Proud Italian Cook

Roasted Veggie Overload!

January 29, 2013 by Marie 29 Comments

Hi, My name is Marie and I’m a veggie-holic! Yes, when I’m in the produce isle I just can’t help myself, I have no control. Sometimes I get strange looks from people as I happily stroll by them with my grocery cart. I’ve even had people say to me, “My, you do buy a lot of vegetables!” It’s not until I get home and start unpacking my bags that I realize, they might have a point!

So when I feel like I have an overload of veggies hanging out in my fridge, I just roast them all, as in the photo above, and figure out what to do with them later.

I always roast my veggies at 400F, drizzled with a good quality extra virgin olive oil and lately, and actually more times than not I’ve been using this, the mellow roasted garlic flavor just enhances the veggies even more, I truly love that stuff!

The thing about having roasted veggies handy is that you can quickly whip up a meal in no time, toss them into frittatas, pastas, grains, all sorts of things. I had a package of farro that I quickly cooked up and made this for a nice lunch but you could easily use brown rice, barley, couscous, you get the idea. For this I added a fresh lemon and olive oil dressing to it, along with fresh herbs.

Want something a little more substantial? Stuff it all into a pre-roasted acorn squash and serve it with a salad on the side.

But I have to say one of my favorite ways to use up all my veggies is to stack them high layered into a springform pan all wrapped up in phyllo dough pie.

Every time I make this I get rave reviews, it’s great for a luncheon with the girls, a main course or even a side dish to bring to a party.

The wedges cut perfectly because the layers are slightly “glued together” with some grated cheese, I like to serve mine with a little roasted red pepper sauce on the side, so good!

Roasted Veggie Pie Wrapped in Phyllo

Ingredients

Assorted roasted vegetables of your choice
Grated parmesan or romano cheese
grated asiago, mozzarella, or fontina cheese
Phyllo sheets
Olive oil
9" springform pan

Instructions

Brush springform pan with olive oil or olive oil spray
Unwrap phyllo and cover with a dampened towel, keeping it covered as you work quickly
Add 3 sheets into the bottom of the pan,1 at a time, spraying or brushing with olive oil and a sprinkling of grated parmesan or romano
Fit one sheet partially on the bottom with the ends hanging well over the pan, spray or brush all over with olive oil
Continue with the phyllo all the way around the pan, then do it all around 2 more times( phyllo is very thin) rotating pan so the sheets cover the entire rim
Start layering your vegetables one layer at a time, in between the layers add a sprinkling of grated parmesan or romano and also your grated asiago, mozzarella or fontina, use enough to cover all around the vegetables,but not too much, pressing down lightly
When you get to the top fold in the overhang of phyllo, making sure its sprayed or brushed with olive oil
Add more phyllo sheets to the top to make sure all the veggies are covered
Finish off by spraying or brushing with olive oil on entire top and a final sprinkling of cheese
Place pan on a baking sheet lined with foil and bake in oven at 400 for around 20-25 minutes or until phyllo is crispy golden
Let it cool down then cut into wedges with a serrated knife
Note: No exact amounts here, just cover each layer with veggies and cheese, you could also use a smaller springform pan or a deep dish pie plate depending on how many veggies you have.

29 Comments Filed Under: Grains, Vegetables Tagged: Colivita roasted garlic extra virgin olive oil, farro, phyllo, roasted veggies, stuffed acorn squash, vegetable pie

Pork Chops Marsala

January 22, 2013 by Marie 54 Comments

Sweet Marsala wine sauce is like nectar of the gods, it transforms simple chicken, veal and beef into something extraordinary, and now I’m here to tell you it does exactly the same for pork, in fact pork chops marsala is becoming my new favorite.

The second the Marsala wine splashes into the pan your kitchen will smell absolutely amazing, the aroma is deep, rich and bold and as it simmers down it gets even better. It doesn’t take much time at all to get this flavorful meal on the table so it’s really good for mid week as well as for guests, the other bonus is everything goes into one pan!

You can serve this with angel hair pasta, it’s divine with garlic mashed potatoes, or if you prefer no carbs at all try it along side sautéed spinach or kale in garlic and olive oil. Which ever way you choose you can’t go wrong!

Dollops of mascarpone cheese gets whisked into the pot with the pork chops and Marsala, it thickens the sauce to the perfect consistency as it slowly cooks down, the end result is a sauce so rich and creamy that you’ll want to drink it!

The mascarpone really takes this dish over the top.

Pork chops Marsala is so full of flavor, the pork is tender and juicy, the sauce is creamy, it comes together quickly and you know what? The presentation is so elegant! Whats not to like?

Gather up all these ingredients and make this as soon as possible, this is what I call pure comfort food!

Pork Chops Marsala

Ingredients

2-4 pork chops
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 minced garlic cloves
1 yellow or red onion cut into rings
1 box of crimini mushrooms left whole, stems removed
¾ cup sweet Marsala wine
¾ cup chicken broth
3 tablespoons mascarpone cheese
fresh thyme and parsley

Instructions

Sprinkle chops with salt and pepper, add to a heated skillet with 1 tablespoon of melted butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil, remove when brown.
Add remaining oil and butter, brown your garlic and onion rings, remove.
Add mushrooms and saute till all juices evaporate then add Marsala, deglaze pan and reduce by half.
Add broth and a couple sprigs of thyme and let that reduce.
Add chops and all juices back in the pan along with the mascarpone cheese, whisk in until melted, then cover and simmer until chops are cooked through and sauce has thickened.
Garnish with chopped parsley and thyme.

54 Comments Filed Under: Meats Tagged: crimini mushrooms, marsala wine, pork chops

Stuffed Eggplant with Ricotta, Spinach and Artichoke

January 16, 2013 by Marie 32 Comments

Have you ever been inspired by Pinterest? I have, many times. I needed to cook up three eggplants before they went bad so I checked out Pinterest for a little inspiration, as I was wandering from page to page I saw an eggplant that was stuffed with spinach, ricotta and artichoke, that was it, that was my inspiration! The original recipe that was pinned had honey in it, I didn’t want to use honey but was inspired to make mine more Italian style, so that’s exactly what I did.

I started out by cutting my eggplant lengthwise then carefully scooping out the middle leaving a small border all the way around the eggplant half. Drizzled the inside with olive oil, salt and pepper, did the same with the scooped out eggplant, placed them all on a baking sheet in a preheated 400 degree oven until tender and cooked through.

When the eggplant was finished cooking I removed it from the oven to cool down. On another baking sheet I placed one 12oz bag of frozen artichoke hearts, courtesy of Trader Joe’s (which I have in my freezer at all times) a shallot and 3 minced garlic cloves, drizzled everything with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roasted in the 400 degree oven until artichokes defrosted and became tender.

I then placed everything into a big bowl, the artichoke mixture, the scooped out cooked eggplant, 1 heaping cup of ricotta cheese, 1 chopped roasted red pepper, 1 cup of fresh chopped baby spinach, a heaping 1/2 cup of grated romano cheese, chopped parsley and basil.

Pile high the mixture into the scooped out portion of the eggplant and place back into the 400 oven until ricotta is heated through, about 15 minutes.