Zucchini Pasta

Like the carrot-based sauce, this is another good recipe to help get rid of extra stock and reclaim some fridge drawer space. 

1 tbsp of olive oil

2 tbsp of butter, separated

8 ounces of as-yet uncooked pasta (first attempt was with fettucine)

1 medium zucchini, diced

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 tsp of Italian seasoning

1 cup of "chicken" broth

1 tsp of lemon juice

1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese 

Pepper, to taste


Cook pasta as per package instructions.

Add the olive oil and one tablespoon of the butter to a skillet over medium-high heat.

Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes. 

Add the zucchini, garlic, and Italian seasoning to the skillet. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the remaining butter, the chicken broth, and lemon juice to the pan. Let it cook for a couple of minutes.

Stir in the parmesan cheese and toss with the drained pasta. Add pepper, then fill your boots. 

I don't think I would bother trying this with anything other than fettucine going forward. 

There were doubts about balance among ingredients, but it ended up working out. The original recipe called for half a cup of stock, but that was tough to manage when making my own, so I went with a full cup and I don't think that spoiled anything.

Considered adding tomato for a little colour. In hindsight, I might have regretted that. Maybe some red pepper flakes to meet that goal, and add a little heat. 

Cucumber Avocado Salsa

I almost wrote all this out again just so I could omit cilantro. That atrocity aside, I can see this making a nice cottage munchie on a sunny cottage day.

Click on the image to enlarge.

 
Source: Tasting Table

Carrot-based Pasta Sauce

A subscription to Odd Bunch (link at right) resulted in obtaining a few carrots the size of my femurs. 

To avoid waste, I looked up pasta sauces made primarily from carrots. After a few tweaks, I settle on the version below. Blender required. 🥕🥕

2 tbsp olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, diced

4 cloves of garlic, minced

1 lb carrots, peeled and chopped

2 cups vegetable stock

1 can of tomato paste (156 ml)

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

½ tsp black pepper

¼ tsp red pepper flakes

Parmesan cheese, as garnish

In a large pot or skillet, add olive oil over medium heat.

Add carrots and onions and cook for 10 minutes until carrots start to caramelize and brown.

Add garlic and tomato sauce. Stir together for a minute.

Add stock and Worcestershire sauce and bring to a simmer. Turn heat down to low, cover, and continue to simmer until carrots are tender, probably another 10 minutes.

Let the sauce cool, then transfer to a traditional blender and blend until completely smooth. Transfer back to your pot and stir in the black pepper and red pepper flakes.

Most of the recipes I found served this over penne. We decided to try it with gnocchi, and that worked out great.

Lentil soup that tastes like it simmered all day takes exactly 30 minutes

This one is from a post on Threads, hence the wonky title. 😁

Making it easy on myself (and to give proper credit for a change), here's a screenshot of the post. 

I have yet to try it, so no personal recommendations for the moment. The exchanges below could be helpful, however. 

I want to know more about the coconut milk thing, so I asked "fillymeyer" how much she recommends adding. Hopefully she responds and if so, I will add her suggestion here. 

Gumbo Z'Herbes

I love that this is a gumbo, but almost nothing like my other (more traditional?) gumbo. The one I've been making for years is mostly rice, beans, and tomato, but this bad boy is mushroom, greens, and sausage. I'll need to find out if there are other varieties of gumbo. 

¼ cup + 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil divided

¼ cup all-purpose flour

1 yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup celery, diced (about 2 stalks)

10 oz baby bella mushrooms sliced

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp smoked paprika

2 tsp porcini mushroom powder

6 cups vegetable stock

8 cups assorted dark leafy greens, chopped (or 2 cups each collard greens, mustard greens, Swiss chard, and kale)

2 tbsp soy sauce

3 sausages, sliced

Warm ¼ cup of the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat.

Add the flour and stir, then reduce the heat to medium. Toast the flour in the oil until it turns a rich golden color.

Add the onions, garlic, and celery and sauté until the onions begin to turn translucent, about 3 minutes.

Add the sliced mushrooms, black pepper, thyme, smoked paprika, and porcini powder. Stir well and cook until the mushrooms soften, about 8 minutes.

Add the water and stock, then bring to a simmer.

Add the chopped leafy greens and soy sauce, then stir. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until the greens are tender, cooking longer if you prefer softer greens.

While the gumbo cooks, pan-fry the sausage. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in a skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the sliced sausage and cook for about 3 minutes per side, until browned and crispy.

Stir the sausage into the gumbo, then season to taste with salt and/or pepper.

Sausage: The first couple of attempts included a spicy Italian sausage, but with the paprika, it was coming close to being a little too hot. For the most recent, Bavarian was used and that was a better fit. 

Greens: Recommendations collard greens, mustard greens, Swiss chard, and kale.

Mushroom Bacon

I've tried mushroom bacon in the past, a couple of times, and enjoyed it a great deal. The two variations that I tried came surprisingly close to recreating the flavour.  I haven't made this particular one yet, but am storing it as a starting point to experiment from. 

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons soy sauce

½ teaspoon pure maple syrup

½ teaspoon liquid smoke

¼ teaspoon smoked paprika

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

4 ounces (about 120g) of portabella or shiitake mushrooms cut into ¼-inch-thick slices


In a large bowl, combine oil, soy sauce, maple syrup, liquid smoke, paprika, and black pepper.

Add the mushrooms and toss to coat. 

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Add the mushrooms in a single layer in the pan, then sauté for 5 to 10 minutes, or until golden.

Flip and continue to cook for another 5 minutes or until crispy.

Cajun Ranch Wraps

This recipe originally called for two large chicken breasts, and that's why I include that below. But for our own purposes, I trimmed that down to a 200g package of Gusta "beef" strip.

That's probably far short of the equivalent of two large chicken breasts, so instead of making four wraps, I just loaded two and adjusted the recipe accordingly.

2 large chicken breasts, cut into strips

1 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 teaspoon garlic powder

Black pepper, to taste

½ cup ranch dressing

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

1 large flour tortillas (10-inch)

1/2 cup shredded lettuce

1 medium tomato, diced

Shredded mozzarella cheese, to taste

Season the chicken strips generously and evenly in a bowl with Cajun seasoning, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and pepper.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, then add the seasoned meat strips and cook for 6-7 minutes, turning occasionally.

While the cooks, prepare the sauce by combining ranch dressing, grated Parmesan cheese, and chopped parsley in a mixing bowl, stirring until smooth and well-integrated.

Warm the flour tortillas for about 15 seconds in the stove at 350.

Spread half of the Ranch-Parmesan mixture evenly over each tortilla, leaving a small border around the edges.

Layer each tortilla with half of the cooked chicken strips, shredded lettuce, diced tomato, then sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.

Roll the wraps by folding the bottom in, then the sides over top and poke a toothpick through that bad boy.

For a little crunch on the outside, return the wrapped tortillas to the skillet for 1-2 minutes per side.