Udon Noodle Soup

Recipe: Udon Noodle Soup
Event: Needed to use a lot of leftovers and crop share items
Verdict: Scrumptious.  We both highly enjoyed it.

I suspect this recipe is pretty forgiving.  I looked at a few different ones and then just winged it based on what I have in the house.  Sorry for the haphazard nature of the recipe.  It's really very tasty.

Ingredients:
-9.5 oz package of udon noodles (or whatever you can find close to that size)
-Half of a large onion, diced
-9-ish cups water and broth (half of one, half of the other.  I know this is vague - I used about 9 cups of water and added enough Vegetable Better than Bouillon for about 4-5 cups of water)
-4 inch piece of ginger, cut in half, skin left on
-1 cup of miscellaneous onion-y and garlic-y items - I used ramps, green garlic, and green onions.
-1 steak, already cooked (ours was grilled. you can also cook it in a skillet until browned on both sides)
-1/4 tsp chinese 5 spice powder (contains anise seed, licorice, fennel, cassia, ginger)
-Cinnamon (I just gave the container a shake or two - maybe about 1/8 tsp?)
-1 tsp sesame oil
-2-3 tsp soy sauce
-Splash of wine (who measures anyway?)
-Mushrooms - I used about 10 crimini
-Cooking Greens - I used a little bit of bok choi and a sizable bunch of kale (about 7 large leaves, stems removed)
-Scallions, chopped


Directions:
1. Cook udon noodles according to directions on package (boil water, add noodles, boil 4 minutes, drain). Set noodles aside.
2. In second large pot, add some olive oil, heat, add onion, cook for a few minutes
3. Add water/broth
4. Add ginger, bring to boil, then reduce to simmer
5. Add Misc onion-y and garlic-y items
6. Add fatty pieces of steak
7. Add spices and other liquids - 5 spice powder, cinnamon, sesame oil, soy sauce, wine
8. Add mushrooms
9. Add greens
10. Taste liquid - add the various ingredients in step 7 to your taste preference
11. Add rest of steak and noodles
12. Heat a little longer to warm the noodles and steak, serve with scallions on top

Homemade Lemonade

Recipe: Homemade Lemonade
Event: Saturday afternoon
Verdict: Pretty good. I seem to finally have the proportions of lemon, sugar, and water about right.

Ingredients
1 c. sugar
1 c. water
4 c. filtered water
2 c. fresh squeezed lemon juice. This is about 6 lemons if they're fresh and juicy. More if they're older or got hit by frost.

Directions

1. Combine sugar and 1c. water and bring to a boil to make a simple syrup. Turn off heat and let cool a bit.

2. Mix lemon juice and water in pitcher. Add cooled syrup (ok if still warm, just not hot).

3. Put in fridge to cool.

Variations

Add mint, strawberries, or raspberries. We found it best to add this by the glass, rather than to the pitcher, otherwise they get all mushy and make the lemonade funny after a few days.

Pasta with Spicy Sausage, Red Pepper, and Kale

Recipe: Pasta with Spicy Sausage, Red Pepper, and Kale
Event: A Random Weeknight Creation by Paul
Verdict: Delicious and EASY!  Probably going to become a staple meal in our house.

- 1 lb spicy ground sausage (defrosted if frozen)

- (approx) 1/2 lb whole wheat pasta

- (approx) 4 large leaves of kale

- (approx) 3 tablespoons of fresh chopped parsely

- 1 large red bell pepper chopped

- grated aged asiago cheese

1. Boil pasta in salted water.

2. Brown the sausage in a frying pan on medium heat. Break it up into little pieces while stirring. Turn heat up to medium high once it starts to brown.

3. Once browned, add chopped pepper and kale. Cook until the kale begins to wilt.

4. Drain cooked pasta.

5. Add pasta and parsley to the frying pan. Cook ~1 minute.

6. Serve with grated cheese.

Freezer Lasagna

Recipe: Freezer Lasagna
Event: Lunch for preggers Ciera
Verdict: Tasty with plenty of cheese. Could have used more meat sauce; I've tried to adjust below.

My new job has no food for purchase, so I've been bringing my lunch every day. Combine that with the fact that I'm literally eating twice as much food at each meal, and we quickly run out of food mid-week. To make matters worse, I'm usually so exhausted that by 6pm, I have only enough energy to eat. So we've been cooking up a storm every weekend and freezing items for later.

This was from Food.com, which claims it is from America's Test Kitchen. However, as noted, I've changed the recipe because while good, there didn't seem to be enough sauce. We've been making double batches; we eat one that evening and freeze the other.

Sauce Ingredients:
2 T. olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
6 garlic cloves, minced
1.5 lb. ground meat (beef, turkey, or pork, or a mix)
1 t. salt
1 t. black pepper
1/4 c. heavy cream
1 can tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatoes, drained

Ricotta Filling Ingredients
24 oz. ricotta cheese
2 oz. parmesan, grated
1/2 c. fresh basil, chopped
1 egg, beaten
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper

Noodles and Cheese Ingredients
1 box of no-boil noodles
1 lb. mozzarella, grated
1 oz. parmesan, grated

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in a dutch oven on medium heat; add onions and cook until softened but not brown.
2. Add in garlic, cook about 30 seconds.
3. Add in meat, salt and pepper. Make sure to break apart the meat so it's in small chunks. Cook about 4 minutes. Meat should be barely cooked, but not brown.
4. Add the cream. Bring to a simmer and cook until liquid evaporates but the fat remains.
5. Add the tomato puree and drained tomatoes. (Make sure the tomatoes are diced. If they are larger, chop them first.) Bring to a simmer and cook for a few minutes before turning to low.
6. In a separate bowl, stir together all the ingredients for the ricotta filling.
7. Assemble, as described below.
8. Cover with aluminum foil. Either cook, freeze, or refrigerate. (If freezing or refrigerating, put plastic wrap under the foil.)
9. Remove plastic wrap, but put aluminum foil back on. Cook at 400 degrees for
• 15 minutes if fresh
• 30 minutes if refrigerated
• A lot longer if frozen. You might want to thaw frozen first.
10. Remove aluminum foil, and bake for another 30 minutes. Cheese should be browned.

Assembly layers

There will be 4 layers of sauce, 3 layers of ricotta, and 4 layers of mozz. Divide your ingredients accordingly. Try to put them on evenly. The sauce doesn't really spread once on, so be careful not to let it chunk down. The ricotta usually requires fingers to spread properly. It's ok to overlap the noodles, or break them if needed. The order, from bottom to top, is:

• Sauce
• Noodles
• Ricotta
• Mozz
• Sauce
• Noodles
• Ricotta
• Mozz
• Sauce
• Noodles
• Ricotta
• Mozz
• Sauce
• Noodles
• Mozz
• Parm

Potato Soup

Recipe: Potato Soup

Event: Some game night.

Verdict: One of my favorite go-to soups.  Absolutely delicious!

This is my grandfather's recipe.  I have no idea if it comes from a cookbook somewhere.  You can go high on the amount of potatoes and carrots but I wouldn't go over the amount of celery - it can take over the flavor of the soup. 

Ingredients

3-4 tbsp butter

1 chopped onion

6 potatoes cut into small pieces

enough water to cover potatoes

1-2 stalk celery, chopped 

2 carrots, chopped

2 tsp minced parsley

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

3 chicken bouillon cubes

1.5 cup milk

1. Heat butter in skillet and add onion. Cook until onion is transparent.  Set aside. 

2. You have two options for the next step

Option 1: Boil potatoes, celery, and carrots in water.  Once soft, blend vegetables while still in the water (we use a hand blender).  Move to step 3.  This is my grandfather's method.
Option 2: Boil potatoes.  Once soft, blend in the water.  Then add celery and carrots (and rest of ingredients - steps 3 and 4) and cook until celery and carrots are soft.  This method takes a lot longer but is the way we usually do it.

3. Add sauteed onion and the butter that it was cooked in.
4. Add 1.5 cup milk,  parsley, pepper, salt and chicken bouillon cubes.
5. Cook 20 minutes - simmer on medium low and stir it so it doesn't burn on the bottom
6. Optional: Add bacon or ham.

Spinach, Gouda, and Feta Dip

Recipe: Spinach, Gouda, and Feta Dip

Event: Halloween Party 2011

Verdict: Awesome. Will make again, in smaller quantities.

This one is all mine. Sadly, I don't really have exact amounts for ingredients. I'll post what I used, and you can adjust according to how much dip you want to make. This version served the 20+ people at the party, and there were enough leftovers for two households.

Ingredients:

• 1 pint heavy cream
• 1 cup white wine
• 1 8 oz. package cream cheese, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• About .80 lb smoked gouda, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 3 10-oz. packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained (see below for instructions)
• 12 oz. crumbled feta
• Red pepper flakes

Directions:

1. Combine heavy cream, wine, cream cheese, and gouda in large saucepan. Bring to simmer over medium heat, and cook until cheese is melted, stirring frequently.
2. Squeeze excess water from spinach while cheese mixture is simmering. Wrap spinach in an old towel or cheese cloth (something you don't mind possibly getting stained), and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Messy, but worth the effort.
3. Add spinach and feta to cheese mixture. And continue to simmer until spinach is warm and feta is melty (I couldn't get it to melt all the way).
4. Add red pepper flakes to taste and serve. Goes great with bread, crackers, or veggies.

Chicken & Blueberry Pasta Salad

Recipe: Chicken and Blueberry Pasta Salad
Event: The Great Blueberry BBQ
Verdict: Tasty, although perhaps not my favorite dish ever.

I found this dish on the Eating Well website, so not only is it tasty, but it's also healthy! The slightly modified recipe is:

Ingredients:

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast (I used 2 frozen chicken breasts)
• 8 ounces whole-wheat penne
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 small onion, thinly sliced
• 1/3 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• 1.5 cups fresh blueberries
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated lime zest
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Put chicken in a saucepan full of water. Heat to boiling then simmer for 10-12 minutes. Then shred it into bite-sized pieces.
2. Cook the pasta according to the package.
3. In a skillet, cook the onion in the olive oil over medium-low until softened and starting to brown. Add chicken broth, feta, and lime juice and cook until the feta starts to melt.
4. Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.