Tomato Basil Marinara

In my  last post, Broccoli with Horseradish Cheese Sauce, I shared with you that I've been spending a hefty portion of my days dreaming about my super-lush, highly proficient, ultra prosperous, naturally perfect garden.  While I'm doing that, I'm also planning the plots and looking forward to those winter months when I'll want my own frozen and canned vegetables and fruits.  Naturally, one of those garden lovelies will be tomatoes because several our meals each week feature, or at the very least rely upon, some sort of tomato based ingredient.

This recipe is a most basic Tomato Basil Marinara, one that is extremely tasty served over pasta all on its own, but also a good base to which to add other ingredients such as bell peppers, mushrooms, carrots, celery, eggplant, ground beef, ground pork, etc. Ideally, fresh tomatoes, peeled or not, (personally, I'm not a peeler in this recipe because the peel just doesn't bother me much) are the best, freshest way to simmer this 30 minute sauce.  If fresh tomatoes are not in season and you don't have any home-canned tomatoes, a good quality purchased diced or whole tomato works well, too.  If using whole canned tomatoes (which, if not using fresh tomatoes, taste the best, in my opinion), be sure to crush them with the back of the spoon during the cooking to mash them up a bit.

Wine; I love wine in the sauce (I kind of just love wine everywhere, all the time, though).  Some people don't.  The wine in this sauce, while absolutely delicious, is actually optional.  However, the balsamic vinegar is not.

Tomato Basil Marinara
makes approx 3 cups

• 3 Tbs olive oil
• 1/3 c white onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 1/2 - 4 c chopped tomatoes
• 1/3 c chopped fresh basil
• 1/4 c dry red wine, optional
• 1 Tbs balsamic vinegar
• 3/4 tsp salt
• several grinds fresh black pepper
• pinch dried red chili flakes

Heat olive oil in medium sauce pan over medium high heat.  Saute onion and garlic for 2-3 minutes, or until onion is translucent and mixture is highly fragrant.

Add remaining ingredients.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, and simmer uncovered for about 20 minutes (for canned tomatoes) to 30 minutes (for fresh tomatoes).  Stir occasionally.

Serve over hot pasta.  Top with grated Parmesan, if desired.

Broccoli with Horseradish Cheese Sauce

It's only the the middle of April, and in my mind, my garden is lush, green, organized, clean, dripping with ripe red tomatoes, gorgeous eggplant, and tender lettuce leaves in abundance.  My bell peppers are huge, the broccoli hasn't bolted, and there is more than enough spinach to blanch and freeze. The birds are singing, the bees are buzzing, and the sun is shining after just the right amount of warm rain.

In reality, it's about 45 (F) degrees, snow is possible tonight, and my "garden" looks exactly like this:

Yup.  You betcha.  For your viewing enjoyment, I hauled out my seedlings and placed them in the future garden area.

The raised beds did not make it in last fall (ahemTimcoughcough), and now that I am less than 6 weeks away from needing to plant, I'm going to opt for some "lasagna garden" type prep work.  I thought about foregoing any raised beds and just piling ingredients, but Tim located some free pallets (did you know they come in different thicknesses and lengths?  I did not!) so we are hoping to be able to recycle them into the perimeter for the beds, which will be extra nice for the budget. This weekend, if it doesn't snow, we'll be putting in six 8'x4' beds, lining the bottom with lots of newspaper so I don't have to dig up all the sod, piling it full of a manure/peat moss/topsoil combo from a local nursery, mixing in my own household vegetation compost, grass clippings and last fall's chopped leaves, covering it with black plastic, and crossing my fingers until late May.  I have never had a garden bed where I didn't dig the grass out first, so I'm kind of curious to see how it works. Either way, I'll still have about 8 inches of hopefully good dirt on top of the old grass, so that's something, right?

Will keep you posted.

There is another area not in the picture that will be home to a Three Sisters Garden (sweet corn, pie pumpkins, and shell beans), and a plot for potatoes.  In a few weeks we will be having a cedar split rail fence (with wire mesh on the inside) installed, and I'm hoping to try out some grape vines.  The plan is to also have my cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, and two kinds of peas climb the fence, too.

Anyway, on to the recipe.  As I said earlier, the broccoli in my gorgeous mental garden hasn't bolted, and is flourishing like mad.  We like to just eat it raw, but cheese just makes everything taste a little bit nicer.  This cheese sauce is spiked with horseradish and garlic for a fun, tangy change of pace.  I prefer to use a steamer basket (I use my pasta pot with the basket/strainer and a cover) for cooking broccoli, but if you don't have one, you can just use a big covered pot with about an inch of water in the bottom.

Broccoli with Horseradish Cheese Sauce
serves 6

• 2 lbs fresh broccoli, cut into florets
• 2 Tbs butter
• 2 Tbs flour
• 1 c milk
• 1 clove garlic, pressed
• 1 cup shredded medium or sharp cheddar cheese
• 2 tsp prepared horseradish
• 1/4 tsp salt
• few grinds fresh black pepper

Place 1-2 inches of water into the bottom of a large pot with a steamer basket inserted on top.  Place the broccoli in the basket.  Bring the water to a boil, cover and reduce heat to medium.  Steam the broccoli for about 5 minutes, or until just fork tender.  Remove from heat and vent the cover to prevent further cooking.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.  Add the flour and whisk until bubbly (about 10-20 seconds).

Slowly pour in the milk, whisking constantly. Add the garlic. Continue to whisk until the mixture thickens and just begins to bubble; about 4 minutes.  Add the cheese, horseradish, salt and pepper.  Remove from heat and whisk until the cheese melts.

Give it a taste and adjust salt and pepper if necessary.

Serve cheese sauce over warm broccoli.

Lemon Dill Baked Cod

To say I don't like fish is kind of an overstatement. It's more that I'm just insanely particular about the kind, origin, and preparation. I really only like a few varieties of fish; cod (baked or grilled), mahi-mahi (grilled only), salmon (wood smoked, please), lake perch and walleye (breaded and fried, please, with a side of buttered rye bread and sliced onion).  That's it, though.  And I'm even picky when it comes to those.  I think the reason, primarily, is because we live in the middle - nowhere near an oceanic coast where the fish are fresh (with the exception of the fresh water variety I mention - kinda surrounded by some pretty Great lakes and a load of tributaries here).  Nearly all the fish available in my area have been frozen at some point for an undetermined amount of time, and have needed to travel a ridiculously lengthy distance to get here.  Some are even caught off North American shores, but then sent to China for processing (I mean...what?!). By the time that fish reaches my grocery store, it's just not fresh enough for me to even consider buying, and in  some cases, the odor assaults right through the package.  The fish available in "the middle" isn't even close to comparable to the fish caught and served fresh in the coastal areas.

Most of the salmon available here is farmed and treated with dyes (and is never going to grace my table), and the wild caught salmon, while quite delicious, is wildly priced for a dinner for six. Be wary of farmed salmon, especially considering our FDA's response to introducing genetically modified salmon into the mix.  The whole situation with farmed salmon (and, in my opinion, farmed fish of any sort) is entirely too scary for me to even entertain the thought.

Every once in a while, though, I'm able to find some decent wild caught cod loins or mahi-mahi (which is to die for on the grill) that meet my expectations and doesn't deplete my wallet all at the very same time (and that is a pretty tall order).

When shopping for fish and your only source are the local grocery stores, be sure to read all of the information on the packaging.  Put it back if it suggests countries or continents other than your own anywhere on the label. If you are buying it thawed from the seafood case (and it usually is thawed, especially if you are from "the middle"), be sure to ask the fellow behind the counter if it is farmed, dyed, previously frozen, country of origin, and how long it's been sitting in that case.  If he doesn't know, choose something else that doesn't cost $8-$21 per lb for dinner; for that price, questions must be answered or there is no sale.

With regard to this recipe, I suggest cutting the tail ends from the fillets.  Those ends tend to taste more "fishy" than the thicker parts.  If you like that, don't bother cutting them off (like I said, I'm admittedly picky about fish).  But if you don't want to bite into that, and you don't want to throw away the meat, cook it in a separate dish alongside this one and give it to the dogs or the cats - they love it.  Also, I don't measure.  This is seriously a sprinkle and cook sort of recipe.  Fresh dill is ideal, but dried works well, too - just don't be shy with your sprinkling.

 Lemon Dill Baked Cod
serves 6-8

• 2 lbs cod, rinsed and patted dry
• 1 lemon
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• dried dill, or several sprigs fresh dill
• 3 Tbs butter, cut into small chunks
• 6-8 lemon wedges, for serving

Position oven rack to the second position.  Preheat oven to 475 F. Line a 15x10 jelly roll pan with aluminum foil (optional).

Trim the thin tail ends of the cod. Cut the cod into equal size chunks (usually about 4" long), and place on the prepared sheet.

Cut the lemon into quarters.  Squeeze the juice of all lemon chunks over the fish.  Tuck the spent lemon wedges in between the fish pieces. Pluck off any seeds that land on the fish and discard them.

Sprinkle the cod generously with salt.  Grind the pepper over the fish.  Sprinkle generously with dried dill (or, if using fresh dill, tuck the sprigs around the fish).

Top each piece of fish with a chunk of butter.

Bake in preheated oven for about 10 minutes.  Switch temperature control to Broil.  Broil 1-2 minutes, or until fish just begins to sizzle and edges begin to brown and fish flakes easily with fork.  Remove immediately.

Serve topped with pan juice and extra fresh lemon wedges.

Cheesy Vegetable Chowder

My son's favorite creamy potato soup was the inspiration for this chunky, cheesy vegetable chowder.  Potatoes do take a primary place in this soup, but by increasing the other vegetables, and adding corn and cheese to the mix, the original recipe takes on a smooth, sweet, rich flavor that quickly made this chowder another favorite to keep in our rotation.

Sometimes I find that I am out of vegetable broth when I've already started planning and even beginning to make this chowder.  Because there are so many other flavors in this particular soup, a quick saute of the vegetables seems to be enough to generate a good background flavor.  In the case of the bowl in the picture, I discovered a little too late that I only had about 1 1/2 cups of broth to add and needed to balance it out with just plain old water, but it still worked out in the end with the quick saute and the addition of a little more salt.  I love how versatile soup making can be.

To make this chowder vegan, use olive oil to saute the vegetables, and skip the last four ingredients (butter, flour, milk, and cheese).  After the soup has simmered, use a stick blender to puree about half of the mixture; creaming the vegetables, especially with all of the potatoes, will generate a thickened, creamy soup without all of the butter and cheese.  And if you, like me, like all the butter and cheese (Mmmm!) and still find you would like the soup to be thicker, go ahead and use the stick blender to puree a few of the veggies until the soup reaches your desired thickness.

I would like to thank one of my favorite bloggers, Soni from Soni's Food For Thought, for passing on some awards to The Art of Cooking Real Food.  While I love Indian food, I'm not so experienced with knowing what we will like and how to make the dishes.  Soni has shared some fantastic recipes from an area of cuisine where I do not excel, making it possible to for my family (and yours!) to enjoy some wonderful Indian food right at home.  Thanks so much, Soni!

And don't forget that all April long a berry lovin' blog hop is going on!  You will find some of the most incredible berry recipes to add to  your collection from some of the most talented bloggers in the 'net.  You can find a constantly updated list at the bottom of Blueberry Cheese Pie.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Cheesy Vegetable Chowder
serves 6

• 1 Tbs butter
• 4 c potatoes, diced
• 1 c carrots, diced
• 3/4 c onion, diced
• 1/2 c celery (plus any leaves), diced
• 1/2 c cut corn (fresh or frozen)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 1/2 c vegetable broth
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1 Tbs freshly chopped parsley
• 1/3 c butter
• 1/3 c flour
• 2 1/2 c milk
• 1 1/2 c shredded medium or sharp cheddar cheese

Heat 1 Tbs butter in stockpot over medium high heat.  Add potatoes, carrots, onion, celery, corn, and garlic.  Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add broth, salt, pepper, and thyme.  Reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered about 10 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.  Stir in the parsley. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, in a medium sauce pan, melt 1/3 cup butter over medium heat.  Add flour and whisk to blend.  Slowly pour in the milk, whisking constantly.  Cook mixture approximately 5-6 minutes, or until the mixture begins bubble and has thickened, whisking often to prevent the milk from burning. Stir in the cheese until melted.

Slowly add the milk mixture to the vegetables and broth, stirring to blend.  Give it a taste and adjust the salt and pepper to your liking.

Roasted Asparagus and Mushroom Pasta

The most iconic vegetable of Spring has to be asparagus.  We adore it, but we only eat it in the spring while it is in season because it looses so much flavor and texture the further it has to travel to get here.   I've spoken with quite a few "asparagus haters" who have only purchased asparagus from the stores that had been shipped in, out of season, from a couple thousand miles away; it's no wonder they don't like it - I don't either.  If you have never eaten fresh, local asparagus, you really can't know how amazing asparagus is. The asparagus in the stores from other countries is a completely different beast than the gorgeous, crisp, green asparagus you'll find this time of year (and into May and even June in some areas).  Several times each week, we incorporate these little gems of spring into salads, or we roast, saute or grill them, and we savor every bite knowing the season is fairly short.  Our favorite way to eat them is dressed in some olive oil, pressed garlic, salt and pepper, and then roasted or grilled...oh my.

Sunshine and warmer weather promising fresh fruits and vegetables to come makes meal planning so much simpler.  I love just enjoying the exceptional flavors of those fresh ingredients; so many of our summer meals center around the brilliance of those seasonal fruits and vegetables and, more often than not, need little more than a few herbs and some salt and pepper. In this dish, a few modestly seasoned vegetables, some whole-grain pasta, and a little cheese create an easy, delicious, quick dinner.  I like to serve it with some homemade garlic bread and fresh fruit.

Roasted Asparagus and Mushroom Pasta
serves 6

• 1 1/2 lbs fresh asparagus, tough ends trimmed, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 8 oz cremini mushrooms, quartered
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into approximately 1-inch pieces
• 3 cloves garlic, pressed
• 3 Tbs olive oil, divided
• 2 Tbs balsamic vinegar, divided
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 8-10 oz whole grain farfalle (bow-tie or butterfly) or penne pasta
• 3/4 c freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish

Preheat oven to 450F.  Lightly oil 2 15x10" jellyroll pans (cookie sheets with sides).

In a large bowl, combine asparagus, mushrooms, bell pepper, garlic, 2 Tbs olive oil, 1 Tbs balsamic vinegar, and oregano.  Mix well to coat.

Divide the mixture evenly between the prepared pans.  Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Roast in preheated oven 9-12 minutes, or until vegetables are crisp tender, stirring halfway through the cooking time.

Meanwhile, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions.  Drain, reserving 1 cup of pasta water.

Combine roasted vegetables and pasta in a large bowl.  Stir in the Parmesan, remaining 1 Tbs olive oil, remaining 1 Tbs balsamic vinegar, and enough pasta water keep the mixture moist (you probably won't need the entire cup). Adjust salt and pepper.

Serve topped with more Parmesan cheese.

Blueberry Cheese Pie

Are you familiar with "no-bake cheesecakes"?  The kind where you buy a pre-made graham cracker crust in a tin, a package of cream cheese and a tub of "non-dairy whipped topping", and a can of pie filling?  Well, that's sort of what this pie is.  The pie itself is not baked, but the homemade graham cracker crust will need to be baked for about 10 minutes.  The creamy, rich cheese layer doesn't rely upon the tub of questionable ingredients such as hydrogenated vegetable oil, two forms of fructose corn syrup, polysorbate 60, sorbitan monostearate, and "natural and artificial ingredients" (whatever those are); we will just whip some real cream instead.  And the fruit on top is made from a super-quick homemade pie filling, foregoing even more fructose corn syrup and artificial dyes.

While blueberries aren't in season here yet, I still have some frozen from last year's haul. Raspberries, blackberries and strawberries are all good substitutes if you don't have any blueberries.  The sweet, buttery graham cracker crust and honey sweetened, creamy cheese layer makes a delicious foundation for any fruit topping you'd like.

April's blog hop theme is #berrylove, and below the recipe you will find an ongoing list of contributed berry themed recipes all April long, as well as a list of all the talented co-hosts this month!


Blueberry Cheese Pie
Crust:

• 1 1/2 c finely crushed graham crackers (preferably home-made, but if you decide to purchase them, be sure to get a brand which uses only all natural ingredients)
• 5 Tbs butter, melted
• 2 Tbs raw honey

Cheese Layer:

• 1/2 c heavy cream
• 8 oz cream cheese
• 2 Tbs raw honey
• 1 Tbs lemon zest (preferably from an organic lemon)
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Blueberry Layer:

• 3 c fresh or frozen blueberries (thawed if previously frozen), divided
• 2 Tbs raw honey
• 1 Tbs non-GMO cornstarch, such as Rumford
• 1 tsp lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350F.

Combine the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter and honey. Mix well.

Press the mixture on the bottom and up the sides of a 9" pie pan.

Bake 8-12 minutes, or until just beginning to turn golden.  Cool completely on a wire rack.

In a medium bowl, beat the whipping cream with a hand held electric mixer set to high speed until stiff; about 3 minutes.

In another bowl, beat the cream cheese, honey, lemon zest and vanilla on medium speed until light and fluffy.
Gently fold the whipped cream into the cheese mixture.

Spread the cheese mixture over the graham cracker crust.

Cover and refrigerate for about 2 hours.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine 2 cups blueberries, honey, cornstarch and lemon juice. Cook and stir until the mixture is thick and bubbly; about 5-6 minutes total.

Stir in the remaining 1 cup of blueberries.  Cool completely.

Pour the blueberry mixture over the cheese mixture.  Chill at least 1 hour before serving.

Top with extra honey sweetened, vanilla spiked whipped cream if desired.

Please join in on the #berrylove by linking up any berry recipe from the month of April 2012.  Don't forget to link back to this post, so that your readers know to come stop by the #berrylove event! The twitter hashtag is #berrylove.

April's Berry Love Co-hosts are:

A little bit of everything ~ Roxana GreenGirl ~ @RoxanaGreenGirl | Baker Street ~ Anuradha ~ @bakerstreet29 | Baking and Cooking, A Tale of Two Loves ~ Becky Higgins | BigFatBaker ~ Erin Meyer ~ @bigfatbaker | Bon à croquer ~ Valerie ~ @valouth | Cake Duchess ~ Lora ~ @cakeduchess | Easily Good Eats ~ Three Cookies | Elephant Eats ~ Amy | Hobby And More ~ Richa ~ @betit19 | Java Cupcake~ Betsy Eves ~ @JavaCupcake | Mis Pensamientos ~ Junia ~ @juniakk | No One Likes Crumbley Cookies~ T.R. ~ @TRCrumbley | Oh Cake ~ Jessica ~ @jesshose | Queen’s Notebook ~ Elizabeth  Quirino ~ @Mango_Queen | Rico sin Azúcar ~ Helena ~ @ricosinazucar | Simply Reem ~  Reem ~ @Simplyreem | Soni’s Food for Thought ~ Soni ~ @sonisfood | Teaspoon of Spice ~ Deanna Segrave-Daly ~ @tspbasil | That Skinny Chick Can Bake!!! ~ Liz ~ @thatskinnychick | The Art of Cooking Real Food ~ Laura ~ @TAofCRF | The Wimpy Vegetarian ~ Susan ~ @wimpyvegetarian | Vegan Yack Attack ~ Jackie S. ~ @veganyackattack | Vegetarian Mamma ~ Cindy ~ @vegetarianmamma | Georgie Cakes ~ Georgie ~ @GeorgieCakes