Fall and winter generally mean lots of hearty, comfort food. Much of this food is pretty heavy to say the least. Not that that is a bad thing, everyone knows how many mashed potatoes I can eat. But with Thanksgiving only a week away, eating lighter the week before always seems like such a good idea. But don’t mistake eating lighter for less flavor or less comfort. This pasta loaded with garlic, sausage and greens is a delicious light dish, perfect for those of us wanting to lighten things up a bit before the big feast next week.
If I had to make a list of my top 5 sandwiches, a classic BLT would certainly be near the top. The toasted sour dough bread, mayo, juicy tomatoes, crunchy bacon and crisp lettuce nearly always yield a scrumptious sandwich. A sandwich that I thought could not get any better. That is until I tried a BLT with the addition of spicy, succulent Cajun shrimp. Now that my taste buds have experienced this delicious combination, this sandwich just might inch its way past the traditional BLT on my sandwich list.
I thought I would step away from comforting Thanksgiving food for today and turn to a different kind of comfort food: pasta. Spaghetti Puttanesca to be exact. Legend has it that this spicy, salty pasta was a favorite of, to use the family friendly term, “ladies of the night”. Apparently these “ladies” found the inexpensive ingredients and quick preparation an easy meal to make for their “friends”. And while I can’t vouch for their chosen line of work, if the story of how this pasta sauce originated is true, their taste in pasta sauces is pretty good. After all this sauce incorporates some pretty yummy things like tomatoes, capers, crushed red pepper, kalamata olives and anchovies. Yes, I said anchovies, but trust me, in this sauce you will love them.
Thanksgiving is a mere 2 1/2 weeks away and that could only mean one thing, its Turkey Time! Wonderfully juicy, perfectly roasted turkey. For many people this means a big 10 or even 20 pound bird. However for those that are having a smaller gathering. Or for those, like me, who really prefer the dark meat, these roasted turkey thighs are the perfect option. The meat is succulent and flavorful, everything I look for in my Thanksgiving turkey.
Brace yourself folks. This chicken is ah-mazing. Lick your plate and plead for more amazing. Allow me to elaborate. First a chicken breast is breaded and pan fried until golden. Then that perfectly cooked, perfectly golden chicken breast is topped with a lemony-buttery-cappery (I may have made up words just now but that is how good this chicken is) sauce. It has capers. It has lemon juice. It has wine. And the best part: butter. Glorious, wonderful, melted butter. It just might be my new favorite way to prepare the sometimes rather boring chicken breast.
Its cold. Its rainy. You notice a person coughing next to you on the bus and you contemplate getting off and waiting 20 minutes for the next one. When you finally get to work the office is quieter because so many of your co-workers are out sick. The news is stressing the importance of getting your flu shot but lines for said shot stretch around the block. All of these things could only mean one thing, cold and flu season is officially upon us. While we can buy medicine to make us feel better, to me nothing quiets the sniffles and soothes the sore throat pain like a nice hot bowl of homemade chicken noodle soup.
Last Friday I shared my recipe for Fire Roasted Tomato Soup with you and mentioned that I like to serve my tomato soup with grilled cheese sandwiches. Well I may have fibbed a little. You see, I didn’t exactly serve my soup with a traditional grilled cheese sandwich. Instead I served it with this slightly grown up version of a ham and cheese. Slightly grown up in that instead of ham it has salty prosciutto, instead of cheddar it has creamy mozzarella and to top it off, some sauteed chanterelle mushrooms are thrown in too. All of this goodness sandwiched between 2 slices of crispy panini bread may not be a grilled cheese in the true sense of the word but it sure makes for one heck of a dunking sandwich.
Its been pretty dark and dreary here in Seattle the past couple of days. On days like this I just want to say in the house, curl up with a good book and eat a childhood favorite, grilled cheese and tomato soup. There is just something about that gooey cheesy sandwich being dunked into hot, steamy homemade tomato soup. To be more precise, I mean homemade tomato soup that is loaded with fire roasted tomatoes, fresh basil, white wine, garlic and a little half and half for good measure. You’ll be surprised at how easy it actually is.
