moon slices 1/2- inch thick. Run the leeks under cold water and separate every layer to release the trapped grit. Drain well. Add leeks to sauteed veggies and cook another 4 to 5 minutes until tender. Deglaze the pan with wine and pick up any pan drippings. Reduce heat to low and add chicken stock and thyme.
Drain potatoes and return to hot pot to cook off water then transfer the potatoes to the skillet with the vegetables and stock. Carefully combine the potatoes and vegetables, add bacon back to the pan then season the warm salad with salt and black pepper, to taste.

Sweet and Sour Chicken Balls
Recipe in previous post
http://fastandgourmet.blogspot.com/2011/05/sweet-and-sour-chicken-balls.html

Baked Salmon/ Baked Mahi Mahi
I usually cook fish the same way.  Wash and pat dry fish, place in a baking dish.  Season with salt and pepper, squeeze lemon juice all over, cover and bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes. 
variation can be the spices you sprinkle with, italian seasoning, paprika or even curry are also great choices for variation.

Mustard and rosemary roasted pork loin - Claire Robinson
Recipe from foodnetwork.com, my special touch to this recipe was that i served it with warm fig jam, delicious!!!
Ingredients
1/3 cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon freshly chopped rosemary leaves, plus 4 sprigs rosemary, with hard woody stems
5 large garlic cloves, 2 cloves minced, 3 cloves smashed
2 pork tenderloins, about 1-pound each
4 slices maple bacon
Directions
In a small bowl, whisk together the Dijon mustard, fresh ground black pepper, chopped rosemary, and minced garlic and mix well. Rub the mustard mixture over the surface of the tenderloins and wrap in plastic wrap. Marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Place rosemary sprigs and smashed garlic in the center of a roasting pan. Remove the plastic wrap from the tenderloins and top each with 2 slices of maple bacon. Tie with kitchen twine to secure bacon strips.
Place the roasting pan in the oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer, inserted in the tenderloins, registers 160 degrees F. Remove from oven when desired doneness is reached and let sit for 5 to 10 minutes on a cutting board. Remove kitchen twine, slice and serve with your favorite sides. Garnish with the rosemary sprigs and garlic. Enjoy!

Freshly Baked Flat Bread
Recipe for the dough can be found in a previous blog post.  roll out and bake in a 450 degree oven for 10 minutes
http://fastandgourmet.blogspot.com/2011/01/i-love-pizza.html