Mushroom and Spinach Lasagna

As you are well aware, lasagna has a few components. It’s a very complicated dish, dear reader. A lot of ins, a lot of outs, a lot of what-have-yous. A lot of strands to keep in one’s head. Not really. It’s just a lot of layers. Pasta, tomato sauce, ricotta mixture, cheese and whatever other fillings – in this case it’s reconstituted dried mushrooms and steamed, chopped spinach.

In an effort to skip a step, I use no-boil lasagna noodles. These fellas are much thinner than your usual lasagna noodle, and often times they come without that fancy-pants ruffle, which is fine by me. Who needs a high maintenance lasagna noodle? Instead, no-boil lasagna noodles have ridges, like a potato chip or corrugated steel. Do you see corrugated steel asking for its own pot of boiling water? No, dear reader. You do not.

In the end, this lasagna is relatively low on fat and high on vegetation. Hits the spot for when you absolutely need a vegetable dish and a salad isn’t going to cut the mustard. Hearty, warm and unctuous without the heaviness of beef and Bechemel sauce (which are great, but sometimes you want lean).

Just FYI, BTW, Yankee Cook’s been kicking it into high gear these past two weeks while I’m on vacation (3 posts in two weeks! yay!) in an effort to make up for that long stretch from August to December when I didn’t post a thing. That was a sad, sad time. I’ve missed you! Expect to see more slow cooker recipes coming up. I have a lemon chicken soup in the works. Hopefully that will be up next week so check back.

Update on the Lemon Chicken Soup (1/18/2012): Two attempts now. I’m going to have to wait a while more to post that one because there’s only so much Lemon Chicken Soup one can attempt in a month.

Mushroom Spinach Lasagna – serves 6
1 cup fresh water (to steam the spinach)
1 lb baby spinach
2 cups dried mushrooms – chanterelles, shiitake, porcini and trumpets are nice
2 cups boiling water (to rehydrate the mushrooms)
2 lb part-skim ricotta (the big tub)
1/2 cup  grated Parmesan cheese
salt to taste
2 eggs
1 T capers (optional)
12 sheets of no-boil lasagna noodles (or 6 sheets 3 on each layer in a smaller pan)
4 cups of your favorite tomato sauce (like the one on this page)
1/2 lb fresh mozzarella, diced
spray canola oil

1.) Bring the 1 cup of water to a boil in a large stockpot. Add the spinach in a steamer basket if you have one. Cover and allow to steam 10-12 minutes until the spinach is thoroughly embarrassed. Remove the spinach from heat and allow to cool. Once cooled, press out the excess liquid and finely chop.

2.) Meanwhile, place mushrooms in a heatproof bowl (one that won’t melt for give off BPAs if it gets hot). Pour the 2 cups of boiling water over the mushrooms and allow them to soak for 15 minutes. Drain the mushrooms and dice.

3.) Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

4.) Combine the ricotta and Parmesan cheese. Salt to taste. Add eggs and mix until smooth. Stir in capers, if desired.

5.) Dice the mozzarella.

6.) Make a layer of half of the tomato sauce on the bottom of a 13×9 inch lasagna dish. Arrange 4 lasagna sheets on top. They’ll be a little short, but it’s okay. They’ll expand as they absorb moisture.

7.) Spread a layer of half of the ricotta over the lasagna sheets, then all of the spinach

8.) Top the spinach layer with more 4 more lasagna sheets, the rest of the ricotta, the mushrooms and the last 4 sheets.

9.) Top with the rest of the tomato sauce and the diced mozzarella.

10.) Spray a sheet of aluminum foil the size of the lasagna pan with spray canola oil. This way it doesn’t stick to the cheese . Be sure to not spray where the handles are or it might slip out of your hand when you take it out of the oven and get all over the floor, ruin your outfit and possibly burn and that would just be tragic).

11.) Loosely cover the lasagna with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes. Remove from oven, remove the foil and allow to cool for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Ham and Eggnog Quiche

What do you get with you put together quite a bit of leftover holiday ham, quite a bit of leftover holiday eggnog, and quite a bit of holiday vacation time? A Ham and Eggnog Quiche experiment that could turn out to be either brilliant or vile. Fortunately this turned out on the brilliant side of things.

It’s probably because we’re still relative newly-weds that every time I do something around the holidays it gets vetted to become a potential new holiday tradition. I roasted a chicken on Christmas Eve three years ago and now it’s not Christmas Eve without a roasted chicken. Not all would-be traditions work though. My husband wasn’t super-much into the idea of saving the chicken giblets for a Christmas Morning Chicken Giblet omelet. Can’t imagine why. Maybe this one will come back next year when we find ourselves once again with lots of leftover ham and eggnog.

Eggs and equal part milk dilute the eggnog’s sweetness. The Pecorino Romano cheese and ham counter the sweetness with a good amount of hearty saltiness. A modest amount of diced pineapple complement the duo of salty and sweet with a fruity tang. All told, the combination makes for a quiche that’s nicely balanced between sweet and savory with an aroma reminiscent of a cheese croissant.

Ham and Eggnog Quiche – serves 8

Pastry:
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup cold butter, cubed
1/4 t salt
1/4 – 1/3 cup ice cold water

Filling:
1/2 cup Pecorino Romano cheese
4 eggs
3/4 cup 2% or whole milk
3/4 cup eggnog
1/2 t salt
1/2 slice pineapple, about 1/4 cup diced
1 1/2 cup diced ham

Measure the flour out into a large bowl. Add the salt and cubes of butter. Using a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour until it looks like coarse crumbs. Gradually stir in the water using a floured wooden spoon. Form into a ball.

Turn the ball out onto a floured surface. Roll out the dough and spread in a 9 inch pie plate. Form the edges in any pretty little way you’d like.

Line the inside of the pie crust with foil (this will stop it from shrinking). Refrigerate the crust for 10 minutes. Meanwhile set the oven to 350 degrees and allow it to get to temp while the pastry chills.

Remove the shell from the fridge and bake for 8-9 minutes. Remove the foil and set it back in the oven for another 5 minutes until lightly browned. If it puffs up at any point just poke it with a fork to deflate.

While all this is going on, beat the eggs with a whisk in a large bowl. Add eggnog, milk and cheese. Whisk together until combined. Stir in the ham and pineapple.

Pour filling into the pie crust.

Bake at 350 for 50 minutes or until a thermometer inserted into the center reads 180 degrees. Allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Fried Stuffed Pumpkin Blossoms

We are former city-folk and this was the first blessed summer that I’ve had the opportunity to grow a vegetable garden since growing up in the ‘burbs (I don’t count the tomato plants I had on my fire escape in college). I was so eager to get started that I planted the seeds in little peat pots in early April and coddled them along on our porch.

Unfortunately, seeds will not grow on enthusiasm alone (I actually sang to them). I had no idea that they would need way more warmth and sun than our porch could offer. This spring was extremely cool, gray and damp. It took about a month for all of the seeds to sprout, and once they did they were stunted by another cool spell in May.

It is now mid-August. The pepper plants are about 8 inches tall and sport just leaves. The thyme, basil and rainbow chard are passable. There are a few teeny little green San Marzano tomatoes, and we have a boatload of pumpkin blossoms. That’s my harvest. Happy flipping new year.

One might be thinking, “Yay! Lots of punkins!”, but here’s the thing: our veggie patch is not very big and the pumpkin plants are threatening to take over (they left a note in our mudroom stating as much, signed “Audrey II”). I’m clearly no gardening expert, but I’m thinking I should probably go ahead and cut the pumpkin back a bit if we don’t want a bumper crop of small decorative gourds.

Which brings me to Fried Stuffed Pumpkin Blossoms. It would be a shame to let all of those lovely blossoms end up in the compost. This recipe will work just as well with squash blossoms, which are readily available at farmers markets, farmstands and sometimes gourmet shops this time of year.

Pumpkin blossoms are delicate in both flavor and texture, frying gives them an almost flaky texture. Pecorino Romano adds a salty cheesiness, and fresh basil and thyme bring a grassy tang.

Note: this is a messy project. The blossoms will probably not seal like tupperware. I recommend just going with it and trying to not get frustrated if some of the cheesy goodness melts out. I promise it will all taste fantastic in the end.

Fried Stuffed Pumpkin Blossoms – serves 2 – 4

1/4 cup finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese
2/3 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, finely chopped
2 tablespoon fresh basil, finely chopped
1 large egg
1/4 cup water
2/3 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
10 – 12 pumpkin blossoms
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup olive oil
Edible flowers like marigold for garnish (optional)

Combine the ricotta, Romano and herbs in a medium bowl

Separate the egg, allowing the white to fall into a shallow bowl. Add the yolk to the ricotta mixture. Stir to combine.

Add water to the egg white and lightly beat to combine.

In another shallow bowl, combine the flour, bread crumbs and seasonings.

Gently stuff each blossom with one to two tablespoons of the ricotta mixture, depending on the size of the blossom. Twist the tops to close.

Dip each stuffed blossom into the egg white mixture, drain, and dredge in flour mixture. Set aside on a rack to rest for 10 minutes.

Heat butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium high until the butter begins to bubble. Gently place the stuffed pumpkin blossoms into the oil. Cook 3 or 4 at a time for 2- 3 minutes per side.

Carefully remove from the pan and plate with other lovely edible flowers.

Mediterranean Wheatberry Salad

When we first moved into our new place a few months ago, the garden was looking pretty dead.  A closer inspection found dirt and little brown, dead-looking shoots sticking out of the ground everywhere. The following two months were a whirlwind of final papers, commencement activities, and art shows (M.Ed., thanks for wondering) and before we knew it, the garden was filled with fresh, fragrant mint. Those little brown shoots were mint, which I quickly learned is an extremely invasive weed. When it came time to plant other things, I had no choice but to thin the mint, and one wheelbarrow full of fresh mint and plenty of minty-muddled glasses of water later and I had the idea for this recipe.

Feta, lemon juice and mint are all pretty strong flavors, but they’re kept under control by the wheatberries with their mild, nutty sweetness. Feta brings brine which is nicely countered by the roasted red peppers’ sweetness, and fresh mint brings a grassy spark to the party.

Wheatberries are very high in fiber, which is good because fiber has the tendency to sweep away bad stuff. Lemon juice and peppers are high in vitamin C, which is always nice. Feta is a member of the cheese group, which is vital for happiness.

Mediterranean Wheatberry Salad makes a healthy and intriguing alternative to pasta salad for the season’s barbecues. Most folks are not super-familiar with wheatberries, so on top of being fantastically tasty, Mediterranean Wheatberry Salad could serve as a conversation piece in place of pasta salad at your next barbecue.

One last note: since wheatberries are so high in fiber they tend to be filling, so I recommend a 1/2 cup per serving if you want to save room for a burger and dessert. Just a recommendation though… not trying to micromanage your plate or anything.

Mediterranean Wheatberry Salad – serves 8 – 12

6 cups water
1 t salt
2 cups dry wheatberries
3 roasted red peppers
10 sprigs of fresh mint, about 1.5 cups cut into a chiffonade
16 ounces feta cheese
juice of 1 large lemon, 1/4 – 1/3 cup
2 T olive oil

Combine the water and salt in a medium saucepan (2.5 quart-ish) and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the wheatberries lower heat to medium low. Cover and simmer for 1 hour. Drain and allow to cool.

While the wheatberries simmer, pre-heat the broiler or your oven to 600 degrees. If using the oven, move the rack to the top so that it’s 4 – 6 inches (no closer than 4) from the element or flame before it heats up to avoid risking a burn.

Cut the peppers into flat pieces:  hold the pepper right-side up by the stem on a cutting board and slice down from the top on each side, working to avoid hitting the seeds (see pics). Tap any seeds out of the pepper pieces. Place the pieces skin side up onto a broiler rack if you have a broiler, or a rack on a cookie sheet if you’re using the oven set to broil. Broil for 10 minutes until the pepper’s skin begins to blacken. There might be a lot of smoke, so if you have a fan, definitely use it. There will be a moment of, “Ahhh!! There’s smoke!”, but seriously, it should be okay. Just be sure not to place the peppers too close to the flame/element. No less than 4 inches.

Remove the peppers from the oven and allow them to cool. The skin should peel right off, but you might need to slide a knife under the skin to help pull it off (see pic). Slice the roasted pepper into strips.

Chiffonade the mint (see pic). Dice the feta into 1/4 inch cubes.

In a small bowl, whisk the lemon juice and olive oil to emulsify.

In a large bowl work the wheatberries with the lemon juice/olive oil mixture, mix in the mint, peppers and  feta. Cover and refrigerate for at least a few hours before serving.

Roasted Stuffed Figs

There is a chill in the air as Summer hangs up its floppy sunhat, puts on a scarf and goes by the name of Autumn again. While it’s sad to say goodbye to summer’s warm weather and produce, the best has just begun. Fall’s harvest brings all kinds of goodies, as you know. Aside from sweet squash and corn, more interesting and, dare I say, exotic fruits and vegetables are being grown and harvested in New England these days. Among them are figs.

More commonly seen in places like the Mediterranean, figs have made themselves comfortable right here in New England. Years ago, my mother saw figs at a local market and brought some to my grandfather, who had been raised in Italy. He hadn’t seen a fresh fig since he was a boy.

Well, I wish he could be here today to find them fresh and locally grown. The figs in this post came from a farm right down the road from us. Sweet and juicy, roasting condenses the sugars. I like them stuffed with a goat or blue cheese and drizzled with olive oil to add a little earthiness. Freshly chopped mint brings a subtle herbal snap to keep things from becoming too cloying.

Though this certainly seems like a decadent snack, figs are quite nutritious and low in fat. They contain vitamin A and C to prevent scurvy, as well as calcium and potassium.

Roasted Stuffed Figs – serves 4 -6

12 black mission figs
4 oz goat cheese
2 T finely chopped fresh mint
drizzle of olive oil

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the stem off of the fig and cut a cross from the point to about halfway down. Gently open the fig and stuff with a teaspoon of goat cheese.

Arrange the figs on a lightly greased baking dish. Top with a sprinkle of mint and drizzle with olive oil.

Place the sheet on the top rack of the oven closest to the flame or element. Cook for 10-12 minutes until the cheese begins to brown slightly and the kitchen fills with the aroma of figs.