Recipes

BLT Spaghetti with Garlic Bread Crumbs

BLT Pasta

For some reason this carb loaded dish doesn’t feel too unhealthy. Almost like the amount of carbs in the pasta can be forgiven by the amount of nutrients in the spinach and fresh tomatoes. The bacon…well…That’s another story!

If you CAN’T deal with the guilt just substitute the regular pasta for quinoa or whole wheat pasta and let me know if it’s worth the compromise.

Here is the recipe. Play with the ingredient amounts. Do more bacon if you think bacon is not evil. Do more spinach if you feel guilty about too much bacon. The ranges in the ingredient amounts will not unbalance the overall flavor of the dish. This recipe makes 2 servings if you are willing to share. Have fun!

Ingredients

  • 2-4 strips bacon, diced
  • 1-2 cups grape tomatoes, halved (measure after you cut)
  • 1/2 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/4 cup leeks, thinly sliced
  • 1/4 cup white wine
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth
  • 1 teaspoons of apple cider or red wine vinegar
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (do not leave this out!!!!!)
  • 4 oz dry spaghetti noodles
  • 1-2 cups fresh baby spinach leaves
  • 1/4 teaspoon fresh or dry thyme

For Garlic Toast Bread Crumbs:

  • 1 clove of garlic, finely minced or smashed on garlic smasher tool (you know what I mean)
  • 1 cup bread crumbs (plain)
  • 1 tablespoons olive oil
  • salt

Let’s make it:

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

For the Garlic Crumbs
Heat oil in a skillet; add garlic first count to 30 slowly, add crumbs and toast until golden; add salt and set aside.

Saute the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat (make sure it’s LARGE because from here you will add all the remaining ingredients).  Cook until crisp, then set aside on paper towel.   Reserve some or ALL the bacon drippings, and drain off remaining oil.

Caramelize the tomatoes and sugar in the bacon drippings in the same large skillet (told ya), over medium heat.  Cook until tomatoes begin to brown, 3 to 5 minutes.  Add the leeks and cook for an additional 3 to 5 minutes, or until leeks are translucent.

Deglaze with wine and allow sauce to simmer until the wine is nearly evaporated and sauce is thick.  Add the broth, vinegar, and pepper flakes.  Simmer until reduced by 1/3, approximately 5 minutes.

Add the spinach, thyme, and bacon to the sauce, then add the cooked pasta.  Toss lightly until pasta is well coated with sauce.  Season with salt as needed.

Ditch the Parmesan cheese and top each serving with the amazing garlic toast bread crumbs.

The DEALs (02/5 – 02/11)

Vons; Farmer John Sliced Bacon 3.99 ea with coupon (clip or click coupon)

Sprouts; Organic grape tomatoes 2 for 5 (1 pint)

Happy Dealicious Cooking!

Brazilian lemon pavê

Brazilian Pavês are delicious layered desserts, usually made with a combination of cookies or biscuits and different creams and fruits. I made this recipe for Christmas (I prepared it the day before). It was so easy and delicious. It’s important to let the dessert rest for at least 6 hours in the refrigerator. It’s even better if it can sit in the fridge overnight. Here is what you need:

  • 1 package of Maria cookies (usually found in the ethnic/Hispanic foods section of grocery stores) or shortbread cookies
  • 1 can of condensed milk 
  • 1 can of Table Cream Nestle (also know as Crema Media found in the ethnic/Hispanic section or by the condensed and evaporated milks)
  • 1 tsp. of vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup of lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest

Mix well all the ingredients except the cookies. In a 2-quart glass casserole or 8×8″ dish, place cookies one by one and form a layer to cover the bottom of the casserole. Spread half of the cream mixture over the cookie layer. Top with another layer of cookies. Finish with a layer of the remaining cream. Refrigerate at least 6 hours. Enjoy it!

 

Torta

Brazilian Torta with Chorizo, broccoli and cheese filling

Brazilian Torta is a breaded pie. Something along the lines of what we know as “pot pie” only the breading is something rather simple thrown together in a blender. It’s an easy and quick dish that I like to make with leftover roasted chicken, veggies or whatever is available in the fridge. Whenever we go on road trips or picnics I make Torta. It’s a must!

I had one fresh chorizo (Whole Foods meat counter) and lots of steam broccoli left from our Christmas Eve feast. The Torta turned out delicious! You can be creative with the filling. Everything goes, but my favorite combinations are:

  • Roasted chicken and hearts of palms
  • Tomato, mozzarella and ham
  • Chorizo and broccoli

You’ll need approximately 4 cups of filling for the following Torta recipe:

  •  3 eggs
  • 1 cup of canola oil
  • 2 cups of milk
  • 1 tsp of salt
  • ½ cup of Parmesan cheese (or any grated cheese)
  • 2 cups of flour
  • 1 tbs of baking powder

Mix all ingredients in the blender for 5 minutes. Coat a deep dish or large rectangular baking pan with cooking spray or oil. Pour half of the blended batter  into the baking dish. Next, layer your filling evenly over the batter. Top that with the leftover batter. Smooth over with a spoon. Sprinkle any kind of shredded cheese. Bake at 360F for 30 to 40 minutes or until the top is golden brown.  Let it cool off completely before cutting and serving. Eat it cold or warm.

 

 

Thankful for our diversity

I grew up in Brazil and Spain and celebrated my first Thanksgiving in California almost 16 years ago. Back then it was more about the days off than the Turkey. No cooking, no stress, no school and no work.

Oh my, how Thanksgiving holiday has evolved!

It’s now one of my favorite holidays. It’s All-American, it’s all about cooking and highlighting all the things we’ve been grateful for all the way.

I have to say that the supermarket ads made it easy to find the best fresh turkey deals out there. I’ve done the free range organic turkey in the past and came to the conclusion that it’s way too expensive for the amount of left overs we get. I get a small fresh turkey instead and avoid eating turkey wrap sandwiches for a week!

So, for our Thanksgiving dinner we had:

48 hour marinated turkey (fresh herbs, garlic, onion, spices, vodka, salt and sugar all tied up in a heavy duty plastic bag, turning it twice a day). Our turkey weighed less than 12 lbs. and it was the perfect size for our family and our fridge.

Brazilian farofa (stuffing made with yucca flour) that I proudly stuffed our bird with.

White country bread stuffing with apricots

Curry creamed spinach (see recipe at the end of this post)

Sweet potato gratin

Macaroni salad (Hawaiian family style)

Roasted garlic mashed potatoes

Pimped Jiffy corn muffins (made it with the kids. Sour cream instead of milk, add 1 15 oz. can of cream of corn and 1/2 15 oz. can of corn. Super moist and yummy!)

Gravy and cranberry sauce (the canned kind)

Pumpkin pie

Dulce de leche Profiteroles

Curry Creamed Spinach

2 tbsp olive oil or butter

2 or more garlic cloves minced or crushed

3 tbsp of flour

2 cups of low fat milk

2 tsp salt

2 tsp of mild curry powder

1 tsp of turmeric (optional)

1 small bag of fresh baby spinach steamed and chopped

Heat the OOil or butter over medium-low heat until melted. Add garlic until brown. Add the flour and stir/whisk until smooth. Over medium heat, cook until the mixture turns a light, golden sandy color, about 6 to 7 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the milk in a separate pan until just about to boil. Start adding the hot milk to the butter mixture slowly, whisking continuously until smooth. You can stop or continue adding milk until you get a thick consistency. Bring to a boil. Cook 5 minutes, stirring constantly, add curry then remove from heat. Add spinach. Season to taste.

Because we love curry

Eggplant Potato Curry with Brown Rice and Turmeric Indian Celery Seeds Marinated Chicken Breast. Last night’s dinner.

For the Curry you’ll need:

1 diced potato, 1 diced eggplant, 1 onion, 1 jar of Seeds of Change Jalfrezi sauce (find $1.00 off coupon at MamboSprouts.com)

Sauté the sliced onion in 1 tbsp of canola oil. Add potato and eggplant. Sauté for 5 minutes and add sauce with 1/2 cup of water. Let it simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.

For the Chicken Marinate:

Juice of 1 Lime, 1tbsp Turmeric, 1 tbsp Celery seeds, 1 tsp granulated onion, salt (1 1/2 tsp per chicken breast approximately), 1 hour marinating. Pan fry or grill it.

If you interested to try this simmer sauce, get a $1.00 coupon at MamboSprouts.com or look for the Mambo Sprouts coupon book at Sprouts or Whole Foods. I’ve tried 3 different simmer sauces from Seeds of Change and they’re delicious (and organic).

No, I don’t get paid to blog about any products and even if I did I would never rave about something I don’t like. Poor quality or nutritional value is not included on this blog recipes, pics or links (except for Twinkies which I plan to try for the first time one of these days and definitely blog about!)

Cheers!

Week 8: Focus on nourishing

Don’t miss this great deals at Vons this week:

12oz family pack Raspberries at U$1.99. Organic Bartlett pears U$1.99 lb. Organic Heirloom tomatoes U$1.99 lb (we have some tonight and it was “dealicious”).

Menu:

Tonight’s dinner: Organic Heirloom tomato salad and Spinach Bacon Tofu soufflé (with organic Tofu and organic spinach, bacon, egg whites and whole wheat Panko). I also made baked chicken strips for the kids and they really enjoyed it.

Thursday: I’ll try this new recipe for Melon/Cantaloupe mint  and yogurt chilled soup. Cantaloupe has concentrated levels of beta-carotene, folic acid, potassium and vitamin C. I definitely need to add more cantaloupe in our diet.

3 cups cubed melon
1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt (I use 0% fat) or regular plain yogurt
Zest of one lime
Juice of 1/2 lime
1 tsp agave nectar or honey
2-3 mint leaves
2-3 basil leaves (optional, but delicious)
A pinch of kosher salt
2-3 Tbsp water if needed to thin the soup to desired consistency

Combine all ingredients except water in a blender, and puree until smooth. Adjust consistency with water, if needed. Serve chilled.

Friday: Take out sushi

Saturday: Fruits, Salads, Chips, Beer and ND football

Sunday: Homemade pizza (making dough with almond meal), Minestrone soup.

Monday: Meatless Monday (the tempeh living in my fridge for 4 weeks will meet its destiny. I’m thinking something with spinach and peanut sauce…)

Tuesday: Leftovers…Hopefully!