A Hungry Bear

lemon ricotta pasta with pine nuts and roast chicken

This recipe meets several requirements for the “weekday rotation” in my house: fast (literally 30 minutes start to finish, less if you buy a rotisserie chicken), and lots of protein. If I’m making pasta, I’ve got to sneak in as much as possible — did you know part-skim ricotta is a very lean form of protein? Combined with the chicken, this dish has at least 30 grams of protein per serving, meaning it passes my meat-head boyfriend’s standards. This is much tastier than a chalky protein powder drink too. (more…)

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shrimp capellini with tomato cream sauce

Most food magazines have a monthly feature that includes “quick” recipes. As a general rule, whatever number of minutes is listed there, I always double it (Rachael Ray has never been impressive to me, because I can do just about anything in 1 hour anyway). So I was pleasantly surprised to find that this quick recipe from Gourmet magazine was actually ready in the 15 minutes it estimated it would take — it was so fast, I hadn’t even set the table or opened the wine by the time it was ready. I have to quote the recipe notes because I agree with this as well: “the addition of the sweet vermouth… [makes] this quick sauce taste as if it’s been simmered for hours.” (more…)

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mushrooms and leeks with pecorino fonduta

It should be fairly obvious by now that I have an obsession with Food & Wine magazine, and especially any of their Italian recipes, so this recipe from their April 2008 issue is right up my alley. According to the article, fonduta is basically Italian fondue. You serve this easy-as-possible cheese sauce over sauteed leeks and mushrooms, which rest on top of crusted slices of baguette. So simple and unique. (more…)

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chicken saltimbocca

I can’t believe I’ve been cooking this long and haven’t discovered Cook’s Illustrated until now. I’ve seen it in stores, just never realized how amazing the content could be. There are no ads, just informative articles and research about how best to create recipes (my favorite cookbook du jour, “The New Best Recipe”, is in the same style, presumably because it’s a compilation of all the recipes from their magazine). In the April 2008 issue, they cover chicken saltimbocca, with the intention of making it a viable weeknight option (the original calls for veal — and isn’t much different than this recipe in how you’d prep it). The only change I made was to use less butter in the sauce — in my mind, weeknight viability is dependent on healthiness not just convenience. The result is delicious, and I’m not sure I miss the veal at all. (more…)

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eggs benedict

While on vacation in Anguilla, I decided to try eggs benedict for the first time. I’m not a big fan of egg yolks, and other than eating around what some people consider the “best part” of a poached egg, I loved them. When I suggested to my boyfriend that I might try them at home, he was skeptical — why try something so involved, so unhealthy? Ahh, a challenge — can I make eggs benedict, and at least a little healthier than the original? Of course, and it wasn’t nearly as involved as I thought it would be. It’ll be part of the weekend brunch rotation from now on… (more…)

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butternut squash ravioli with browned butter and sage

Well, it’s official. I’ve decided to make a serious commitment to my love affair with italian cooking, and actually went out and purchased a pasta machine. It’s not that hard really, to make fresh pasta. It’s definitely very time-consuming, but not complicated. The little machine reminds me of the play-dough sets we had when I was a kid, you just rotate the handle and keep feeding the pasta through until it flattens out into smooth sheets. I tried to keep things simple, with just a basic roasted butternut squash filling and browned butter and sage as the sauce (from a recipe I found in F&W magazine). I can’t tell if the pasta was really that good, or if it just tasted great to me since I was so proud of the effort. Now I just can’t stop thinking about how *amazing* it is that you can buy fresh ravioli in whole foods for only $6… (more…)

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berry brioche bread pudding

When I suggested bread pudding for dessert, my boyfriend, who has never had it before, screwed up his nose and said “sounds disgusting.” I had to explain that it’s like having french toast for dessert to get him even slightly interested. This is a great recipe for bread pudding — easy to make ahead, crunchy on the top and bottom, and the perfect contrast between the sweet brioche bread and the tart fresh berries. Top it off with a dollop of homemade whipped cream, and now I’ve got one more fan of bread pudding converted. (more…)

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rosemary garlic roast chicken

Roasting a whole chicken is a satisfying project. It’s one of the simplest foods, but it takes a little time (about 2 hours overall, half of which is just waiting while the chicken soaks in brine). It definitely tastes better than any whole roast chicken you can buy, and you can use the leftover chicken on a salad later, which helps justify the time investment. This recipe is from the New Best Recipe cookbook. The addition of potatoes to the roasting pan is optional, but if you’re already dirtying up the pan, why not just throw some potatoes in and have a whole meal ready at the same time? (more…)

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roasted pork with leeks

I didn’t grow up eating a lot of pork, and on those rare occasions I remember dry bone-in pork chops grilled with barbeque sauce. Only in the last year or so have I realized that I’ve been missing out. This particular recipe may take 2 hours to cook, but it’s very hands-off. The meat is so tender it falls apart under your fork, due to roasting with a simple mix of leeks, a pat of butter, and white wine. This is one of my staple dishes, and it hasn’t disappointed me yet. (more…)

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homemade pizzas: pepperoni & margherita

Pizza is one of my favorite comfort foods. I’m not a pizza expert (or pizza snob, depending how you look at it), so I can enjoy mellow mushroom like it was the most authentic thing in the world. I end up craving it almost weekly, so I figure it’s a good idea if I learn to make it at home so I won’t feel quite as guilty indulging. In the future I’m going to try making my own dough, and seeing how a real pizza stone improves the crust, etc, but this was a start. (more…)

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