Baked Eggplant Parmesan

Eggplant was never on my culinary list of "things to cook" But as I was viewing photos from an article I just wrote for The Daily Meal  http://www.thedailymeal.com/emmy-exclusives-photos-pre-and-after-party-feasts regarding the meals they made at the Emmy after-parties, I was obsessed with an Elegant Italian Parmigiana di Melanzane, or for us simple cooks, Eggplant Parmesan.

  

Photo Credit: Elizabeth Daniels

These small dishes looked so elegant and I thought they could be simple enough to make. Though I could not find the recipe from the exclusive Los Angeles restaurant RivaBella, I scoured the internet and combined a few recipes that could be used for us simple minded cooks

I whipped up a homemade tomato sauce that was so sweet yet perfectly pungent. It paired well with the eggplant, while not overpowering it. You could really taste the freshness of the veggie. I used mozzarella and Parmesan and baked (I don't like the mess of frying) Many other recipes use grated fontina and Romano cheese in combination with the mozzarella while frying it before they place it in the oven.

I even added my first video! I had to take a video as the eggplant came out of the oven. The sound of bubbling cheese needs to be captured on video at all times! 

Here is the sauce recipe that I used, which is INSANE! Bottle any lefrover you may have and you can use it on any other Italian dishes you whip up in the near future. This eggplant recipe was crafted from Whole Foods.com This is the recipe they have in the store at their buffet section. Its healthy, affordable and yummy! 

The Sauce:

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 medium yellow onions, peeled, halved, and cut into thin slices
6 cloves garlic, peeled and grated
Kosher salt
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
3 (28-ounce) cans San Marzano whole plum 

Directions: 

For the tomato sauce: In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and season with salt and red pepper flakes. Cook until the onions become translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the sugar and the canned tomatoes. Use a wooden spoon to break up some of the whole tomatoes and cook 10 to 15 minutes over medium heat, stirring from time to time. Taste for seasoning, the tomatoes should be fairly broken down and the flavors coming together. Cook for another few minutes if the tomatoes still taste like they need a little more time to break down. Set aside to cool.

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alexandra-guarnaschelli/eggplant-parmigiana-recipe/index.html?oc=linkback

Courtesy of: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alexandra-guarnaschelli/eggplant-parmigiana-recipe/index.html?oc=linkback

Whole Foods Baked Eggplant Parmesan:

• 1 large eggplant, sliced lengthwise into 1/2-inch-thick pieces (about eight)
• 2 eggs, beaten with a fork
• 1 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs (sun-dried tomato or plain)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil*
• Tomato Sauce (recipe above) 
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese*
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Eggplant Directions: 

Preheat oven with a baking sheet inside to 375°F. Coat eggplant slices with beaten egg, then bread with panko crumbs. Spread oil on hot baking sheet and place eggplant slices on it in a single layer. Bake 15 minutes, flip and bake another 10 minutes.

Increase oven temperature to 475°F. In an 8 x 10-inch ovenproof dish, layer pasta sauce, then eggplant, and top with cheeses. Repeat, finishing with cheese. Bake until the cheese melts and turns golden in spots, about 15 minutes

Courtesy of: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipe/easy-baked-eggplant-parmesan

Chicken Bellagio- Cheesecake Factory Version

Set out flour, egg wash and seasoned breadcrumbs for your chicken dredging. It's important that after you dredge your chicken stick it in the fridge for 15 min. This will help the mixture stick while cooking. 

Drop the pasta into a pot of boiling water with salt. Cook "Al Dente" Read your pasta package for boiling times. 

Add heavy cream to saute pan and bring the cream to a simmer. Incorporate the basil pesto. Add salt and pepper. As it thickens add the parmesan cheese, stir. Keep warm. 

The sauce should be thick, yet pourable. 

Like most of the world I'm a HUGE Cheesecake Factory fan! I've already posted the recipe for their chicken madeira recipe. http://thehomecookingkitchen.blogspot.com/2012/12/cheesecake-factory-madeira-chicken.html So Good! Another Cheesecake Factory dish I crave is their Chicken Bellagio. A crispy coated chicken breast over a basil pasta and parmesan cream sauce topped with prosciutto and arugla salad. Come on, this sounds so amazing I had to try making it for myself.

The directions seem a bit complicated because their are many components to the dish, but it's pretty simple after you read it through a couple of times. This is also a great thing to prepare with someone else. I made it with my boyfriend and I just gave him a part of the recipe and he could do his own thing with it. Perfect!

I decided to make this because luckily I had all the ingredients in my fridge. NOTE: I didn't have prosciutto so you wont see it in the pictures, but I would have loved to add it. Also, instead of making my own basil pesto I used the jar version I had in my fridge. Just as good!

For the Breading:
1 large egg, beaten
1/4 cup clour
3/4 cup bread crumbs
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. parsley
1 tsp. oregano

For Frying:
6 oz. angel hair pasta
2 Tbsp. garlic pesto sauce

For the parmesan cream sauce:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
3 tbsp. garlic pesto sauce
1/3 cup Parmesean cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

For the Salad:
1 cup washed arugula
oil
red wine vinegar

Coat the breasts in flour, and then dip the beaten egg, and then into the seasoned bread crumbs. Coat completely flipping the breasts over a few times to completely coat. Refrigerate the breasts on a plate for 15 min, uncovered, to get the seasoned bread crumbs to really stick.

Boil the pasta in salted water until done, about 10 min. Reduce heat to low until needed.

To prep the parmesan cream sauce, add heavy cream to a saute pan and bring the cream to a simmer, and incorporate the basil pesto. Add salt and pepper to taste, and as it begins to thicken, add the parmesan cheese and still vigorously to incorporate it. Continue to stir until it thickens more. Reduce heat to low to keep warm.

Preheat over to 200 degrees F.

heat a non stick or well seasoned cast iron skillet over medium low to medium heat. Add olive oil and fry the breasts on the first side until golden brown, about 3 min. I pounded out my chicken.

To Assemble:
Drain the pasta and place in a large bowl. Stir in garlic basil pesto. Place the pasta on a plate. Pour some of the cream sauce over the pasta. Add the chicken breast. Top breast with more cream sauce. Top with Aruguala that has been tossed with olive oil and red wine vinegar.

Patriotic Pancakes

For those of you that have read my other blog postings regarding the 4th of July you know that I really get into the red, white and blue theme! I'm lucky enough to share a birthday with this great country! Yippi!

This 4th of July, I wanted to make a special breakfast for my family. Seeing that pancakes are a re-occuring theme every morning with my 2-year-old niece I decided to spoof up the plain white colors. I had also just got back from a tour of Driscoll's Farms and had a plethora of left over strawberries and blueberries. Can you say perfect!

Here is how I made this simple and fun Holiday treat! Also, you can use any colors and combinations of fruit to make these special pancakes. For example, for St, Patricks Day, use green food coloring, Kiwis and honey-doo melon!

Ingredients:

Boxed Pancake Mix (or you can make your own) I'm still on the lookout for the best pancake recipe!
Blue or Red Food Coloring
Strawberries
Blueberries
Star candles (you can find these in most grocery store cooking aisle)

Directions:

1. Mix one batch of pancake mix with blue or red food coloring
2. NOTE: for the "white" portion of the stacking, leave the mix color free. The pancake is white enough :)
3. Make all white pancakes first so you can make the colored batch last and not worry about color mixing together.
4. Stack your different colored pancakes accordingly
4. Sprinkle on cut strawberries and whole blueberries
5. Polk in your candles

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

I seriously think I'm going to be making these every other holiday. Such fun colors and fruit combinations out there. If only a bright pink fruit existed I would be in food creativity heaven.

Teriyaki Chicken with Sriracha Cream Sauce

As I was scrolling Pinterest at like 2am the other night :)  I came across a food bloggers recipe (posted below) for a Teriyaki Salmon with Sriracha Cream Sauce. I didn't feel like going out to the grocery store, working all day gives me an excuse not to deal with all those lines. Reading all the ingredients I was in luck and had everything already in my fridge and pantry! Ok It's on!

I'm a HUGE HUGE HUGE fan of Fair food. Seeing that it's summer time I think about the grilled corn, savory smoked hot dogs and my ultimate favorite, teriyaki rice bowls. Perfect! This is what I will make with this recipe! 

I can't stress enough how incredible this recipe is, I even ended up making an entire jar of the Sriracha Cream Sauce, it was that good! If you  have ever had a crab rangoon before, this is exactly what the sauce tastes like, well minus the crab taste, hehe. 

The Teriyaki sauce was the best I have ever tasted, I mean better then the Orange County Fair, or the teriyaki sauce at my local Yamas Teriyaki Bowl . Wow! Wow! I'm so happy I found this. 

FYI...I will never post unless I have tasted and approved a full cook thru. Therefore I only have a picture of the my finished product. I just wanted to share this with you all ASAP. I will probably be making this recipe weekly, no joke it's that good. So I should have some added pictures of the steps up shortly. Enjoy! And let me know what you think xoxox

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 salmon filets
• Cooked rice, for serving
• Sesame seeds, for garnish
• Sliced green onions, for garnish

For the Sriracha cream sauce:

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 2-3 tablespoons Sriracha
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk

DIRECTIONS:

To make the Sriracha cream sauce, whisk together the mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons Sriracha and condensed milk in a small bowl. Taste for spiciness and add more Sriracha as needed; set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and 1/4 cup water; set aside.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, add the soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, garlic powder, honey and 1 cup water; bring to a simmer.

Stir in the cornstarch mixture until thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 2 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.

In a gallon size Ziploc bag or large bowl, combine the teriyaki marinade and salmon filets; marinate for at least 30 minutes to overnight, turning the bag occasionally.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly coat an 8x8 baking dish with nonstick spray.

Place the salmon filets along with the marinade onto the prepared baking dish and bake until the fish flakes easily with a fork, about 20 minutes. 

Serve the salmon immediately with rice and a drizzle of the Sriracha cream sauce, garnished with sesame seeds and green onions.

Salmon recipe: http://damndelicious.net/post/24047518520/teriyaki-salmon-with-sriracha-cream-sauce

Patriotic Rice Krispies Treats

Summertime is here! It's already the 4th of July!?? WOW! And my birthday is almost here, yippi! (July 5th) If you're anything like me, you crave to have your appetizers you bring to your 4th of July party or BBQ to be a hit, right? I mean come on, we only get to celebrate this holiday once a year people! Really anything with red, white and blue and sugar will have anybody's taste buds booming. You really can't go wrong with the classic snap, crackle and pop and a little bit of butter and marshmellows! I made this with my boyfriend last year before we went to a 4th of July parade, and it for sure got me in the American pride spirit! If it was this much fun mixing the colors and Krispies as it was with my BF I can only assume how much fun it would be if you have little ones. Celebrate and ENJOY! 

Ingredients: 

6 cups Rice Krispies Cereal
1 Package Marshmallows
3 TB Margarine or Butter
 Food Coloring (red and blue)

Directions:

• Gather supplies and divide all ingredients into 3 bowls. NOTE you don't need any food coloring for the "White" layer. 
• I like to microwave my marshmallows and butter because it’s easier that way :)  I stick them in for a few minutes or until they start to get big and almost touch the top of the microwave. Take them out, stir well 
• Separate the marshmallows evenly into three bowls. Add red food coloring to one bowl and blue food coloring to another. Leave the white layer free from coloring, the Krispies themselves do the job. 
• Add 2 cups of cereal to each bowl and stir well. 
• Now apply your layers! I started with Blue then White then Red
• Let sit for 20 min and serve!

HAPPY 4th EVERYONE!! Have a drink for me on the 5th and return to see some of my fun birthday recipes :) 

POPOVERS

Popovers are a classic Christmas tradition for me and my family. But, I make them year round seeing that they are so good! You only need four ingredients and 20 min and you have a light tasty breakfast treat which you can top with your favorite jam or fruit. My family loves to spread butter and strawberry jam over these hot little babies. I have yet to try lunch and dinner popovers, I have heard people pair with meats. When I find a good recipe for that I will post! Until then, here is the classic popover recipe. They are best made with a popover tin, which are basically muffin tins but taller and skinnier. You can find them at any cooking store or Target. Also, popovers are best eaten straight from the oven and piping hot. Enjoy! 

Ingredients:

1 cup whole milk
1 tb butter
1 cup sifted flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400. Butter pan generously to avoid sticking. Mix milk, butter, flour and salt until smooth, use a wire wisk or fork. DONT OVER DO IT!.

One at a time add 2 lightly beaten eggs- the batter should be no heavier than whipping cream. Some lumps are ok. Fill the pans 1/3 to 1/2 full.

Bake 15 minutes at 400 then lower to 300 and bake 30 min lover. NO PEEKING for 30 min. The tops should be golden brown or slightly darker.

Serve immediately in a basket lined with napkins. And serve with butter and jam.

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Brussel Sprouts with Raspberries and Pancetta

Slice brussel sprouts lengthwise and salt and pepper before you desired cooking method. 

Through my day job as Editor at The Daily Meal I got invited to an exclusive tour at Driscoll's berry farms in Watsonville, Ca. Here I got to hand pick some of the freshest strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries my taste-buds have every witnessed! As I got home I was left with boxes and boxes of fresh berries, not bad right? But as someone who hates to waste anything! I opted to scroll on Driscoll's website to find some great recipes I could make with my boyfriend and all of our fresh boxes of berries. There is where I came across this recipe. It's fantastic! Though I opted to place my brussels sprouts on the skillet for 15 min on low so all the ingredients could melt together, Driscoll's recipe I'm posting bakes them. Choose whichever way you prefer to cook them and please let me know what you think! Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

• 
  
• 3 ounces (about 1/2 cup) diced pancetta
• 2 teaspoons plus 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 2 pounds brussels sprouts, trimmed and cut in half lengthwise (see Note)
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon light brown sugar
• 1 package (6 ounces) Driscoll's Raspberries, at room temperature
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400ºF.

Cook the pancetta and 2 teaspoons of oil together in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the pancetta is lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pancetta to paper towels to drain.

Toss the Brussels sprouts and the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large bowl. Spread on a large rimmed baking sheet. Bake, stirring occasionally, until browned and just tender when pierced with the tip of a small sharp knife, 20 to 30 minutes. During the last few minutes, stir in the reserved pancetta. Transfer to a serving bowl.

Whisk the balsamic vinegar and brown sugar together in a small bowl. Drizzle over the Brussels sprouts mixture, season with salt and pepper, and toss gently. Add the raspberries and toss again. Serve ho

recipe courtesy of: http://www.driscolls.com/recipes/view/7831/Roasted-Brussel-Sprouts-with-Raspberries-and-Pancetta