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Cranberry Sauce with Vanilla, Maple Syrup and Cassis

Are you serving canned cranberry sauce on Thanksgiving?

The reason why we ask is because you can give your guests the most amazing cranberry sauce that has 6 ingredients and takes less than 10 minutes to make. We have been making this cranberry sauce for the past 4 years and actually double the recipe because the first year we made it, we ran out. 

We found this cranberry sauce recipe in one of our Fine Cooking Magazine and we haven't made anything else. When it works, you stick with it, especially when you only make it once a year.

If you have the cranberries, you will just need an orange, some sugar, maple syrup, creme de cassis and a vanilla bean. Everything gets mixed in a large pot and 10 minutes later, you have an amazing cranberry sauce. It's tart with a wonderful orange vanilla flavor. Perfect for turkey, chicken or ...we are going to serve it with swordfish kabobs tomorrow night.

If you don't have time to make the sauce for Thanksgiving, pick up a bag of cranberries over the weekend and make this cranberry sauce for left-over turkey sandwiches. After spending all that time making a big turkey dinner, what better way to complement your meal than with homemade cranberry sauce.

Because, there are no cans here!

Cranberry Sauce with Vanilla, Maple Syrup and Cassis

Ingredients:

6 cups (about 1-1/2 lb.) fresh or frozen cranberries, picked over and rinsed
2/3 cup of white sugar
1/3 cup of fresh orange juice (from 1 orange)
1/3 cup of crème de cassis (black-currant liqueur)
1/4 cup of maple syrup
1 tablespoon of finely grated orange zest (from 1 orange)
Half a vanilla bean, split and scraped

Preparation:

1. Remove zest from orange, then cut in half and squeeze juice from orange to 1/3 cup.

2. Put 3 cups of the cranberries, sugar, orange juice, orange zest, maple syrup, creme de cassis and vanilla bean in a medium (3 or 4 quart) saucepan.

3. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to medium, and cook,
stirring occasionally, until the cranberries have popped and broken down and the juices look slightly syrupy, 5 to 7 minutes.

4. Stir in the remaining 3 cups cranberries and cook until the cranberries have popped, an additional 3 to 5 minutes.

5. Remove from the heat, discard the vanilla bean, and let cool to room temperature.

6. Cover and refrigerate if not serving right away.

Note:
The cranberry sauce can be made up to one week in advance and kept covered in the refrigerator. Return to room temperature before serving.

Pork and Ricotta Meatballs in a Tomato Sauce

Spaghetti and meatballs. That's a common request at many households but asking for spaghetti and meatballs and getting spaghetti and meatballs are really two different things. (As seen above...)

It's really meatballs and sauce or meatballs and gravy to be correct. We have made many different variations of this recipe and always go back to the basics...some ground beef or pork, onions, garlic, eggs, bread crumbs, spices and parmesan cheese.

When Jeff went looking for one of our favorite recipes, Two different recipes, one great meal, he came across this recipe for Pork and Ricotta Meatballs in a Tomato Sauce from Food and Wine. As I was reading the recipe, I thought ricotta in the meatballs sounded different, but what about the onions and garlic? Was this meatball recipe going to taste good with fennel and crushed red pepper? How were spicy meatballs going to taste with a rather plain tomato sauce?

I saw the fennel seeds and crushed red pepper and thought this may not become a family favorite. We had a friend who used to make meatballs that were loaded with fennel and sometimes, that was all you could taste. The trick to any combination of herbs and spices is to enhance but not overpower the main ingredient.  Instead of using the herbs (fennel and crushed red pepper) as is, I decided to crush them further with a mortar and pestle, figuring that would mellow the flavor. I also like the meat mix of pork, veal and beef when making meatballs, it gives a firm but soft consistency. Today, many supermarkets carry it as a meatloaf mix. 

The ingredients came together quickly with the use of the food processor. The meatballs were a little wet but don't be concerned, they brown up nicely. Once the meatballs were cooked, we added the tomatoes. We found there wasn't much liquid so we added two additional cans of fire roasted, diced tomatoes.

Two hours later, this mixture was bubbling and the smell was heavenly. I grabbed a meatball and sliced it in half. I tasted the results and it was delicious. Moist and flavorful but not overbearing with the herbs. Then I went in for a better taste of the sauce...PERFECT! The flavor from the juices of the meatballs gave a perfect balance to the flavor of the sauce. We served it with homemade bread (which we will go into in the future) and it was a hit. Everyone in the family loved the dish. Because we doubled the recipe, we froze the remaining half and took it out last night for a quick dinner. The sauce tasted even better and the meatballs we still soft and flavorful...they melted in your mouth.

It's Saturday, think about a nice Sunday sauce and leftovers to freeze. C'mon, let's enjoy some spaghetti and meatballs!

Ingredients:

1/2 pound sliced white bread, crusts removed and bread cut into 1/2-inch dice (4 cups)
1 1/2 pounds meatball/meatloaf mix - beef, pork and veal
3 ounces thickly sliced pancetta, ground
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
2/3 cup ricotta cheese (5 ounces)
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds, chopped
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
3/4 teaspoon of kosher salt
1 28-ounce cans peeled Italian tomatoes, crushed
2 15-ounce cans of diced tomatoes, we used fire-roasted
Freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons shredded basil
1/2 cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese

1 pound of your favorite pasta, cooked according to instructions 

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 400°.
Place fennel seed, oregano, red pepper flakes and salt, into a mortar and grind with a pestle until fennel and red pepper are crushed. In a food processor, pulse the bread to coarse crumbs. Place in large bowl. Place pancetta in food processor and pulse until ground. Add to bread crumbs.
Add the pork, pancetta, eggs, ricotta, parsley, and ground ingredients. Mix well. Shape into 24 meatballs, using about 3 rounded tablespoons of the mixture for each. Transfer the meatballs to an oiled medium roasting pan.

Roast the meatballs in the oven for about 30 minutes, or until firm and just beginning to brown. Using a spatula, loosen the meatballs from the bottom of the pan. Add the crushed and diced tomatoes to the pan. Lower the oven temperature to 325° and cook uncovered for about 2 hours, or until the sauce is very thick and the meatballs are very tender; turn the meatballs once or twice during cooking. 

Taste and season with salt and pepper. Transfer the meatballs and tomato sauce to a large platter. Garnish with the basil and Pecorino cheese. Serve with your favorite pasta.

Oven Roasted Cherry Tomato Sauce and Fresh Pasta

 
(with fresh pasta from Venda Ravioli)

After being away for a week, in Missouri and Chicago, I was tired of eating out. All I wanted was a home cooked meal. Even though I had great meals while I was away, there is nothing better than a meal made at home with vegetables picked from your garden.

When I got home, it had been a busy week for Jeff and it seemed like our garden went from choice vegetables to overgrown and over ripened. The tomatoes were starting to split, due to rain, and the eggplants and cucumbers were enormous. We spent a good two hours picking as many tomatoes and vegetables as possible. With tons of ripe and overly ripe tomatoes we started on a mission to make sauce. Jeff had a cherry tomato sauce recipe his chiropractor had given him and I had my standard fresh tomato sauce recipe.

We started with the roma tomatoes and began boiling them to remove the skins. With 60 tomatoes, we peeled them and removed the pulp and seeds. I put them away and decided to complete that project later in the week.

We washed and picked through the cherry and grape tomatoes and mixed them with the onions, garlic and fresh herbs. We placed them in the pan and put them in the oven to roast for about 30 minutes. As they started to bake, the house smelled amazing! As they appeared burst and slightly golden, we removed them from the oven, added them to the fresh pasta and grated the entire dish with fresh parmesan cheese.

The first words out of my mouth were, "Now, this is what I was waiting for...a home cooked meal!" It was light and flavorful and makes you appreciate having a backyard garden. This dish rests on fresh ingredients. The fresh pasta was perfect and the roasted tomatoes were bursting with flavor giving the dish its "made from scratch" flavor.  I can't imagine putting this recipe together in the dead of winter with store bought tomatoes and dried herbs. Get some crusty Italian bread and PERFECTO!

Before the summer ends, promise me you will make this recipe, it's easy, the ingredients are readily available and you will swear this is the best dish you have ever made. Mangia! 

Ingredients:

2 pints of cherry and/or grape tomatoes

1 large onion, diced

2 large cloves of garlic, crushed (for 2 tablespoons)

2 tablespoons of each, freshly chopped 1. basil 2. oregano 3. parlsey 

1/2 cup of olive oil

1 teaspoon of kosher salt

1 teaspoon of black pepper

grated parmesan cheese

1 pound of fresh or boxed pasta

 
(picked fresh from our garden)

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Combine tomatoes, onion, garlic, herbs, salt, pepper and olive oil in an oven safe pan. Cook for 25-35 minutes or until all the tomatoes have burst. (see below) Cook pasta according to directions. Toss pasta with tomato sauce and top with parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

 
(after roasting in the oven)

If you want to be more creative, consider adding artichoke hearts, black olives and/or mozzarella cheese.

 

White Barn Inn Basil Pesto

 

Back two weeks ago, we traveled up to Kennebunkport, Maine to spend the weekend celebrating a close friend's 50th birthday. We stayed at the cutest place called The Cottages at Cabot Cove. Perfect sized cottages for two people. As part of our weekend stay, we made reservations at the White Barn Inn restaurant to enjoy an incredible dining experience. The White Barn Inn offers the only combined AAA Five Diamond and Forbes Five Star dining experience north of New York City. Being a foodie, this is like heaven. The meal was amazing, all the way to my flour less chocolate cake sitting between layers of praline...death by chocolate.

As we left, our friends purchased a signed copy of The White Barn Inn Cookbook. Ah, the memories of an incredible dinner, brought to life in a cookbook. I couldn't stop reading through the recipes.

We are starting slow with this cookbook (it's a 5 star) and since the basil in our yard is overflowing, pesto was the first on the list. I liked this pesto recipe because it was very easy and used three different types of nuts. The flavor to this dish is amazing...nutty and fresh.

Not only did we serve it as an appetizer with crackers, we put it on crusty bread with dinner and we finished the last of it with a chicken ravioli pesto recipe. Delicious alone and versatile with other ingredients, think pizza, pasta or a  sandwich spread, the list goes on. The White Barn Inn suggests mixing it with Idaho potatoes to make a pesto potato puree.

This is a great staple for any occasion. Make a batch and unleash your taste buds to endless opportunities.

Ingredients:

a bunch of basil leaves (about 2 cups packed)

a 1/2 bunch of flat leaf parsley (about 1 cup packed)

1 clove of garlic, sliced

3/4 cup of parmesan cheese, grated

1 cup of olive oil

1/4 cup of pistachio nuts

1/4 cup of pine nuts

1/4 cup of walnuts

salt and pepper to taste

crusty bread (sliced thin) or stone ground crackers

Preparation:

Place the basil, parsley, garlic, cheese and olive oil in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add the nuts and chop a few more seconds being careful not to over-process the mixture. The nuts should be chopped to a medium texture. Add salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate until ready to use. We serve ours with crusty bread.

The pesto will keep best in a non-reactive glass or stainless steel container. Place a layer of olive oil on the top to keep the mixture fresh and green.

Saveur's Spaghetti alla Carbonara

 
With 18 people coming for Easter dinner, Saturday was a long day of food preparation. By 5 PM, we were exhausted and the thought of making dinner was overwhelming. We were looking for something that was easy, quick and tasty. Jeff had found a recipe for Spaghetti alla Carbonara in April's Saveur Magazine. Seeing as he had picked up a 1/2 pound of pancetta from the North End on Friday, what better way to use it. In the time it took us to cook the spaghetti, the sauce was completed and just waiting to be mixed.

Over the past few month's we have been doing quite a few recipes that call for pancetta, I am really enjoying the taste that pancetta brings to a dish. I can best describe it as "better than bacon". The sauce was thick and coated the spaghetti. It was a perfect blend of pasta, pancetta, parmesan and pepper. I liked how the pepper was cooked in the pan with the pancetta, it gave the dish a fragrant tone.

We sat down and enjoyed generous helpings of this traditional Italian dish. I actually went back for seconds...it was good, really good!

Ingredients:

4 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
4 oz. thinly sliced guanciale or pancetta cut into 1⁄2" pieces
2 tsp. freshly cracked black pepper, plus more to taste
1 3⁄4 cups finely grated Parmesan
1 egg plus 3 yolks
Kosher salt, to taste
1 lb. spaghetti

Preparation:

1. Heat oil in a 10" skillet over medium heat. Add guanciale and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, 6–8 minutes. Add pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, 2 minutes more. Transfer guanciale mixture to a large bowl and let cool slightly; stir in 1 1⁄2 cups Parmesan and egg and yolks and stir to combine; set aside.

2. Meanwhile, bring a 6-qt. pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta; cook until al dente, 8–10 minutes. Reserve 3⁄4 cup water; drain pasta and transfer it to guanciale mixture. Toss, adding pasta water a little at a time to make a creamy sauce. Season with salt and pepper; serve with remaining Parmesan.

Food & Wine's Ginger-Garlic Shrimp with Tangy Tomato Sauce

 
Last night my cousins and sister, along with their spouses, came to our house for an evening of food and fun. We had gotten together during the summer and had promised to set another date during the year. Jeff and I had found some new recipes and what better an audience to try them on. We had a little bit of everything, cheeses, dips and breads, a vegetable tart, fish cakes, risotto and ended with Texas sheet cake.

As food was coming out of the oven or off the grill, they had a chance to taste a wide variety of dishes. Hands down, the top two choices were Carrot Top and Toasted Walnut Pesto and Saveur's Fish Cakes. They found the pesto delicious since it wasn't the traditional basil pesto. They liked the garlic and red pepper flake bite. The fish cakes were also a hit because they were light and the cod was fresh (that morning we went to Kyler's Seafood in New Bedford). They liked the taste of the fish cakes without it being fishy tasting.

Everyone then began to have individual favorites. Over the next week, we will be featuring all the food we served. We'd like to start with Food & Wine's Ginger-Garlic Shrimp with Tangy Tomato Sauce because we have served this appetizer to rave reviews over the past year. They do take some time to prepare but the results are worth it. The shrimp is cooked on the grill and it always tastes moist and flavorful with some garlic and ginger heat. The tomato dipping sauce is a wonderful compliment. I can't remember what disappears first the shrimp or the sauce. Hold on to this recipe for your next outdoor event, your guests will love you.

Note: I apologize for not being able to show the sauce, trying to take pictures during a party can be a challenge! Enjoy!

Ingredients

SHRIMP

1. 1/2 cup vegetable oil
2. 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
3. 2 tablespoons minced garlic
4. 2 tablespoons finely chopped basil
5. 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
6. 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
7. 2 teaspoons kosher salt
8. 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
9. 2 1/2 pounds large shrimp, shelled and deveined

DIPPING SAUCE

1. 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2. 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
3. 1 large garlic clove, minced
4. 3 stalks of fresh lemongrass, tender inner bulb only, minced
5. 1 1/2 pounds tomatoes—peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped
6. 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
7. 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
8. Kosher salt

Directions

1. Marinate the shrimp: In a large bowl, mix the vegetable oil with the parsley, garlic, basil, ginger, lemon juice, salt and crushed red pepper. Add the shrimp and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 4 hours.
2. Meanwhile, make the sauce: In a medium saucepan, heat the vegetable oil. Stir in the ginger, garlic and lemongrass and cook over moderate heat until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Let cool to room temperature, then stir in the lime juice and cilantro. Season with salt. Transfer the sauce to ramekins.
3. Light a grill. Loosely thread the shrimp onto 10 skewers. Grill over moderately high heat, turning once, until lightly charred and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer the shrimp to plates and serve with the tomato sauce.

 

Me, cousin Andria, cousin Sue, cousin Jane, cousin Terri, sister Karen.

Yellow Cherry Tomato Spread

  
This weekend my cousins are coming for an evening of wine, assorted appetizers and desserts. Jeff and I spent time this past week cooking up with some dips and sauces to serve with bread or crackers. I had bought two pints of yellow cherry tomatoes and figured I'd make a quick tomato sauce. The result was a yellow cherry tomato spread. 

Looking at its color, we couldn't imagine it on pasta, so we started spreading it on baguette slices. The results were fantastic. The sweetness of tomatoes with the bite of red pepper flakes. We ate it both heated and cold, the flavors were wonderful at both temperatures. When you use all fresh ingredients the flavor is incredible! 

The one thing I wish we had tried was placing a thin slice of fresh mozzarella on the top of the spread. Well, we still have time, we are serving it on Saturday night. I'll report the results.

Ingredients:

2 pint size containers of yellow cherry tomatoes, washed and cut in half

1/3 cup of olive oil

3 cloves of garlic, chopped

1/2 chopped onion (about 1/2 cup)

16 leaves of fresh basil, chopped

1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

1 french baguette, cut into 1 inch slices

Preparation:

1. Heat saute pan over medium heat, add olive oil.

2. Once oil is heated, add the onions and garlic.

3. Cook about 5-7 minutes until the onions are translucent and soft.

4. Add the tomatoes, basil and red pepper flakes.

5. Once the tomatoes have broken down and the sauce becomes watery, reduce to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes or until the sauce thickens.

6. Place on baguette slices and serve with a small sprig of basil.

Option: If you would like, lightly toast the baguette slices.
 

Carrot Top and Toasted Walnut Pesto

 
Yesterday, we had the pleasure of stopping by the Winter Farmer's Market located at Attleboro Farms in North Attleboro, MA. This was a great place to visit on a cold Sunday. There were numerous booths filled with farmers and artisan food producers. (North Attleborough Winter Farmer's Market)

As we were purchasing some organic raviolis from NorthStar Farms, they were also selling bunches of organic baby carrots. With the baby carrots was a recipe for Carrot Top Pesto. It seemed interesting and it reminded me of some of the parsley pesto recipes we have made before.

What I loved the most about this recipe is we got to use everything we bought...carrots and greens. The pesto was a little different since you do have to cook the carrot greens and onions first. After finally getting all ingredients in the food processor and giving it a few pulses, we had a great appetizer for crackers and bread. It had a wonderfully nutty taste with a warm bite. My younger son, who can be picky about what he eats, kept dipping crackers and enjoying the mix.

I'm hoping to have a little left at the end of the week because I will be making a vegetable risotto and it might benefit from a few tablespoons of carrot top pesto.

Ingredients:

1 bunch carrot greens (organic, washed, and loosely chopped)
1 clove garlic
1/2 onion chopped
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 cup toasted walnuts
1/4 cup chopped italian parsley
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 cup olive oil (we found we only used about 3/4 cup, total)
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

In a saute pan, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and loosely chopped carrot greens. Heat the greens and onions just until wilted (about 2 minutes). Remove from heat and let cool for a few moments.

In a blender, add the garlic, crushed red pepper, salt, pepper, walnuts, parsley, cheese, carrot greens mixture and half of the left over olive oil. Puree in pulses. Add the rest of the olive oil as needed to make a loose paste. Taste and adjust seasonings and oil.

Serve over prepared pasta, as a garnish for soups, or as a sandwich spread.
Keep in container in refrigerator for several days, or freeze for several weeks.
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