(56) Gratin Au Chou

One of my favorite memories from elementary school was taking French classes. We went to a private school and we did French every week. It was mostly puppets and flash cards and LOTS of singing. One of the songs we sang was "Savez-vous planter les chous?" (that means "Do you know how to plant the cabbages?") and was meant to help you learn body parts. The French also refer to chou as sweetheart (Ma petite chou literally means "my little cabbage", but figuratively means "my sweetie"). All that to say, I love chou - it has a special place in my heart!! I love cabbage, but chou is even better :)

I was trying to come up with what to do with my cabbages from the CSA box and since I can't really chew much right now, this was the perfect fit! The original recipe kind of stunk and I ended up having to really improvise as I went along, but I wrote it all down and will hopefully not lead you astray!! The flavor of the sauce is what really wins this dish. Mixing it all up after it goes on your plate = HEAVEN! Oh and the original recipe said serves 6, but I can only assume that's as a main dish. I say 8-10 as a side. Great with roasted chicken!

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Gratin Au Chou

Yield: 8-10 servings (as a side)
Source: Adapted from an online recipe

1 medium Savoy cabbage (or a small Savoy and a small green cabbage is what I did...)
2 onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 1/2 cups white rice
1 pound very ripe tomatoes, chopped
2 cups water
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk (I used skim, but use whatever pleases you!)
1/2 pound grated cheese (Gruyère or Swiss)
salt and pepper

Cut the cabbage in quarters, wash well, and cut out the hard inner core. Chop the leaves and cook the cabbage for 10 minutes in a large pot of boiling water. You want it to be soft but not dead. Drain and set aside.

Heat the oil in a frying pan and add the onions and garlic. Cook for five minutes. Add the rice and cook for two minutes, stirring. Add the chopped tomatoes and 1 cup of water. Cook for 10 minutes or until the rice is just tender, adding up to 1 cup more water as needed. You want your rice to be soft but not soupy...

Meanwhile make a bechamel sauce by melting the butter in a saucepan and stirring in the flour. Cook the roux for two minutes and than slowly whisk in milk. Heat on medium heat until nearly boiling and thickened, then gradually add half of the cheese while stirring. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper (I used 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper). Oh and if you're like me and can't read directions properly and you just added ALL of the cheese, no worries. It will still be yummy!

To construct casserole, butter a large baking dish. Beginning with the cabbage, layer the cabbage and the rice mixture. Aim to get three even layers of each. Pour the bechamel sauce evenly over the top. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and bake at 350° F for 30 minutes. Serve the cabbage casserole hot.

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(102) Sirloin Steak with Dijon-Port Sauce

This was an easy, delicious weeknight meal!! I think next time I would double the sauce as mine reduced down really quickly and a bit too much for me! I also think the sauce needed a little salt, but do so at your own taste!!

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Sirloin Steak with Dijon-Port Sauce

Source: Cooking Light, October 2004
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: about 3 ounces steak, 2 tablespoons sauce, and 1 cup noodles)

The port and mustard create a rich, sweet, and spicy sauce. Serve the steak and sauce over noodles to soak up every last drop.

3 cups uncooked medium egg noodles
1 pound trimmed sirloin (about 1 inch thick)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Cooking spray
1/2 cup port or other sweet red wine
1/4 cup minced shallots
1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic
1/2 cup less-sodium beef broth
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

Cook noodles according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain; keep warm.

While noodles cook, heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle both sides of steak with salt and pepper. Lightly coat steak with cooking spray. Add steak to pan; cook 4 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Transfer meat to a platter; keep warm.

Add port to pan, scraping to loosen browned bits. Stir in shallots and garlic; cook 45 seconds, stirring frequently. Add beef broth; bring to a boil. Cook 20 seconds; remove from heat. Add mustard and thyme, stirring with a whisk.

Cut steak diagonally across grain into thin slices. Serve steak and sauce with the pasta.

Calories 344 (29% from fat); Fat 11g (sat 4.1g,mono 4.6g,poly 0.8g); Iron 4.3mg; Cholesterol 97mg; Calcium 36mg; Carbohydrate 23.6g; Sodium 501mg; Protein 28.5g; Fiber 1g

(84) Garlic Aioli

Garlic Aioli

This goes with the Beer-Battered Asparagus recipe, but honestly this has so many uses. It would be great over some grilled fish or as a dip for vegetables.

Source: Guy's Big Bite (foodtv.com)
Yield: 1 cup

1 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 lemon, zested
4 tablespoons finely minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced fresh tarragon leaves
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Salt

In a food processor, combine all ingredients well. Refrigerate for 1 hour before serving.

(68) Mushroom Ravioli w/Parmesan Chive Sauce

Ok, let me say that the flavor on this was OUT.OF.THIS.WORLD. I mean, it was so good that I'm dreaming of the leftovers. The ravioli itself was a bit, um, interesting, though. It wasn't hard to stuff, but maybe I cooked them 3 seconds too long or something (I watched closely, I promise!), I dont know, but they were awfully mushy. In the bowl it was kind of like mushroom lasagna w/cream sauce. NOTHING like the picture you will see below. Anyway, the flavor totally made up for it. I want to try this one again and stuff it in cannelloni shells or maybe even fill crepes with it. SO FREAKING GOOD.

PS: Two things extra - (1) I doubled this so the baby could have some and we'd also have leftovers and (2) my camera died a sad death yesterday, but I promise when I get a new one this week, I'm going to start taking pics of my recipes! Just FYI!

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Mushroom Ravioli w/Parmesan Chive Sauce

Freeze leftover wonton wrappers in heavy-duty zip-top bags.

Yield: 2 servings (serving size: 7 ravioli and 3 tablespoons sauce)
Source: Cooking Light Magazine, June 2007

Ravioli:
1/2 (8-ounce) package button mushrooms
1/2 (6-ounce) package presliced portobello mushrooms
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon butter
2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
1/8 teaspoon salt
14 wonton wrappers
1 teaspoon cornstarch

Sauce:
1/2 cup 1% low-fat milk
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
1/8 teaspoon salt
Dash of freshly ground black pepper

Remaining ingredient:
Fresh chives (optional)

To prepare ravioli, place mushrooms in food processor; pulse 10 times or until finely chopped. Heat oil and butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots, and sauté for 2 minutes. Add mushrooms and 1/8 teaspoon salt; cook 5 minutes or until moisture evaporates, stirring occasionally.

Working with 1 wonton wrapper at a time (cover remaining wrappers with a damp towel to keep them from drying), spoon about 2 teaspoons mushroom mixture into center of each wrapper. Moisten edges of dough with water; bring 2 opposite corners together. Pinch edges together to seal, forming a triangle. Place ravioli on a large baking sheet sprinkled with cornstarch.

To prepare sauce, combine milk and flour in a small saucepan over medium-low heat; stir with a whisk. Cook 4 minutes or until slightly thickened, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; stir in cheese, 1 tablespoon chives, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and pepper. Set aside; keep warm.

Cook ravioli in boiling water 2 minutes or until tender. Drain. Serve with sauce. Garnish with fresh chives, if desired.

Nutritional Information
Calories: 334 (22% from fat), Fat: 8.2g (sat 3.5g,mono 3.3g,poly 0.8g), Protein: 17.3g, Carbohydrate: 48.7g, Fiber: 2.5g, Cholesterol: 18mg, Iron: 3mg, Sodium: 896mg, Calcium: 410mg

(66) Green Chile Sauce

Either I didn't take enough care removing the seeds or I just had hot chiles. This sauce was make-your-nose-run kind of spicy. But I love that kind of stuff, so it was a.ok in my book! YUM! This recipe makes just enough for the enchilada recipe!

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Green Chile Sauce

Fresh Anaheim chiles--long, slender, pale green peppers--have mild heat. The sauce pairs well with chicken or pork, or serve it as a snack with baked tortilla chips.

This recipe goes with Green Chile-Chicken Enchiladas

Yield: 16 servings (serving size: 3 tablespoons sauce
Source: Cooking Light Magazine, December 2007

6 Anaheim chiles
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 cups chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

Preheat broiler.

Place chiles on a foil-lined baking sheet; broil 14 minutes or until blackened and charred, turning after 7 minutes. Place in a heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag; seal. Let stand 15 minutes. Peel and discard skins. Cut a lengthwise slit in each chile. Remove and discard seeds and tops. Chop chiles to measure 3/4 cup.

Heat canola oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Add garlic; sauté for 1 minute. Stir in flour; cook 1 minute. Add chiles, coriander, salt, and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Place half of chile mixture in a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Return pureed chile mixture to pan; stir well. Remove from heat; cool completely.

Nutritional Information
Calories: 23 (39% from fat), Fat: 1g (sat 0.1g,mono 0.2g,poly 0.6g), Protein: 0.7g, Carbohydrate: 3.3g, Fiber: 0.6g, Cholesterol: 0.0mg, Iron: 0.2mg, Sodium: 114mg, Calcium: 9mg