Italian Shrimp & Calamari in a Creme Friache Basil Sauce with Garlic Basil Pasta

So I happened upon this recipe from my own self. I was debating what to make for dinner, and opened the cupboards and found my base, which ended up being some basil garlic pasta which was purchased in Italy by Clint. My mind started to churn and churn some more and then I thought, ah yes, creme friache.

Creme friache is just one of the most heavenly dairy products in the world. It's all about sour cream meets butter. Now I know this doesn't sound very Italian with sour cream, but I worked with what I had, and since there was pasta involved, it's Italian OK! It sure tasted like heavenly Italian once the dish was complete. So please try this new spin on a creamy Italian pasta dish.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 lb of peeled shrimp
1/4 lb of calamari
Basil Garlic Pasta or any pasta that is linguine style
6 cloves of minced garlic
4 TBS olive oil
1 cup of half and half or heavy cream
1/2 cup of creme friache
1 cup of parmesean cheese
1/2 cup of basil cut chiffinade style (roll the basil leaves up and slice thinly) Learn how HERE
In a pasta pot bring your water to a boil.

In a large pan, heat olive oil up on medium high heat. Once the olive oil starts to become waving when you lift the pan up to swirl the oil across the bottom of the pan add the garlic. Turn heat down to medium low. You don't want to brown the garlic, just heat it through until it becomes very fragrant. Now you will saute the shrimp until it starts to turn pink. Then add the calamari and saute with the shrimp for a couple of minutes. Remove the shrimp and calamari from the pan so it doesn't get over-cooked. There is nothing worse than rubbery shrimp and calamari.

Now add the half and half (or heavey cream), and creme friache to the pan turning heat up to medium high heat. Bring to a boil, then add parmesean. Reduce the sauce until it starts to become a little thick now add the shrimp and calamari back for 2 minutes and toss the basil in for another minute. Turn heat off and cover the pan to let the heat infuse the sauce with the basil.

Serve sauce over pasta preferably al dente, but cooked to your preference.

Lemon Passion Cake

So this is my own spin-off of one of my favorite desserts that they have at the Macaroni Grill. My mouth watered the first time i ever tried it, and it I was destined to make something similar and I think I succeeded!

You will enjoy this refreshing dessert. The tartness from the lemon cake with the sweetness from the milk sauce just melts in your mouth and says, "Oh yeah, this is some good cake!"

1 box of lemon cake (made per directions on box)
1 can of condensed milk
1 can of evaporated milk
2 cups of heavy cream
1 cup of half and half
2 TBSP of powdered sugar (optional)
Caramel - Torini's is the best!

Bake lemon cake according to directions on box. Bake in a cake dish preferred. Let cake cool. Once cake is cool poke holes with a skewer or toothpick throughout the top of the cake.

Now mix together, the condensed milk, evaporated milk, 1 cup of heavy cream, and the half and half. Whisk thoroughly and drizzle all of the mixture over the cake until it is fully absorbed. Now drizzle caramel all over the top of the cake.

Make a whipped cream with the reaming cream. You can add a couple tablespoons of sugar if you like, but the cake is sweet enough with everything else. Now spread the whipped cream over the top of the cake and drizzle with more caramel for garnish.

Enjoy!

Lemon Curd & Berries

So Clint and I went to a co-workers BBQ over Pioneer Day weekend here in Utah. For those of you who don't know what Pioneer Day is....it's a Utah holiday when all of the old-timers migrated here and founded Salt Lake City....at least I think that's the short and ugly of it. Details are HERE

In any case, it's a total friends and family get together....get drunk and eat...and for those who don't drink, there's always tons of food and endless supply of water.

I always enjoy going to a get together, because there is always a palate pleasing dish that I just need to get the recipe for. To my dismay, the lucky dish this time was a dessert, with berries in a lemon curd sauce. Oh, it was to die for, and I thought my Filipino style fruit salad was a hit! Now I didn't get the exact recipe, so I just played cat and mouse and figured this much of this and that should taste like this...and I had success!

There's a tartness from the lemon curd and Greek yogurt, that just melts away with the sweetness from the honey and berries and so the recipe goes like this:

INGREDIENTS

1 pint of blueberries
1 pint of strawberries (sliced)
2 TBS of honey
1 jar of lemon curd about a cup
1 cup of Greek yogurt
Some mint leaves for garnish

PREPARATION

Mix together honey, yogurt, and lemon curd until smooth and completely incorporated.

Now make sure to slice your strawberries and toss the blueberries and strawberries in the mixture. Fold the berries so they are evenly coated. Plate to a serving dish and garnish with sprigs of mint.

Note: you can add more berries depending on how much sauce you like with the dish, also experiment with the fruit, I tried it with blackberries and it tasted divine!

Chicken Breast with a Tarragon Mushroom Cream Sauce

I'm sure there are plenty of recipes out there for Tarragon Chicken, but this is my own that I happened to conjur up quickly after a long day at work. It was given a thumbs up approval and recommended for a restaurant menu item. It even sounds and looks fancy because of the word "tarragon" and the cream sauce. It sure it yummy though!


INGREDIENTS

3 - 4 TBSP of olive oil
balsamic vinegar
4 garlic cloves, minced
salt & pepper to taste
1 1/2 fresh chopped tarragon
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 cup chicken broth or 1 if handy 1 cup of white wine to deglaze the pan
1/2 cup of cream
4 boneless skinless chicken breast.
fresh tarragon for garnish

In a pan, drizzle olive oil to coat on medium high heat. Once oil barely starts to smoke add garlic and turn heat down to medium. Saute garlic until very fragrant and make sure garlic does not brown.

Now turn heat back up to medium high heat and add the chicken. Sear both sides until lightly browned . Salt & Pepper the chicken to taste. Sprinkle chicken with chopped tarragon and balsamic vinegar. Add mushrooms and chicken broth or wine. Stir up the chicken from bottom of pan to to make sure pan is deglazed and once it comes to a boil. Cover pan, turn heat down to medium and let simmer for 5 - 10 minutes, checking a couple times lifting check breasts and making sure they don't burn.

Now add the cream and simmer for five minutes until sauce thickens now add more fresh tarragon and serve.

Dish best served with mashed potatoes, rice, lentils, steamed or grilled veggies.

Korean Grilled Steaks with Spicy Cilantro Sauce

I found the idea for this recipe through a friend who found it on Epicurious.com but I couldn't remember the recipe and modified it to my own. I finally was able to locate the original HERE

INGREDIENTS

1 cup of soy sauce
1/4 cup cooking Sherry
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes
1 bunch of chopped fresh cilantro (including roots and stems)
1/3 cup peanut oil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon minced seeded fresh jalapeno or Serrano chili (optional)
1 (4-inch-long) fresh hot Thai red chili, chopped (optional)
6 (1-inch-thick) boneless beef top loin (strip) steaks, about 3/4 lb each

PREPARATION

Stir together soy sauce, Sherry, sugar, garlic, sesame oil, and red pepper flakes, cilantro, peanut oil, lime juice, and chilies in a bowl until sugar is dissolved. Place stakes in a 13- by 9- by 2-inch baking dish and pour marinade over steaks reserving 1/2 a cup to pour over steaks once pulled off the grill and sliced. Marinate steaks, turning once, 1 hour. As always it's best to marinate anything overnight. Prepare grill for cooking.

When fire is medium-hot (you can hold your hand 5 inches above rack 3 to 4 seconds), grill steaks on a lightly oiled rack 3 to 4 minutes on each side for medium-rare. Let steaks stand on a cutting board 5 minutes, then cut crosswise into 3/4-inch-thick slices and top with some sauce. Serve remaining sauce on the side.

Best served with wasabi mashed potatoes, grilled veggies, steamed veggies, and or rice. Jasmine of course.

Julie & Julia

So over the weekend I went with a group of friends to see Julie & Julia. Can I just say what a super duper cute movie that was!? I know it is sure to get ball busted on some note by some movie critic who thinks he or she is the one deciding factor on who should and shouldn't go to a movie, but it's expected, not every movie is for everyone...but this one is definitely for me!

Meryl Streep or whatever that redheaded actresses name is did such an iconic job of playing Julia. Great job Meryl or whatever her name is! I hate to admit it, but i couldn't stand to watch any of Julia's cooking shows as she got older. It kind of made me lose my appetite to watch her, but watching this movie gave me a new found respect for her that I would have never discovered had I never watched this movie.

I will be making the boeuf bourguignon and baked pickles at some point, and I will post to share my outcome that all are raving about! Meanwhile, HERE is a link to read up on the show. If you haven't seen it and love to cook...you must go see it, and until then Bon Apetite!

American Creamy Ranch with Basil Potatoes

This is a delicious twist on the same old scalloped potatoes that seem to show up at Sunday dinner tables across America. You can throw all the ingredients together and saute them in a deep pan, or toss it all in an oven safe dish and bake on a low heat for an hour or until the potatoes are tender when forked.

INGREDIENTS

6 TSP olive oil

1 lg onion diced

3 lg garlic cloves, smashed and minced

5 cups scalloped potatoes OR

6 cups of wedged potatoes

(Preferably baby red potatoes with skins on)

Salt & Pepper to taste

1 1/2 cup of ranch dressing

1 cup of sour cream

1/2 can of evaporated milk or heavy cream

2 TBS julienned basil

PREPARATION


Heat the oil in a pan and saute onions until transparent. Do not brown, although browning them adds an additional depth of flavor if you would like to try it. Add garlic, and potatoes and toss until heated through, you might want to add a little more olive oil if the pan seems too dry. if you aren't on a diet...go for some butter instead of the olive oil. Sprinkle some salt and pepper to taste. Cover for 5 minutes on medium low heat. Making sure to check every couple minutes that the bottom is not burning. It's best to use a non stick pan for this.

Now add the ranch dressing, sour cream, and milk in a bowl and whisk until no lumps appear. Add mixture to the potatoes and stir until all potatoes are thoroughly covered. Now turn heat up and bring to a simmer and toss potatoes and turn heat to medium low and cover letting potatoes simmer at low heat for about 20 minutes. Now add basil, stir, and cover for 5 minutes and it's ready to serve.