parmesan-crusted chicken

DELICIOUS! This dish is delicious. To be fair, I only post the recipes on here that I think are great. There's been quite a few doozies, but they don't make it to the blog. However, every once in awhile I get one that I don't just enjoy, I LOVE. This was one such dish. It actually reminded me a bit of the limehouse chicken - different ingredients, but similar idea. Really easy too. You can actually even make it easier than I did (as noted below). Here's what you'll need:

• Chicken breast (I, of course, just made this for myself, but the topping portion below is probably enough for 3-4 breasts).
• Dash of salt
• Sprinkling of black pepper
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan (pecorino would work too)
• 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 3 tbsp olive oil, divided
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• 2 garlic cloves, minced, divided

bucatini all'amatriciana

There's seriously nothing better than a spicy pasta in my book. If you follow the blog, you've seen it pop up pretty often. No one does spicy pasta better than the Romans, and last night I tried an easy recipe for one of the quintessential roman sauce - amatriciana. Here's what you'll need:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 ounces thinly sliced guanciale (or pancetta ... or prosciutto ... or just bacon if you can't find any of those)
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 3/4 cup minced onion
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 28 ounce can peeled tomatoes
• 12 ounces dried bucatini (spaghetti will totally work as well)
• 1/4 cup finely grated Pecorino

pears w/ fig jam & pecorino romano

Dessert! I don't make it often. When I do, I tend to gravitate towards cheese or fruit-based dishes. This one in particular has both. It was unique, simple and delicious. Here's what you'll need:

• 2 tablespoons toasted almonds (or hazelnuts)
• 1/4 lb. moist, dry figs
• 2 tablespoons brandy
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 lemon, zested and juiced
• 6 oz. wedge of pecorino romano
• 3 ripe pears (I went with Bosc)

Begin by trimming the stems from the figs and cutting each into 4 or 5 small chunks. In a small saucepan over high heat, combine the figs with 1/2 cup water and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes.

While that's cooling, put the nuts in a food processor and pulse a couple times. Add the figs (along with the water), brandy, sugar, lemon zest and juice and pulse until the figs are coarsely chopped. Taste and add more sugar if desired.

Using a knife, break the cheese into several smaller chunks. Lastly, halve the pears, coar them, and slice thinly lengthwise. Serve the cheese, pears and jam together on a serving platter, or eat them right then and there.

This dish was pretty great. It could totally work at breakfast/bruch, as finger food at a party, or just a simple dish to chow down on for a snack.

Bon chappétit!

shrimp alfredo

So the temperature finally dropped into the absolutely friggid 80s recently (crazy, right?) and it oddly put me in the mood for something heavy and hearty. One of my favorite cold-weather pasta dishes is a super rich alfredo, so I figured why not? Although it was in the "frigid" 80s, I still didn't feel like spending too much time in the kitchen, so instead of making in from scratch, I used a jarred alfredo sauce as a base. I know, sacrilegious! Whatever. It was easy. Here's what you'll need:

• 8 ounces linguine pasta
• 1 tablespoon cup butter
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1/4 pound portobello mushrooms, diced
• 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1/2 (8 ounces) jar Alfredo sauce (I used Bertolli)
• 1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or more to taste
• Salt and pepper to taste

Begin by bringing a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook per package directions, until al dente.

Meanwhile, melt the butter together with the olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion, and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Next, stir in the garlic, red pepper and mushroom and cook over medium-high heat until soft, about another 2 minutes.

Stir in the shrimp, and cook until firm and pink, then pour in the alfredo sauce and Romano cheese and bring to a simmer stirring constantly until thickened, about 2 more minutes. Season with cayenne, salt, and pepper to taste. Stir drained pasta into the sauce, and serve. Simple and delicious, even with jarred sauce.

Bon chappétit!

italian meatballs w/simple tomato sauce

Last night I decided to betray my mom (sorry!) and try a new meatball recipe. I'm used to the basic, old school kind that's really just ground beef, breadcrumb and egg. Well, let me tell y'all, this new version really sent me for a loop. They were so succulent and tasty, I don't think I'll ever turn back. And I really don't feel that sorry Mom - once you try these you'll see what I mean :) Here's what you'll need:

For the meatballs

• 1 lb meat (I used the a ground beef/pork/veal combo in my local market)
• 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1/2 small yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• 1/4 cup of cheese (I used a pecorino romano I had, but you could use parmesan as well)
• Salt and pepper

For the sauce

• 1 large can peeled tomatoes
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 small yellow onion, finely chopped
• 8-10 basil leaves, chopped
• 1/4 cup olive 
• Salt and pepper

Begin by getting the sauce going. In a medium pot, sauté the garlic and onion in oil. Once they begin to open up and brown, pour the liquid from the tomatoes into the pot, and the tomatoes from the can into a bowl. Mash them up nicely, and then add to the pot, along with the basil, salt and pepper to taste.  Let this simmer on low heat in the background while preparing the meatballs.

For the meatballs, basically just combine everything in a large bowl.  Roll into desired size (mine pictured are about the size of golfballs).  I then baked mine on a cookie sheet for about 10 minutes on 450 degrees.  You can also brown them in a skillet with a little oil if you'd prefer.  They also get a little crispier this way, which can be nice. However, I was feeling lazy and didn't want to have another pan to clean (I lined the cookie sheet with tin foil to avoid cleaning - genius!)

After they've been cooked by whichever method, add them to the sauce and let them simmer and blend while you cook your pasta. Once the pasta is done, toss it all together and you're done.  This made 16 meatballs, which could easily feed 4 people.  You may want to double the sauce if you're serving that many and want it really saucy. I kept it on the lighter side - although I ate half of this all by myself in one sitting...

Bon chappétit!

fusilli all'amatriciana

Amatriciana is onen of the quintessential Roman sauces. Like any great pasta from the Eternal City, it's got a little bit of tomato, spice, cheese and, of course, pancetta. After Fooding with Emily tried her hand earlier this week, I got hungry for it myself. Here's my spin on the classic dish:

• 1 28oz can peeled Italian plum tomatoes
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• 2 small dried red chiles, stemmed and coarsely chopped
• 6 ounces pancetta, sliced 1/4 inch thick and cut into thin strips
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2 lb of pasta (I had fusilli on hand)
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons freshly grated pecorino cheese

Begin by heating the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the onion, chiles and garlic and cook over low heat until the onion is softened, about 10 minutes. Then add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pancetta is lightly colored, about another 10 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes, making sure to use a fork to squish the tomatoes. Simmer over moderately low heat, stirring often, until the sauce is thickened, about 40 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the pasta, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Drain the pasta and return it to the pot. Add the sauce and the pecorino, toss and serve.

Note: Do not skimp on the cheese - good cheese is priceless!

Bon chappétit!