20 June, 2011 | 2 Comments

Bocce Pasta Salad Recipe

This Bocce Pasta Salad recipe is the perfect side for grilled chicken breasts with a squirt of lemon. I eat this with a big spoon (a shamefully big spoon).

Ingredients
1 pound dried orzo pasta
3 tomatoes
15 sundried tomatoes
1 small red onion
40 basil leaves (one bunch basil)
7 ounces feta cheese (solid, not crumbled)
1 large lemon
1/3 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground pepper

Directions
Cook the orzo for 10 minutes in boiling, salted water.
While orzo is cooking, chop the red onion as fine as you can. Chop the tomatoes into slightly larger pieces and chop the feta cheese into similarly sized chunks.

When the pasta has finished cooking, drain in a colander and rinse with cold water.
Dump the pasta in a big plop from your colander into a large mixing bowl.

Add the tomatoes, onions and feta.
(I chop the basil with scissors into ribbons onto the top of the bowl to minimize basil-bruising.)

Don’t stir yet, although you will be tempted.

Sprinkle salt and pepper over the bowl. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze the juice over the bowl. Drizzle the olive oil over the bowl as well.
Now, now you may toss, gently.

Incorporate all the loveliness and await your pasta salad praise.

23 May, 2011 | 2 Comments

Pantry Asian Noodle Salad Recipe

This weekend we attended a friend’s outdoor barbecue.
I was in charge of bringing a side dish.
But I had no time to go to the store.

All of these ingredients were in my pantry. Inspired by the Barefoot Contessa’s Szechuan Noodle Salad Recipe, I put these ingredients together to make a noodley approximation.

Ingredients
16 oz package spaghetti noodles
1/4 cup ginger, minced
1/4 cup minced garlic
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup sherry
1/2 cup tahini
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 bunch (6 stalks) green onions
1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper
1/2 bunch cilantro, picked off the stem and chopped fine

Food processor or blender

Directions
Put 4 quarts of water to boil in a big pot. Add 1 tablespoon salt. Bring back to boil. Add 16 ounces of spaghetti noodles and boil for 12 minutes (or what it says on the package).

While you’re waiting for the water and spaghetti, make the dressing and cut the vegetables into bite sized pieces.

Get out the food processor or blender and add the garlic, ginger, soy sauce, sherry, tahini, peanut butter, rice wine vinegar, vegetable oil, honey, salt, cayenne pepper and red pepper flakes.

Blitz together until well blended. Put your finger in the dressing and taste.

If it tastes great, let it sit.
If it needs something, add it.

Drain the pasta and add back to the big pot.
Pour the dressing over the pasta.
Toss and toss together.

Add the chopped green onions, red pepper, yellow pepper and 1/2 the cilantro to the pasta mixture.
Toss until combined.

Serve with chopped cilantro over the top of the noodles.

Bring to your next barbecue and impress the heck out of your friends

17 May, 2011 | 7 Comments

Helen Jane’s Lemon Baked Chicken and Pea Risotto

This recipe is from Donna Hay, stylish mistress of entertaining. My kids eat it, my husband eats it, the ingredients are currently in season and it’s baked! A recipe for baked risotto!

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cooked chicken breast fillets, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 leeks, sliced small
1 tablespoon shredded lemon zest (from one lemon)
2 cups arborio rice
5 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 cups frozen peas
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons chopped mint
black pepper and sea salt

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400°.

Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium high heat, add the leeks and zest to the pan, toss and cook for 5 minutes, or until leeks are golden.

Put leek mixture, rice and stock in a baking dish, stir through.
Cover the mix with either a lid or aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes.
Add the chicken and peas to the baking dish and stir through.

Cover tightly and bake for another 20 minutes. Note! When you pull it from the oven, the risotto will still be way too juicy.

Stir the lemon juice, Parmesan, mint, salt and pepper through the risotto. Stir for 2 minutes to thicken the risotto and serve.

Ooh! I also forgot to add that I’ve also made it with 1/2 inch cubes of butternut squash instead of chicken and sage instead of mint. Do that in the fall (or winter or spring) for extra awesome.

12 May, 2011 | 2 Comments

Recipe: Helen Jane’s Frito Pie

If you’ve known me on the internet since I’ve moved to wine country, you know that I love me some bocce.

Considered one of the most ancient games in the world, I like to think of it as a blend of darts, bowling, pool and curling.
Playing bocce wine country style means that there’s amazing food and drink to share.

Tonight is our first game, meeting up again, as we do every Thursday.
We’re playing the Industrial Gluttons.
That’s their team name.

Our team name is Joanie Loves Bocce.
If I could, I would bring bocce to your town.

The courts don’t take up a terrible amount of space, certainly nothing your local park couldn’t spare.
The game encourages community interaction.
This interaction brings about respect, because almost certainly, the older the player, the better the player.

Our team comes up with a weekly food theme, and each person on the team brings a dish that goes with the theme.
That means that every week from May through August, we share a potluck.

This week’s theme is Trailer Park Americana.
I’m bringing Frito Pie.

Ingredients
2 medium bags Fritos
1 lg. onion, chopped
16 oz package grated Mexican blend cheese
2 15 ounce cans of chili

Directions
Open cans of chili and add to a saucepan, heat to bubbling.
Put one bag Fritos in a baking dish or pie pan.
Distribute chopped onions and half of cheese over Fritos.
Pour heated chili over onions and cheese.
Top with remaining Fritos and cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
Easy peasy.

2 March, 2011 | 6 Comments

Slow cooker short ribs with a lively Gremolata recipe

I like this recipe for a weeknight dinner party for reasons three.

Short ribs can cook all day while you’re at work.
That all day cooking makes your home smell all cozy and comforting.
They’re inexpensive, for meat.

That’s enough for me.

I use a slow cooker for this recipe — and if you have room for one, I recommend you do too.

Slow cooker short ribs with a lively Gremolata

Ingredients
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 medium beef short ribs
1 onion, roughly chopped
6 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
1 16 ounce can whole peeled tomatoes
2 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled between fingers
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

Gremolata Ingredients
3 parts parsley
2 parts lemon zest
1 part minced garlic
(I use tablespoons for this recipe)

Directions
Salt and pepper short ribs.

Heat oil in a large dutch oven or frying pan until it gets good and hot.
Brown those short ribs like no one’s business. Turn them over after about 5 minutes on each side.
Remove short ribs from pan.

Add the onion, garlic, can of tomatoes and juice, chicken stock and thyme to your slow cooker.
Crush up the tomatoes with a fork or potato masher.
Mix the juices together thoroughly.

Add the short ribs back to the slow cooker. Cook on low for eight hours — or work backwards from the time you’d like to serve your short ribs. Slow cookers are forgiving like that.

Before serving, mix the Gremolata ingredients. Make sure they’re chopped fine before mixing.

You can either serve on top of the short ribs or serve them in a little bowl for guests to serve themselves.