Thursday, March 10, 2011

Spinach Linguini with Lemon-Cream Sauce

James and I go to the movies like once every other week. And often, we make it a full date-night by going to dinner before at the Cheesecake Factory right by the movie theater. Cheesecake Factory is great if you don't know what you want to eat. And it sucks if you don't know what you want to eat because their menu is ginormous.

I have my select go-to dishes there, but my overall favorite is their version of Chicken Piccata. It's soooo amazing, and I've wasted many a meal trying to recreate it and I just flat out can't. But, I will say, I have come across some great sauces, albeit different, along the way.

I learned this trick recently from my good friend, Francoise, and I'm so happy about it. Instead of trying to make my own creamy sauces, you buy a jar of Alfredo sauce, and add your own crap to it! It's genius and I love how easy it is!

So, sadly, there is no real recipe here. Buy some spinach linguini, cook as directed. In a sauce pan, heat Alfredo sauce while adding lemon juice, white wine, salt and pepper to taste. Just add a little bit at a time, stir, taste, repeat.

If you want to get super fancy with it, saute some mushrooms and throw those in there. Add capers to it. Whatever. It's yummy.

Note: the sauce will taste more "lemony/sour" in the pan than it actually will on the pasta, so don't be afraid. Once you think you have the sauce where you want it, take pasta and add it to the sauce, tossing to coat, then take pasta out to serve on plate. It really makes a difference, as opposed to just pouring sauce over the top of your pasta.

Balsamic-Glazed Salmon

No intros on this post. Just food.

Cheesy Factor (1 no cheese, 10 all cheese): 1
Time Factor (1 shortest, 10 longest): 2
Dummy Factor (1 easiest, 10 hardest): 4

Balsamic-Glazed Salmon
4 salmon fillets
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp white wine
2 tsp honey
3 Tbl + 2 tsp Balsamic Vinegar
3 tsp dijon mustard
salt/pepper to taste
Olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 deg. Spray non-stick spray on baking sheet. In a small sauce pan over medium heat, add a little bit of olive oil and the garlic and cook garlic until soft. Mix in wine, honey, vinegar, mustard, salt/pepper. Simmer, uncovered, until thickens slightly (3-5 minutes). Put salmon fillets on baking sheet and brush with the glaze. Cook for 11-14 minutes, or until desired doneness. Brush fillets with remaining glaze and serve.

I found it took a little bit longer than 5 minutes to get my glaze to thicken a little, so don't be surprised if you do too.

Greek Culinary Adventures: Part 2

I have been SUCKING in the cooking department recently. I think all I have been doing is working. I often joke (not joking) that I don't talk to anyone during the week about anything except carpet, other than my husband. Sad.

I don't have too much to report outside of work. Went on a fun family and friends vaca to Colorado skiing. James has been working away, and Guinness is growing like a weed! Looking forward to some summer travels and weddings and that's about it!

I've been thinking about lamb recently. I don't think I had eaten lamb in like 1-2 years, since I made a Guinness stew, and then all of the sudden, I've had lamb like 3-4 times in the last 2 months. Lamb chops at Sandy's Beach Grill, lamb chops at AnQi, lamb chops at Roppongi...craziness. Actually....now that I think about it....I eat lamb all the time, what am I talking about. I get gyro meat often. Oh, well. I'm losing my mind. But I think I will be attempting the Guinness stew again soon in honor of St. Patty's Day next week. Stay tuned for that!

This recipe is a long time coming, considering I cooked it months ago when I made the Shrimp Saganaki. I don't know how I forgot to post it, but better late than never I suppose.


Cheesy Factor (1 no cheese, 10 all cheese): 2
Time Factor (1 shortest, 10 longest): 5
Dummy Factor (1 easiest, 10 hardest): 3

Greek-Style Stuffed Peppers
1/3 lb ground turkey or ground beef
3-4 oz spinach, finely chopped
2/3 cup grated zucchini
1/3 cup onion, minced
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbl bulghur
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp salt
Fresh ground black pepper
1 red bell pepper, halved lengthwise, remove seeds/cores/veins
2/3 can (14-15oz can) of stewed tomatoes, finely chopped
Crumbled Feta Cheese


Preheat oven to 350 deg. In a mixing bowl, combine turkey, spinach, zucchini, onion, bulghur, 1/3 of the egg, oregano, salt, and a few grinds of pepper. Mix thoroughly. Arrange peppers cut-side up in a baking dish, and stuff with half of the meat mixture. Pour tomatoes over top, then sprinkle with feta cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover, and bake for additional 25 minutes or until meat cooked all the way through and peppers tender.




So the only thing about this recipe that was "interesting" was bulghur. What the h-ll is bulghur, you ask? That's exactly what I asked. It's kind a grain of sorts, kind of like wheat. I found it at Whole Foods, but it is not at my normal grocery store. Other than that, this dish is awesome. I made the mistake of thinking it was a side dish, but it's pretty much an entree. We ended up with two entrees that night, and no sides. Oops.