zucchini taco lasagna

Here's what I plan to do with this Mexican-style zucchini taco lasagna, based on ideas from numerous places.

Ingredients

•  zucchini (3-4 depending on size, if smaller-medium)
• meat and beans (I'm using 1/2# of ground turkey and 1 can of black beans, drained (rinsed if commercially canned) - NOTE: I like the texture of ground meat in this, but I think I can do that with tofu (break it up small and bake it, then heavily season it).  
• onion
• peppers (using up some poblanos; canned chili peppers would be nice)
• garlic  
• corn (using about 1 cup of frozen corn, thawed; could be replaced with other vegetables) 
• salsa (using a pint of salsa - could also be partially replaced with some tomato sauce 
• ricotta cheese (15 oz container) - NOTE: I did not care for this.  I may replace with cottage cheese next time. 
• seasoning: taco seasoning and/or cumin, oregano, smoked paprika, pepper, salt, onion powder and garlic powder if preferred 
• 2 cups pepper jack cheese (8 oz) 
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped (which of course I forgot ...)

Instructions

Thinly slice the zucchini length wise.  If very wet, salt and let sit half an hour and then drain and dry off.  Otherwise, just put it on a pan and roast for about 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees F.  Set aside.

Cook meat, add onions and peppers and cook until soft.  Add garlic for a couple of minutes, and then beans and other vegetables such as corn to heat up. 

Combine ricotta and egg and some pepper in a separate bowl.

Start layering the pan: 

• a layer of salsa/tomato sauce
•  layer of zucchini
• layer of half the ricotta mixture
•  half the meat/bean mixture
•  1/3 of cheese
• zucchini
• ricotta
• meat
• cheese
• zucchini
• salsa 
• cheese  

Cover with foil.  Bake at 375 for about 45 minutes.  Remove foil, bake another 10 minutes.  

 

leftover cornbread casserole

 I seem to often have a lot of leftover sourdough cornbread, which I freeze.  So in interests of emptying the freezer, I decided to make something with it.  Got a few ideas from online, but I wanted it more about vegetables and less about eggs/breakfast.  I"ll edit depending on how it turns out. 

Ingredients:

• about 4 cups of cornbread, preferably day old and dried up, cut into about 1" cubes/crumbled
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2# hot Italian sausage
• peppers (i used jalapeno peppers and a can of green chiles)  
• 4 eggs
• 2 cup milk
• salt & pepper
• garlic powder
• vegetables (I used green beans today but other things would be good)
• 1 cup shredded cheese 

Heat oven to 375 degrees.  If cornbread isn't dried up, but it in the oven for about 10 minutes to try to dry it more.  

Heat skillet and saute onions and sausage until done.  Add vegetables including peppers and stir up.   

Whisk together eggs, milk, and spices.  Set aside.  Shred cheese, set aside.

Put half the cornbread in bottom of pan (I used a 9x13, just in case a smaller pan would be too small).  Put half the sausage/vegetable mix on top, then half the cheese.  Repeat cornbread and sausage layers, then pour egg mixture over the top, and then the cheese.  Bake about 35 minutes. 

winter squash and greens bake

 Looking around the kitchen, not wanting to go to the store ... this sounded good with a lot of substitutions.  I followed both the post I found for winter squash and spinach bake and their source pasta and butternut squash cake.

Ingredients

• 8 oz broken up lasagna noodles 
• 400 g winter squash, peeled and sliced very thinly
• 3+ cloves garlic, sliced very thinly
• 1 egg
• 100 g ricotta (I substituted a mix of sour cream/yogurt/cottage cheese; recipe called for 200-250 g)
• 50-100 g parmesan, grated (divided)
• 200 g feta, crumbled small (divided)
• 1 cup grated fontina cheese (I used mozzarella) 
• 5 oz/150 g baby greens chopped 
• salt, pepper
• basil, thyme, parsley  
• red pepper flakes (<1/2 tsp)
• 2 T olive oil 
• 1 cup water

Mix together in a big bowl, sprinkling top with feta and parmesan left.  Put into 9" round or square pan lined with parchment paper.  Cover tightly with foil.  

Bake at 350 degrees for 90 minutes.  REmove foil, drizzle 1 T olive oil, and let bake another 30 minutes. 

 

broccoli quinoa salad

 This is a quite tasty salad from the NYT found here. Broccoli was looking good at the farmers market so it came home and I had just read this recipe on-line, so now it's made.  It's good.  A little strange, and we'll see how it is in a few days because it makes a lot.  I'll probably stuff it in a pita for breakfast, as I'm liking my days better when they start with vegetables. 

Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 servings 

• Kosher salt
• 1cup quinoa, rinsed
• 1lemon
• 3tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3tablespoons Dijon mustard (maybe start with 2 - it seemed a little mustard heavy)
• (recipe called for 2tablespoons honey but I deleted that and added some extra ACV)
• 2tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1large bunch broccoli (about 1½ pounds)
• 1medium tart and crisp apple
• 4ounces sharp Cheddar
• ¾cup toasted pecans, roughly chopped
• ½cup dried cranberries (I used dried cherries)

Preparation

1. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil on high and season aggressively with salt. Add the quinoa, then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer; cook until plump and tender, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a fine-mesh sieve; rinse with cool water and drain well.

2. While the quinoa cooks, finely grate the zest of the lemon into a large bowl then cut the lemon in half. Add the olive oil, mustard, honey and apple cider vinegar, plus the juice of ½ lemon; whisk together. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
   
3. Peel the stem of the broccoli and trim off the dry end. Finely chop the entire broccoli and add to the dressing. Core the apple then finely chop the apple and the cheese; add to the broccoli and toss to combine.

4. Add the cooked quinoa, nuts and cranberries and toss to combine. Taste and add more salt, pepper and lemon juice, as needed. Store, refrigerated, for up to 3 days.

chili mac

 Something about all these red juicy tomatoes has me craving chili mac, and this is what I plan to do:

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper or poblano, chopped
• 1/2-3/4 pound lean ground beef
• 28 oz crushed tomatoes
• can red kidney beans (or another bean)
• 2 1/2 cups broth
• 8 oz uncooked elbow macaroni pasta (whole wheat)
• 2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese 
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper or pure chilli powder (adjust spiciness to taste) (Note 1)
• 2 tsp paprika powder
• 2 tsp cumin powder
• 1 1/2 tsp onion powder (can sub garlic powder)
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp salt
•  

 Instructions

1. Heat oil in large pot over high heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 1 minute. Then add pepper and cook until onion is translucent. 

2. Add beef and cook, breaking it up as you go.  Add chopped tomatoes to cook down if using fresh.
 
3. Once the beef turns from red to brown, add remaining ingredients except cheese. Stir, bring to simmer, then turn the heat down to medium. 

4. Cover and cook for 12 minutes or until the macaroni is al dente. It should be saucy but not tons of liquid. 5. Turn the stove OFF but leave the pot on the stove. Stir through half the cheese – it should be a bit saucy. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Top with remaining cheese, put the lid back on and leave until the cheese melts - about 2 minutes (sauce will absorb further during this period)  

hominy casserole

 I love hominy and stocked up, but not really in the mood for posole.  This hominy casserole looks great and I'll make it today. 

HOMINY CASSEROLE

- 2 poblano peppers (broiled 5 minutes each side, then put into a bag to steam for 20 minutes, then skinned and seeded and chopped)

- 1/2 pound chorizo (or I used soyrizo), removed from casing and crumbled

- 1/2 onion, chopped

- 2 jalapenos, chopped (or a jar of diced chilis)

- 4 cloves garlic

- 2 15-oz cans of hominy

- 8 oz sour cream 

- 1/2 tsp cumin (depending on sausage flavoring)

- 1/4 tsp chili pepper

- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro

- 2 tsp lime juice

- 1-2 cups shredded cheese

- salt & pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

Prep poblanos as above.

In a skillet over medium-low heat, cook chorizo 8-10 minutes. Remove (leave a little grease) and cook onions and jalapenos until onions are translucent.  Add garlic, cook another minute. 

Remove from heat and add the diced poblanos, chorizo, drained and rinsed hominy, sour cream, spices, lime juice, and half the cheese.  Stir well, cover with the rest of the cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees about 30 minutes (uncovered). 

chicken broccoli pasta bake

Still on my fridge-cleaning bender, I'm making a chicken-broccoli-pasta bake modeled after this.

And broccoli stem hummus or pesto or something such.

chicken broccoli pasta bake

Ingredients

• 10-14oz chicken tenderloin (raw), breast or thigh, cut into 1/2" pieces
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tsp dried thyme (or other herbs and/or spices of choice)
• 8 oz spiral pasta, uncooked (See Note 1 for other shapes)
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth/stock , preferably warmed
• 2 cups milk, preferably warmed
• 1 large garlic clove , minced
• 1 - 2 tbsp butter (optional)
• 1 large broccoli or 2 medium broccoli or cauliflower , broken into small to medium florets
• 1 - 1.5 cups shredded cheese, any melting type
• 1/4 cup flour  

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees convection (or 375).
• Sprinkle chicken with salt (be generous), pepper and thyme, toss to coat.
• Spread pasta in a baking dish. Sprinkle over flour.
• Pour over milk and broth, add garlic and butter. Stir.
• Spread chicken over the top, then broccoli.
• Cover with foil, bake for 15 minutes (or 20 minutes if milk & broth were cold).
• Remove foil, STIR WELL. Add most of the cheese, then STIR WELL again. Top with remaining cheese.
• Return to oven. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes until top is golden and sauce is thickened (See note 4 for troubleshooting).
• Stand for a few minutes then serve immediately!

lasagna

About a box of lasagna noodles, uncooked
1-1.5 pounds of Italian sausage
40 or so oz. of pasta sauce
2 c. mozzarella
1 container of ricotta
1 container cottage cheese
a bit of parmesan


****
Saute the sausage until brown.  Add the sauce and let it simmer about 5-10 minutes.

Layer three times - sauce on the bottom and the top with layers of cheese and pasta.  Sprinkle parmesan on top.

Put on the foil tight and bake at 350 degrees about an hour (or less, if it's not been refrigerated overnight) - you can put a little water in if it looks dry (it will steam and cook the noodles).  Take the foil off and bake another 15 minutes or so. 

New Orleans style cabbage

I spent New Year's Day at my friend Laura's house, where we had the traditional black-eyed peas (which she made "jerk") and cabbage. This cabbage was soooo good that I had to ask her how she made it. Yeah, an entire container of parmesan. Yeah. No wonder it's tasty!

So since I'm spending Easter tomorrow with Ruby's family, where I have not seen a lot of vegetables, I figured this would be a good way to finish off my parmesan - with moving, I'm in OPERATION: EMPTY FREEZER AND REFRIGERATOR, so this will do that ... and the breadcrumbs in the freezer ... and the cabbage in the crisper ... So, here are her directions.

What makes this New Orleans style? Well, her mimaw is from New Orleans, and she probably got this from an Italian neighbor at some point. But what REALLY makes this a New Orleans-style vegetable is that all the additions essentially negate all the positives of eating vegetables!

There's no particular recipe for the cabbage but I can give you a general idea. I cut the cabbage up into small strips and cooked it down with a little bit of olive oil, an onion, and some garlic. Once that's done, start mixing in Italian style breadcrumbs until it becomes a little pasty. You can add the cheese at this point. After that, I put it in a casserole dish, threw a little more cheese on top, and baked it on 350 for 30 minutes or so to get the top a little crunchy.

I hope that all makes sense. It's one of those things I picked up from Mimaw and she never had any measurements for it.

Note:  When my friend made it, it was really good.  When I made it, not so much.  I won't be making it again, but will enjoy at future parties.