Mascarpone Mashed Potatoes w/Roasted Garlic and Chives

This is another recipe that came to me from Ziplist. It's a great holiday side, but really can be prepared any time of the year. The great thing about this recipe is that you can prepare it the day before and reheat it in the oven. The potatoes are so light and fluffy and the chives and roasted garlic give them some nice flavor. You won't be disappointed in this recipe. I adapted this recipe from www.goodlifeeats.com.

Mascarpone Mashed Potatoes w/ Roasted Garlic and Chives

3 lbs russet potatoes, peeled, cut in chunks
2 dried bay leaves
1 cup whole milk
1/4 chicken broth
8 oz container mascarpone cheese, room temperature
3 Tbsp butter, melted
1 head roasted garlic
1/2 tsp pepper, or more to taste
kosher salt, to taste
1/2 bunch of chives (1/2 inch diameter), snipped

Add potatoes to stock pot with water. Add bay leaves and 1 teaspoon salt. bring to boil, lower to simmer and cook until very tender, 20 -30 minutes.
While potatoes cook, whisk together milk, broth, mascarpone and butter in a large oven safe bowl. Stir in pepper.
Once potatoes are cooked, drain water and discard bay leaves. Press potatoes through a potato ricer into bowl with mascarpone mixture. Press roasted garlic through ricer. Stir mixture to combine. Taste for seasonings and add more if desired.
Bake covered with foil at 350 degrees until heated through. Stir in chives and serve.
May be prepared ahead of time and stored in refrigerator overnight.

Holiday Spiced Sangria

This recipe came to me as part of an e-mail I get from Ziplist. I don't remember signing up for this, but I have had some good recipes come my way. I changed it up some, but the original comes from www.aggieskitchen.com. This was a big hit for Christmas day, but would be nice for any winter occasion.

Holiday Spiced Sangria

Simple syrup:
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
3 cinnamon sticks
sliced blood orange peel (peel only, no white)
1 inch piece peeled ginger, quartered
1 tsp whole cloves
1/2 tsp black peppercorns

Sangria:
2 750ml bottles Cabernet wine
2/3 cups simple syrup
juice of 2 blood oranges
1/2 cup light rum
1/2 cup orange liquor
1 each, chopped apple, chopped pear, sliced blood orange
1 cup frozen tart cherries
1/2 cup frozen blueberries


To make simple syrup: In saucepan, combine water, sugar, cinnamon sticks, orange peel, ginger, cloves and peppercorns and bring to a boil. Simmer and stir to dissolve sugar. Boil until reduced and slightly syrupy, about 15 minutes. Let cool, strain and store in glass container in refrigerator.
To make sangria: In a large pitcher combine sangria ingredients. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

Turkey-Cheese Soup

This is a full bodied, spicy soup that's perfect on a chilly night. The recipe is based on one from an April 1989 Bon Appetit that I finally made last night. Their recipe calls for pureeing the soup mixture after cooking the veggies, broth and wine and then pushing it through a fine mesh sieve. Since I decided to add ground turkey to my recipe, I thought that the smooth factor did not really apply. It worked out well and the texture was just fine.

Turkey-Cheese Soup

2 large carrots, peeled, cut in 1-inch pieces
1 small onion, peeled, cut in 1-inch pieces
1 small apple, cored, cut in 1-inch pieces
2 jalapenos, seeded
3 Tbsp butter
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup white wine
1 lb ground white meat turkey
6 Tbsp flour
2 cups milk
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cups shredded Pepper Jack cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a food processor, process first 4 ingredients until finely minced.
Melt butter in large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add contents of work bowl and cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add stock and wine, bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer gently for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat a small skillet, add ground turkey breaking up with a spoon. Season with salt and pepper and cook until brown. Discard any liquid and set aside.
Place flour in bowl. Slowly whisk in half of milk, making a smooth paste. Add to veggie mix along with remaining milk and cooked turkey. Cook until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes.
Stir in cheeses and cook over medium heat until smooth, stirring frequently. Season with salt and pepper and serve in warm bowls.

Skillet Lasagna

This was an easy lasagna recipe that came from Martha Stewart's Real Simple. I've had this one for awhile so I do not recall from which issue it came. I changed up the sauce a little to make it closer to what I would normally prepare. This is a good one for dinner in about an hour.

Skillet Lasagna

3 Tbsp. olive oil
3 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 (28oz) can tomato puree
1(15-oz) can diced tomatoes
8 large basil leaves, coarsely chopped
salt and pepper
1 large egg yolk
1 (15oz) container ricotta cheese, room temperature
1 (12oz) box no-boil lasagna noodles
8 oz. mozzarella, shredded
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a large deep skillet, heat olive oil  and add garlic, stirring for 1 minute. Add tomatoes and basil, bring to a boil. Add salt and pepper and reduce to a simmer and cook until thickened, about 12 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, mix egg yolk, ricotta and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper.
Carefully pour sauce into heat proof bowl and return 3/4 cup to skillet; spreading sauce evenly. Add a single layer of noodles, breaking them to fit. Top with half of ricotta mixture, spreading evenly. Follow with a second layer of noodles, then 1 1/2 cups of sauce. Add a third layer of noodles, then remaining ricotta. Follow with a final noodle layer, then remaining sauce. Sprinkle with mozzarella and Parmesan.
Bale until golden and bubbly, about 35 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

White Chicken Chili

 

This was the perfect chili for the first really cold night of the year. I've had this recipe forever and finally prepared it for the first time last night and was pleased with the outcome. It had a really nice thick consistency and the flavor was not too spicy, but just spicy enough. You can add more chili powder or even try a chipotle chili powder, the original recipe did not call for it, but I wanted a little more flavor. Top it with white cheddar, Monterrey Jack or a a good pepper Jack.

White Chicken Chili

1 tsp. olive oil
1/2 c. chopped white onion
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 (15oz) can cream-style corn
1 (7oz) can chopped green chiles
2 cups whole milk
1 (15oz) can cannellini beans
2 cups chopped cooked chicken
grated white cheese for topping


In a large sauce pan, heat oil over high heat. Add onion, pepper and jalapeno and cook, stirring often, until onion softened, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and stir for another minute. Add cumin, chili powder, corn, green chiles, milk and beans. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add chicken and salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into warm bowls and top with cheese.

Mac n' Cheese Soup

This is a thick and hearty soup with great flavor! I was sceptical when I started making it, but enjoyed the finished product. The recipe came from Cuisine At Home Magazine, one of my favorites.

Mac n' Cheese Soup

1 1/2 c. dry elbow macaroni
1/2 c. minced onion
1/4 c. minced celery
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1/3 c. all purpose flour
1/2 c. dry white wine
2 c. low-sodium chicken broth
1 tsp. dry mustard
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 c. whole milk
4 c. shredded sharp Cheddar
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
Salt to taste
1/4 crumbled blue cheese
2 Tbsp. minced fresh chives

Cook macaroni in a pot of salted, boiling water according to package directions; drain and set aside.
Sweat onion and celery in butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until soft, about 5 minutes.
Stir in flour to coat and cook 1 minute. Deglaze with wine and simmer until nearly evaporated. Stir in broth, mustard, nutmeg, and cayenne. Simmer 5 minutes, until slightly thickened, then whisk in milk and warm through. Do not let it boil, it will become grainy.
Add Cheddar, 1 cup at a time, allowing it to melt completely before adding the next cup. Stir in macaroni, lemon juice and salt; remove from heat.
Combine blue cheese and chives in small bowl. Garnish each bowl with mixture.

Girl Scout Cookie Brownies

One of the ladies I work with brought these wonderful brownies to work one day and I have to say they are incredible. They are so rich and fudge-like and the possibilities of variants are endless. These are made using a triple chocolate cake mix, Caramel DeLites Girl Scout cookies ( Samoas in certain markets) and a mix of butterscotch and white chocolate chips. I think they would be really good with Thin Mints and chocolate chips or peanut butter cookies and peanut butter chips. You will be tempted to eat them warm, but they have to cool completely to set up. The recipe I am posting is the original.

Girl Scout Cookie Brownies

1 box Caramel DeLites, crushed
1 chocolate cake mix
3/4 cup melted butter
1/3 cup evaporated milk
1 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup caramel sauce

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8 x 11.5 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Combine cake mix, melted butter and evaporated milk. Spread half of mixture into pan. Bake for six minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with half of crushed cookies and half of the chips. Drizzle with half of the caramel sauce. Drop spoonfuls of remaining batter evenly over the top and bake for another 10 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with remaining cookies, chips and caramel.
Cool completely before cutting.