Category: Recipes (Page 15 of 26)

Yet another great recipe from epicurious.com, which I’m copying here in case epicurious ever goes out of business and leaves me without it.
I really liked this recipe. While the chops themselves were nothing much, pork chops are pork chops, the leek “sauce” was delicious – though a bit too intense. Spoon only a little bit on the pork chops. It was also great with the plain couscous.
Pork Chops with Leeks in Mustard Sauce

• 4 pork chops
• 2 tsp. kosher salt
• 2 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped
• 1 tsp. fresh rosemary, chopped
• 2 thick bacon slices, chopped
• 3 large leeks, thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/4 cup brandy
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 2 tsp. chopped fresh sage leaves
• 2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
• 1/3 cup sour cream.

Pat the chops dry with kitchen towels. In a small bowl, mix the salt, thyme and rosemary. Sprinkle the seasoning on both sides of the chop. Let chops stand at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours.
Heat a large skillet (one that has a lid) over medium heat. Add the chopped bacon and saute until crisp. Remove the bacon using a slotted spoon. Increase the heat to medium high and add chops to the skillet. Sear until brown, about 5 minutes per side. Remove the chops and set aside.
Turn down the heat under the skillet to medium and add the leeks. Saute until soft, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add the brandy. Add the broth, scrape the browned bits and bring to a boil. Stir in the bacon. Add the sage and stir.
Return the chops to the skillet. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cover the skillet. Simmer for 3 minutes, then turn chops over and then simmer for 3 more minutes. Remove the chops, place in a serving platter, and tent to keep warm.
Spoon any visible fat from the liquid in the skillet. Turn the heat to high and boil until all the liquid evaporates. Whisk in the mustard and then the sour cream. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon over the chops.
Marga’s Best Recipes

This is a modification of the recipe that comes on the back of the Trader Joe’s branded box of Isareli Couscous. I figured I’d write down my recipe down here so that I can use it even if I don’t have the box around. This dish is very nice and simple to make and I’ll make it again.
Note that minus my modifications, this recipe is pretty much the same as the Toasted Israeli Couscous with Pine Nuts and Parsley that I’ve made before.
Israeli Couscous

• 3 Tbsp. butter, divided
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds (or pine nuts)
• 2 large shallots, finely chopped
• 1 8oz box Israeli couscous (or 1 1/2 cups)
• 1/2 large cinnamon stick
• 1 Bay leaf
• 1 3/4 cup broth
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
• 2 tsp. lemon juice
• 1/4 cup raisins

Melt 1 Tbsp. butter in a large saucepan, add the slivered almonds and brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and keep aside.
Add the rest of the butter and melt over medium heat. Add the shallots and saute until golden. Add the couscous, cinnamon and bay leaf, and cook, stirring often, until the couscous starts to brown. Add the broth and salt and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until the liquid is absorbed, around 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the almonds, parsley, lemon juice and raisins.
Marga’s Favorite Recipes

I wanted an easy recipe for pasta, and chanced upon this one at epicurious.com. I made it with a couple of modifications (i.e. using peas instead of fava beans and canned tomatoes) and the results were surprisingly good. I’d definitely make it again.
Pasta with sausage & peas

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 lb Italian sausage, loose
• 1 cup white wine
• 1 large can diced tomatoes
• 1 cup peas
• salt & pepper
• 1 pckg pasta
• grated Romano or Parmesan cheese

Heat the oil on the sauce pan over medium-low heat and add the chopped onion. Saute for a few minutes until soft and golden. Add the garlic and saute for a minute. Add the sausage, breaking any large clumps, and cook until browned. Add the white wine and let boil for a minute. Add the diced tomatoes and peas, mix and let cook for about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile boil pasta.
Serve cook pasta with sauce and grated cheese.
Marga’s Best Recipes

I made this butter (from epicurious.com) last night to serve with swordfish (but I think it’d work with other fish as well) and it was incredible, one of the best things I’ve ever tasted (even though I didn’t use prime ingredients) – and it couldn’t be simpler. The key to having it not separate (a complain with some of the reviews in epicurious) is to start whisking as soon as you add the balsamic vinegar, and to whisk briskly after each ingredient. Don’t forget to season appropriately at the end – it’s the salt which really brings out the flavor of this butter.
Balsamic Butter for Fish

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 3 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
• 1 Tbsp. honey
• 1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
• salt to taste

Heat the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until it starts boiling, about 6 minutes. Remove from heat. Immediately whisk in the balsamic vinegar, honey and mustard. Season with salt. Serve immediately or reheat (while whisking) prior to serving.
Marga’s Favorite Recipes

A few days ago I bought 36 eggs at Safeway because they were cheap and they had a buy-one, get one-free offer. We are not big egg eaters so I had to figure out what to do with them. My answer was to make flan. Flan may be my favorite dessert in the world – though it being so sinful, it’s not something I often partake of, and I wanted to try making it from scratch. It really cannot be more simple – though I had a problem with the cooking time. I doubled the recipe I found to fit my somewhat large fluted pan – but I wasn’t sure how long it’d take to cook and at what temperature. I started with 275F, but after two hours it hadn’t set. Then I cooked it at 325F or so for 45 more minutes and that seems to have done the trick. I think the next time around I’ll start it at 325, and see how long it takes. The problem may also have been that I used 1% fat milk – what I had available.
I’m giving the measurements in metric because this time, instead of converting them, I actually weighed the sugar and I used a metric measuring jar. Sorry about that.
In any case, the results were amazing, too amazing – I can’t stop myself from eating it now!
Ingredients
-600 grams + 2/3 cup sugar
-1 lt. milk
-2 Tbsp. vanilla
-12 eggs.
Melt 2/3 cup sugar over medium heat in a small sauce pan. When it’s just light brown, remove it from the heat and immediately pour it on the bottom and sides of the mold you’ll be using. Be careful not to burn yourself and do it quickly before the sugar hardens.
Put the milk and the vanilla in a medium to large saucepan, mix and heat over medium heat until warm. Add 300 grams of sugar, stir until blended, and cook, stirring occasionally until it boils. Remove from the heat and transfer to a very large bowl to cool down.
Meanwhile, put the eggs in another large bowl and beat. Add the remaining 300 grams of sugar and mix well.
When the milk mixture is almost at room temperature, pre-heat the oven to 325F.
Wait until the milk is at room temperature, then pour in the egg mixture and whisk until well combined. Strain into another bowl and pour into the prepared pan.
Fill a large deep baking pan (I use my lasagna pan or my roasting pan) with 1″ water, and place the pan with the flan in the middle. Put in the oven and cook until it solidifies.

For Xmas morning I made buttermilk pancakes, with butter & maple syrup, and bacon (from TJ’s). The pancakes were absolutely delicious, very fluffy and light and with a good flavor of their own. I made them from this recipe (also copied, with modifications, below) from allrecipes.com – but I added a little bit more sugar to the batter and substituted milk & cream for a third cup of buttermilk, as I didn’t have enough. So, if you don’t have cream, you can just use 3 cups of buttermilk and 1/2 cup of milk.
The original recipe asks that you don’t mix the dry ingredients with the wet ones until you are ready to cook the pancakes. I did so for my first batch, but a few ours later I wanted some more and I used the leftover batter (which I’d left on the counter); I did not perceive any difference in quality. I did follow the original instructions about gently mixing the dry with the wet ingredients, until the former were just moistened. Though that meant the flour wasn’t fully dissolved, this was not an issue when cooked.
Buttermilk Pancakes
3 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
3 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
2 cups buttermilk
1 cup milk
1/2 cup whipping cream
3 eggs
1/3 cup butter, melted + butter for cooking
Mix the flour with the sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl combine the buttermilk, milk, cream, eggs and melted butter. Pour the buttermilk mix onto the flour mix and gently mix, with a fork, until just moistened.
Heat up a large griddle to medium/medium-high heat and melt a small pat of butter. Pour about 1/2 cup (I used a ladle filled half-way) batter onto the griddle and cook until the bottom starts to brown, flip and repeat. Serve with butter and real maple syrup.
Marga’s Best Recipes

Made that last night, from an epicurious.com recipe, and wasn’t thrilled. I liked the roasted grapes & shallots (Mike/kids didn’t), but the chicken was sort of bland. Alas, I used rosemary instead of thyme, so that may have been the reason. In any case, not a recipe I’ll repeat.

I was very fond of my mother’s semolina gnocchis when I was growing up. I’ve always meant to make them for my kids, but have not yet gotten around to it, probably as I’d first have to go hunting for the semolina. Still, I went ahead and got the recipe from my mother, which I’m now translating into American measurements and posting for future use.
Mamá’s Semolina Gnocchi

• 6 1/3 cups (1 1/2 liters) milk
• 1 2/3 cups (300 g) semolina flour
• 1 cup (100 g) Parmesan cheese + more for sprinkling
• 7 Tbsp. (100 g) butter
• 2 egg yolks
• nutmeg
• salt

Instructions
Pour the milk and salt into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Slowly pour in the semolina flour, stirring constantly. Gently boil, stirring, until it becomes quite thick. Remove from the heat and add the Parmesan cheese, the butter and the egg yolks.
Preheat oven to 375F. Grease a large baking sheet.
On a flat working surface, flatten the mixture with your hands to a 1/3″ to 1/2″ height. Cut into shapes with cookie cutters. Place on the baking sheet and sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top.
Bake in the oven until the gnocchi dry up and become golden. Eat warm.

When I was a little kid, once in a great while, my father would make cinnamon rolls. It was an all-day affair, usually done on weekends at our country house (it sounds fancy, but it was just a small bungalow in a yet undeveloped area outside La Plata). The warm cinnamon rolls were beyond delicious, definitely one of my favorite treats as a child.
Decades have gone by and I’m finally ready to attempt them myself, so I asked my dad for the recipe which I’m copying here. I’m thinking of making them soon.
Note that I don’t have the recipe for the sugar glace, though that should be easily found online.
Papá’s Cinnamon Rolls

• 2 Tbsp. yeast
• 1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 cup warm water
• 1 cup cooled boiled milk
• 7 cups sifted flour
• 6 Tbsp. room-temperature butter
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 t. salt
• Additional butter for greasing and brushing
• Additional white and blond sugars
• Cinnamon

Directions
Dissolve the yeast and 1 Tbspl. sugar in the warm water. Add the milk and 3 cups of flour. Beat until it produces a smooth dough.
In a separate bowl, cream the butter with 1/2 cup sugar.
Add the butter to the dough and add the eggs, slat and the remaining 4 cups of flour. Mix well until you get a smooth, white dough. Knead the dough with your hands.
Butter a large bowl and place the dough on the bowl. Cover and keep in a warm place* until it doubles in size, about 2 hours.
* – If you don’t have a warm place at home you can heat the oven to 200F, turn off the heat and place the dough inside.
Once it’s risen, lightly flour a large working surface and roll the dough with a rolling pin to a 1/2″ height. Brush the dough with melted butter and sprinkle with white and blond sugars and cinnamon. Roll into a large roll and cut it into thick slices. Generously butter a large baking pan and place the cinnamon rolls on it, being careful not to crowd them. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for 1 to 2 more hours.
Preheat the oven to 375F.
Bake the cinnamon rolls until golden, about 20′. Glace, remove and eat warm.

I made this epicurious.com recipe for Chicken Breasts with Chive and Mustard Sauce a couple of nights ago, as chicken breasts were on sale at Safeway. We all liked it very much – even Mika (who was mortified she liked a sauce that had mustard and alcohol in it). Camila ate the chicken without the sauce, which is typical.
The one problem with the recipe is that it was very, very liquid – even though I only used 1 cup of chicken broth. Next time I’ll use 1/2 a cup and I may add some cornstarch to thicken it. The flavor, however, was wonderful.