Sausage, potato, arugula frittata

So, not the healthiest frittata in the world, but definitely a weekend treat! I am intrigued right now with preparing frittatas and eggs in general. I like the idea of adding more protein to my breakfasts, and eggs seemed like a good way to start. The heirloom tomato tart carried me through several meals, but I like the idea of the frittata as a gluten-free alternative to the tart or quiche!

This recipe became a great way to use up a leftover grilled sausage from earlier in the week. A little potato, arugula, onion and cheese and remembering not to cook the eggs too long and I think I'm finally getting the hang of this!

Sausage, potato, arugula frittata

1 cooked italian sausage, cut into disks if using raw, remove from casing and brown before adding the potato and onion to cook
1/4 cup onion sliced thinly
1 small yellow potato sliced thinly with a mandolin and cut into half moons

pinch red pepper flakes
salt & freshly ground pepper

1 handful arugula, or spinach, tough stems removed
2-3 Tbsp grated Parmesan or Romano
6 eggs

- Preheat the oven to 400

- In a bowl, whisk together the eggs

- In a large non-stick, oven-safe skillet or cast iron skillet, heat 1-2 Tbsp olive oil over medium heat

- Add the onions, potatoes, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper and saute until onions are softened and potatoes are cooked

- Add the arugula and cook until wilted

- Lower the heat and stir in the eggs and cheese, mixing until all of the ingredients are incorporated

- Over low-medium heat, let the mixture cook until the bottom is set and the middle is still loose approximately 5 minutes

- Put the skillet in the oven and let cook for another 3-4 minutes. Remove from the oven and let sit to finish setting.

Anniversary Eve Dinner

Jason and I recently celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary! We dined at The Girl & the Goat on the actual day, which was an amazing meal that exceeded all expectations. The night before, a Sunday, we followed our usual Sunday tradition of hunkering down to cook a meal together and enjoy al fresco dining on the porch.

Our anniversary eve menu included:

Filet
Roasted potatoes
Sauteed beet greens
Ragu of asparagus, garlic scape, and shiitake mushrooms

With the meal we enjoyed a bottle of Brunello we carried back with us from Montalcino on our 1 year anniversary trip back to Tuscany!

Potatoes, Peas and Green Beans in Coconut Red Curry Sauce

Jason created this dish to accompany my stir fried vegetables with lemongrass. I love the amazing variety of flavor profiles there are in thai cooking. We managed to use up the rest of the coconut milk from Sunday's peanut sauce for the spring rolls, and we have leftovers for several more meals. Both of these dishes were incredibly simple but lovely and complex in flavor.

2 yukon gold potates, peeled and cut into large cubes
1/2 - 3/4 pound green beans
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/4 very large onion, sliced
1/2 cup coconut milk
2 Tablespoons red curry paste

• Cover the potatoes with water and boil until fork tender. Drain.
• In a large pan, saute the onion in a little oil until softened
• Add the curry paste and cook for another 2-3 minutes
• Add the beans
• Add the coconut milk and peas and simmer on low about 5 minutes
• Add the potatoes and heat through

Potato, Arugula and Herb Frittata

Potato, Arugula and Herb Frittata

- 2 small red potatoes, quartered and thinly sliced
- 1 small yellow or white onion, thinly sliced
- Approx. 2 oz. arugula, stem ends removed and leaves roughly chopped*
- 8 organic eggs
- large handful parsley
- 10-12 basil leaves, chiffonade
- some chopped tarragon**
-  Olive oil
- Salt & pepper
Tabasco (optional)
*if you can’t find arugula, use spinach
** use whatever herbs you enjoy or have handy
 
Preheat the oven to 425
 
In a cast iron skillet (or other skillet that can go on top of and in the stove) heat 3 Tbsp olive oil over medium heat.
 
Add the potatoes and cook, stirring, for about 2-3 minutes
 
Add the onion, some salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until softened, about another 8 minutes
 
Add the arugula and cook until wilted, about a minute
 
Meanwhile, in a large bowl whisk the eggs, herbs, salt and pepper
 
Once the arugula is wilted, add the egg mixture to the skillet
 
Cook for about 6-8 minutes, or until the center is starting to set
 
Put the skillet in the oven and cook for another 5 minutes (if you want, turn it up to broil for the last minute to get the top to brown a little)
 
Let cool slightly and serve with a dash of Tabasco if you like.

Roasted Fingerling Potato Salad with Watercress Horseradish Dressing

Most of our cooking inspiration these days comes from library books. Almost weekly, Jason heads to the library to get a new book or two (or three). This method has allowed us to try so many new styles and recipes without having to commit to a book that might end up having only one or two interesting recipes.

A recent favorite was Earth to Table: Seasonal Recipes from an Organic Farm by Jeff Crump and Bettina Schormann. The book is organized by season and highlights dishes that best encapsulate the spirit of that season which I love.

This recipe was a yummy hit and simple to make. We served it first with a spice rubbed pork tenderloin and made it again to serve with delicious Bobby Flay cheeseburgers. We made a couple of changes, in particular altering how the salad was composed and served. If you can't find fresh horseradish root you could always substitute prepared, and if watercress is nowhere to be found, substitute arugula for a similar, peppery flavor. While the recipe calls for peeling the potatoes, I love living the skin on and everyone agreed this was the way to go with this recipe!

ROASTED FINGERLING POTATO SALAD WITH WATERCRESS HORSERADISH DRESSING

2 lbs fingerling potatoes
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves
1 tsp salt
1-2 bunches watercress

DRESSING
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup sour cream
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp freshly grated horseradish root
Salt and pepper to taste
lemon

- Preheat the oven to 450

- Toss the potatoes, oil, thyme and salt in a medium bowl

- Spread on a baking dish and roast until very tender, about 30 minutes. Check the potatoes and flip them halfway through the baking, the skins will get a little browned

-  To make the dressing: whisk together the oil, sour cream, vinegar and horseradish. Season to taste with salt and pepper. I ended up adding a little extra horseradish and a dash of lemon juice. Cover and refrigerate while potatoes finish

- Once potatoes are done and have cooled slightly, toss in a large bowl with the watercress

- Serve the salad with the dressing on the side for guests to drizzle themselves

Pimenton Rubbed Pork Tenderloin and Dirty Potatoes with Romesco Sauce and Roasted Purple Carrots

And now for the main course.  The pimenton was courtesy of a little stocking stuffer Jason received from santa this year!  The rub was incredible and the photos do not do justice to the colors and beauty of the plate. 

Pimenton Rubbed Pork Tenderloin
serves 4

Pimenton
Salt
Pepper
Coriander
1-1/4 pound pork tenderloin

--  Preheat over to 350

-- Sprinkle a bit of each of the four seasonings onto the tenderloin and rub onto the meat

-- Sear pork tenderloin on all sides over high heat in a cast iron skillet

--  Put skillet and tenderloin into oven and cook until meat reaches 135 degrees (approximately 15 minutes).  Make sure to flip tenderloin once during cooking process. 

--  Let rest, slice and serve

Dirty Potatoes
serves 4

12 small yukon gold potatoes, halved the long way
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Coriander
1/4 cup pitted kalamata olives
Grated 1 year old manchego

-- Preheat oven to 350

-- Rinse the potatoes to get rid of some of the starch

-- In a large bowl, combine the potatoes with enough oil and spices to coat (spices approximately in equal proportions)

--  Place potatoes cut side down on an unlined baking sheet and roast until fork tender.  DO NOT FLIP. 

--  In mini-food processor combine kalamata olives and approx. a tablespoon of olive oil and blend to a paste-like consistency. 

--  Toss the roasted potatoes in the olive paste and serve with shaved manchego on top

Roasted Baby Purple Carrots

Baby purple carrots (or whatever colors you choose)
Salt
Pepper
Herbs de Provence
Olive Oil

--  Toss carrots in spices and oil and roast in 350 degree oven until tender

Romesco Sauce

3 roma tomatoes halved
1 large red bell pepper quartered
5 cloves garlic peeled
1/3 cup olive oil
2 slices of a french baguette
1/4 cup toasted whole almonds
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
pinch of Pimenton (Spanish paprika)
pinch of red pepper flakes

--  Preheat the oven to 425

--  Brush tomatoes, bell pepper and garlic cloves with oil.  Roast on baking pan for 15 minutes

--  Toast bread in same oven until lightly browned

--  Remove bread and vegetables from oven and let vegetables cool

--  Combine all recipe ingredients in the food processor except the olive oil and blend.  Drizzle in olive oil with motor running and process until it has a slightly chunky sauce consistency

Grilled Tuna with Scallion Smashed Potatoes in a Habanero Clam Broth

Friday nights more and more frequently involve Jason and I staying home, pulling out the cookbooks and coming up with a new and delicious meal.  Kind of an in-house date night!

We were both in the mood for some fish and I really needed a gluten-free meal (there end up being more free bagels in grad school than I had anticipated).  Tuna seemed like a good compromise (Jason wanted swordfish but I didn't want such a meaty fish) and we were both intrigued by Mario Batali's recipe for cockles with habanero broth.  The habanero made it sound like a Flay recipe but we decided to try it out.  We had a bunch of potatoes and thought they would be a great gluten-free starch.  Jason decided some scallions in the potatoes would really help tie it to the habanero broth.  A couple of ring molds later and Jason plated this beautiful meal.

The habanero clam broth was amazing.  Such an unexpected pairing but the habanero, white wine and dash of tomato sauce was complimented prefectly by the liquid released from the clams.  And Jason was right, the scallion potatoes were the perfect match for the broth.  The meal went perfectly with a Soave Superiore.  The tuna was probably a little light for the plate.  Grilling it outside would have been ideal, or simply a heartier fish but all in all it was a most delicious meal!

Beet and Potato Soup

OK, so it's been months and months since I posted.  I regret that I didn't get to document and share all the wonderful cooking we did this summer, but sometimes that's how it goes.  I aspired to live every second to the fullest this summer and enjoy the outdoors to the best of my ability, and given the gorgeous summer, sitting at my laptop just never happened.

But fall has arrived full force, and grad school, so my inside time has increased dramatically.  And with grad school comes fiscal awareness and a renewed pledge to cook all our food, as easily and simply as possible (most days), to waste as little as possible, and still enjoy delicious meals.

This soup got us through more than a week, filling in meal gaps here and there.  The gift of a peck of beets I received made this a no-brainer.

ROASTED BEET AND POTATO SOUP

2 lbs beets - scrubbed, peeled and diced
1 lb potatoes - peeled and diced
2 shallots - chopped
2 Tbsp olive oil
A few sprigs of thyme
Salt
Pepper
6 cups broth (vegetable or chicken, low-sodium)
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
Sour Cream (optional)

Preheat over to 400

Toss the beets, potatoes, thyme, olive oil, salt and pepper together

Line a baking sheet with tin foil and bake the mixture about 45 minutes, until the beets and potatoes are cooked through. 

Remove thyme and add vegetables to soup pot along with the broth and bring to a simmer.  Using an immersion blender, blend the mixture until desired consistency.

Stir in vinegar and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream.

Thai Potato Curry

2 tsp vegetable oil

1 large onion chopped

2 1/2 tsp Thai Green Curry Paste

1 lb potato cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1/3 cup coconut milk

1/2 cup vegetable broth

1 cup canned whole tomatoes with basil, plus juice

1 Tbsp fresh squeezed lime juice

1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil

Red chili paste (sambal oelek) for serving, optional - we put out a little dish of sambal with a spoon so everyone could add their own level of heat.  I think the dish definitely needed some!

>In a large skillet heat oil over medium high heat

>Add onion and sautee until softened and golden, about 5 minutes

>Add curry paste and cook about 1 minute

>Add potatoes and toss well to coat

>Using your hands, lightly crush the tomatoes between your fingers.  Add tomatoes and juices to skillet.

>Cover and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes

>Stir in lime juice and basil

Twice Baked Ramekin Potatoes with Roasted Garlic

 I love miniature kitchen items and could not resist registering for little individual sized red Le Creuset ramekins when we got married.

It was hard to break the bread and cheese habit after the weekend and I was still craving something that felt indulgent.  We had a bunch of potatoes and decided to make a twice baked version in the ramekins.  They turned out delicious and seemingly uber indulgent without being too bad.  The roasted garlic really made this something special.

TWICE BAKED RAMEKIN POTATOES WITH ROASTED GARLIC

1 head garlic
3 medium red potatoes
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp (approx.) half & half
grated pecorino to taste
salt and pepper
5 mini ramekins

Cut top off head of garlic, wrap in tinfoil and roast in 350 degree oven for 45-60 minutes.  Remove from oven when done and turn heat up to 400. 

In the meantime, peel and quarter the potatoes.  Cover with water and boil until fork tender.  Drain.

Squeeze the roasted garlic cloves into the potatoes.  Mash with the butter, cream, salt, pepper and grated pecorino.

Butter ramekins.  Fill each ramekin with the mashed potatoes and sprinkle with a little extra cheese. 

Bake in 400 degree oven for approximately 20 minutes or until cheese browns.

Let cool for a few minutes then run a knife along the inside of the ramekin to dislodge and invert onto plate.