Cook & Be Merry » Pasta

Chicken, Sausage, Asparagus and Mushroom Pasta from Grace-Marie’s Kitchen at Bristol Farms

Lynne — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 02:04:25 +0000

I was really looking forward to my recent visit to Grace-Marie’s Kitchen, because the theme was Italian Cucina Sunday Supper. Grace-Marie grew up in an Italian-American family, so her Italian dishes are always authentic and wonderful. She absolutely fulfilled my expectations with this succulent Chicken, Sausage, Asparagus and Mushroom Pasta with a Parmigiano and Mascarpone Sauce, plus Provolone Bruschetta with Cucumber & Pepper Salad, and Strawberry Glazed Italian Ricotta Cheesecake. Grace-Marie has told the story about how her Mom would never tell her what they were going to have for dinner, so each meal was always a big surprise. If this meal is an example, I would have been really happy to wait and find out when it was served.

First the chicken pieces and sausage were sautéed until browned, then held on a big sheet pan, covered, to keep warm. You can see the mise en place for the pasta vegetables in the boxes, waiting expectantly for their turn to be cooked.

Grace-Marie’s assistants, Miss Marty [on the left], and Miss Diane, cook the vegetables in three big pans. Diane is a surgical nurse during the day and Marty is a travel agent, so they come and help Grace-Marie cook for therapy. Finally the chicken and sausage are put back into the pans with the vegetables, and the mascarpone is added in dollops with the Parmigiano and mixed in.

The basil pesto was mixed into the pasta, and Grace-Marie began putting it on plates for the guests and topping it with big spoonfuls of the Chicken, Sausage and Cheese Sauce. The smells in the kitchen were mouth-watering the whole time the cooking was going on, and we finally were served this beautiful pasta dish. The sauce was exceptional and rich, along with the mushrooms and asparagus. It was soooo good! Thank you, Grace-Marie.

For additional recipes from Grace-Marie’s Kitchen, look under Categories in the right-hand column.

Grace-Marie Johnston

For more information about the new schedule of cooking classes, visit Grace-Marie online at Bristol Farms or email her at gmj@bristolfarms.com.

Chicken, Sausage, Asparagus and Mushroom Pasta

Serves 8

Ragu
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 pounds chicken breasts, boneless, skinless & cut into 1-inch portions
1 pound Italian sausage (any variety), removed from casing
2 tablespoons dry Italian herb mix (purchased, any favorite brand)
To season – Kosher or sea salt & ground black pepper

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups yellow, brown or red onion, medium diced
3 tablespoons garlic, minced
To season, Kosher or sea salt & ground black pepper

1 pound asparagus, ends trimmed then angle-sliced into 1-inch portions
1 pound crimini mushrooms, quartered
1 pint grape tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise
½ cup Marsala wine

2 cups Parmigiano cheese, shredded or flaked
½ cup Mascarpone cheese, room temperature
1 cup basil, thinly sliced

1. Warm the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and sausage. Season with the dry herbs, salt and pepper. Once browned, remove from the skillet with a slotted spoon and transfer to a bowl. Cover to keep warm.

2. Using the same skillet (do not clean), warm the butter over medium-high heat. Stir in the onions and garlic. Sauté just until the onions are tender (2 minutes). Season lightly with salt and pepper

3. Add the asparagus, mushrooms and tomatoes to the skillet. Continue to cook just until the asparagus is crisp tender, the mushrooms are soft and the tomatoes barely cook (3-4 minutes).

4. Off the heat, add the wine, return the skillet to the heat, scraping up any browned portions, cook until it is nearly absorbed. Stir in the precooked chicken and sausage. Cook, stirring, just until warmed through.

5. Just before serving, stir the parmesan, mascarpone and basil into the ragu.

Serve
1+ pound favorite pasta, cooked in salted water to al dente
¼ cup purchased basil pesto

1. Toss the cooked pasta with the pesto. Serve on individual plates or a platter topped with a generous serving of ragu. Garnish with more parmesan cheese if desired.

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Butternut Squash and Tagliatelle with Red Pepper Sauce, Lemon and Arugula

Lynne — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 05:57:45 +0000

Fall is here for sure, because Daylight Savings Time ended in Los Angeles today. The sun is lower and the temperature is heading down. Time for some of those winter vegetables to start showing up in my recipes. Butternut Squash is one of my favorite ingredients to cook. Its earthy sweet flavor and wonderful texture allows it to be made into soups, salads, gnocchi, gratins, salsa, pizza topping, muffins, risotto, and the list goes on and on. If there is a category of food, it has probably been made with Butternut Squash. I started with a small squash that weighed 1 ½ pounds. After peeling and seeding it, there were about 14 ounces left to cut into cubes.

You can make the Red Pepper Sauce a week in advance and store it in an airtight container in the fridge, which I did. This was a good thing for me because my real life kept interfering in cooking and photographing this recipe. Also I had surgery on my knee a week ago, so standing for hours had to be put on hold. My knee is good now, so I knuckled down today to finish my pasta dish. That Red Pepper Sauce has been yelling at me all week, every time I opened the refrigerator. Nag nag.

Get all of your ingredients prepped before you cook the pasta, because once its done, everything goes in the bowl at once. No time for zesting, squeezing or mincing. I made one serving for myself to photograph and eat, which is why I gave you the amounts for one serving. This is so good with the lemon juice drizzled over right before you eat it. And I have enough of the Red Pepper Sauce to freeze for future uses. Oh goodie!

Butternut Squash and Tagliatelle with Red Pepper Sauce, Lemon and Arugula

4 servings

1 tablespoon olive oil
14 ounces butternut squash, peeled and seeded, in 1-inch cubes (try pumpkin or sweet potato)
12 ounces tagliatelle, papardelle or any other ribbon pasta
Freshly grated zest and juice of one lemon
4 handfuls of arugula
3 tablespoons Italian parsley, minced
1/2 cup Red Pepper Sauce or more to taste (recipe below)
Kosher salt to taste

1. Make the Red Pepper Sauce. It can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for 1 week.

2. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the squash cubes in a single layer, and cook for 10 minutes, turning often, until browned all over. Turn the heat down if they are browning too fast before being cooked all the way through. Reserve in warm pan.

3. Zest and juice the lemon and reserve. Mince the parsley and reserve.

4. Cook the pasta according to package directions and drain well. If you are making 4 servings, put all the pasta in a large bowl. Add ½ cup Red Pepper Sauce and toss to coat the pasta. Add the butternut squash, lemon juice and zest, arugula, 1 ½ tablespoons minced parsley and toss to combine.

5. If you are plating individual servings, reserve the lemon juice and zest, and drizzle 2 tablespoons over each plate before serving.

6. Sprinkle remaining minced parsley over each plate and serve.

Ingredients for 1 serving
3 ounces tagliatelle, papardelle or any other ribbon pasta
¼ of cooked butternut squash or to taste
1 handful of arugula
2 teaspoons minced flat leaf parsley
2 tablespoons Red Pepper Sauce or more to taste
2 tablespoons lemon juice with zest
Kosher salt to taste

Red Pepper Sauce
1 small red bell pepper, seeded and sliced
6 long red Thai chilis, sliced
1 small red onion, sliced
4 garlic cloves, peeled and left whole
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Put the red bell pepper, chiles, onion, garlic, cumin seeds and 1/4 cup oil in a roasting pan. With a spatula, mix to thoroughly coat the vegetables with the oil.

3. Cook in the preheated oven to 1 hour, turning several times.

4. Transfer roasted vegetables to a food processor while still not. Add remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and process until smooth. Let cool and pour into container with tight fitting lid.

Note: Any remaining Red Pepper Sauce can be used as a dip or added to tomato-based sauces and soups for extra flavor. Freeze in 1 tablespoon amounts on plastic wrap on sheet pan and store in a zip-close bag in freezer.

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Goat Cheese Ravioli with Tomatoes and Basil from Seasons 52 Fresh Grill at South Coast Plaza

Lynne — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 04:32:56 +0000

Last August I was invited to a lavish and spectacular blogger preview lunch at the new Seasons 52 Fresh Grill restaurant at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa. You can read all about it in my post about that day. Quite soon I was getting queries about the recipes for the dishes in the story and whether there was a Seasons 52 cookbook. So I emailed Senior Culinary Director, Cliff Pleau, who had done the demonstration cooking during the lunch, and asked him about the cookbook and if I could have the recipe for the Goat Cheese Ravioli.

Chef Pleau emailed me the Goat Cheese Ravioli recipe and this message:

“Hi Lynne… sorry not to get back to you earlier. You got your ravioli recipe, enjoy, as for the cookbook probably not soon… I am living in a cookbook. Keep in touch and happy cooking. Best regards, Cliff “

These guys are such a class act, I mean Chef Pleau had worked with fellow CIA alum Bradley Ogden in the early days at Lark Creek Inn in Marin County; had opened the California Grill at Disneyland Paris; and done a stint as personal chef to Luciano Pavarotti. And here he was sending me a recipe and a chatty email. Amazing.

So here is the recipe for the Goat Cheese Ravioli and remember that every item on their menu is under 475 calories. Including this recipe. And I hope you will read the original post and at least look at the photos, because the restaurant is beautiful and the other dishes we were served were brilliant. But then you will soon be making a trip to Costa Mesa to eat at this wonderful new restaurant.

Homemade Goat Cheese Ravioli

Ingredients for Each Ravioli Serving:
1 piece Goat Cheese Ravioli (recipe attached)
1 teaspoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 teaspoon Garlic, minced & caramelized
4 Cherry Tomatoes, quartered lengthwise
¼ cup Leaf Spinach, cut into fine strips
1 tablespoon Basil leaves, picked and cut into fine strips
1 tablespoon Pine Nuts, toasted
1/4 cup Vegetable stock
Salt to taste
3 tablespoons Parmesan Cheese, fresh grated shards
4-5 drop Truffle oil (optional)

Preparation Steps:
• Simmer vegetable stock. Have slotted spoon on hand.
• Place goat cheese ravioli in simmering vegetable stock to poach for one minute.
• Heat olive oil in a small pan.
• Add caramelized garlic, tomatoes and vegetable stock.
• Add ravioli to simmering tomatoes and garlic.
• Arrange spinach in the bottom of a warmed dinner bowl in a thin, even layer.
• Add ravioli on top of spinach.
• Spoon sauce over.
• Sprinkle grated parmesan cheese and pine nuts over ravioli.
• The hot stock will heat the spinach garnish.
• Add drops of truffle oil for a gourmet touch.

Average cook time: 5 minutes

Ravioli

Makes 8 Ravioli

Ingredients:
16 ea Eggroll skins
2 oz Eggs, pasteurized (or 1 egg, beaten)
16 oz Goat Cheese Filling 16 oz (see recipe below)
Brush
Cutter

Preparation Steps:
• Pre-portion 8 ea, 2-oz portions of goat cheese filling.
• Shape pre-portioned cheese like small burgers.
• Lay out 8 eggroll skins and place pre-portioned cheese in center.
• Brush eggroll skin edges with egg wash.
• Lay another eggroll skin over the cheese.
• Press and seal the edges, pushing out all air pockets.
• Trim ravioli round with a cutter, 4-5 inch diameter
• Reserve on a refrigerated pre-lined tray.

Goat Cheese Filling

Ingredients:
12 oz Goat cheese, log
4 oz Cottage cheese, non-fat
¼ cup Basil, fresh, minced
¼ tsp Black pepper
Salt to taste

Preparation Steps:
• Grate goat cheese into a bowl.
• Puree cottage cheese in food processor for two minutes (scrape down sides after one minute).
• Combine all ingredients in the bowl with the goat cheese and mix well with plastic spatula.
• Store refrigerated until you are ready to prepare ravioli.

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Soba Noodle Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing

Lynne — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 02:52:51 +0000

In one more week it will be August and we still haven’t had summer here in Manhattan Beach. Today the high was 69 degrees F. I am hopeful that warm weather is right around the corner, so in anticipation, here is a cold Soba Noodle Salad that will be great to enjoy outdoors when the sun is shining and palm trees are waving in the warm ocean breezes. It’s going to happen, right?

I love the peanut butter dressing that goes on this salad. It has every taste sensation possible: sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami. Then there are the soft noodles, and the crunchy cucumbers, bell peppers, carrots and peanuts. It has the whole sensory board covered: looks great, smells sensational (especially the sesame oil and ginger), feels soft and crunchy, sounds enticing with the slurping of noodles and crunchy veggies. Come on sun, where are you?

Soba is made with buckwheat flour. Buckwheat is a grain-like crop, but is not a cereal or grass, and has no gluten. It’s called a pseudocereal to emphasize it is not related to wheat. Common buckwheat was domesticated and first cultivated in inland southeast Asia around 6000 B.C., and spread to Central Asia and Tibet, then to the Middle East and Europe.

The fruit is an achene, similar to sunflower seeds, with a single seed inside a hard outer shell. The starchy endosperm is white and the seed coat is green or tan, which darkens the buckwheat flour. The hull is dark brown or black and some may be included in the flour as dark specks.

Buckwheat noodles play a major role in the cuisine of Japan (soba), Korea (naengmyeon) and the Valtellina region of Northern Italy (pizzoccheri, a flat ribbon pasta). The difficulty of making noodles from flour that has no gluten has resulted in a traditional art developed around their manufacture by hand.

This Soba Noodle Salad can be eaten at room temperature, cold, warm or the leftovers stir fried. The next photo shows how I ate them cold the second day with tomatoes, avocado and sliced green onions added. It was really wonderful!

Soba Noodle Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing

Serves 4

6 ounces soba noodles, broken in half

½ cup peanut butter
¼ cup rice vinegar
1 tablespoon maple syrup
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
zest of 1 lime
juice of 1 lime
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon brown sugar or palm sugar
¼ cup cilantro

1 cucumber, peeled, sliced lengthwise in quarters, then crosswise ¼-inch pieces (1 ½ cups)
1 red bell pepper, sliced in bite-size pieces (1 cup)
1 large carrot, grated, large holes on box grater, blot dry with paper towels
¼ cup chopped cilantro
1/3 cup chopped peanuts

Optional: cherry tomatoes, seeded and quartered; diced avocado; sliced green onions, cooked chicken

1. Cook noodles in boiling salted water according to package directions. Drain and rinse under sold running water.

2. Puree peanut butter, vinegar, maple syrup, soy sauce, fish sauce, ginger, garlic, lime zest, lime juice, sesame oil, brown sugar and ¼ cup cilantro in mini food processor until smooth and creamy.

3. Toss together noodles, cucumber, bell pepper, carrot and peanut butter mixture. Garnish with remaining cilantro and chopped peanuts.

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The Alto Adige Region of Italy Celebrated By Grace-Marie’s Kitchen at Bristol Farms

Lynne — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 04:12:31 +0000

On June 26, Grace-Marie’s Kitchen Cooking School at Bristol Farms presented a cooking class and luncheon in collaboration with the Italian Trade Commission and Eos featuring wines, cheese and speck from Alto Adige, Italy. I had never tasted any of these marvelous products before, so it was a wonderful introduction to the area for me. Grace Marie provided some wonderful California- style recipes perfect for entertaining family and friends utilizing the following authentic alpine ingredients: Speck PGI, and the following cheeses: Alta Badia, Lagrein and Dolomiten Konig. The regional wine selection included Tiefenbrunner Pinot Grigio and Kurtatsch Cortaccia Lagrein.

Alto Adige, Italy borders Austria and is very mountainous, covering a large part of the Dolomites and Southern Alps. Italian and German are both spoken, however German is the most common language. Potato Dumplings, known as Knodel in German and Canederli in Italian, made with speck and spinach, are much more prevalent in this area of Italy than spaghetti.

The Alto Adige area has been important since time immemorial due to the existence of the Brenner Pass through the Alps and so whoever controlled the region could control all trade flowing north and south from central Europe to Italy. It has been fought over for centuries and has many castles and forts perched upon mountain tops to guard the mountain valleys.

One of the products I had for the first time was Speck Alto Adige PGI. It is a flavorful cousin of bacon, prosciutto and pancetta. Speck is made from boned hog legs and seasoned with salt, pepper, laurel and juniper berries, then rested for a month. It is then cold-smoked at no more than 68F using flavorful low-resin beechwood, ash or juniper for 10 days. Then aged (air-cured) for 22 weeks producing a smoky, slightly spicy product with a distinct pink/red interior with a small amount of fat and a salt content less than 5%.

Grace-Marie chose to highlight speck and Dolomiten Konig in a wonderful appetizer, Speck and Dolomiten Konig wrapped Baby Greens and Summer Melon, accompanied by Alta Badia Savory Bread Toasts. I know how much you like photos of melted cheese, so here is a close-up.

Next on the menu was a Quick Summer Pasta with Alto Adige Speck and Lagrein Cheese. This was such a tasty pasta dish, which included one of my favorite ingredients, sun-dried tomatoes. It also used Lagrein cheese, which I fell in love with, that is cured with “Lagrein” wine and spices. This recipe includes artichoke hearts; however, Grace-Marie’s artichokes had small hearts, so she left them whole and included them later in the chicken dish.

The Herb Grilled Chicken with fresh Summer Garden Vegetables was just a spectacular and photogenic dish. The chicken was so tender and flavorful, and the vegetables were crisp and colorful. The addition of the whole artichoke just took it from great to magical.

First the chicken was marinated in a white wine, olive oil and herb mixture.

Some of the chicken was baked. Notice the speck under the skin.

Grace-Marie sautéed two chicken breasts on the stove top to demonstrate that technique.

As you can imagine, we were all stuffed by this time, but the desert Grace-Marie prepared was a light White Chocolate Panna Cotta with Summer Berries. Guilt-free. The perfect finish.

Special thanks to Vincenza Kelly of the Italian Trade Commission for visiting with us and discussing the wonderful wines and gourmet products of Alto Adige. I hope you come back soon, so Grace-Marie can create more fabulous dishes from Alto Adige, Italy!

But then there was one more surprise – a birthday! With a birthday hat and a candle!

For additional recipes from Grace-Marie’s Kitchen, look under Categories in the right-hand column.

Grace-Marie Johnston

For more information about the cooking classes visit Grace-Marie online at Bristol Farms or email her at gmj@bristolfarms.com.

Alto Adige Speck Wrapped Baby Greens and Summer Melon

Serves 8

Vinaigrette
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon garlic – minced
To season – Kosher or sea salt & ground black pepper

1. Combine vinaigrette ingredients in bottom of a salad bowl. Season with salt and pepper.

Salad
4 cups mixed baby salad greens
¼ cup red onions – thinly sliced, soaked in water for 30 minutes, drained and dried

2. Add the greens and onion to the salad bowl and toss

Rolls
1 whole Sherbet melon or Cantaloupe – peeled, seeded & sliced into 2” strips
8 ounces Alto Adige Speck – Deli-cut wafer thin slices
8 ounces Dolomitenkonig Cheese – thinly sliced with a vegetable peeler

1. Place the Speck onto a work surface and top with the cheese. Put a small handful of greens onto one end of the Speck, top with slice of melon, then roll tightly, allowing some of the greens and melon to show through the ends.

2. Depending on the length of the Speck, before rolling, you may want to cut each piece in half crosswise and create a second roll. Arrange fold down onto a serving platter and drizzle with any remaining vinaigrette.

Dolomitenkonig Cheese is a soft-textured cheese made in the Swiss style. It has a full flavor with just a dash of sweetness and a hint of walnut. Made exclusively using the high quality cows milk of the Pustria Valley, Dolomitenkonig closely follows an ancient local recipe which requires at least 60 days of aging. Its characteristic feature is its slight convex shape and unmistakable holey texture.

Herb Grilled Chicken with Fresh Summer Garden Vegetables

Serves 8

Chicken
3+ pounds chicken breasts – skin on & bone removed
8 ounces Alto Adige Speck – Deli-cut wafer thin slices, then diced medium

½ cup dry white wine
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup flat leaf parsley – roughly chopped
3 tablespoons fresh rosemary – roughly chopped
2 tablespoons garlic – minced
1 teaspoon Kosher or sea salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper

1. Place the chicken in a shallow casserole dish. Gently lift up the skin and lay the speck onto the chicken. Replace the skin over the Speck and chicken.

2. Blend the wine, oil, parsley, rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper in a food processor or blender. Pour over the chicken (top and bottom). Cover with plastic and rest at room temperature for 30 minutes or refrigerate up to 2 hours. Remove from refrigeration at least 30 minutes before cooking.

3. Prepare and warm an outdoor or stovetop grill to medium heat.

4. Arrange the chicken, skin side down, onto the grill and cook uncovered, until browned (5 minutes). Using a spatula, turn over and cook the second side in the same manner until the juices run clear (approximately 155F internal temperature).

5. Transfer to a cutting board, cover loosely with foil and wait 10 minutes before slicing.

Vegetables
3 medium Roma or vine-ripened or heirloom tomatoes – seeded and diced small
1 large hot house cucumber – unpeeled and diced small
1 cup black olives (oil cured or brined) – any favorite, pitted and sliced in half
1/3 cup basil leaves – thinly sliced
1/3 cup flat leaf parsley – roughly chopped
1 medium lemon – juice and zest
To drizzle – extra virgin olive oil
To season – Kosher or sea salt and ground black pepper

1. In a large bowl, combine and toss the vegetable ingredients. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve
Slice the chicken through the skin crosswise, layer onto a serving platter and arrange the vegetables over the top.

Note
Oven method – roast the chicken, uncovered, in a casserole in a 400F oven.

Quick Summer Pasta with Alto Adige Speck and Lagrein Cheese

Serves 8

Sauce
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
8 ounces Alto Adige Speck – wafer thin slices then cut crosswise into ½-inch portions
¼ cup shallots – thinly sliced

2 cups fresh precooked artichoke hearts – cleaned and cut into 1-inch portions (or frozen artichoke hearts – defrosted and sliced in half)

1 cup sun-dried tomatoes – thinly sliced
¼ cup dry white wine
To season – Kosher or sea salt, ground black pepper and crushed red pepper flakes

1. Warm the oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the Speck and shallots. Sauté, stirring, for a minute or so.

2. Stir in the artichokes and tomatoes. Continue to sauté and stir until warmed through. Remove the skillet form the heat, add the wine, them return to the heat. Cook until absorbed into the vegetables. Season lightly with salt and pepper.

Pasta
1 pound pasta (any favorite) – precooked al dente
½ cup Weinkaese Lagrein Cheese – grated or shredded
1/3 cup basil – thinly sliced
1/3 cup flat leaf parsley – roughly chopped

1. Add the cooked pasta to the skillet with the sauce. Cook and stir until warmed through. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the cheese, basil and parsley.

Serve
To garnish – Weinkaese Latrein Cheese – grated or shredded

1. Serve family-style, warm or room temperature, garnished with additional cheese and any leftover herbs.

Weinkaese Lagrein Cheese – This wine flavored cheese, from Alto Adige, is produced with pure mountain milk from the high Venosta Valley. It is characterized by irregular cracks and by a pleasurable elastic, but compact consistency. It is cured with Alto Adige’s own “Lagrein” wine, resulting in a fine balance between the cheese, wine and spices which gives it an unmistakable aromatic and intense taste. This is a pure cow’s milk cheese aged between 2 – 3 months.

Alta Badia Savory Bread Toasts

Serves 8

Coating
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons shallot – minced
2 tablespoons Italian Dry Herb Seasoning Mix (any favorite)
To season — Kosher or sea salt, ground black pepper & crushed red pepper flakes

1. Warm the oil and butter in a large saucepan over low heat. Add the shallot and cook until just lightly golden (2 minutes). Turn off the heat and stir in the dried herbs, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.

Bread
1 loaf Rustic Italian Bread – cut in half lengthwise
8 ounces Alta Badia Cheese – shredded

1. Preheat oven to 400F/ Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Arrange the bread, cut side up, onto the baking sheet. Generously spread the oil mixture over the cut portion of the bread. Scatter the cheese over the top.

3. Bake until the bread is nicely toasted and the cheese begins to melt (15 minutes). Remove from the oven and cool slightly.

Serve
To garnish – chives, snipped

Slice into 1-inch thick portions, transfer to a basket or serving platter. Serve warm or room temperature garnished with a sprinkle of chives.

Alta Badia Cheese – this cheese has the mountain flavors of spice, fruit and earth without being either overpowering or too rustic. It takes its name from the beautiful Alta Badia valley in the heart of the Dolomite Mountains in Sudtirol/Alto Adige where Italy borders on Austria. It is made with fresh whole milk and is aged for 180 days. This cheese takes on the typical light brown rind and has a firm consistency. The paste is slightly straw-colored, very flavorful and aromatic. It is used frequently in local dishes as it melts well. When served as a table cheese, it pairs well with light, fresh, fruity reds.

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Mac&Cheese with Swiss, Ham and Mushrooms

Lynne — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 02:25:50 +0000

About a year ago we were given a huge spiral-cut honey ham as a gift, which was really great, except one of us was a vegan, one was on a diet and one wouldn’t eat ham on a bet. So, you can see there was a big problem to be solved. So I did what I usually do under these circumstances, I took my ham next door and visited my neighbor, Gourmet Larry.

Well, his eyes lit right up when he spied what I was carrying, because one of his favorite things to cook is green split pea soup made with a ham bone. I asked if he would like to make a deal: the bone and half the ham meat in exchange for vacuum packaging the other half of the ham meat for me to freeze. Pretty much a no-brainer, I know.

So that was how I came to be thawing out one of the packages of ham to use in this mac&cheese recipe. I always seem to be having this battle with my freezer. It gets full of unused ingredients, which I then have to figure out ways to use. And then little containers of the leftovers go back into the freezer to be eaten happily on another day. I think I have six little containers of this mac&cheese waiting at this time. It heats up beautifully in the microwave. Come to think of it, I also have a container of Gourmet Larry’s Split Pea Soup in there, too.

This is the best mac&cheese I have ever eaten. I‘ve never been a big fan of that orangy yellow colored elbow macaroni stuff. (We won’t even mention that yellow and blue box, ok?). But I was looking for recipes that had ham and this one was intriguing with the penne and Swiss cheese. I’ve made this several times, and every time I take that first bite I have to close my eyes and savor the flavor of the cheese, ham and mushrooms. I hope you try this recipe. It is so fine.

Ultimate Mac&Cheese with Ham and Mushrooms

6 servings

3 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon butter
2 tablespoons shallot, minced
4 ounces mushrooms, sliced
1 cup ham ¼-inch dice
1 tablespoon flour
¼ cup chicken broth, low sodium
¼ cup milk
1 ½ cups (4.5 ounces) shredded Emmenthaler cheese (or Comte, Gruyere, Cantal)
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated
½ cup crème fraîche
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
5 ounces uncooked penne pasta
½ cup fresh breadcrumbs, preferably from sourdough

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9×9-inch baking dish with 1 teaspoon butter.

2. In a medium sauté pan, fry shallots in 1 tablespoon of butter to color, add the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes. Add ham and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

3. Make the cheese sauce: In a sauce pan melt 1 tablespoon butter and whisk in 1 tablespoon flour. Cook for 1 minute. Whisk in broth and milk, and simmer to thicken, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes.

4. Stir 1 cup Emmenthaler cheese into milk and stir until melted. Stir in ¼ cup Parmesan, crème fraîche and salt and pepper. Set aside.

5. Cook pasta according to package directions, drain and put in a big bowl. Stir in cheese sauce and mushroom and ham mixture. Mix thoroughly.

6. Pour ½ of pasta mixture into prepared baking dish and sprinkle with ½ remaining Emmenthaler cheese. Pour on remaining pasta mixture and Emmenthaler.

7. Melt 1 tablespoon butter and toss with bread crumbs. Remove from heat and stir in 2 tablespoons Parmesan. Sprinkle evenly over top of pasta in baking dish.

8. Bake for 30 minutes until brown and bubbly.
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