Gourmet Meals in Crappy Little Kitchens (18 page)

3
Cut into whatever shapes you fancy.

The-Morning-After
Pasta Frittata

Serves 4

This recipe calls for angel hair pasta, but please use whatever pasta you have available. Always toss your leftover pasta with a touch of olive oil before you store it in the refrigerator or you'll wake up to a brick of pasta. This recipe is so good, you may want to make pasta just to serve this recipe.

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 cup cooked pasta

1 clove garlic, minced

¼ cup freshly grated parmesan

Sea salt, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

6 eggs, beaten

¼ cup Boomin' Basil Pesto (p. 220), as garnish

1
Preheat oven to 300°, and place your 8-inch nonstick sauté pan over medium heat. Add the olive oil to the pan and allow it to heat up. Toss the pasta with the garlic and half of the parmesan cheese; add it to your pan and season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Use your tongs to move the pasta around in the pan to cook it evenly.

2
When the pasta is golden brown, pour the eggs in and around the pasta. Allow it to cook for 1 minute.

3
Sprinkle another pinch of salt and pepper evenly over the eggs. Put the entire pan in 4Using the center of the oven for 10 minutes. a potholder or dry towel, remove the pan from the oven and run a heat-resistant spatula around the outside of the frittata to make sure it will release. Slide it out onto a cutting board, and, using your chef's knife, cut it 5Serve like a pizza. warm, fanned over a serving platter, and drizzled evenly with pesto.

Uncle Chris's Squash

Serves 8

This recipe was inspired by Uncle Chris and serves as a staple at all my family's Thanksgiving feasts. Some may think using garlic powder is less than gourmet, however, it provides a more consistent flavor in this dish than bits of fresh garlic.

1 pound green zucchini, ½-inch thick pieces, cut into quarters

1 pound yellow squash, ½-inch thick pieces, cut into quarters

4 Roma tomatoes, medium dice

2 teaspoons garlic powder

2 teaspoons sea salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 eggs

2 cups shredded sharp

Cheddar

cup bread crumbs

2 tablespoons butter

1
Preheat oven to 350°. Toss the zucchini, yellow squash, tomatoes, garlic, salt, pepper, eggs, cheese, and ¼ cup of the bread crumbs all together in your greased 9 x 13-inch baking dish (a disposable baking dish will work beautifully if you'd rather toss the dish than wash it).

2
Sprinkle the rest of the bread crumbs on top and drop tiny pieces of butter over the bread crumbs.

3
Bake the casserole for about 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Allow it to rest about 20 minutes before serving warm directly out of the dish.

Gourmet Casseroles

It is important to have a few quality casserole recipes up your sleeves for pot lucks and the holidays. Thus far, I haven't held a single Thanksgiving in my home (thank you Crappy Little Kitchen!), but I always show up somewhere else with lots of food. Besides, it's mighty convenient to bring a casserole. Serve your creation directly out of its baking dish. What could be more CLK friendly?

The Mean Green Frittata

Serves 4

Brussels sprouts are a fantastic seasonable vegetable, best when purchased from late August through March when they are small and lime green. Don't miss out on this delectable dish. Fresh Brussels sprouts are nothing like the stinky mush you were forced to eat as a kid.

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 cup cleaned and quartered fresh Brussels sprouts (small)

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes

Sea salt, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

6 eggs, beaten

2 slices whole wheat toast, buttered

1
Preheat oven to 300°, and place your 8-inch nonstick sauté pan over medium heat. Add the olive oil to the pan and allow it to heat up. Sauté the Brussels sprouts with the garlic and red pepper flakes, and season them with a pinch of salt and pepper.

2
When the Brussels sprouts are bright green and begin to soften, pour in the eggs. Disperse the Brussels sprouts evenly in the pan. Allow the eggs to cook for 1 minute.

3
Sprinkle another pinch of salt and pepper evenly over the eggs. Put the entire pan in the center of the oven for 10 minutes.

4
Using a pot holder or dry towel, remove the pan from the oven and run a heat-resistant spatula around the outside of the frittata to make sure it will release. Slide it out onto a cutting board and, using your chef knife, cut it like a pizza.

5
Serve warm, with 2 pieces of frittata fanned over a half-piece of toast (cut on a diagonal).

Let's Get Hoppin'
Braised Rabbit

Serves 6

Don't shy away from rabbit just because you like the Easter bunny. Ask your butcher to order it for you. Expand your culinary tastes; you won't be sorry! Cut the celery, carrots, and onions thick so they don't cook too quickly.

¼ cup olive oil

6 rabbit hind quarters (legs plus thighs)

Sea salt, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

2 cups large dice yellow onion

1 cup large dice carrot

1 cup large dice celery

¼ cup chopped garlic

Chipotle, minced (depending on the heat you want, use 1 tablespoon for mild, 2 tablespoons for medium, and ¼ cup for hot)

2 tablespoons ground cumin

3 cups vegetable stock

15 ounces canned, crushed tomato

¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

1
Preheat oven to 400°. Put your Dutch oven on the stove, turn to medium-high heat, and add the olive oil.

2
Season the rabbit evenly with salt and pepper.

3
When the olive oil has begun to smoke slightly, use your tongs to lay one leg, skin side down into the oil. Let it brown for about 1 minute, and then turn it slightly to begin browning the other side. Once it is golden on both sides, remove from the pan and put on a clean plate, and begin again. Repeat the process for all the legs and thighs, and feel free to brown more than one at a time. Three should fit comfortably in a Dutch oven without overcrowding.

4
Reduce the heat in your pan to medium, and add the onion, carrot, and celery. Move them around in the pan using a heat-resistant spatula so they cook evenly. When they have begun to soften and caramelize slightly, add the garlic, chipotle, and cumin. Allow this to cook together for 1 minute, seasoning lightly with salt and pepper.

5
Add the stock and tomato, and bring it up to a simmer. Turn off the heat, and bury the rabbit beneath the sauce in the pan. Sprinkle with a pinch more of salt and pepper. Cover the pan, and put it in the oven for about 1 to 1½ hours. When the meat is peeling away from the bone, the dish is ready. 6You

6
You can serve the quarters as entrée portions with Mashed Magnificence (p. 174) smothered in the vegetable-rich braising liquid. Or you can let the rabbit cool slightly, and shred the meat off the bone. Toss it with sauce and pasta, or serve it wrapped in corn tortillas with sauce on the side. Garnish with lots of chopped cilantro.

Oh Lamby Boy!

Serves 8

This shepherd's pie recipe is high on the wow factor. The presentation is outstanding, and no one will know how easy this one-pot wonder is to prepare!

¼ cup olive oil

4 lamb shanks,

½ pound each

Sea salt, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

¼ cup all-purpose flour

2 cups large dice yellow onion

1 cup, peeled and cut in one-inch lengths on the bias, carrots

1 cup, cut in one inch lengths on the bias, celery

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

¼ cup chopped garlic

2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme

2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary

2 bay leaves (preferably fresh, but can substitute dried in equal portion)

4 cups vegetable stock

3 pounds small Yukon gold potatoes, halved

¼ cup chopped fresh

Italian parsley

1
Preheat oven to 400°. Put your Dutch oven on the burner, heat to medium-high heat, and add the olive oil.

2
Season the lamb shanks heavily with salt and pepper; don't worry about overseasoning. Dust them lightly with flour.

3
When the olive oil begins to smoke slightly, use your tongs to lay the lamb shanks on their sides into the oil without overcrowding them. Let them brown for about a minute, and then turn them slightly to begin browning the next section. Once they are brown on all sides, remove them from the pan.

4
Reduce Repeat this for all the shanks. the heat in the pan to medium, and add the onion, carrot, and celery. Move them around in the pan using a heatresistant spatula to help cook them evenly. When they have begun to soften and caramelize slightly, after about 10 minutes, add the butter and allow it to melt. Add the garlic, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaves and allow this to cook together for 1 minute.

5
Add the stock and bring it to a boil. Turn off the burner, arrange the 4 shanks in the middle of the pan and surround with the fingerling potatoes. Sprinkle a pinch more salt and black pepper over the potatoes. Cover the pan and put it in the oven for about 3½ hours. When the meat peels away from the bone, the lamb is ready!

How to Cut on the Bias

“On the bias” means cutting on a slight angle. Lay the vegetable horizontally on the cutting board and, with your non-knife-wielding hand, hold it down close to the end where you'll begin cutting. Curl your fingers so that the tips are tucked under and the knuckles point outward—in the chef world, this is called the “claw grip.” Hold the blade of your chef's knife against the vegetable at a 45-degree angle. Begin slicing slowly toward your holding hand, making sure to keep your fingers tucked in. Reposition your “claw grip” to make sure it doesn't wind up a few fingers too short!