Got the Kraft Mac n Cheese Blues?

So there were certain staples in our diets as undergrads: One was Ramen, and of course Kraft Mac n Cheese. And as good at the time as both of those were, mostly cause we were so hungry we would have eaten day old, left out all night, pizza (which Im sure in a hungover stupor I have), the thought of powdered, day glow orange cheese that would stain your whites/counters, quickly lost its luster.  Not to mention for how much work/other ingredients you STILL had to put into making it (milk, butter, and boil the darn noodles), you might as well just make totally awesome, scrumptious, mouthwatering, mac n cheese that will feed an army, or you for days.  I am certainly not going to claim this to be GOURMET, but ask my constituents and they will tell you that this recipe is a winner!

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients

preheat oven to 350 F

• 2 X 16 oz boxes Macaroni Elbow Noodles 
• 1 large block of velveeta 
• 3/4 of a half gallon of milk
• 1 stick of butter
• 2/3 cup of flour
• 1 small-medium white onion (finely chopped)
• 6 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 6 roma tomatoes
• 1 cup of parmesan cheese (fresh or from shaker)
• 1/3 cup of fresh parsley 
• 2 tblsp paprika (not necessary)

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add a couple dashes of salt, add your noodles. Cook til just tender (about 10-15 minutes, you want them slightly el dente).  Drain noodles thoroughly, and in a 9 X 13 greased pan, add your noodles.Set to the side.  You will probably end up having some noodles left over. 
2. In medium to large saucepan, melt your butter over medium heat.  Add your onion and garlic.  Let simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add your flour to the butter/onion mixture.  This will make your roux.  Mix til evenly distributed and is a thick paste.
4. Add about half of your milk to the roux.  Using a whisk, over medium heat, stir until the paste is completely dissolved.  Bring the milk mixture up to temp (hot enough to easily melt your cheese) but do not let burn.  Stir occasionally.
5. Cube all of your velveeta.  Add about a quarter of the block in at a time.  Make sure to keep the cheese from sitting on the bottom of the pot or else it will burn, continuously stir until all of your cheese is completely melted. The consistency should not be soupy, more like a thinned out version of cheese dip.  So at this point it will probably be super thick.  Add more milk according to how ooey gooey you want your sauce to be.  You very well might want to add the rest of the milk, but use your own discretion.
6. Add your fresh parsley, and if you want about 2 tblspns of paprika
7. Make sure the noodles in your 9 X 13 are broken up, not clumpy.  Simply just use your hands to do this.  You can then take your sauce and pour evenly over the top of the noodles (start with a little more than half of the sauce).  Mix the sauce and noodles until evenly distributed.  Then add the rest of your sauce, and do the same.  It should be extremely saucey!
8. slice your roma tomatoes, thin but not paper thin. Place them on top of your mac n cheese evenly (make sure to press down your MacnCheese into the pan so you have a flat surface to put the tomatoes on).
9. Sprinkle the Parmesan over the top of the tomatoes.
10. Place in oven at 350 degrees F for about 30-40 minutes, or until bubbly.

There are lots of things you can do to this basic recipe to diversify.  Personally I like to add bacon, but you could even add spinach or bleu cheese. Or if you just love basil use that instead of parsley!

Served this, along with homemade chicken tenders at a potluck/game night I threw this past weekend.  Unfortunately I was not able to take a picture of my mac n cheese because the minute I put it on the table, the masses dove in, and it was quickly polished off....which is obviously a happy moment for any cook :0)  This served, with some leftovers, 10 people (8 of which were hungry men).

COOKING TIP:  This mac n cheese can totally be frozen.  Just make sure to take off the tomatoes before doing so, as they get a little mucky if you freezem'.  Then simply cut your Mac n Cheese into squares of appropriate serving size, and individually wrap them in plastic wrap.  Then place them all into large freezer bags.  This way if you are at a loss of what to eat, especially if its JUST yourself, you have an easy, serving for one size, mac n cheese!

Perfect Friday Dinner: Goat Cheese, Caramelized Onion, and Prosciutto Flatbread Pizza

So you get home from work, and you want to have your significant other over for dinner, drinks, and a movie.  The only problem is time right?  Not with this recipe!  I made this tasty concoction this past friday after joe and I had a helluva week, and wanted to simply enjoy each others company and a nice glass of wine (by the way may I recommend the Stellina di Notte Chianti, was extremely well priced and very smooth).

not a pic of my ACTUAL pizza but looks pretty darn close.  Mine used basil instead of arugula.

Goat Cheese, Carmalized Onion, and Prosciutto

Flatbread Pizza


Ingredients (serves 2-4 people)

• 1 medium sized pre-made flat-bread, or for individual sized pizzas get the gyros pita bread.
• 16 oz goat cheese
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 8 halved/quartered cloves of ROASTED garlic (see below how to make)
• 2 tsp lemon zest
• 1/2 cup of fresh basil
• 1/4 lb of thinly sliced prosciutto (make sure when you order it from the deli that you ask them to place paper between each slice)
• 3 medium white onions, chopped
• granulated white sugar
• olive oil
• seasoning salt (or creole seasoning)

The night before you plan on making this (or you can make a couple days before)  take your goat cheese and bring to room temp.  Then in sealable container mix together the lemon zest, garlic, and goat cheese. Cover and store til needed.

In medium to large pan add a couple tbl spn of olive oil.  Chop your onions so that they are in hearty strips.  Add to pan over medium heat.  Sprinkle about 3 tblspn of sugar over the top.  Cover, and cook for about 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Set temp of oven to 400 degrees F.  Place your halved/quartered fresh garlic, tblspn of olive oil, and a dash of salt, on a large enough piece of tin foil so that you can scrunch the sides together so no steam can escape.  Put in oven for about 20 minutes, open up tin foil and bake for additional 15 minutes. Take out of oven and place to the side.

Once your onions and garlic are done; flip over your flat-bread or gyros pita breads and lightly oil with pastry brush on the bottom, season with seasoning salt or creole seasoning. Place on cookie sheet oil side down.

Make sure your goat cheese has been brought to room temp, you can even put in microwave for 20-30 seconds to make sure it is easily spreadable.  Spoon over bread (s) evenly.  


Add your onions, along with your roasted garlic. Then make wide strips out of your prosciutto and add them as well, sort of scrunched up all over the top.  Drizzle a small amount of olive oil over the pizza (s), and bake for 20 minutes or until proscuitto is browned.

After pulling pizza out of oven, sprinkle with the basil, and serve immediately.  

    I served this with a very simple salad (tomatoes, onions, iceberg lettuce, and some fresh basil, tossed in balsamic vinegar and olive oil).  Was the perfect end to a not so perfect week....Next week get ready for another cooking lesson adventure as Daniel and I plan on making Baked Macaroni and cheese! mmm mmm good....

ENJOY!

Social Butterfly vs. Thrifty Spender....can you be both in the big city???

So I thought I ought to give a little background about The Thrillist link I have so conveniently placed under the Links That You'll Love category on my blog.  Essentially I stumbled upon this mecca of culinary information.  I had JUST moved to Chicago and so was in search of ways to learn about interesting and delicious restaurant option in the city, and do so without depleting all monetary funds.  Now although my boyfriend has been a resident of chicago his entire life, and lots of our mutual friends as well, I was certain that there were "must try" establishments being looked over.  So I googled, and clicked on The Thrillist Chicago .  I signed up, and I am emailed about new and exciting restaurants and events going on in the city.

I have actually been to two parties sponsored by The Thrillist and had the most amazing time ever.  The first was through Patron Social Club Chicago  and went with my good friend Liz, who sadly hates tequila, but was fortunate to find that they would make her ANY drink she wanted.  Imagine limitless amounts of tequila concoctions (we are not talking shots here either, but delish martini's and tropical drinks) at the Landmark Grill and Lounge located downtown.  I definitely recommend this place!    The second time was for the Holiday party, the locale being Lumen (pretty squanky).  It was sponsored by Stoli Vodka, they had a liquor luge, open bar, were giving out presents, and made my BF wear a santa hat...obviously couldn't have gotten any better. Me with Antlers on @ Lumen (apparently I made the cut ha)


ALSO- if you haven't already signed up for GROUPON do it.  Basically it's a website that offers a deal each day, that they send you via email.  For example I recently got a 40 dollar gift certificate, but only paid 20 bucks for it, to one of Joe's and my favorite sushi places, TANK on Lincoln ave (Lincoln Square area).

So go sign up!  Keep a look out for new places to try and FREE things to do.  This is the best way to be social and not go broke!

Stuffed Shells with Smoked Whitefish in a Lemon Béchamel Sauce

Okay soooo last weekend I didn't have a cooking buddy to teach new and exciting culinary techniques to.  However I did come up with a recipe that may not be EASY but it was soooo tasty I have to add it to the list.  While back home in the GP (thats Grosse Pointe for any of you non-Michiganders, which happens to be right next to D-town, wha wha) for the holidays my dad smoked about 3 lbs (three separate filets) of whitefish.  Which just so happens to be my totally favorite thing ever, not kidding nor is it an exaggeration.  I am a fan of the finger foods or tapa style dishes, and we ALWAYS have the white fish served on saltine crackers with some capers, red onions, and a delish sauce which is really just half mayo and half GOOD stone ground mustard.  Needless to say I ate about an entire filet myself this particular way, lol.  However I got to take another untouched filet back to chicago with me, and although I absolutely adore eating the whitefish in the manner just described, I thought how often do I have such a delicacy of fish as an ingredient at my disposal.  Thus, I began to agonize over what I should do with it in terms of a recipe, and came up with Stuffed Shells in a lemon Béchamel sauce.  Now this particular dish made a ton of food, and was sooo decadent  I could only eat two shells.  Essentially you make a filling of whipped ricotta cheese, fresh basil, parmesan, lemon zest, and the fish.  You then stuff it into the jumbo shell noodles, top it with your cream sauce, and then add more parmesan and some shredded mozzarella, and bake till ooey gooey and slightly browned on top.  But here is the EXACT recipe for you to try at home!  Bon A petit!

Stuffed Shells with Smoked Whitefish 
in a Lemon Bechamel Sauce

Ingredients

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

serves about 6-8 people

• 1 box of Jumbo Shell noodles (or you can use Cannelloni if you like)
  
• 1 cup of whole milk ricotta cheese
• 3/4 cup grated parmesan, plus more for sprinkling
• 1 cup of shredded Mozzarella
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/2 cup of fresh basil leaves chopped fine
• 1 lb of smoke whitefish (or any seafood of your choice, crab would be a nice substitute)
• 2 tsp lemon zest
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground white pepper
• Bechamel Sauce, recipe follows

Bring large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.  Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes for me was PERFECT.  Drain pasta and place each shell on slightly oiled cookie sheet/platter, do not lay on top of eachother, you do not want them to stick.

In large bowl mix together your ricotta cheese, 3/4 cup of parmesan, egg yolk, basil, seafood, lemon zest, salt and pepper (mix well).

Fill your noodles with about a tblspn of filling eachother.  Make sure to mold the mixture slightly so it is nice and compact (you do not want it to cook out of the noodles).

Place each shell into a buttered/oiled baking pan (9X13).  If using Shell noodles place them so the open edge is facing up.  Layer your Béchamel sauce evenly over the shells, and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan and 1 cup of shredded Mozzarella. Bake until bubbly and the top is golden brown, about 20 minutes.  Serve immediately.

COOKING TIP: This meal can easily be a vegetarian crowd pleaser simply by leaving out the seafood! OR even add some spinach to give these shells a completely different taste.

Béchamel Sauce

• 1 stick of butter
• 3 tblspn of all purpose flour
• 6 cups of half and half (warmed)
• 6 cloves of minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp white pepper
• pinch of nutmeg
• 1 tblsp lemon zest

1. In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat.  
2. Add your minced garlic and lemon zest and let saute' for a couple minutes, do not let it burn.  
3. Add the flour and whisk until smooth, about 2 minutes.  
4. Gradually add the warmed half and half (warm the half and half in separate saucepan over low/med heat), whisking constantly until the sauce is thick, smooth, and creamy, about 10 minutes (do not allow the sauce to boil).  
5. Remove from heat, and stir in the salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
   

COOKING TIP:  The sauce can actually be made even a few days a head of time. Simply cool, cover, and refrigerate.  Make sure to warm the sauce slightly over low heat once ready to pour over your noodles.

 I definitely do not think this recipe is too difficult for newer cooks to try.  The only place you COULD run into any trouble is the thickening of the sauce.  Sometimes your sauce ends up more pasty than thick.  Just make sure to have EXTRA half and half or even milk at your disposal.  Then just keep adding it to the sauce until it becomes the right consistency.  I served this meal, to just Joe (my boyfriend and culinary muse) and myself, along side a hearty Antipasto salad (romaine and iceberg lettuce, hard salami, bacon, tomatoes, red onions, banana peppers, Asiago cheese (flakes), served with balsamic vinegar/olive oil and some italian seasoning).  I thought it was a great combination.  The only thing that was missing was a delish Pinot Grigio to pair with it!  Which if you need a good one, Santa Margherita Vineyards makes an AWESOME varietal!

http://www.santamargherita.com/en/products/white_wines/pinot_grigio_valdadige

Hearty and Warming on a CHILI evening!

           So anyone from the midwest knows that the best thing in the world when it is this unbearably cold out is some type of beverage or meal that warms you from head to toe!  I am personally a huge fan of soups in general, though for those out there that never seem quite filled up enough after a bowl of Chicken Noodle, the next best thing is of course chili.  Now chili, contrary to popular belief, is NOT difficult to make.  And you can play around with the recipe in numerous ways to fit your favorite tastes.  Hotter, smokier, lighter, vegetarian, chicken instead of beef, etc etc etc.  Here however is the standard recipe for a hearty pot of tomato and beef based chili.  Enjoy!

Hearty Chili and Mexicali Cornbread

Ingredients

·       28 oz can of tomatoes (diced or crushed)

·       2 lbs of ground round

·       2 white onions (small to medium)

·       1 green pepper

·       1 cup of chopped celery

·       6-8 cloves of garlic minced

·       couple tblsp olive oil

·       1 large (28 oz) can of red kidney beans

·       1 16 oz can of chili hot beans (if you can find them)

·       28 oz water or 28 oz Beef broth

·       Beef bouillon cubes (if using 28oz of water)

·       Flour

·       chili powder

·       cumin

·       dried red chili pepper flakes (if you want it spicier)

·       salt and pepper

1.     In large pot add about two tblspns of olive oil and turn on medium heat. Add your 2 lbs of ground round and as it cooks, use spoon to chop up into smaller bits (leave sort of chunky).

2.     Once meat looks to be cooked all the way through, you can drain off the excess fat if looks to be too much, but if using ground round or better shouldn’t need to.  Now add all your chopped veggies (onion, celery, green pepper, garlic). Cook til veggies are tender/translucent…NOT MUSH.

3.     Add enough chili powder til your meat is a nice red brown color.  Add about 1 Tblsp of cumin, 1 Tblsp ground black pepper, and 1-2tsp of dried chili pepper flakes. Mix.

4.     Now add enough flour to meat/veggie mixture so everything is pasty, probably need about ½ cup.

5.     Add your can of tomatoes.  Using same can, add 28 oz of water (basically you should have equal water to tomato ratio). MIX well. 

6.     Using the dried cubes of beef bouillon, add about 2-3 to your pot.  Make sure to take out a small amount of your tomato/water base and add your cubes to that.  If you microwave it for about 1 minute the cubes will become completely soluble and you can simply dump it back into your pot.  Another alternative would be to use 28oz of liquid beef broth instead of the 28 oz of water.

7.     Add all your beans, and mix thoroughly.  Keep on medium heat so it nearly comes to a boil (or 40 minutes).  But do not let the bottom of chili burn.  If looks like too much is sticking, turn down.  Stir chili off bottom and sides every so often, will help to thicken it.  The longer you cook it the more the flavors will blend together, so if you have the time you can let it cook for longer than the 40 minutes, really up to you!

8.     After chili has cooked for a while, taste and see if you want to add more spices.  Usually you will need to add more chili powder, and make sure to add a couple dashes of salt to bring out the taste in the tomatoes.

9.     Serve with shredded cheese and sourcream!

For Mexicali Corn Bread: 

Use recipe off the back of the Aunt Jemima cornbread bag.  In addition to what it calls for, add 1 small can of creamed corn, 1 finely chopped jalapeno, and 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese.  Make sure to grease the pan you are using well!  OR use cupcake pan and make individual muffins :0)

COOKING TIP:  Chili is one of those items that freezes/thaws really well.  Make a double batch and freeze back the rest.  Is a wonderful treat to have a tasty meal with none of the hassle!

Italian Breaded Chicken...mmm mmm good!

     So I have always believed in the motto: Go Big or Go Home. Therefore I decided that we were not going to start off Daniel's cooking lessons with some easier than pie recipe (no pun intended). So no, we did not start with a soup or a salad, but a full fledged, fill your tummy, and still want to eat more kind of dish. And of course mashed potatoes were involved, because they are the epitome of comfort foods (indulgent memories of mom's home-cooking). So below is one of my fav GO TO meals. Because I usually have most of these items in my fridge/freezer/cupboards. If you don't have a CAN of crushed tomatoes but have a ton of regular tomatoes, go ahead and dice those bad boys up, add some white onion, and any italian type spices you want and you can pull off the same effect. In fact I often make myself JUST the chicken and have it with a salad, or a quick side of pasta. Definitely parts of this meal are do-able as single serving. Also for my vegetarian friends out there, this can easily be done with thick cuts of egg plant or zucchini. Think of this meal as a much simpler version of a chicken or eggplant parmagiana. As for what wine pairs well with this meal. With the bold flavors of the tomato sauce and cheese, I would definitely drink/serve a red. However a lighter cab or pinot noir would definitely be one of my first choices.

COOKING TIP: buy your chicken breasts in bulk. Then clean them and put them individually into ziploc sandwich bags. You can then freeze them. This way you can thaw out JUST one, or as many as you will need to serve a crowd!

Italian Breaded Chicken

(Paired with Mashed potatoes, baby carrots, and garlic bread)

Ingredients

(pre-heat your oven to 325 F)

• 3 Boneless skinless chicken breasts

• 28oz can of crushed tomatoes

• fresh basil (1/3 of cup) or 3 tblsp dried basil/Italian seasoning

• 6 cloves of garlic (minced)

• 1 small white or yellow onion (chopped fine)

• shredded mozzarella (8 or 16 oz bag)

• Italian breadcrumbs

• Flour

• 2 eggs

• 2 cups milk

• Olive Oil

• Red skin or Yukon gold potatoes

• 1 french baguette

• 1 x 8oz block of cream cheese

• salt and pepper

• garlic powder

• baby carrots

• 3 sticks of butter or margarine

• seasoning salt or Creole seasoning

1. Place can of tomatoes in a saucepot on low heat. Add your garlic, basil, and onion. Let simmer, stirring occasionally. Salt and pepper to taste.

2. In large pot, wash and cut up all your potatoes. Completely cover them with water, and bring them up to a boil (cover pot). Once they boil turn on low to simmer. Check them after 20-30 minutes with fork to see if they are tender enough. If tender dump out as much water as possible. Place back on stove over LOW heat. Add 1 stick of butter/margarine, and the cream cheese. Use handheld mixer to whip them. Add your seasoning salt and pepper to taste!

3. Put 1 stick of butter into pot (large enough to hold all your carrots). Melt butter on low heat. Add carrots and some dried basil. Cover and steam carrots til tender (mix occasionally to get carrots off the bottom).

4. While potatoes and carrots are cooking….Filet the chicken breasts so you have 6 breasts in total. If they still look sort of thick use a meat mallet to thin out.

5. In medium size bowl (or pie plate) mix together flour and breadcrumbs in a 1:2 ratio (1 cup of flour for every 2 cups of bread crumbs)…season to taste with salt and pepper.

6. In another medium size bowl scramble 2 eggs with 2 cups of milk.

7. Take a chicken breast and dip it in the egg/milk, then thoroughly dredge in the flour/breadcrumbs. Dip into egg/milk again, and coat with the flour breadcrumb mixture. Set to the side on a dry surface and finish the rest of the chicken the same way (do not lay chicken on top of each other).

8. In large frying pan add enough olive oil to coat bottom. Bring up to medium/high heat. Place two chicken breasts in pan, fry until nice and crispy brown on both sides. Then place to the side on cookie sheet. Finish the rest of the chicken in the same fashion. (add more olive oil to pan if seems necessary)

9. Place cookie sheet with chicken in preheated 325 degree oven for about 30 minutes.

10. Cut your baguette lengthwise (like making a sandwich). Take 1 stick of butter, bring to room temp so pliable or slightly heat in microwave. Mix in 1 tblsp garlic powder, 1 tblsp dried or fresh basil, pepper, and salt to taste. Spread evenly on both sides of open-faced bread. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese. Place in oven with chicken til mozz is melted and desired crustiness.

11. Once chicken is cooked all the way through, add enough of the marinara sauce to cover the top. Then add shredded mozzarella. BROIL chicken till cheese is bubbly and slightly brown.

12. Serve mashed potatoes with marinara sauce as the ‘gravy’.



COOKING TIP: by adding the cream cheese to your potatoes, not only will it cut down on the soupiness that sour cream/milk causes, but these potatoes will be just as delish and creamy the following day. In fact I have made these a day a head for a party, and simply reheated them in the oven!


So it may seem a lil more costly if you have to buy EVERYTHING on the list of ingredients, however if you are like me, you should have the dry spices, flour, breadcrumbs, and often even the chicken hiding in your cupboards, fridge, or freezer.  This meal in itself is meant to feed AT LEAST 6 people.  I guarantee that in the long run, in terms of how many other meals you will get out of this instead of eating lunch out or ordering in dinner, it is WELL worth it!

Day 1

The whole idea behind blogging had no interest to me before the opportunities of such a thing were more thoroughly explained by my good friend. To send out information to the vast beyond and get critiques back among individuals whom obviously have no bias to me what-so-ever. The idea is that those in our "generation", the in college to post college twenty-somethings, have a minimalistic view on how and what they can cook. I have heard from FAR F AR FAR too many of my friends that they simply cannot. I say contraire mon fraire! Anyone can cook, and I am NOT talking Ramen noodles here people. I began this idea/journey when a good friend of mine, Daniel who had just been let loose into the independence of living in a non dormitory environment, had to either begin cooking for himself or eat out all the time. Well I am pretty sure that those frozen pizzas and corn dogs, though occasionally delectable, were simply not cutting it. So for a few weeks before the holidays hit, we would choose an entire meal for which we would cook together. Showing him how easy and totally NOT SCARY certain cooking terms were, i.e. saute', broiling, making a roux (really just a hoity toity way of saying mix melted butter with flour). 

So I plan on adding each recipe that I show us making together, in FULL detail, and will hopefully give some helpful hints, and some side notes of our comical ventures. And if ANYONE actually reads this and is interested, please throw out suggestions or questions or ideas about what we are doing, or what you think we should or would like us to make next. By the way, one of the musts of cooking at home, and especially when cooking with friends is that a bottle of wine, or a tasty drink (whether it be a cosmo, or natty ice, I certainly won't judge) should ALWAYS be consumed. Trust me makes the whole experience that much more satisfying and increases the hilarity!