Veal Marsala

Veal Marsala!  This is one of my favorite week night meals.  Why?  1 pan.  Half an hour.  'Nuff said?  I also recently moved into a new apartment downtown .. so get ready for more updates.  It's the end of mom's cooking!

You will need...
- Veal  (3 or 4 thin pieces)
- 1/2 a spanish onion
- about 1 cup of mushrooms
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- 2 tablespoons of butter
- a hand full of chopped parsley
- salt and pepper
- flour for dredging (about a half cup, but just eyeball it)
- 1 cup of Marsala wine
- 1 1/2 cups of beef broth (or chicken broth)
- 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese

Please ignore the fruit bowl in the back.  That's just for show.

Let's get going.

First, you'll want to brown your onions and mushrooms, so add them to a large pan on medium high heat.  Make sure to add the butter and oil beforehand so they don't stick to the bottom.  

While that's working, season your veal with salt and pepper on both sides, and get your flour spread out on a plate.  You'll want to coat the veal just enough that it's covered, not clumpy.  

Perfect!  Check on your mushrooms... 

Looking good.  And I don't even like mushrooms.  Once they have some color on them, move them to a plate.

Ok! In the same pan, add more olive oil if it looks dry, and put your veal in.  Don't overcrowd the pan too much, I should've used a bigger pan so I could sear all of them at once.  Don't be like me.

This part will go really fast because the veal is so thin.  About a minute on each side in a very hot pan should do it.  When they're done, put them aside with the mushrooms.

Yum!  Ok, onto the sauce.  Deglaze the pan with your cup of red wine.  My recipe only called for a half cup, but I decided to double the sauce recipe for you guys so you can serve it over mashed potatoes or some buttered pasta.  Plus...I'm a lush.

Scrape the bottom of the pan with a spatula and make sure you get all the brown bits up.  Let that reduce to about half the original amount, then add the beef broth.

Perfect! Now you can add the veal and mushrooms back in to heat everything up.

Add on your chopped parsley....

Maybe a little parmesan cheese to thicken things up....

And you're done!

Enjoy with some pasta and a big glass of red wine.  Maybe take in a sunset while you're at it.

I may just eat some leftovers right now since I have veal on the brain.

Enjoy!
Courtzilla

Pita Pizza

Sometimes, I just can't decide what to eat.  I know, I know, #firstworldproblems.  I'll sit there in front of the open fridge eating peanut butter from the jar because I can't make up my mind.  This is a new favorite because of 3 things.  1) It's easy.  2) It's fast.  3) It's got options.  You can switch up the ingredients and have it be a totally new lunch.  This one is a caprese salad inspired creation.  New #firstworldproblem : I don't get to work from home enough so I can eat these more often.

Grab a pita!  Easy enough, no?  I just use store bought, but my mom made them from scratch once and I gotta tell ya, it made a HUGE difference.  Also, preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

I added red onions ... but I hate raw onions.  I quickly sliced up a few pieces and started to caramelize them so they didn't have as much bite.  Feel free to skip this step if you're not as picky as I am.

Slice up some tomato fairly thinly - the "pizza" is not going to be in the oven long.

Add just a brush of olive oil and some sea salt to the pita.  Simple, but big flavor difference if you skip this step. 

So instead of a tomato sauce base, I used some pesto!  I don't have any fresh basil on hand, so the jar stuff will do.

Next, a thin layer of mozzarella cheese.  Mama mia!  You don't want to add a ton, it will weigh down the pita and make it kind of soggy in the middle.  Learn from my mistakes.  

Layer on the tomatoes...

And then the onions ...

And you're ready to go!  Put it in the oven for about 12 - 15 minutes.  Keep an eye on it, you'll want to make sure the cheese is melted, and it starts to brown up on the edges.

 Slice with a knife or pizza cutter, and you're ready to rock!  I made a BBQ steak version a couple of days later, using BBQ sauce as the base and cheddar cheese.  The world is your oyster ... or in this case pita pizza.

Enjoy!  And here's a picture of Mac because he's just too adorable to leave out of the occasional post.

Courtzilla

Roasted Broccoli and Carrots

This one is short and sweet.  It's one of my new favorite side dishes.  The other day my mom was making the standard steamed broccoli when I suggested we roast it.  "Roasted broccoli!??" was the reaction I got.  As incredulous as she was at first, she's now made it 3 times for dinner.  I think I won that debate.

You'll need:

- 1 head of broccoli
- about 10 baby carrots
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- a teaspoon of seasoned salt
- a dash of pepper
- zest from one lemon, and about a tablespoon of lemon juice
- grated parmesan cheese (too taste)

Ok! Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Cut up your carrots into fourths lengthwise, and break apart your broccoli until you have decent sized florets.  Should look like this.

Place onto a cookie sheet and drizzle with your olive oil, and salt and pepper.  I've also added some parsley here because I am a rebel, feel free to experiment!  Toss everything together and spread everything out so it's in one layer.  Throw it in the oven for approximately 25 minutes.

While the veggies are roasting, I get prepared with the cheese, and zest the lemon ahead of time.  Make sure not to grate your thumb while zesting like I did.  Courtzilla STRIKES AGAIN.

After 25 minutes or until the broccoli has started to brown up at the edges, remove and grate the fresh parmesan over the warm broccoli and carrots.  Add the zest and lemon juice at this time as well, and give it a toss.  Serve with your favorite comfort food!

Meatloaf meatball recipe is coming up next.... EVERYONE IS EXCITED.

Enjoy!

Courtzilla

Homemade Potato Soup

What's not to love about potato soup?  It's creamy, luscious, inexpensive, and filling!  I recently discovered Pioneer Woman's version, and I had to try it.  She cooks the potatoes in with the broth - GROUND BREAKING.  I made a couple of changes to lighten it up a bit.  Looks pretty tasty though right?  It's so easy to do!

Here's what you'll need... this will make about 4 servings.

- 3 yukon gold or russet potatoes, peeled and diced
- 2 carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced (no need to peel. heh heh)
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1/2 tablespoon of cajun seasoning
- 1 tablespoon parsley flakes
- pinch of salt and pepper
- 4 cups of chicken broth
- 1 1/2 tablespoons of flour
- 3 tablespoons of sugar
- approximately 1 cup of milk (i used 1 percent and it turned out fine)

I think that's it!

So first, you will want to chop up the onions, carrots and celery to roughly the same size, like this!

Also dice the potatoes into chunks that are roughly the same size, so they cook up evenly.

I'd recommend getting all the chopping done right away, once we start throwing things into the pot it goes really quickly!

So first, warm a large pot (I used my favorite dutch oven) to medium high heat.  Add in about 2 tablespoons of olive oil, then throw in the carrots, celery and onions. Let that cook for about 2 minutes, then add in the potatoes.

Let that cook for about another 5 minutes.  At this time, I added the cajun seasoning, salt and pepper.  Looking back I think it may have been interesting with some dried mustard, so I'll probably add a dash of that next time.  Also be careful with the salt, if you are using full sodium chicken broth it won't need much.  Just add a bit, and you can also add to it later.

Please excuse my phone photos!  I should just instagram everything to get that perfect contrast and filter.  (Side note/confession time: I am instagram obsessed).

Give that a quick stir and add in the 4 cups of chicken broth!

Beauty.  Bring that to a boil, and let it carry on for about 10 minutes, until the potatoes start to get tender.

In the meantime, mix together 1/2 cup of milk and the flour in a separate bowl or measuring cup.

After the soup's been boiling for about 10 minutes, add in the flour/milk mixture and let it cook for another 5 minutes.

OK!  At this point I defer a bit from PW's recipe.  You'll want to blend this to get it to the right texture.  For me, I blend the crap out of it until I get more of a puree texture.  If you want to leave some chunks of potato, just blend 2/3 of it.  I've been utilizing an immersion blender to make this easier, it's my new favorite toy in the kitchen.

Also, important note.  If you're using a regular blender, make sure to let it cool off a bit and only fill the blender up half way at a time.  The mixture will expand when it's blended ... and this is how blender splatter disasters happen.

Once it's all blended, add in the parsley and remaining milk.  I added in a little bit of water too because it was a little thick for my preference, but up to you entirely.  I also thought it could use some sweetness, so I added in about 2-3 tablespoons of sugar.  I'm an addict, I know.

YUM!!  Feel free to add some cheese, scallions, or bacon to the top to garnish.  I just added some cheese because I'm lazy.

Settle in with a good book, and you pretty much have the perfect Sunday meal.

Worst thing I've ever eaten.

Just kidding!

Enjoy,

Courtzilla

Chicken and Blueberry Crunch

Remember that time I stopped blogging for like...3 years?

Woops.

Anyway, in that amount of time I had some major life changes!  I moved to a different country, got a new job, and stopped cooking as much as I used to.  I missed the blog though, so I want to keep up with it, maybe just more sporadically!  You missed me too, right? RIGHT???

For my glorious return, I decided to try and copy one of my favorite meals from a restaurant called iQ Food Co. that I frequent for lunch.  It actually turned out pretty well!   Here was the original version:  http://iqfoodco.com/menu/type/hotboxes/blueberry-crunch/

Ingredients you'll need (makes enough for 2 people):
- 1 chicken breast, pounded thin
- 1 cup of brown rice
- 1 apple
- about 6 mini carrots
- a handful of blueberries
- a handful of candied pecans, or sunflower seeds...or any type of nut really
- a 1/4 cup of feta cheese, crumbled
- salt and pepper

For the dressing:
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon of honey

I think that's it!

First things first, we'll need to bake some chicken.  Preheat your oven to 375 degrees, and salt and pepper both sides of the chicken.  Line a shallow pan with parchment paper, and throw the chicken in the oven for about 15 minutes, or until the juices run clear.  Should be pretty quick if it was pounded thin.

While that's working away, you'll want to julienne the apples and carrots, and get the pecans, feta and blueberries ready to go.  Colorful, no?

You can also whip up the dressing.  Just whisk the honey, oil, balsamic and dijon mustard with a fork until completely combined.  Give it a taste, if it seems out of whack you can mess with the proportions a bit.  I like the dressing to be pretty strong since it's going to be what actually flavors your rice and chicken.  I also used ground mustard, but I think the regular Dijon would be better as far as texture goes.  You can't win them all.

You'll also want to get started on the brown rice!  Just follow the directions on the package, I was just using the minute rice so it took about 10 minutes for everything to be ready.  

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Ok!  Once the chicken is done, chop it up into bite sized chunks, like so....

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Perfect!  Now, putting everything together.  Put the rice on the bottom of a bowl, and place the chicken on top of the rice.  Laugh at Mac (the golden retriever in the pic below) and give him a piece of chicken because he's trained you well.

Now add all the fresh fruit and carrots, topping everything off with the feta and chopped up pecans!

Last, but certainly not least, drizzle everything with the balsamic dressing.

Voila!  I usually attack this by mixing everything up into one big mess so I get a bit of everything in each bite.  It's so crunchy and satisfying. The sweet and tangy dressing just makes it so delicious. Also everything is pretty basic so I feel pretty good about eating this kind of stuff :)

Enjoy!

Courtzilla