Tag: recipes

Garlic Rosemary Roast Beef!

A beautiful carved roast beef doesn’t have to be a menu item reserved for fancy buffets. Whether you are building roast beef sandwiches for the game or a roast beef dinner with all of the trimmings, you can serve a rustic beef full of flavor. Cook a delicious roast beef at home with this quick and easy recipe!

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I love my roast beef pretty rare, but it can be cooked longer to a medium to medium well doneness. I have paired the beef with roasted tomatoes and a lemon rosemary aioli in this recipe.

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My go-to sandwich roasted tomatoes are tomatoes, sliced into wedges, drizzled with olive oil, topped with salt and pepper and roasted until they begin to shrivel and wrinkle. The tomatoes add a burst of flavor and pair well with the tang of the aioli. Enjoy this delicious recipe!

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Garlic Rosemary Roast Beef

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, chopped + 2 sliced in half
Salt/pepper
1-1/2 tbsp. rosemary leaves
3 lb. beef top sirloin roast
Rolls
Roasted Tomatoes

Lemon Rosemary Aioli
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. spicy mustard
2 tsp. rosemary, finely chopped

Directions:
Whisk together olive oil, chopped garlic, salt/pepper, and rosemary leaves.
Add the roast to a large Ziploc bag and add liquid.
Let the roast sit for a few hours or overnight.
Remove the roast from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Coat the roast with excess liquid and transfer to the rack of a baking pan.
Roast 90-120 minutes, until the internal thermometer reads 130 degrees.
Remove from oven and transfer to a cutting board, let cool before carving.
Grill the bread with butter, Spread the Aioli, Build the sandwich with sliced roast beef and roasted tomatoes.

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Enjoy!
Ciao!

 

Quick and Easy Homemade Cinnamon Rolls!

Cinnamon Rolls just look like they are hard to make. Their perfect cinnamon swirl twisting evenly inside the layers. Their golden brown finish teetering on the line of over and undercooked.

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The best is the sweet cinnamon aroma that fills the house for days. Baking bonus!

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I have mentioned many times, I am not a baker but I am always upping my baking game. This recipe uses a simple, no yeast sweet dough recipe that yields the most quick and easy homemade cinnamon rolls you’ve ever made.

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There has to be a trick? Make sure your knife is sharp when you slice the rolls. Isabella used a kids butter knife on her batch and they smushed into cinnamon roll globs.

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Here is the recipe…

 

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients:
Dough:
2 cups flour
3 tbsp. sugar
3 tbsp. baking soda
4 tbsp. butter
1/2-1 cup milk

Filling:
1 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. pecans, crushed
4 tbsp. butter

Directions:

In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, and baking soda and set aside.
Mix in butter and then milk with hands until incorporated and a dough forms.
Flour and roll out into a rectangle or oblong shape.
Spread filling onto the dough.
Roll the dough and cut into slices with a share knife.
Add rolled dough slices to a greased pan.
Bake 325 degrees 17-20 minutes or until golden brown.

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Enjoy!
Ciao!

Sweet Pea Manicotti!

Sweet peas are so underrated. Always associated with baby food, I feel like they are the last ingredient we think of to make something serious. For example, my kids will have peas with something else, I will grab them as a garnish, but they are hardly ever the main act.

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So there is always that experimental Meatless Monday where various vegetables get new jobs. This particular Monday, I was looking for a manicotti veg and there was the bag of frozen peas. I blended the peas with ricotta, egg, and fresh grated parm for the filling. Just then Bella walked into the kitchen, “Is that mint ice cream?” she asked. Well, it looked like it!

I was thinking they are never going to eat this but I’m knee deep, so this is what we are having for dinner. The neighbor kids came over, who always love to help me cook, so I boiled the manicotti shells and the kids had a filling party. It was so great! We discussed the careful art of spooning the filling without tearing the shell, and filling each side so that the middle gets some, too.

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We blended some extra peas, ricotta, and parmesan cheese for the topping. All the kids loved it! Was it the sweetness from the peas? The fact that they were involved in creating the final product? Who knows? But I was thrilled! Make these for dinner because they are delicious, but more importantly so the kids can help and hopefully eat!

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Sweet Pea Ricotta Manicotti

Ingredients:
2 cups fresh whole milk ricotta
1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
1 egg
1 16 oz. frozen sweet peas – saving 1 cup
salt/pepper
8 dry manicotti shells

For Topping:
2 cups peas
2 tbsp. ricotta
1/4 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
1 cup sliced cherry or grape tomatoes
2 tbsp. pine nuts
parmesan to grate on top

Directions:
Preheat oven 325 degrees.
Blend Ricotta, peas, parmesan cheese, and 1 egg.
Salt/pepper and set aside.
Boil manicotti shells 5-8 minutes until just under cooked.
Fill manicotti shells with ricotta pea filling with a small spoon or piping bag.
Spray 9X13 glass pan with non-stick spray.
Spoon left over filling in bottom of pan and spread with a spatula.
Line pan with one layer of manicotti.
Cover with foil and bake 20-30 minutes until filling is hot and starts to bubble.
Meanwhile, make topping. Blend peas, ricotta, and parmesan cheese.
Remove manicotti from oven and allow to set 10 minutes.
Plate the manicotti by placing them on a smear of topping underneath, one scoop on top, sprinkle with sliced tomatoes and pine nuts and finish with fresh grated parmesan cheese.

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Enjoy!
Ciao!

Mediterranean Tuna Salad!

This summer salad is packed with proteins, good fats, and so super healthy! But that’s not the point. It is delicious. My mayo haters will be happy because this Mediterranean tuna salad is made with an olive oil coating instead of mayo!

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I love adding garbanzo beans because it bulks up the salad, fills you up and adds protein at the same time.

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Caperberries are brand new to us. Chef David and I used them on a recent Between The Eats Tapas and Pinchos episode, and my family fell in love with them!

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The fruit, berries of the caper, are like olives but smoother. I can’t wait to try them in a martini!!
Here is the recipe…

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Mediterranean Tuna Salad
Ingredients:
2 cans, chunk light tuna in water, drained.
2 cans garbanzo beans, chickpeas
1/2 small red onion, chopped
2- 3 tbsp. caperberries
2-3 tbsp. sliced olives
1/4 cup olive oil
lemon juice, 2 lemons
salt/peper

parsley, chopped for garnish
Baby spring mix, plating

Directions:
Mix all ingredients in a mixing bowl, except for parsley and lettuce.
Chill 2 hours.
Plate tuna salad on a bed of baby spring mix.
Top with extra caper berries, and chopped parsley.

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Enjoy!
Ciao!

Chocolate Pistachio Cherry Pie!

We are totally sick of pumpkin pie! Ahhh! The pumpkin was so yummy and refreshing at first. Smothered with creamy cool whip, it was pretty much breakfast, lunch dessert, and dinner dessert while it lasted. Now we are so over it! For dessert tonight I changed it up and made a cherry pie edged in pistachios and chocolate chips.  A little edgy and a little holiday chic, this special little bundle of sweetness is sure to hit the spot! Here is the recipe…

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Chocolate Pistachio Cherry Pie
Ingredients:
1- 9 inch pie crust- your favorite mine is Ina Garten’s yummy crust
2 cups jarred dark cherries
3 tbsp. sugar
Approx. 1/4 cup corn starch
1/4 shelled pistachios, roughly chopped
1/4 cup chocolate chips

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Directions:
Preheat oven 375 degrees.

Grease and flour pie plate or shallow cake pan.

Roll out crust into a 9 circle.

Fit into the pan and push to form.

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Cover with aluminum foil.

Fill the top of foil with dry beans.

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Bake 20 minutes or until crust is set and begins to cook.

Meanwhile, cook cherries until boiling.

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Add sugar to taste.

Add cornstarch little by little by mixing with warm water and adding to cherries.

Remove foil and fill pie crust with cherry mixture.

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Bake until crust is golden brown.

Let cool.

Top with pistachios and chocolate chips around the edge.

Cut and serve.

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Enjoy!
Ciao!

Summer Zucchini Salad with Honey Lemon Vinaigrette!

Do you have zucchini coming out of your ears? I definitely do! It is that time of year when I have had enough- totally zucchini breads, zucchini boats, and zucchini breakfast-ed out! What else can you make? There is always the chocolate-zucchini craze of hiding the veggie in chocolate cake, muffins, cookies or brownies. Chocolate is always a great idea, but how about a salad sans lettuce and a smooth and summery homemade vinaigrette? Now that sounds perfectly summer!

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Summer Zucchini Salad
(Serves 4)
Ingredients:
2 medium zucchini
2 vine ripe tomatoes
1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese
1 lemon
salt/peper to taste

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Honey Lemon Vinaigrette
Ingredients:
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. dijon mustard
6 lemons- squeezed for juice approx. 1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tbsp. honey
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup grapeseed oil or canola oil

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Directions:
Peel zucchini with a vegetable peeler in long strips and place into serving bowl or platter.(I roll-up some of the strips for easy eating and because it adds to the beauty of the dish.)

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Cut tomatoes into wedges and add to the salad.

Sprinkle with 2-3 tbsp. crumbled goat cheese.

For dressing:
Whisk all ingredients except oils.

 

Add oils, lid, and shake vigorously until well mixed.

Top salads with 2 tbsp. of dressing and squeeze a halved lemon over salads.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

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Enjoy!
Ciao!

Strawberry Lime Mascarpone Tart!

A fruity, refreshing tart is totally Spring- totally Summer! Do you ever switch it up? Instead of the usual strawberry blueberry sweet tart, how about a sweet and tangy strawberry lime tart?

Today’s recipe is just that- A step outside the usual, a hint of lime and creamy whipped mascarpone cheese. I don’t think a fruit dessert can get any better. At heart, I’m really a chocolate girl! Shhhhh!

Enjoy this recipe!

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Strawberry Lime Tart
(Makes one 8 inch tart)
Ingredients:

Tart Crust:
1 cup flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 cold stick butter cut into squares

Filling:
1-8oz. Mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. lime juice

Topping:
Strawberries – Lime Zest

Directions:

Heat oven to 325 degrees.

Grease a tart pan or a 1/2″ inch thick 8″ round cake pan.

Whisk together flour and powdered sugar.

Add in chunks of butter and work with your fingers until it starts to stick together and forms a dough.

Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 mins. in refrigerator.

Roll out into an 8 inch circle.

Press into pan. If using cake pan leave a small overhang to be folded over.

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Bake crust 10-12 mins or until golden.

Let cool.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together mascarpone cheese, powdered sugar, and 1 tsp. lime juice.

Add filling and top with sliced strawberries and lime zest!
Get creative! Make a beautiful design or mass chaos. Either way, it tastes the same!

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Enjoy!
Ciao!