Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Makin' Magic Outta Canned Goods - 9

This week's plan is:


Arugula Salad with White Beans and Italian Sausage
  **It's a "salad only" week around our house... too hot to cook!
  **This is an America's Test Kitchen recipe for the salad and dressing. My last meal plan was recipes from their 10-year cookbook, this recipe is from their 30-minute meal collection. An online version of the recipe is protected for "members only." Read the gist below, you should be able to wing it from there!
  **Cook 4 chicken or pork Italian sausages until done through out. Remove from pan, let rest and then slice. Add a little more oil, sautee 1 red onion until starting to soften. Add 1 can Cannellini beans, drained and rinsed. [Note: I used "white beans" and they ended up being pretty soft even though I added them last. Use your best judgement.] Add 8 oz roasted red peppers cut into 1/2 inch strips. Season to taste with Salt and Pepper. Add 1 cup of "Bistro Style Mustard Vinniagrette" from the same cookbook. Stir together, and mix into 4 dinner sized servings of arugula, though I used mixed lettuces from my garden.
  **I definitely ate 2 servings. You could easily stretch this by adding some cold pasta to the bean mixture, making it somewhere between a lettuce salad and a pasta salad.



Thai Beef Salads with Rice Noodles
  **Again with the 30-minute meals collection. I love it! Since this recipe is also hidden from the non-members, I found a pretty similar Martha Stewart recipe here. I'll probably make half a recipe, and add cooked & cooled rice noodles to make it a little more filling. 
   **I'm going to add sliced radishes to the mix for a little extra color.   
  **Scharlemann made a similar recipe when we were over for dinner this spring, and I loved it. I was excited to see this recipe in my new cookbook!  






Carbo Feed: Pre-Warrior Dash Feasting
  **We're having a little shindig at the Meuller's on Friday to help everybody load up for the Warrior Dash on Saturday. I said if they'd host and cook the noodles, I'd bring the sauces! 
   **Both sauces are enough for 1 lb pasta each. 
  **The first sauce is a 20-minute marinara: Boil water for pasta. Sautee 3 cloves garlic, and 1/4 t red pepper flakes in 3 T EVOO, stirring frequently until fragrant but not browned (1-2 minutes). Stir in 28 oz crushed tomatoes and and 14 oz diced tomatoes, simmer until slightly thickened (15-20 minutes). Cook pasta in boiling water according to package directions. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water, and return pasta to pot. Remove sauce from heat, stir in 3 T minced fresh basil and sugar. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir sauce into pasta adding reserved cooking water as needed to loosen sauce. Serve immediately!   **The second sauce is a Garlic-Basil Cream Sauce: Boil water for pasta. Blend 1 cup packed fresh basil leaves, 1.5 cups half-and-half, 1 cup chicken broth, and 1 T cornstarch in blender until completely smooth (about 30 seconds). Melt 2 T unsalted butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add shallot, and 1/4 t salt, cook until softened (about 2 minutes). Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant (about 30 seconds). Briefly re-blend basil mixture to dissolve cornstarch, then stir into sauce pan and simmer about 2 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in 2 T minced basil, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Stir sauce into pasta adding reserved cooking water as needed to loosen sauce. Cook pasta in boiling water according to package directions. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water, and return pasta to pot. Stir sauce into pasta adding reserved cooking water as needed to loosen sauce. Serve immediately! 

That brings us to the weekend...
  **I have no plan for the weekend... We'll see what happens! Taco Taco anyone?? 



Bon Appetit!

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