Cookin again

[Dannyalcatraz]

I tried making meat-stuffed manicotti for dinner the other night- a first attempt. Things didn’t go to plan, though.

First, I haven’t used a piping-bag/sliced ziplock in decades, so I was struggling with the stuffing process. Second, it’s apparent I overcooked the pasta. It was floppy, not firm. That made it virtually impossible to handle during the stuffing process. Worse, some tubes split.

So I used my floppy manicotti to make lasagna instead!

Flavor was VERY good, and surprisingly mild. I suspect the cheese blocked some of the heat. Like my previous lasagna, I was STILL a little light on the sauce.

SHELL & STUFFING INGREDIENTS:

Manicotti pasta
Louisiana Hot Sausage
Egg
Ricotta
Parrano cheese, shredded
Pecorino, shredded
Mozzarella
Chives
Oregano
Parsley
Salt
Ground black pepper

SAUCE INGREDIENTS:

Garlic-infused EVOO
Dave’s Gourmet Marinara
Diced green onion
Chiffonaded baby spinach
Diced white mushrooms
Diced tomatoes

Preheated the oven to 350degF

Boiled the pasta. Sautéed the meat while breaking it up info crumbly pieces

I sautéed the green onions in the EVOO , then added the Dave’s & everything else.

Mixed the egg, ricotta & shredded cheeses, and seasonings. Then added the meat once it was fully cooked.

(Attempted to) stuff the shells, then placed in the sauced baking dishes. Topped with mozzarella slices and last of the sauce.

Sauced the bottom of the baking dish(es), then cooked shells for 50min at 350degF.

 

[prabe]

I tried making meat-stuffed manicotti for dinner the other night- a first attempt. Things didn’t go to plan, though.

First, I haven’t used a piping-bag/sliced ziplock in decades, so I was struggling with the stuffing process. Second, it’s apparent I overcooked the pasta. It was floppy, not firm. That made it virtually impossible to handle during the stuffing process. Worse, some tubes split.

So I used my floppy manicotti to make lasagna instead!

Flavor was VERY good, and surprisingly mild. I suspect the cheese blocked some of the heat. Like my previous lasagna, I was STILL a little light on the sauce.

SHELL & STUFFING INGREDIENTS:

Manicotti pasta
Louisiana Hot Sausage
Egg
Ricotta
Parrano cheese, shredded
Pecorino, shredded
Mozzarella
Chives
Oregano
Parsley
Salt
Ground black pepper

SAUCE INGREDIENTS:

Garlic-infused EVOO
Dave’s Gourmet Marinara
Diced green onion
Chiffonaded baby spinach
Diced white mushrooms
Diced tomatoes

Preheated the oven to 350degF

Boiled the pasta. Sautéed the meat while breaking it up info crumbly pieces

I sautéed the green onions in the EVOO , then added the Dave’s & everything else.

Mixed the egg, ricotta & shredded cheeses, and seasonings. Then added the meat once it was fully cooked.

(Attempted to) stuff the shells, then placed in the sauced baking dishes. Topped with mozzarella slices and last of the sauce.

Sauced the bottom of the baking dish(es), then cooked shells for 50min at 350degF.

My (Italian-American) stepmom used to make manicotti from scratch. Like, made the crepes on the stove. It was a production.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Repurposed Leftovers: Avgolemono-inspired Chicken & Turnip root soup

Repurposed Leftovers: Avgolemono-inspired Chicken & Turnip Root soup

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I made some turnip roots with butter & parsley a couple of days ago, and had a fair bit leftover. Yesterday, we had some Greek takeout, and I had some of the turnips with my meal. Some got splashed with the dolmas’ lemon sauce, which inspired me.

So tonight, I made a Chicken & Turnip root soup based on a Greek Avgolemono soup. For those unfamiliar, Avgolemono is a chicken soup with rice or orzo (and sometimes meat) that has a creamy texture & tartness due to using a mix of eggs whisked with lemon juice, tempered with broth from the pot. I hadn’t made an Avgolemono in a couple of years, so I had to be VERY careful while tempering my eggs.

Results were quite tasty, and we’ll be repeating & refining this experiment. The most important part to work on will be getting the soup lemony enough. The turnip roots have a certain sweetness to them that took out a bit of the desired tartness, so I’d need to add more lemon juice along the way.

Also, although the chicken was good, and a common ingredient in avgolemono soups I’ve had in different Greek & Lebanese restaurants (here in the USA), I think diced grilled pork or even BACON would pair even better with the turnips in this concoction.

My underlying chicken soup (without the tempered egg & lemon juice mix) was mostly a pretty classic chicken soup mix. Besides the stock (and a couple of bouillon cubes), I included diced/minced yellow & green onions, minced carrot, minced celery, some chiffonaded spinach, salt, pepper, and parsley.

For the avgolemono mix, break 3 room temperature eggs into a mixing vessel and whisk well. Slowly mix 2-3 (or more) lemons worth of juice into the eggs. Slowly add warm stock/soup broth into the egg & lemon mix, whisking as you go. It will take mixing in about 2-3 cups of your warmed stock to properly temper the avgolemono.

Take that mix and slowly add that to your broth/soup, ideally not letting it get above a simmer.

 

[Zardnaar]

Anyone have a good recipe and instructions for hollandaise sauce?

 

[R_J_K75]

Anyone have a good recipe and instructions for hollandaise sauce?

Im probably not telling you anything you dont already know but generally I'll do an internet search for something Ive not made before and pick a few recipes (usually 2-3) and then take the best parts of them and make my own. I like allrecipes to search. Not so much that the recipes are always good but you usually have a good amount to choose from. Sure you can find a few good hollandaise recipes there to pick from. From what I know I dont think there is too many ingredients but rather requires a bit of technique to get right, but it isn't something I have made before so I cant offer any other tips.

Allrecipes | Recipes, How-Tos, Videos and More

Everyday recipes with ratings and reviews by home cooks like you. Find easy dinner ideas, healthy recipes, plus helpful cooking tips and techniques.

www.allrecipes.com

 

[Zardnaar]

Im probably not telling you anything you dont already know but generally I'll do an internet search for something Ive not made before and pick a few recipes (usually 2-3) and then take the best parts of them and make my own. I like allrecipes to search. Not so much that the recipes are always good but you usually have a good amount to choose from. Sure you can find a few good hollandaise recipes there to pick from. From what I know I dont think there is too many ingredients but rather requires a bit of technique to get right, but it isn't something I have made before so I cant offer any other tips.

Allrecipes | Recipes, How-Tos, Videos and More

Everyday recipes with ratings and reviews by home cooks like you. Find easy dinner ideas, healthy recipes, plus helpful cooking tips and techniques.

www.allrecipes.com

That's why I asked for recommendations

SiL tried making it but couldn't get it right at least like she wanted.

Local cafes are the winners.

 

[R_J_K75]

Local cafes are the winners.

As I was writing my response, I was thinking that it would probably be easier and possibly cheaper to just buy some. Off the top of my head the only thing I can recall using hollandaise is eggs benedict so it doesn't seem like something that the average person would make too often.

 

[Zardnaar]

As I was writing my response, I was thinking that it would probably be easier and possibly cheaper to just buy some. Off the top of my head the only thing I can recall using hollandaise is eggs benedict so it doesn't seem like something that the average person would make too often.

Yep that's it. It's turning into our weekly treat.


We had a bought one but it wasn't very good

 

[Zardnaar]

Southland sushi from farmers market. The mighty cheese roll.

Small town NZ,


Usually try and find a pie, cheese roll, bakery to try. This one used garlic butter. Americans do grilled cheese sandwiches (well we do to) but local fine dining!!!

 

[R_J_K75]

Yep that's it. It's turning into our weekly treat.

I've never had eggs benedict that I can remember or eaten or made poached eggs. Think I might try to make some.