Showing posts with label olives. Show all posts
Showing posts with label olives. Show all posts
The Vegetable with a Funny Name
10/25/09: Chicken Spaghetti and Roasted Rutabaga
Meal Details: For the main course I made a casserole type dish called Chicken Spaghetti and for a side dish I roasted some rutabagas (say what?) in the oven seasoned with oil, salt, and pepper.
Defining moments: First time I have prepared or eaten rutabaga. To tell you the truth, this was actually the first time for rutabaga for most of my family. This is also the first time I used Celtop, an herb that has the flavor of celery.
Recipe sources: The Chicken Spaghetti came from the Sept/Oct 09 issue of Cooking with Paula Deen. I chose this recipe because I am part of the Food Network Challenge that is being hosted by the writer of the I Blame My Mother blog. (Learn more about this fun challenge by visiting this page.) The next Food Network chef for me this week was actually Bobby and Jamie Deen, but because I couldn't find a good recipe from their archive I chose to do one of their mother's. You can find the recipe all typed up for you, here on this blog.
And the rutabaga? I didn't have to use a recipe for the rutabaga. I just treated them like I would potatoes. Here is a quick recipe for the rutabagas for future reference:
Roasted Rutabagas
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients:
4 medium sized rutabagas, peeled and chopped into 1" pieces
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tbsp ground pepper
3 tbsp salt
Preheat oven to 400 F. Place all ingredients into bowl and mix well. Dump seasoned rutabaga on cookie sheet and place in hot oven. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until fork tender.
What I learned: You know what? I can't really think of anything that was learned this week. Gosh. All the cooking techniques seemed familiar to me. I guess the only thing I learned was the flavor of rutabaga.
Any modifications? Yes. I adjusted some ingredient amounts and I omitted some. Here is my list of ingredients:
3 tbsp butter
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
2 tbsp chopped celtop (since I didn't have celery, I used celtop)
2 cups of chicken broth
1 (28 oz) can of cream of mushroom soup
1 (10.75 oz) can of cream of chicken soup
1 (16 oz) jar of taco sauce (not canned tomatoes with chilies)
1 (6 oz) can of black olives, drained and chopped
No mushrooms
2 cups sour cream
1 1/2 tsp salt
4 1/4 cups of chopped cooked chicken
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
1 1/2 pounds of spaghetti noodles (not angel hair pasta)
1 1/8 cups of Italian bread crumbs (not Panko bread crumbs)
1 tbsp melted butter
Yield: both the big and small casserole dishes. Only the large casserole dish was eaten Sunday evening. Had the small dish and leftover spaghetti Monday evening.
How it tasted? The Chicken Spaghetti was creamy, cheesy, and had lots of wonderful flavor. Very good, I am glad I spotted this recipe in Mrs. Deen's magazine.
The rutabagas were also surprisingly good as well. They had the taste and texture of a potato with some turnip flavor. A very tasty vegetable.
How about a 2nd time? Yes, both dishes will find their way to the table.
Here is a closeup of a sprig of Celtop. Very flavorful herb!
These are rutabagas. They resemble turnips a lot, but as I found out this Sunday, they don't quite match them in flavor.
Meal Details: For the main course I made a casserole type dish called Chicken Spaghetti and for a side dish I roasted some rutabagas (say what?) in the oven seasoned with oil, salt, and pepper.
Defining moments: First time I have prepared or eaten rutabaga. To tell you the truth, this was actually the first time for rutabaga for most of my family. This is also the first time I used Celtop, an herb that has the flavor of celery.
Recipe sources: The Chicken Spaghetti came from the Sept/Oct 09 issue of Cooking with Paula Deen. I chose this recipe because I am part of the Food Network Challenge that is being hosted by the writer of the I Blame My Mother blog. (Learn more about this fun challenge by visiting this page.) The next Food Network chef for me this week was actually Bobby and Jamie Deen, but because I couldn't find a good recipe from their archive I chose to do one of their mother's. You can find the recipe all typed up for you, here on this blog.
And the rutabaga? I didn't have to use a recipe for the rutabaga. I just treated them like I would potatoes. Here is a quick recipe for the rutabagas for future reference:
Roasted Rutabagas
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients:
4 medium sized rutabagas, peeled and chopped into 1" pieces
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tbsp ground pepper
3 tbsp salt
Preheat oven to 400 F. Place all ingredients into bowl and mix well. Dump seasoned rutabaga on cookie sheet and place in hot oven. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until fork tender.
What I learned: You know what? I can't really think of anything that was learned this week. Gosh. All the cooking techniques seemed familiar to me. I guess the only thing I learned was the flavor of rutabaga.
Any modifications? Yes. I adjusted some ingredient amounts and I omitted some. Here is my list of ingredients:
3 tbsp butter
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
2 tbsp chopped celtop (since I didn't have celery, I used celtop)
2 cups of chicken broth
1 (28 oz) can of cream of mushroom soup
1 (10.75 oz) can of cream of chicken soup
1 (16 oz) jar of taco sauce (not canned tomatoes with chilies)
1 (6 oz) can of black olives, drained and chopped
No mushrooms
2 cups sour cream
1 1/2 tsp salt
4 1/4 cups of chopped cooked chicken
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
1 1/2 pounds of spaghetti noodles (not angel hair pasta)
1 1/8 cups of Italian bread crumbs (not Panko bread crumbs)
1 tbsp melted butter
Yield: both the big and small casserole dishes. Only the large casserole dish was eaten Sunday evening. Had the small dish and leftover spaghetti Monday evening.
How it tasted? The Chicken Spaghetti was creamy, cheesy, and had lots of wonderful flavor. Very good, I am glad I spotted this recipe in Mrs. Deen's magazine.
The rutabagas were also surprisingly good as well. They had the taste and texture of a potato with some turnip flavor. A very tasty vegetable.
How about a 2nd time? Yes, both dishes will find their way to the table.
Here is a closeup of a sprig of Celtop. Very flavorful herb!
These are rutabagas. They resemble turnips a lot, but as I found out this Sunday, they don't quite match them in flavor.
Muffuletta--say what?
3/22/09: Muffuletta, the sandwich of New Orleans, Louisana.
The olive salad I made showed me the striking difference between olives (I used green and black) and I also tried out red wine vinegar. I don't remember using or tasting this type of vinegar before, so this recipe allowed me to be introduced to a new ingredient.
Since I didn't follow any one recipe for the salad and choices of meat and cheese, I will write here what I used for the muffuletta filling:
Rebekah's Olive Salad (enough for two 10" muffuletta sandwiches)
10 oz. black olives
3 oz. green olives stuffed with pimentos
1 small onion
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
pepper
oregano
And for the choice of meat and cheese. . .
I used thinly sliced ham and mozzarella cheese. I was planning on adding summer sausage to the filling but can you believe it? I forgot. That's me for you!
Gosh, what would I do without that non-stick aluminum foil from Reynold's? (Look at above photos.)
- Sources: I gathered various muffuletta recipes from the internet and sort of made my own choice of ingredients for the filling. One recipe that was used for inspiration is Emeril Lagasse's Muffuletta. The bread recipe came from www.nolacuisine.com. The source of the idea to make muffuletta is the Food Network show, Throwdown with Bobby Flay. Bobby Flay was competing against some New Orleans brothers for the title of best muffuletta and while the two teams competed against each other I thought to myself, "Gee, that sandwich looks good!" And so it took off from there.
- Defining moments: First time for muffuletta.
- What I learned: First and foremost I learned what a muffuletta is. That's always important. So here comes a history lesson: the word muffuletta comes from the Italian word muffa, which means mold, and the bread was first made by Sicilian women. The bread worked its way over to the U.S. and ended up being chosen as "the" bread for the muffuletta sandwich by the Central Grocery in New Orleans in 1910. The sandwich was a favorite lunch for Louisiana farmers on their trips into town. So there's the history, now just don't ask me which way to pronounce it. It is either "muff-uh-LET-ta", "muff-uh-LOT-uh", or "moo-foo-LET-ta." It's your choice, there's no wrong way in my book.
The olive salad I made showed me the striking difference between olives (I used green and black) and I also tried out red wine vinegar. I don't remember using or tasting this type of vinegar before, so this recipe allowed me to be introduced to a new ingredient.
Since I didn't follow any one recipe for the salad and choices of meat and cheese, I will write here what I used for the muffuletta filling:
Rebekah's Olive Salad (enough for two 10" muffuletta sandwiches)
10 oz. black olives
3 oz. green olives stuffed with pimentos
1 small onion
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
pepper
oregano
And for the choice of meat and cheese. . .
I used thinly sliced ham and mozzarella cheese. I was planning on adding summer sausage to the filling but can you believe it? I forgot. That's me for you!
- How it tasted: It was accepted by all but there were a few complaints, one of which came from me. Number one: the bread crust was a bit too crunchy. This is the way the bread is suppose to be and it is probably caused by the egg wash that is brushed on before placing it in the oven. So the next time I make this bread I'll eliminate this step. Number two: I think the onion in the olive salad was too strong. I will add less next time or maybe none at all. Number three: according to my youngest sister, too many olives. She could be right. . . Maybe I do need to add bell peppers to the salad like my Papa suggested to me earlier.
- How about a 2nd time? I think this would be exceptional if the above changes were made to the recipe. I like muffulettas and since they can be stored in the refrigerator for a couple days (they say the longer the filling is on the bread the better the sandwich) I think this sandwich would be a good choice for the busy summer months. There is also a hot muffuletta sandwich that can be made and I think it sounds really good. Just think of it. . . hot ham, summer sausage, olive salad, and warm, melted mozzarella cheese. Mmmm.
Gosh, what would I do without that non-stick aluminum foil from Reynold's? (Look at above photos.)
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