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Braised Bell Peppers

26 Feb

I have a new favorite supermarket, Plaza Loíza.  It’s what the call locally, Cash & Carry, but lately they have awesome produce.  I love that when I do groceries there, I can fill up a few bags of groceries and only spend $30, while at Grande 24hrs I can spend the same amount and only have 1 small little bag with me.  Amazing…

The other day Plaza Loíza had bell peppers on sale.  All bell peppers, regardless of their color – green, red, yellow or orange – all were at $1.99/lb.  If you’re a fan of bell peppers and live in PR, you’d know this is a bargain.  You can find the green ones at this price, but reds, yellow and orange too!!!!  Very difficult to find…

Now that I had these peppers, I wanted to do something special with them.  I found a recipe for braised bell peppers in an old Cooking Light cookbook.  Of course I changed it a bit to make it in a smaller quantity and to make good with what I had in the pantry.  It turned out so delicious I decided to share it with you…

 

BRAISED BELL PEPPERS

About 1 tbs olive oil
2 tsps of sofrito
1 medium red bell pepper, cut into strips
1 medium yellow bell pepper, cut into strips
1 ½ onions, sliced
A pinch of anise seed
1 tbs of tomato paste
1 cup of water
1 tbs ume plum vinegar
1 tbs fresh basil – or you could use freeze-dried too
Salt and Pepper to taste

 

  1. In a skillet with tall sides over medium heat, add the oil, sofrito, pepper and onion strips.  Season with salt.  Sauté for a few minutes for the veggies to start to become soft.  Add a pinch of anise seeds.
  3. After about 10 minutes of cooking, add the tomato paste and mix well with the peppers/onions.  Add the water and mix it all well.  Bring to a boil.  When it does, lower the heat and partially cover.  Simmer for about 20-25 minutes, or until peppers are soft. 
  4. After peppers are soft, stir in basil and vinegar.  Add pepper.  Turn of the stove and cover.  Let the heat from the pot and stove finish melding the flavors together.

 

I used ume plum vinegar, an Asian-type vinegar and it tasted really delicious.  The vinegar tinge was there, but much subtle.

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White Truffle Mac and Cheese

22 Feb

I loooooove Mac & Cheese… and now that I am grown-up, I look for ways to make mac & cheese but with twists and turns that will still satisfy the cravings, yet also attend a more upscale audience.

I have seen on various Top Chef and Barefoot Contessa episodes how a little bit of truffle butter can give you the essence of truffles without the steep price.  Hey… still, a little container of truffle butter is not cheap at $7 each, but it’s not as expensive as shelling out $$$ for the real fresh truffle.  Which, to be honest, I do not know if they’re available here in Puerto Rico.

I have been intrigued by the flavor of truffles ever since I had a delicious mushroom risotto with a drizzle of truffle oil at Pikayo’s Restaurant here in San Juan and more recently in a trip to NYC where we had a delicious vegetable cassoulet with truffle butter running thru it.  Truffles have a flavor very difficult to explain for me… I guess that’s why I prefer, if you can and dare, to experience it.  That’s why they’ve invented a name for this flavor – umami. 

So I have adored this little tub of truffle butter in the fridge since before Xmas time… and a few weeks back I said ENOUGH!!  I am making something with this butter!  And to celebrate the love I feel for my friends, I invited them over to a small Valentine’s dinner party.    

 

WHITE TRUFFLE MAC AND CHEESE

About 4 cups of mushrooms, sliced – I used a combination of white button and cremini mushrooms
3 tbs of butter
About 3 tbs of extra-virgin Olive oil
1 pound of elbow or penne pasta, whole grain preferably
1 small container of truffle butter
A little bit less than ¼ cup of whole wheat flour
1 quart of milk
About 1 cup of gruyere cheese, grated
About 1 cup of Italian Blend of cheeses, shredded
About ½ cup of Parmesan cheese, grated
Sea Salt and Freshly cracked Black Pepper

 

  1. First we cook the mushrooms… in a large skillet heat the regular butter and a bit olive oil to prevent the butter to burn too quickly and sauté the mushrooms.  I had to do this in batches because my skillet is not that large.  When you place them on the skillet, move them around to make sure the butter/oil coats them, but after that leave them alone.  Do not touch them for a while and allow them to cook and get browned on both sides before seasoning them with salt and pepper.  Set them aside.
  2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Salt generously and cook the pasta until al dente for about 6-7 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, we create the cheese sauce for the mac & cheese… in a medium sauce pan add the truffle butter… the smell will intoxicate you, in a good way!!!  When the butter melts, add the flour in small increments.  I scooped out ¼ cup, but I did not use it all.  Whisk the flour into the butter to create a smooth paste and allow it to cook for a few minutes to make sure the flour doesn’t taste like flour in the sauce.
  4. After about 3-4 minutes, add the milk to the flour/butter paste, called a roux by the cooking gods.  Whisk away to make sure you have no lumps and to thicken the milk and crate a creamy béchamel sauce.  Bring to a boil for the sauce to reach it’s creamy consistency.
  5. Remove sauce from heat and add the grated cheeses slowly, whisking as you add to make sure they melt perfectly.
  6. When the cheese sauce is ready, drain the pasta well, return to the same pot and add the cheese sauce.  Add the reserved cooked mushrooms and mix well.  Transfer to a greased 9” x 13” baking dish and top with some extra grated Parmesan and Gruyere cheese.
  7. Bake in oven for about 20 minutes at 350F until the cheese on top gets browned and crusty.

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HashBrown Spinach Casserole

25 Jan

I already shared this version of a hash brown casserole with you guys… but this version really came about as a clean-out my fridge recipe.  I was tired of seeing the bag of hash brown potatoes in the freezer, a small container of French Onion Dip, the spinach, the shredded cheeses. 

I challenged myself to cook with stuff that was already “opened” – no need to open a new package of anything to save in the fridge.

 

HASHBROWN SPINACH CASSEROLE

1 lbs (about 1/3 a bag) of frozen hash brown potatoes, somewhat thawed
About 1 cup of frozen cut-leaf spinach, somewhat defrosted too
4oz of French Onion Dip – you can use one from the store or make it yourself
2 tbs plain yogurt
1 cup shredded Italian cheese blend – Asiago, Mozzarella, provolone, etc.
Freshly Cracked Black Pepper to taste

 

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
  2. Mix together all the ingredients in a medium bowl.
  3. Place the mixture in an oven-proof dish bake in oven for about 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the potato is fully cooked and the top is golden brown.

 

No need to salt this dish in my opinion… the times I used additional salt, even a little, it turned out salty.  The dip and the cheeses will provide plenty saltiness to the dish.

Try this with my Watercress Salad with Creamy Horseradish Dressing… super yummy.

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Mushroom and Goat Cheese Pastelillo

18 Jan

I have an “obsession” with puffed pastry…  I admit it.  It’s super versatile and easy to use, particularly when you’re cooking for company.  Just add your favorite filling and you have a nice dish.

This time around I decided to mix together the ingredients of my favorite appetizer of the Xmas season and make it into a meal… balsamic mushrooms and goat cheese.  Envelope everything inside squares of puffed pastry, add a great green salad and you have a complete meal for a girl’s night together.  Here’s how I did it…

 

MUSHROOM AND GOAT CHEESE PASTELILLO

1 sheet of puffed pastry, thawed in the refrigerator since the night before
½ recipe for Balsamic Mushrooms
4 oz package of goat cheese
2 tbs butter, melted
A bit of flour or cornstarch to roll out the puffed pastry
  1. I’ll be honest… I do not measure a lot.  So I do not know how large I roll out the puffed pastry, but just enough to make 4 medium sized squares to make into these pastelillos.  Each pastelillo serves one not so big eater.  
  2. So before you start rolling out, dust your surface and rolling pin with some whole wheat flour or cornstarch so the pastry does not stick to either one.  Cut the pastry into 4 squares as even as possible.
  3. Lay one of your squares in a diagonal with one corner facing you directly.  Add about 1 ounce of the cream cheese and about ¼ of you mushroom mixture in the half of the square closest to you, leaving about ¼ inch clearance around the edges.   Now, overlap the free side of the square on top of the mixture and pinch all the open sides with a fork to close tightly. Repeat with the 3 remaining squares.
  4. Lay them flat on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and place in the fridge for a few minutes, while the oven preheats to 350F.  I do this because the climate in PR is too hot and usually my pastry tends to give me a bit of trouble by the time I get to the last few squares.  This way the pastry kind of cools off and we make sure it will turn our flaky in the end product.
  5. Brush them with a bit of melted butter on top to help them brown nicely.  Bake the pastries in the oven for about 20-25 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown.  The smell will tell you when they’re done.

 

Enjoy them with a great salad on the side for a light lunch or a light dinner. 

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Hash Brown Casserole

15 Jan

I mentioned to you how much I love the Hash Brown Casserole from Cracker Barrel.  It’s one of my favorite things to eat when I travel in the US.  If I see a Cracker Barrel sign on the side of the road, I immediately salivate.   Very Pavlovian…

So skimming thru this same internet, I found a bunch of recipes that looked awesome and reminded me of the hash brown casserole I usually have at Cracker Barrel.  Most of them included bacon or other stuff that you and I do not eat anymore, so I came up with my adaptation…  Here are the results:

 

HASHBROWN CASSEROLE

1½ lbs (about ½ a bag) of frozen hash brown potatoes, somewhat thawed
½ medium onion, chopped finely
4oz of sour cream
½ can of condensed cream of mushroom soup – I use the reduced sodium version
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup corn flakes, crushed
Freshly Cracked Black Pepper to taste
1 tbs melted butter

 

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
  2. In a medium bowl, mix together all the ingredients, except the cornflakes and butter. 
  3. Place the mixture in an oven-proof dish and top with the crushed corn flakes and drizzle melted butter over the corn flakes.
  4. Bake in oven for about 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the potato is fully cooked and the top is golden brown.

 

This version does not taste really like the casserole at CB, but it’s definitely mighty tasty.  It’s those kind of recipes I love…  where you just assemble the ingredients, place them in the oven and you can then leave it alone, while you shower, check your email, meditate and it’s ready.  Just serve it with a salad on the side and you have a complete meal.

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