North Beach Minestrone

Not much to say here really. This was made from a soup mix we got as part of the Viansa winery food & wine club. It was ok, made way more than we needed. For all the time it took I would have preferred to add more fresh vegetables than the dried ones it came with. The fresh brussels sprouts in it were great though. We know have lots of this in our freezer.

I wouldn't search this soup mix out again but at least its now out of the cupboard.

Sausage & White Bean Cassoulet

This was a leftover we pulled out of the freezer. Matt is still down with a bad cough & cold. These soups & strews seem to be the most appealing thing to him right now. This froze & reheated well except the white beans pretty much turned to mush, the lima beans (a surprising addition to this cassoulet) though held their texture nicely.


1 T olive oil
1/2 lb sweet Italian sausage
1 lb kielbasa, cut into 1/2 inch slices
3 leeks, white & pale green parts only, sliced
3 cloved garlic, minced
1 apple, peeled & chopped
1 T fresh rosemary or 1/2 t dried
1 t dried sage
1 bay leaf
1 c (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes with juice
2 or 3 drops Tabasco sauce
1 can (14.5 oz) great northern beans, drained & rinsed
10 oz frozen baby lima beans, rinsed
1 1/2 c chicken stock or broth
2 T tomato paste
pepper
1/4 c chopped parsley

Preheat oven to 350. In a dutch oven over medium heat, warm oil. Add whole Italian sausages and brown for 15 minutes, turning occasionally. Add kielbasa and brown both sausages about 10 minutes longer. Transfer to a plate and slice Italian sausage into 1/2 inch rounds. Add leeks & garlic to the same pan & sauté until soft, about 5 minutes. Add apple, rosemary, sage and bay leaf. Stir in tomatoes, Tabasco sauce, beans, stock, and tomato paste. Season with pepper.
Bake covered, about 1 hour. Remove lid and stir in parsley. Bake, uncovers, 15 minutes longer. Remove bay leaf and discard.

Serves 6 to 8

Recipe from The Big Book of Soups & Stews: Maryana Vollstedt

Weekly Menu 1/5/08-1/11/08

Here's whats for dinner for this week...

Sausage & White Bean Cassoulet - The Big Book of Soups & Stews: Maryana Vollstedt (actually a leftover from a past week that we have in the freezer) - RESULT: This reheated well even though the white beans didn't hold their texture so it was worth making a full batch the first time & freezing half.

North Beach Minestrone - A soup mix from Viansa winery - RESULT: It was ok but I wouldn't look for this soup mix again, I prefer making it from scratch.

Homemade Pizza - RESULT: The new dough recipe with herbs in it is a winner & so is the Muir Glen Pizza sauce

Lentil Chili with Cumin & Green Onions - Bon Appétit Feb. 08 - RESULT: A good vegetarian version of chili, that is probably pretty healthy. It goes together very quickly so great for a busy day.

Bolognese - The Joy of Cooking - RESULT: A lot of time for something that was really rather bland & disappointing. We won't make this again.

Oricchiette with Italian Sausage and Broccoli - RESULT: This one is always a winner & super easy to make.

Chicken Saltimbocca - Bon Appétit March 2007 - RESULT: This wonderful meal looks fancy but really comes together very fast. A favorite!

Perhaps since they are in season, crab on Friday!

I'm be updating this with the results & posting recipes.

Tuna Casserole

When people talk about Minnesota food no doubt you'll hear about hotdish (usually made for a Lutheran church supper). I grew up with hotdishes; American Chow Mein, Chicken Almond Party Bake and such though we called them casseroles in Michigan. They may seem a little white trash but sometimes you want that comforting mix of protein, creamed soup & something crunchy. This is the Tuna Casserole I grew up with. I'm not sure where my mom got the recipe.


1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can tuna packed in water, drained
1 small can evaporated milk
1 c chopped celery
1/2 cup slivered almonds
2 c chow mein noodles

Mix everything together in a casserole. Place the casserole in a pan of hot water. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

serves 4

Golden Root-Vegetable Couscous

I love Nigella Lawson & her joyful way of cooking & eating. For Christmas I got her How to Eat: The Pleasures and Principles of Good Food. It looks like it is going to be good reading as well as cooking (though I do wish it had pictures). This is our first foray into it a meal she says is particularly good "if you've been feeling rather fragile." I would say with our colds we have been. It also felt like a perfectly seasonal dish. Give yourself a little prep time for this as there are lots of vegetables to peel & chop.



3 T olive oil
2 med. onions, quartered & sliced thickly
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 t each ground cinnamon, cumin & coriander
1/2 t paprika
generous pinch of saffron
3 med. carrots, peeled & cut into a 1 inch dice
2 med. parsnips, peeled & cut into 1 inch dice
2 medium turnips, peeled & cut into a 1 inch dice
1 small kabocha or butternut squash, peeled & cut into a 1 inch dice
1/2 med. rutabaga, peeled & cut into a 1 inch dice
3 zucchini sliced 1/2 inch thick (you can peel if you like)
4 1/2 cut chicken, beef or vegetable stock
1/2 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes with liquid
grated zest from 1/2 large orange, plus juice from the whole orange (optional)
2/3 c sultanas
1 1/2 c (14 oz each) chickpeas
salt
few drops chili oil or 1 t harissa

1/2 c pine nuts
4 c quick-cooking couscous
2 T butter

Heat the olive oil in a big, deep pot & turn the onions in it for a few minutes. Add the garlic, cinnamon, cumin, coriander, paprika and saffron, and stir over low to medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the carrots, parsnips, turnips, squash, rutabaga and zucchini and turn briskly. After about 5 minutes add the stock, tomatoes, orange zest, sultanas and chickpeas. Turn again & try to get everything at least partially covered by the stock. Add more stock or water if needed. Season with salt, taste, and if you want to, add the orange juice. The stew benefits from an aromatic hint of orange, but don't be too heavy-handed (I chose not to add it, the zest was enough).
Cook this fragrant, golden stew for 20-30 minutes, until the vegetables are tender but not mushy (at least not all of them - some will be beginning to fray around the edges, and that is good) and the liquid has formed a thin but not watery sauce. Taste and chili oil or the harissa if you want it to have more punch. (Matt put it in his bowl I left it out)
Meanwhile, prepare the couscous. Put the pine nuts in a hot, dry frying pan and toast until they are golden & giving off a sweet resiny aroma. Set aside. (ok, she goes through a whole long process here of cooking the couscous in a couscoussier, I don't know about you but I don't have one. We just cooked the couscous according to the directions on the package with butter making 1/4 cup dry per serving)
Serve the stew with the couscous & sprinkle with pine nuts.

This stew was superb. We halved the recipe since there was just the two of us & this supposedly makes 6 servings. Half the recipe made at least 4 servings so I would say the recipe above is actually for 8.

I left out the rutabaga because I didn't want to buy one just to use 1/4 of it & just added more squash (I suppose you could really vary the vegetables anyway that suits your tastes). I also used the whole can of chickpeas instead of 3/4. Next time I would add more sultanas, their sweetness was perfect in this. This one is highly recommended.