Baked Ziti With Spinach

I’m always looking for ways to get more veggies into our diet, and this dish is deceptively packed with them. The trick I use with most Italian-style recipes is to finely chop vegetables with my food processor and then sauté them with the meat. An almost effortless way to get in your five a day! To boost the nutritional value even more, I added fresh spinach. This dish isn’t low fat by any means, but it really is a good balance. Enjoy!

Baked Ziti With Spinach
1 onion, cut into chunks
3 carrots, cut into chunks
2 celery ribs, cut into chunks
1 zucchini, cut into chunks
3 garlic cloves
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 lb. lean ground beef
3/4 lb. fresh Italian sausage, casings removed
2 (15-oz.) cans diced tomatoes
2 tsp. dried basil
2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
1/2 tsp. fennel seeds
2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 (6-oz.) bag baby spinach
12 oz. ziti, cooked
1 (15-oz.) part-skim ricotta cheese
2 cups shredded Italian cheese blend

1. Sauté onion and next 4 ingredients in hot oil 10 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Stir in ground beef and sausage. Cook, stirring often, until meat is cooked and crumbled. Stir in tomatoes and next 4 ingredients. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in spinach, and cook 5 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in ziti.
2. Pour half of meat mixture into a 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Spread ricotta and 1/2 cup cheese over top of meat mixture. Pour the remaining meat mixture over ricotta mixture. Top with remaining 1 1/2 cups cheese. Cover with foil.
3. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake 5 more minutes. Serve immediately.

Pantry Chicken

 I make many variations of this dish and have an equal number of names for it. Tonight I finally decided what to call it. “Pantry Chicken” is the perfect descriptor because I basically use whatever ingredients are on hand. Recently I have been pounding chicken tenderloins between sheets of plastic wrap so they will cook more evenly. This only takes a couple of extra minutes but is worth the time. If you have capers, substitute 1 Tbsp. for the olives. However you make it, the results will be tasty. Enjoy!

Pantry Chicken
1 orange bell pepper, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
Olive oil
Salt
2 tsp. dried basil
1 Tbsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
1 lb. chicken tenders, pounded flat
1/2 cup artichoke hearts, chopped
1 (15-oz.) can diced tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped olives
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper

1. Sauté bell pepper and garlic in hot oil 5 minutes. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper, and place chicken in pan. Cook 3 minutes on each side. Add in basil and next 6 ingredients, and cook for 20 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Our super-cute date—he didn’t like the chicken though!

Bruschetta Pizza

The inspiration came from a dish I saw on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives.  Bruschetta is a traditional tomato-based topping for toasted bread slices. Using pizza crust, rolled very thin in cornmeal, makes it even better. The combination of tomatoes, garlic, red onion, feta, and fresh herbs works beautifully. This makes a lovely appetizer or main dish when served with a salad. Enjoy!

Bruschetta Pizza
1 pizza dough round
Cornmeal
4 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
10 yellow cherry tomatoes, halved
2 Tbsp. finely minced red onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh basil
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh oregano

1. Roll out dough on a surface dusted with cornmeal, and place on baking sheet. Evenly sprinkle crust with tomatoes and next 3 ingredients. Drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and fresh herbs.
2. Bake at 425° for 10 to 15 minutes or until done. Cut into triangles or squares.

Fruit Tart

This dessert from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook is very versatile. Once you get the technique for the crust (it’s super simple) and the pastry cream (it’s more complex but still very doable) down, the fruit can be adapted to whatever is in season or, in this case, in the freezer. If you use fresh fruit, simply slice the fruit and arrange on top of the cream. Definitely give this a try!

Fruit Tart
3/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt
6 egg yolks

3/4 cup sugar

3 Tbsp. cornstarch

2 cups milk

2 Tbsp. butter

2 tsp. vanilla

2 cups frozen berries

1/4 cup sugar

2 Tbsp. flour

1/4 cup orange juice

1. Beat 3/4 cup butter and 1/2 cup sugar with an electric mixer just combined. Beat in vanilla, flour, and pinch of salt. Beat on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Spoon dough into a lightly greased 10-inch tart pan. Press dough into bottom and up sides of pan. Prick dough with a fork.
2. Bake at 350° for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven to cool completely.

3. Meanwhile, beat egg yolks and sugar at medium speed until mixture is pale yellow. Beat in cornstarch.

4. Bring milk almost to a boil in a saucepan. Gradually beat milk mixture into egg yolk mixture. Then pour mixture back into saucepan.

5. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thickened (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat, and stir in butter and vanilla. Pour into a bowl, and cover with plastic wrap placed on the surface of the cream. Refrigerate until ready to use.

6. Place berries and next 3 ingredients in a small saucepan. Cook, stirring often, for 10 minutes or until mixture is slightly thickened.

7. Fill tart shell with pastry cream. Use a slotted spoon to place fruit over top of cream. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Dill Potato Salad

Potato salad is a good choice for experimenting—it’s tasty with mayo or lightly dressed with oil and vinegar. Tonight I made a more traditional style potato salad that has a combination of mayo and sour cream. There is no bacon in this dish (shocking!), but it would be a great addition, if you have some on hand. Enjoy!

Dill Potato Salad
1 1/2 lb. Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into chunks
Salt
1 shallot, finely chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh dill
1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 to 3/4 cup sour cream

2 Tbsp. coarse-ground mustard

1. Place potatoes in a large pot, and cover with water. Bring to a boil; add in some salt. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until done. Drain and place in a serving bowl. Add in shallot and dill. Stir together mayo, 1/2 cup sour cream, and mustard. Toss with potato mixture, adding more sour cream, if needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Salmon Burgers

During spring break, we visited my brother and his family in Charlottesville, Virginia. Jeremy is a great cook and feed us some really delicious food. One night for dinner he made some excellent salmon cakes. The flavor profile was complex but not overpowering. When planning my menu for this month, I decided to try my hand at them. To be different, I served them as burgers. This recipe comes together in a snap with a food processor. You can also do the chopping by hand—it will take a little longer. Jeremy’s cakes had a more pronounced Asian flavor; mine are more reminiscent of crab cakes. Enjoy!

Salmon Burgers
1 lb. salmon, cut into chunks
1/2 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1 shallot, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
Zest and juice from 1 lemon
1 Tbsp. coarse-grained mustard
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh dill
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1 egg
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

1. Combine salmon and next 3 ingredients in a food processor. Process until finely chopped. Spoon into a bowl, and stir in lemon zest and juice and remaining ingredients. Shape into patties, and place on a wax paper-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate for 30 minutes
2. Cook salmon patties in a lightly greased grill pan for 4 minutes per side or until done. Serve on toasted buns with rémoulade sauce, lettuce, and tomatoes.

Strawberry-Lemon Curd Tart

Our neighborhood farmers market opened today—hooray! Strawberries were the featured item for the day and the farmers had beautiful specimens for sale. I had already planned to make Ina Garten’s lemon curd tart this afternoon and knew sliced strawberries would be the perfect flavor accompaniment. (I made a few adjustments to the original recipe.) This dessert looks impressive, but it is pretty simple to pull off. Enjoy!

Strawberry-Lemon Curd Tart
3/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
Zest and juice from 4 lemons
4 eggs
Pinch of salt

Sliced strawberries

1. Beat 3/4 cup butter and 1/2 cup sugar with an electric mixer just combined. Beat in vanilla, flour, and pinch of salt. Beat on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Spoon dough into a lightly greased 10-inch tart pan. Press dough into bottom and up sides of pan. Prick dough with a fork.

2. Bake at 350° for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven to cool completely.

3. Meanwhile, beat 1/2 cup butter, 1 1/2 cups sugar, and lemon zest with mixer until creamy. Stir in the lemon juice. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until blended after each addition. Add in pinch of salt.
4. Pour lemon mixture into a saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, about 10 minutes or until thickened. Remove from the heat.
5. Pour lemon curd into tart shell. Top curd with sliced strawberries. Cover and chill until ready to serve.