Gnocchi with Turkey Sausage, Tomatoes and Spinach

Gnocchi with Turkey Sausage, Tomatoes and Spinach

Top with shredded parmesan cheese, if desired

-1 package store bought gnocchi, cooked to package directions

-2 Tbsp olive oil

-1 onion, diced

-2 cloves garlic, minced

-1 lb Italian turkey sausage

-1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes

-1 tsp salt

-1/2 tsp pepper

-1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

-1/4 c heavy cream

-1/2 lb spinach

Heat oil in pan over medium heat. Add onion, saute, stirring often, 5 minutes. Add garlic, saute 1 additional minute. Add turkey sausage, crumbling the meat from the casings. Cook while breaking up with a wooden spoon until sausage is cooked through. About 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and their juices. Add salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Add cream. Add spinach a few handfuls at a time stirring and adding more spinach as it wilts down. Once all of the spinach is wilted add cooked gnocchi, stir and serve.

Kheema (Indian Beef and Peas)

Kheema (Indian Beef and Peas)

Serve this over rice of your choice- we like basmatti and garnish with cilantro, if desired.

-2 Tbsp canola oil
-1 onion, diced
-1 inch knob ginger, peeled and minced
-4 cloves garlic, minced
-1 lb ground beef
-1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes
-2 Tbsp curry powder
-1 tsp turmeric
-1/2 tsp cumin
-1 Tbsp sugar
-1 tsp salt
-1/4 tsp cayenne
-1 russet potato, peeled and cubed
1 cup frozen peas

Heat oil in medium pot over medium heat. Add onion and ginger, saute 5 minutes. Add garlic, saute 1 additional minute. Add beef, cook breaking up with a wooden spoon until well browned. Drain off fat. Add diced tomatoes, curry powder, turmeric, cumin, sugar, salt and cayenne and stir. Add potato, continue to cook, stirring intermittently, until potato is tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in peas, cook 5 additional minutes and serve.

Wilted Spinach Salad

Wilted Spinach Salad

This is one of my favorite salads. It's simple, yet elegant. You can serve it with cloves of roasted garlic, toasted pine nuts, or curls of parmesan cheese.

-2 Tbsp olive oil
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1/2 pound spinach
-1/2 tsp salt
-1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
-juice of 1 lemon

Heat oil in pan over medium heat. Add garlic, saute 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add spinach a few handfuls at a time, stirring as it cooks down and adding more when you have room. Once all of the spinach is incorporated and wilted remove from heat, add salt, red pepper flakes and lemon juice and serve immediately.

White Bean Soup

White Bean Soup

This is my altered version of Shauna Niequist's Magical White Bean Soup from her book Bread and Wine. This soup base is vegan, glutenfree, quick, easy, inexpensive yet delicious and elegant. I like to leave it chunky, but it would be just as good pureed smooth. 

For The Soup
-2 Tbsp olive oil

-1 onion, diced
-1/2 pound carrots, diced
-1 bulb fennel, diced
-4 celery ribs, diced
-1 Tbsp dried rosemary

-1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
-6 cans white beans in liquid (cannellini or great northern beans)
-salt and pepper to taste

For The Vinaigrette
-1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
-1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
-1/4 teaspoon salt
-1/4 teaspoon pepper
-1/4 cup olive oil

For Serving
Prosciutto, torn into ribbons
Parmesan, curled into strips with a vegetable peeler

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, fennel, and celery, and allow to soften, 10 to 15 minutes. Add beans in their liquid, rosemary and red pepper flakes. Cover and cook for 20 minutes at a gentle boil. Taste, add salt and pepper, taste again-- keep in mind that you'll get a good amount of salt from the toppings. Cook for an additional 20 minutes, or longer if you have time.

While the soup cooks, make the vinaigrette. Place all of the ingredients in a blender or food processor and mix until evenly incorporated.

To serve, ladle soup into bowls, drizzle with vinaigrette and top with parmesan and prosciutto (if desired).

Cherry Clafoutis

Cherry Clafoutis

This is one of my favorite desserts. It's simple yet elegant. It's not overly involved or overly sweet. Most importantly, it's delicious!

-3 eggs
-1/2 c sugar
-6 Tbsp butter, melted and cooled slightly
-1 c flour
-1 c milk
-1/2 tsp almond extract
-2.5 c frozen cherries, thawed

Beat the sugar and eggs together with a whisk until they lighten in color. Gradually add butter, beating to incorporate. Add the flour and whisk until everything is evenly incorporated into the batter. Next slowly pour in the milk a little at a time. Add the extract, mixing well.

Place the cherries in a greased round baking dish or cake pan (9 or 10 inches in diameter). Pour the batter over the fruit. Bake at 400 25 to 30 minutes, until slightly browned and almost completely set in the middle. Let sit at least 15 minutes before serving in wedges. Dust with powdered sugar if desired.

Cream Cheese Blueberry Galette

Cream Cheese Blueberry Galette

I took the quick and easy route on this one using store bought pie dough for the pastry. You can easily substitute your favorite pie crust recipe for the store bought variety. This is one of my favorite desserts. It's pretty, easy yet elegant, not overly sweet or heavy and  is delicious!

-1 store bought refrigerated pie crust
-2.5 cups frozen blueberries, thawed and drained
-1/3 cup plus 2 Tbsp granulate sugar, divided use
-4 tsp cornstarch
-1 (8 oz) package cream cheese
-1 tsp vanilla extract
-1 egg, plus 1 egg yolk

Place the pie crust on top of parchment paper on a sheet pan. 

Toss the blueberries, 1/3 cup sugar and cornstarch in a bowl. 

With a mixer, beat the cream cheese, vanilla, egg yolk and the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in a separate bowl.

Spread the cream cheese mixture over the dough, leaving a 2-inch border. Top with the blueberries. Fold the edge of the dough over the filling working your way around the entire circle a few inches at a time.  Brush the crust with the beaten egg and sprinkle with a little extra sugar. Bake at 425 until the crust is golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool slightly before slicing.

Beef Stroganoff

Beef Stroganoff

I like to serve this over whole wheat egg noodles but you could do it over rice, potatoes or any pasta of your preference. Garnish with parsley if desired.

-1 Tbsp olive oil
-1 lb flank steak, sliced into strips, across the grain
-2 Tbsp butter
-1 onion, diced
-1 (16 oz) package mushrooms, sliced
-2 cups beef broth
-5 Tbsp flour
-1 tsp thyme
-1/2 tsp salt
-1/2 tsp pepper
-1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
-1 Tbsp dijon mustard
-1/2 cup sour cream

Heat oil in medium pot over medium heat. Add flank steak, saute, stirring often, 3-5 minutes, until the strips are cooked rare ( somewhat browned, but still have some pink to them).  Set steak aside and drain off juices from meat. Add butter and onion to the pan, saute 5 minutes. Add mushrooms. Saute 5 additional minutes. Whisk together broth and flour, then pour into pan. Bring to a simmer, stirring everything. Once broth has thickened add salt, pepper, Worcestershire and dijon and stir to combine. Add beef back to the pot and turn off the heat. Stir in sour cream and serve.

Green Chile Strata

Green Chile Strata

This is a unique twist on the traditional breakfast casserole. It can all be assembled up to 24 hours in advance then refrigerated until you are ready to bake and serve.

-10 eggs
-2 cups milk
-1 tsp salt
-2 (7 oz) cans green chiles
-2 cups shredded pepper jack cheese
-10 corn tortillas, cut into bite sized strips

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk and salt. Stir in green chiles (and their juice), pepper jack and tortillas. Pour mixture into a greased 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes, until the casserole is set and browned and puffy on top. Serve.

Zucchini and Rice Gratin

Zucchini and Rice Gratin

This is a twist on an old school Julia Child recipe. I have lightened up her recipe significantly and simplified the process. I loved the end result. This would be a great way to use up day old leftover rice.

-1/2 cup heavy cream
-1 tsp salt
-1/2 tsp pepper
-1 tsp dried thyme
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-6 zucchini, shredded (I used a food processor)
-1 cup cooked rice
-3/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese, divided use

In a medium bowl, whisk together cream, salt, pepper, thyme and garlic. Stir in shredded zucchini, rice and 1/2 cup parmesan cheese. Pour into a greased, medium sized casserole dish and top with remaining 1/4 cup parmesan. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes, until cheese on top has browned. Sprinkle with parsley if desired and serve immediately.

Turkey Sausage and Sweet Potato Hash

Turkey Sausage and Sweet Potato Hash

This is one of my favorite breakfasts ever, or also serves as a great breakfast for dinner. The flavor combination of the smokey sweet potatoes with the turkey sausage is amazing. I like to serve it with hot sauce and avocado slices. Because I like the pairing of sweet potatoes and black beans I like those as a side also, or some fruit.

-2 Tbsp olive oil
-1 Tbsp chili powder
-1 tsp cumin
-1 tsp salt
-1/2 tsp pepper
-1/4 tsp cayenne
-2 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
-1 lb turkey breakfast sausage
-1 dozen eggs
-chopped cilantro

In a greased 9 x 13 pan combine olive oil through cayenne and stir to mix well. Add sweet potatoes and stir until well coated. Bake at 400 for 30 minutes, stirring halfway through.

While sweet potatoes are baking, cook turkey sausage in a pan, breaking up with a spoon while cooking. Drain off fat and set aside.

Once sweet potatoes are done, stir in turkey sausage into the pan. Then top the mixture with eggs and bake at 400 an additional 10-15 minutes until the egg whites are set but the yolks aren't fully cooked. Remove from oven, top with cilantro and serve.

Slow Cooker Beef Ragu

Slow Cooker Beef Ragu

This is such a hearty, easy dish that will warm you from the inside out. I served this over polenta but it would be great over pasta, rice or even mashed potatoes. Top with parmesan cheese and/ or parsley if desired.

- 1 Tbsp olive oil
-1 (29 oz) can crushed tomatoes
-1 onion, diced
-4 cloves garlic, minced
-1 Tbsp sugar
-1 tsp salt
-1/2 tsp pepper
-1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
-1 tsp dried rosemary
-1 tsp dried thyme
-1/2 tsp dried oregano
-1- 1.5 flank steak, trimmed of excess fat
-2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

Grease the inside of a slow cooker with olive oil. Add the crushed tomatoes through oregano in the slow cooker and stir. Cut the flank steak into 4 pieces, place in slow cooker and spoon some of the tomato mixture over top. Cook on low for 8-10 hours until meat easily shreds easily. Stir in balsamic vinegar and serve over top of a starch of your choice.