The Daring Cooks June 2012: Cannelloni!

Manu from Manu's Menu was our Daring Cooks lovely June hostess and has challenged us to make traditional Italian cannelloni from scratch! We were taught how to make the pasta, filling, and sauces shared with us from her own and her family's treasured recipes!

You'll have to excuse the paper plate. I already packed the dishes.

My husband and I are now home owners!! We are so excited and slightly nervous about the reality of not having a landlord anymore. At the moment you are reading this, I am probably knee deep in boxes, trying to figure out where everything goes in our new house. I actually waited until sort of the last minute to make this month's challenge (that has been happening a lot lately...) because I was hoping to have this be the inaugural meal made in my new kitchen. Unfortunately that didn't happen. Instead, I held off packing anything in the kitchen until the day before the move so I could do this challenge as the last glorious send off of the old kitchen.

When I read about this month's challenge I texted my husband immediately and told him about it. He is (as I have mentioned before) Italian and his family has their own tried and true recipes for delicious sauce and Italian dishes. I was excited to try making pasta from scratch, even though I knew that without a pasta maker I was in for a lot of rolling pin work.

Fast forward to this past Sunday. The school year finished on Friday, we had just found out that we would in fact be closing on the house on the 12th, and oh yeah, we are leaving for our honeymoon trip to Napa, Sonoma, and San Francisco on the 17th. I had just finished packing up about 50% of what needs to be packed, moved lots of heavy boxes and now I'm rolling out egg noodles. Stress levels in our house were high, but the smell of sautéing onions, and homemade tomato sauce helps with that. So does wine :)

I'll just say one more thing: homemade pasta is worth it. Yes it is slightly time consuming, but not too bad. My mom always told me that a pasta maker is just an appliance that takes up room in your cabinet, but I am beginning to think that I need one. Until then, I'll continue rolling it out by hand.

Fresh Egg Pasta
What you need to know about egg pasta is that it is simple. All you need: a proportional amount of egg to flour, one egg to every 100 grams of flour.

Ingredients (to make 4 servings of cannelloni)
100 grams (⅔ cup plus 2 teaspoons) all purpose flour
1 large egg

Directions (for rolling by hand)
1. Put the flour and egg into a food processor and mix. When the dough looks like crumbs, pour it onto a countertop sprinkled with flour. Knead well by hand until you obtain a smooth dough. Make it into a ball, wrap it in plastic wrap and let it rest for 10-15 minutes.

2. Cut out a piece of egg pasta dough and flatten it into a rectangular shape with your hands. Roll dough flat and thin, about 1mm thick. Cut into rectangular sheets for cannelloni (4"x6").

Béchamel Sauce
Ingredients (enough for the 4 serving Cannelloni dish)
2 cups milk, hot
3½ tablespoons butter
⅓ cup all-purpose flour
1 pinch salt
1 pinch nutmeg

Directions
1. Put the butter in a non-stick pot and let it melt. Add the flour and whisk constantly until well incorporated: this is the "roux". Let it cook for a minute or two.

2. Now start adding hot milk little by little, while mixing continuously until the milk is well incorporated. Do not add more milk unless it is well incorporated. Keep doing so until all the milk is incorporated.

3. Add salt and nutmeg and cook on a low flame for 10 minutes or until it thickens.

4. When ready, cover it to prevent a film to appear on the surface.

Cannelloni di carne


Meat filling ingredients
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground pork
1 onion, chopped
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 bay leaf
5 tablespoons white wine
1½ cups Parmigiano Reggiano, finely grated
¾ cups of the béchamel sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Tomato sauce
1 small onion, chopped
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2¾ cups tomato purée
a few basil leaves
salt and pepper to taste

To assemble
The remaining béchamel sauce
½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano, finely grated

Directions:
1. Start by cooking the meat for the filling. Put the 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a pan with the chopped onion and sauté until soft and translucent. Now add the meat and bay leaf and stir well with a wooden spoon making sure you remove all the lumps. Brown the meat well. Add the white wine and raise the fire to burn off the alcohol. Cook for 10 minutes on medium heat and then keep it aside to cool down. (At this point, I actually drained the meat even though it wasn't in the recipe.)

2. Now prepare the tomato sauce. Place the 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a pot with the chopped onion and sauté until soft and translucent. Now add the tomato purée, salt, pepper and basil. Cover and cook on low for 20 minutes. Then keep it aside to cool down.

3. To make the filling, mix the cooked meat with ¾ cup of béchamel sauce and 1½ cups of Parmigiano Reggiano. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.

4. Put a large pot with salty water on the stove and bring to a boil. I used a large shallow pan to make the noodles more manageable. Cook the pasta sheets in the water for 1 minute. Do in batches and place on a clean tea towel to cool.

5. Now take one sheet of cooked pasta and put 1/8 of the filling along the long side of the rectangle. Roll it over to make a cannellone. Do so for the remaining rectangles of pasta.

6. Take a big enough dish to fit all our cannelloni tightly. Spray it with some cooking oil (or melted butter) and pour some tomato sauce on the bottom. Spread it well, especially in the corners. Put the cannelloni in the oven dish on 1 layer.

7. Cover the cannelloni with the remaining tomato sauce and 1¼ cup béchamel sauce and sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano.

8. Bake in a pre-heated 350℉ oven for 20 minutes. Then broil them at 400℉ for another 5 minutes. Serve immediately.

Daring Cooks May 2012: Boeuf Bourguignon

Sorry for the blurs- this was an "oh yeah, I have to take a photo" moment. 

Our May 2012 Daring Cooks’ hostess was Fabi of fabsfood. Fabi challenged us to make Boeuf Bourguignon, a classic French stew originating from the Burgundy region of France.

I'll admit that the moment I read this month's challenge, I made a noise best described as a squeal. Boeuf Bourguignon has been on my "kitchen bucket list" for a long time. It is one of those recipes that I haven't had a reason to make until now, although another perfect reason presented itself after the challenge was posted.

Mother's day is a chance for us to give a little back to our mothers, although there is really no way to even begin to match all that they have done. This year we decided to let my mother in law sit back and have someone cook (and clean up afterwards) for her- Boeuf Bourguignon seemed like a perfect meal.

This was delicious and will definitely be made again. I baked a couple loaves of French bread to go along with the dish and also served a light butterscotch/ caramel dessert.

Without further ado: the recipe!

Boeuf Bourguignon (a la Julia Child)

Ingredients:

A 6-inch chunk of bacon

3 lbs lean stewing beef, cut into 2 inch cubes

1 sliced carrot

1 sliced onion

3 cups of a full-bodied young red wine such as Beaujolais, Cotes du Rhone, Burgundy 

2 to 3 cups brown beef stock or bouillon

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 cloves mashed garlic

1/2 teaspon thyme

1 bay leaf (Julia says crumbled, but I left it whole so it could be easily removed)

18-24 small white onions, peeled

A medium herb bouquet: 4 parsley sprigs, ½ bay leaf, ¼ tsp thyme tied in cheesecloth

1 lb quartered fresh mushrooms

Directions:

1. Remove bacon rind, cut into lardons (sticks, ¼ inch thick and 1½ inches long). Simmer rind and bacon for 10 minutes in 1½ quarts water. Drain and dry. Preheat oven to 450°F.

2. In a 9-10 inch fireproof casserole dish, sauté bacon only in 1 Tablespoon olive oil over moderate heat for 2 to 3 minutes to brown lightly. Remove to a side dish with a slotted spoon. Set casserole aside. Reheat until fat is almost smoking before you sauté the beef. 

3. Dry the beef in paper towels; it will not brown if it is damp. Sauté it, a few pieces at a time, in the hot  oil and bacon fat until nicely browned on all sides. Add it to the bacon.

4. In the same fat, brown the sliced onion and carrot. Pour out the sautéing fat. 

5. Return the beef and bacon to the casserole and toss with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons flour and toss again to coat the beef lightly with the flour. Set casserole uncovered in middle position of  the preheated oven for 3 minutes. Toss the meat and return to oven for 4 minutes more. (This browns the flour and covers the meat with a light crust.) Remove casserole and turn oven down to 325°F.

6. Stir in the wine and enough stock or bouillon so that the meat is barely covered. Add the tomato paste, garlic, herbs and bacon rind. Bring to simmer on top of the stove. Then cover the casserole and set in lower third of preheated oven. Regulate heat so liquid simmers slowly for 2 ½ to 3 hours. The meat is done when a fork pierces it easily. 

7. While the beef is cooking prepare the onions and mushrooms. 

8. For the onions: heat 1½ tablespoon and 1½ tablespoon oil in a skillet. When butter and oil are bubbling, add the onions and sauté  over moderate heat for about 10 minutes, rolling the onions so they brown as evenly as possible. Be careful not to break their skins. Pour in about ½ cup of brown stock or beef bouillon and add the herb bouquet. Cover and simmer slowly for 40-50 minutes until the onions are perfectly tender, but retain their shape and the liquid has evaporated. Remove the herb bouquet. Set onions aside. 

9. For the mushrooms: place skillet over high heat with 2 tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon oil. As soon as you see that the butter foam has begun to subside, add the mushrooms. Toss and shake the pan for 4-5 minutes. As soon as they have browned lightly, remove from heat. 

10. When the meat is tender, pour the contents of the casserole into a sieve set over a saucepan. Wash out the casserole and return the beef and bacon to it. Distribute the cooked onions and mushrooms over the meat. 

11. Skim fat off the sauce. Simmer sauce for a minute or two, skimming off additional fat as it rises. You should have about 2½ cups of sauce thick enough to coat a spoon lightly. If too thin, boil it down rapidly. If too thick, mx in a few tablespoon of stock or canned bouillon. Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables. 

  

12. Cover the casserole and simmer for 2-3 minutes, basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce several times. Serve  with potatoes, noodles, or rice and decorated with a few springs of fresh parsley. 

Beef with Couscous

The school year has started, Autumn is making itself known, and my time in the kitchen has been greatly diminished. This last week I only had one night that I was home before 9pm, and that was Monday. I can't say that I'm not enjoying all the activity that is keeping me out of the kitchen, I love my new job at the school and am having a good time networking with people. I simply miss having all the good cooked food that is the result of fun time in the kitchen.

Last weekend, my husband and I finally had some time to spend together, and in the kitchen. My goal for this fall is to get him more into cooking, since I'd be happy spending the whole weekend in the kitchen and the weekend is the only time we get to spend together. It is a bit selfish, I know. But I go to his gigs!! So, Dave spent Saturday and Sunday evening in the kitchen with me, helping me cut up vegetables and making rice (I can make truffles, but I cannot make rice that isn't soggy and gloopy to save my life!)

We had this dish on Sunday and it was a nice change from our usual Italian and Tex-Mex dishes. Also, I got to go to Penzey's and buy a new spice mix.
I just love that place! I'm sure you've noticed. I picked up some of their Garam Masala mix, which smells like heaven. I'm looking forward to using it in future Indian-inspired recipes. Chicken Tikka Masala, here we come!

Beef with Couscous
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed with garlic press
1 teaspoon minced, peeled fresh ginger
1 pound lean ground beef
1 tablespoon curry powered
1 teaspoon garam masala spice mix
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 small yellow summer squash, cut into 1/2 inch chunks (I think you could substitute whatever is currently in season)
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup frozen peas (I forgot to pick these up, so we used corn. it was still good!)
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
1 cup plain couscous
1/2 cup golden raisins

1. In nonstick 12-inch skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook 3 minutes or until golden. Stir in garlic and ginger; cook 1 minute.

2. Stir in ground beef and cook, breaking up meat with side of spoon, about 5 minutes, or until meat is no longer pink. Stir in curry powder, garam masala, and salt; cook 30 seconds. Add squash and cook 2 minutes.

3. Add broth and frozen peas; cook until slightly thickened and flavors blend. Stir in cilantro.

4. Meanwhile, prepare couscous as label directs but add raisins with water.

5. Fluff couscous with fork and serve with beef mixture. Enjoy!

Beef Lombardi (ala Southern Living)

• 
  
• Stress levels around my house are starting to rise. Well, I don't know about Dave, because while he ALWAYS works so much, lately he's had a couple days off without other obligations. I also feel a little funny saying I'm feeling stressed, because compared to when I was working full time, this last year has been like a vacation. I've read so many books, it's unbelievable. I'm really grateful that Dave does work so hard and doesn't begrudge me all the times he's off to work and I'm at home reading on the couch. I just know I better get a job for next year or else that dynamic may change (and understandably so!)
• But recently the countdown on the wedding clock somehow switched from a three digit number to a two digit number and I've begun to feel overwhelmed with the entire planning process. I suppose part of that is because we're no longer making decisions on big picture things like the venue or my dress, but now my attention is on the little things. Like what shoes to wear and how I'm going to have my hair done and where we're going to get photos done and so on and so on. Those little things really add up. Somehow all these things seem like a much bigger deal to me than choosing the venue or the flowers, potentially because I already had an idea about what I wanted in those cases, and with these little things I just don't know! I have to take a little time and remind myself every time my heart rate starts to go up when I'm thinking about silly shoes that the day is about Dave and I starting our lives together. If I do it right, the things I'm going to remember about that day aren't whether my shoes weren't "just perfect" or whatever mishap occurs, but that June 24th was the day that I made the commitment in front of our friends and family to spend the rest of my life with Dave.

I also haven't spent all that much time in the kitchen either. I'm quite convinced that the increased stress levels correlate to the fact that my kitchen time has been decreased. I'm planning on spending all day Friday in the kitchen. That should totally do the trick! 

This was a good, simple casserole we had over the weekend. I accidentally bought a 14 oz can of diced tomatoes and green chilies AND a 10 ounce can of diced tomatoes and green chilies, so ours had quite a kick. 

• Beef Lombardi (Southern Living)
• 1  pound  lean ground beef
• 1  (14 1/2-ounce) can chopped tomatoes
• 1  (10-ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chiles
• 2  teaspoons  sugar
• 2  teaspoons  salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  pepper
• 1  (6-ounce) can tomato paste
• 1  bay leaf
• 1  (6-ounce) package medium egg noodles
• 6  green onions, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 1  cup  sour cream
• 1  cup  (4 ounces) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
• 1  cup  shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1  cup  (4 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese

1. Cook ground beef in a large skillet over medium heat 5 to 6 minutes, stirring until it crumbles and is no longer pink. Drain. Stir in chopped tomatoes and next 4 ingredients; cook 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and bay leaf, and simmer 30 minutes.

2. Cook egg noodles according to package directions; drain. Stir together cooked egg noodles, chopped green onions, and sour cream until blended.

3. Place noodle mixture in bottom of a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Top with beef mixture; sprinkle evenly with cheeses.

4. Bake, covered with aluminum foil, at 350° for 35 minutes. Uncover casserole, and bake 5 more minutes. Garnish, if desired.

Note: Freeze casserole up to 1 month, if desired. Thaw in refrigerator overnight. Bake as directed.

To lighten: Substitute low-fat or fat-free sour cream and 2% reduced-fat Cheddar cheese. Reduce amount of cheeses on top to 1/2 cup each

Italian Beef Stew with Rosemary

This is a great example of a recipe that tastes amazing but looks less so. The first time I made it for the fiance, he immediately asked when I was going to make it again. I rarely repeat recipes other than the few basics such as tacos, chili and the like, simply because there is just so much good food out there and I want to try to make it all. But this is so fantastically good (even though it doesn't look so great) that I'm more than happy to oblige whenever he wants. Plus, it's really easy to make and great for days when you have chores or something else to do as well since there is a lot of non-hands on time with this recipe.

Italian Beef Stew with Rosemary (4 servings)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs lean beef (I usually just get the already cut up stew meat at the grocery store)
3 cups canned peeled tomatoes with basil (I can never find these in the store, so I usually just add my own basil)
3/4 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon thyme
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup butter
1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 sprig fresh rosemary
8 thin slices French or Italian bread
1 clove garlic- peeled

Directions:
1. Trim meat, cut into 1 inch cubes.

2. In a saucepan combine tomatoes, celery, parsley, oregano, thyme, olive oil, salt and pepper. Cover and bring to a boil. Simmer for 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Put sauce through a food mill and set aside (I don't have a food mill, so I just ran it through the blender for a couple seconds).
3. Meanwhile, heat half the butter in a wide flame proof casserole dish. Add beef and cook, stirring until meat loses color. Add chopped garlic and stir. Transfer meat to another dish.
4. Add wine to casserole dish and cook over high heat until it is reduced by half. Add the meat, rosemary and tomato sauce. Cover and simmer for 1.5 to 2 hours.

5. Spread remaining butter on bread slices, toast on both sides in oven. Rub both sides with the garlic clove. Place 2 slices of bread into a warm soup bowl, spoon meat and sauce over all.

Mushroom Stuffed Beef Roast

While preparing the grocery list for this coming week, I noticed a theme, ROAST. Upcoming dishes include roast chicken, a pork roast in the crockpot for pulled-pork sandwiches, and this fantastic beef roast. It may be the weather turning cooler, it may be the ease of putting a bunch of ingredients in a dish and forgetting it in the oven for an hour or more, whatever the reason, we're giving the oven a work out this coming week. 

The roast before cooking

This roast is my go-to non-traditional roast. I've served it to quite a few visiting friends and it's always gotten great reviews. Neither I nor the fiance enjoy gravies, so while the original recipe to this roast includes a sauce, I don't think it needs it. The roast has always come out juicy and flavorful even without the sauce. 

2 pound beef eye of round roast

1/4 cup dry white wine

8 ounces fresh mushrooms, finely chopped (3 cups)

1/4 cup water

1/4 teaspoon dillweed, crushed

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup thinly sliced green onion

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

1. Trim excess fat from roast. Then, cut 8 evenly spaced crosswise slits in roast, making each 3 inches deep. Place roast in a plastic bag set in a deep bowl. Pour wine over roast and seal bag. Marinate in the fridge for 6-24 hours, turning bag occasionally. 

2. For filling, in medium saucepan combine mushrooms, water, dillweed, and salt. Cook, uncovered, over medium heat for 15 minutes or till liquid is evaporated. Let cool. Stir in onion and mayonnaise. 

3. Remove roast from bag, discarding marinade. Spoon filling into pockets in roast. Place roast in a shallow roasting pan. Bake in a 325 degree oven for 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours or till meat thermometer reads 140. 

To serve, slice meat between filled pockets.

(If you really want to try the sauce, I'll include the recipe, but like I said, I have never made this!)

For sauce, in a small saucepan  stir together 1/2 cup plain yogurt, 1 tablespoon flour, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Stir in 1/2 cup beef broth. Cook and stir over medium heat till thickened and bubbly. Then cook and stir for 1 minute more. Serve with roast.