Learning To Multitask With A Simple Macaroni And Cheese

I said it yesterday, I’m really busy these days… and aren’t we all? That’s why once in a while a good old frozen dinner comes in handy. But I ain’t no gal to accept supermarket frozen dinners. Nope. I have to say it, that’s just something I refuse to buy (no offense to those who do!). So once in a while I’ve got to make my own frozen stuff. I make it and then it’s there, cold as hell, waiting to be picked and warmed up to feed our family.

So what can you easily make and freeze? Sure, there’s the classic Sheppard’s pie, spaghetti sauce or even chili con carne. But another classic, which is always nice to have handy: macaroni and cheese. Try any version, it’s quite easy to make, and then freeze it… keep it for the good occasions; the days when you just don’t have the time to cook a good meal for your loved ones.

MACARONI AND CHEESE

Make about 6 servings

INGREDIENTS

1 shallot, finely diced

6 garlic cloves, minced

3 tbsp butter

2 tbsp flour

3 cups milk

2 cups of cheese mix (my choice: Emmenthal, Gruyère and parmesan)

1 cup of you favorite ham, in tiny dices

Salt

White pepper

2 cups baby spinach (optinal)

450g macaroni pasta

Chives (for decoration)

PREPARATION

In a saucepan, heat the butter over medium heat. Add the shallot and garlic and cook for a minute or two.

 

Over low heat, add the flour and make a paste. Cook for a minute. Slowly add in the milk and make a béchamel sauce. Never stop mixing.

When the sauce is nice and thick, incorporate the ham and cheeses (keep about ½ cup on the side for later). Blend well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cut the heat.

Cook your pasta very al dente in salt water. Add the pasta to the béchamel sauce and delicately blend. If you want to add vegetables to your dish, lay the baby spinach at the bottom of a baking pan. Pour the cheese noodles on top. Spread the leftover cheese on top.

When ready to serve, unfreeze (or cook right away) and cook in the oven for about 30 minutes at 450˚F or until the cheese is nice, golden and crispy.

Chop some chives and sprinkle on top of your serving plates.

My Monday Afternoon Project: Lasagna

As some of you may have read throughout this blog, I’m big time pregnant right now. In fact, I could pop any day. I’m basically waiting around at home until the big day comes, which has great advantages. The downside is that I don’t have much energy left in me. Consequently, I’m not always in the mood for cooking. Still, I put a great effort to make sure I do keep on cooking. First, to stay healthy. But also to have great recipes to add to this blog.

You can also imagine that my fridge is pretty much kept full at all times. I’ve been like a small ant lately, making provisions for the hard times to come (because you never know what you’re going to get!). I have all sorts of frozen goods ready to be heated up, either in the microwave or in the oven. There is no way I will be cooking in the first few days after giving birth. Which is why yesterday I gave myself a big kick in the butt and made an astronomical quantity of Lasagna.

Don’t get me wrong, I love lasagna but it’s not something I eat every week. More like twice a year. Yet I find that when you make lasagna, it takes so much time that it’s not worth it if you’re only going to make one. Which is why I made 3 huge ones and froze them. I can keep them all if I want to or, I could give some out if I feel like it. You could do the same.

The following recipe is pretty traditional. If you want to make a few lasagnas at the same time, you’re going to have to multiply the ingredients. With the Bolognese sauce recipe below, you’ll be able to make 3 big lasagnas and you might even have some sauce left over. If you’re not planning on making many lasagnas, you can choose to cut the quantities to make less sauce or, better, keep the quantities and freeze the extra sauce for spaghetti. Same thing for the Béchamel recipe. You’ll have enough to make 3 lasagnas. This sauce doesn’t freeze so you should cut the quantities if you only want to make 1 lasagna. Finally, I like to buy aluminum lasagna pans that I can throw out after one use. There cheap, the perfect size and you can keep your good baking pans out of the freezer.

Oh yeah! I didn't eat lasagna last night so I froze all 3 of them without cooking them, which is why I don't have a great picture of the final result. I'm sure you can imagine what it'll look like once it's perfectly roasted! 

TRADITIONAL LASAGNA

Makes 1 lasagna

(Make sure you multiply the ingredients if you’re making more than 1 lasagna)

INGREDIENTS

Salt

2 tbsp vegetable oil

About 12 dried lasagna sheets 

Black pepper

2 ½ cups Bolognese sauce (see recipe below)

1 ½ cups Béchamel sauce (see recipe below)

1-pound ricotta cheese

2 eggs

2 packs of 10z frozen spinach, chopped, unfrozen and dried

3 cups mozzarella cheese

¼ cup freshly ground Parmesan cheese

PREPARATION

If you’re planning on eating your lasagna on the day of preparation, preheat your oven at 375˚F.

Fill a large saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Add the vegetable oil (so your lasagna won’t stick together). Add the lasagnas and cook for about 6 minutes (they have to be all dente). Take the pasta out and pass under cold water to stop the cooking. Set aside, covered with a slightly humid towel so they don’t dry out.

In a large bowl, mix together the Bolognese and Béchamel sauces. Adjust taste with salt and pepper if necessary. Set aside.

In a separate large bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, the eggs, salt & pepper. Set aside.

In a 13”x 9” ovenproof pan, spread 1/3 of the Bolognese-Béchamel sauce. Cover with 5 lasagna sheets. Evenly spread the ricotta mix over the lasagna. Cover with spinach. Add 5 more lasagna sheets over the spinach and cover with another 1/3 of the Bolognese-Béchamel sauce. Add ½ cup of mozzarella cheese. Cover with the remaining 5 lasagna sheets. Empty the rest of the Bolognese-Béchamel sauce and cover with what’s left of the mozzarella cheese, as well as with the Parmesan. Put in the oven and cook for 45 minutes or until the cheese makes bubbles on top. 

Notes: I believe real traditional lasagnas should be made with Marinara sauce and separately cooked meat. Since I’m a little lazy sometimes (!), I prefer to make a simple Bolognese sauce so the meat is already integrated to the tomato sauce.

If you choose to unfreeze and cook, make sure you take your lasagna out of the freezer at least 10 hours before heating it. 

SIMPLE BOLOGNESE SAUCE

Makes about 10 cups

INGREDIENTS

½ cup olive oil

1 yellow onion, finely diced

3 garlic cloves (or more if you like!), finely chopped

1 ½ pounds ground beef

4 celery branches, finely diced

2 carrots, peeled and finely diced

Salt & pepper

3 - 36oz preserved tomatoes

2 dried laurel leaves

PREPARATION

In a large saucepan over medium heat, heat the oil. Add the onions and the garlic. Cook for about 8 minutes. Add the beef and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the celery, carrots, 1 tsp of salt and 1 tsp of freshly ground pepper.  Cook for another 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and the laurel leaves.

Simmer over low heat for about 1 hour or until the sauce has thickened.

Take off the heat. Throw out the laurel leaves. Adjust taste with salt and pepper.

BECHAMEL SAUCE

Makes 4 cups

INGREDIENTS

5 tbsp unsalted butter

½ cup all-purpose flour

4 cups hot milk

Salt & white pepper

Pinch of nutmeg

PREPARATION

In a small pan, heat the milk until it’s just about to boil.

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the flour and stir until smooth. Bring the temperature to medium heat and cook for about 2-3 minutes.

Add the hot milk to the mixture, 1 cup at a time, whisking continuously until the mixture is very smooth. Bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Season with salt, white pepper and nutmeg. Set-aside until you’re ready to use it. 

Trying Something New: Israeli Couscous With Olives and Roasted Tomatoes

I don’t know about you but I cook a whole lot, pretty much all the time, yet sometimes feel like I’m always making the same stuff (especially weeknights). There are so many options, so many avenues out there that even if you cook every day, you’ll never run out of options. But searching for new ideas, new recipes, takes a whole lot of dedication, a great strive to plunge into new food adventures, and infinite patience and time. Which is not what I always have… Still, once in a while, I choose to plunge and try something new. I don’t usually like to follow recipes so this can be a frustrating process. How can you cook something without a recipe if you’ve never made it before? You have to get inspired somewhere…

Last night was one of those nights. I have recently bought a pack of Israeli Couscous, attracted by the huge colored pearls (the ones I bought are tricolore!). So I searched the web, looking for some inspiration on how to cook it and make a nice side dish out of it. Luckily, there are a few interesting recipes out there. I picked one for which I pretty much had all of the ingredients… and plunged. I did modify a few things and made it my own.

Just so you know, there’s a common misconception that couscous is a whole grain when in fact, it’s closer to pasta than anything else and is made of semolina flour. The texture and taste really reminds me of pasta. So don’t be surprised if I tell you that it’s not filled with nutrients and fiber. It’s not! If you’d rather get a whole grain and get the good stuff, you can use bulgur, barley or even quinoa with the same recipe. But if you don’t mind the pasta, try this. It’s good and perfect as an accompaniment. I served my dish along with cod and garlic spinach. It was absolutely delicious!

ISRAELI COUSCOUS WITH OLIVES AND ROASTED TOMATOES

Makes 6 servings

INGREDIENTS

Roasted tomatoes

3 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half

5 garlic large garlic cloves, left unpeeled

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup warm water

1 tsp fresh lemon juice

Salt & pepper

Couscous

2 ½ cups chicken broth

1 ½ cups pearls couscous (Israeli)

1 tbsp olive oil

½ cup kalamata or other brine-cured black olives, pitted and chopped

1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

¼ cup chopped fresh mint

1 tsp chopped fresh thyme

1-2 tbsp sambal oelek (optional, if you like it spicy!)

PREPARATION

Tomatoes and dressing

Preheat your oven at 250˚F.

Cut the tomatoes in half and arrange, cut side up, in 1 layer in a large shallow baking pan. Add garlic to pan and roast in the middle of the oven for about 1 hour. Let cool for about 30 minutes

Peel the garlic and puree with the oil, water, lemon juice, salt & pepper and ½ cup roasted tomatoes in a small food processor or blender until the dressing is very smooth.

Couscous

In a heavy saucepan, bring the broth to a broil and stir in the couscous. Let simmer, uncovered, for 6 minutes. Cover pan and remove from heat. Let stand for 10 minutes.

Transfer the couscous to a bowl and stir in the remaining ingredients, dressing, roasted tomatoes and salt & pepper to taste.

Notes: You can roast your tomatoes and make your dressing a day ahead if you keep them separately covered and chilled.

Just In Time For Spring? Tuna, Tomato and Black Olive Sauce

What a great day for spring to arrive… with yet another snowstorm!!! I’m totally sarcastic here. What the heck is wrong with mother nature? Isn’t she happy we’re finally going outside again to enjoy the nice weather? Does she really want us to stay in, secluded from the rest of the world for longer? I can’t stand my winter boots anymore (they’ve decided to let water seek in), and don't get me started with my winter coat… soon I’ll make a big ceremony and burn it to the ground!

Ok, so I might be a little harsh. I’m sick of winter but I can still stand it. But not for long. Until it clearly goes away, I will stick to making winter food and will only dream of the day I’m going to sparkle that BBQ again. Yet nothing is stopping me from trying to get some refreshing flavours on my plate. Which is why I was really excited when I found this totally tasty and bursting with Mediterranean flavours inspired pasta sauce. With it’s lemon kick it made me think I was on the Amalfi coast, enjoying the nice Italian coastal breeze while napping in a hammock.  

The sauce is great served with Penne. Make sure you get yourself a nice bottle of Italian Red Wine to go with it. Who eats Italian pastas without a great glass of wine?!!

TUNA, TOMATO AND BLACK OLIVE SAUCE

Makes 4 to 6 servings

INGREDIENTS

6 tbsp olive oil

1 red onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

1 sprig fresh thyme

14 oz canned chopped tomatoes

2 tbsp sundried tomatoes

2 tbsp black olives, pitted and chopped

1 tsp green peppercorns, drained and chopped

7 oz canned tuna, drained

14 oz canned cannellini beans, drained and roughly chopped

Grated zest of 1 lemon

Salt & black pepper

4 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

PREPARATION

Heat the oil over medium heat in a heavy-based, deep-sided pan and sauté the onion with the garlic and thyme until soft.

Turn up the heat, add the canned tomatoes with their juice and cook until the sauce thickens, stirring occasionally.

Turn down the heat, stir in the sun-dried tomatoes, olives, peppercorns, tuna, beans and lemon zest and cook for a further 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Toss with hot pasta, sprinkle with parsley. 

Cheesy pasta, the perfect remedy to a hangover

It’s the holidays and we can sometimes go overboard with the drinking thang. Although I’m pretty much spared this year (yes, I’m pregnant so no boozing for me), people around me can go wild and crazy. They might even regret it the day after… which is the case for my husband today!

I have to admit I’m a huge pizza fan when it comes to hangover food. Add to that a can of Coke and I’m usually all set. But sometimes the pain is not that bad and I feel like eating something a little fancier while watching a cheesy movie. But the food still needs to be greasy, heavy, and loaded with cheese. Mmmmm cheese!! And of course, it has to be easy to make with readily accessible food.

From the leftovers I’ve got in my fridge after the Christmas food splurge, here’s a nice recipe I made up. It’s greasy, cheesy and should do the job.

HANGOVER PANCETTA CHEESE PASTA

Makes about 4 portions

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 small red onions cut in small pieces

150 g of pancetta in small dices

4-5 garlic cloves, chopped

1 ½ cup of 15% (or even 35%!) cream

150 g of Ricotta cheese

½ cup grated Gruyere

½ cup of grated Parmesan

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

Salt & pepper

PREPARATION

In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, brown the onions in the olive oil.  Add the pancetta a let sear for a good 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sear for another 5 minutes.

 

Lower the heat of your and add the cream, Ricotta, Gruyere and Parmesan. Blend well. Add the thyme leaves along with salt and pepper to taste. Cook over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes.

Serve with fresh or dried linguine pasta.

Note: I didn’t have any Gruyere at home so I used Charlevoix cheese. Just get a cheese loaded with flavor and it should do the job.

I usually keep a piece of pancetta or bacon in my freezer at all times. That way I have access to a tasty ingredient whenever I need it.