Flour Too's Mushroom and Leek Lasagna

So unlike Aaron, I love different pastas and lasagna.  If it were up to Aaron, we would always have my lasagna, and we would have it more often :).  Anyway, I found this Mushroom and Leek lasagna recipe in Flour, Too, and I decided to try it.  I made very few changes, but I did add bacon to have some meat, because my family has to have meat :).  Each serving, for 16 servings, was 367 calories. Aaron gave this a 7, Owen gave this an 8, and Noah and I gave it a 9.   Here's what to do:

10 dry lasagna noodles
1 c fresh goat cheese, at room temperature
1 c whole milk ricotta cheese
1/2 c chopped fresh basil
salt and pepper
6 pieces bacon plus bacon fat reserved
1 lb mushrooms, chopped (I used a mixture)
5 garlic cloves, smashed
4 leeks, white and light green parts only, sliced and rinsed well
2 14.5 oz cans fire roasted tomatoes

6 T unsalted butter
1/3 c flour
4 c whole milk (I used a mixture of 1% milk, half and half and heavy cream, since I was running out of whole milk :))
salt and pepper
dash of nutmeg

3 c shredded mozzarella

Cook the lasagna noodles in well salted water and set aside.
Combine the goat cheese, ricotta, basil, half of the mozzarella and salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
Crisp the bacon, remove to a plate, then in the remaining fat (about 1/4 c), cook the mushrooms and leeks with salt and garlic.  Add the tomatoes and bacon and season well, then let cook and reduce a little.  Set aside.
In the same skillet, melt the butter, make a roux with the flour, and then slowly stir in the milk and whisk constantly.  After the bechamel thickens, season to taste.
Preheat the oven to 350.
In a large pan, spread half of the bechamel on the bottom, then lay 5 of the noodles.  Scatter half of the tomato mixture over the noodles, then top with half of the goat cheese mixture, then top with another layer of noodles, the rest of the mushrooms, the rest of the goat cheese, then the rest of the bechamel, then top with the remaining mozzarella.  Bake for about 1 hour, and let sit for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

Julia Child's Boef Bourgignon

Soup is a comfort food for me, especially with our weather being so cold right now, and this might be the best soup/stew in the world.  I can't actually believe I've never featured this on my blog, it's one of our family favorites, and Aaron asks for it a lot.  This is a time consuming meal, but it is totally worth the time.  This is the Boef Bourgignon that was made famous on the movie Julie and Julia, and I make very few changes from Julia Child's original, except we substitute the wine for beef broth, which makes it not bourgignon, but oh well.  We've made it with the wine before, and it is delicious that way, but we prefer it with the beef broth.  This gets a perfect 10 for us, and each serving is about 490 calories.

See all those delicious mushrooms and onions?  Yeah, they make this stew.  Here's what to do:

For the Stew:

2 lbs beef stew meat, dried and salted

6-8 slices bacon, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

1 onion, chopped

salt and pepper

2 T flour

3 c red wine if using or

5-6 c beef broth (may want to go low sodium broth, can get very salty), enough to cover the beef

1 T tomato paste

2 cloves garlic, mashed

2-3 thyme sprigs

bay leaf

For the Onions:

18-24 pearl onions

1 1/2 T butter

1 1/2 T oil

1 c beef broth

4 parsley sprigs

bay leaf

2 sprigs thyme

For the Mushrooms:

2 T butter

1 T oil

12 oz sliced mushrooms

1 scallion, chopped

Preheat the oven to 450.  Saute the bacon in a Dutch oven until crisp.  Remove to a side dish, then brown the beef in batches, browning on all sides.  Remove the beef to the same dish as the bacon, then add the onion and carrot and brown them until a little softened.  Drain off fat if necessary (I never have any fat to drain), and return the beef and bacon to the Dutch oven.  Add in the salt and pepper, then the flour, making sure to coat the beef well.  Place the beef in the preheated oven, uncovered, for 4 minutes.  Stir the beef, then cook for four minutes more.  Remove the pan, then reduce the oven heat to 325.  Stir in the wine/broth, then add the tomato paste, garlic, herbs, and additional seasoning.  Bring to a simmer on the stove top, then cover it and place in the oven for 2.5-3 hours.  

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

Melt the butter and oil, add in the onions, and brown on all sides for a few minutes.  Add in the beef broth and herbs, season to taste, and let braise for 45 minutes to an hour.  Make sure onions are super tender, but still retain their shape.  Set aside.

Melt the butter and oil, then when the butter has ceased bubbling, add in the mushrooms.  Cook, flipping the mushrooms often, until the mushrooms start to release some of the fat they have soaked up.  Season well, then add in the green onion, and cook for a minute more.  Set aside.

When the meat has finished cooking, remove the meat/veggies from the broth, and bring the broth to a boil.  You want this to get as thick as you desire, we like our stew thick, so we reduce it quite a bit.  Adjust the seasoning to taste, then add the beef/veggie mixture back in the broth and add in the mushrooms and pearl onions in as well.  Make sure everything is heated through, then serve.  

Pioneer Woman's Chicken Tetrazzini

I grew up eating tuna tetrazzini, which has to be one of my least favorite things in the whole world.  I saw this recipe in the Pioneer Woman's newest cookbook, and the recipe sounded great, so I decided to try it out, and made a few changes along the way.  The calories for 1/12 of the total are 354, and I really liked how this turned out.  Aaron gave it a 7, because he doesn't like mushrooms, Owen gave it an 8, and Noah and I gave it a 9, despite Noah's dislike of olives.  This was really good, creamy and satisfying.  Here's what I did:

4 T butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 lb white mushrooms, sliced
salt
1 c chicken broth or dry white wine
1/4 c flour
4 c chicken broth
8 oz cream cheese
1 lb chicken breasts, diced
seasonings to taste, I used poultry seasoning, onion powder, garlic salt, and thyme
1 can black olives, sliced
Canned Peas and Corn or other mixed veggies
4 slices bacon, cooked and chopped
1 c Monterey Jack cheese, grated
1/2 c Parmesan cheese
1/2 lb thin spaghetti, cooked
1/2 c panko bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 350.  Melt the butter in a large pot and add the garlic and mushrooms.  Add in the chicken, and salt and seasonings and cook until chicken is no longer pink, about 5 minutes.  Pour in the wine/broth, then cook until the liquid is reduced by half.  Add in the flour, then the broth, and cook until the sauce is thick.  Add in the cream cheese, the olives, the veggies, the bacon, and the cheeses.  Stir and then add in the spaghetti.  Pour the mixture into a casserole dish, top with the panko, then bake for 20-25 minutes (more like 35 minutes), until the casserole is bubbly and the bread crumbs have browned.  Serve!

Cheese Bacon Stuffed Potatoes

Cheese Bacon Stuffed Potatoes

 

4 large baking potatoes                       3 slices bacon, chopped

8 oz mushrooms, chopped                  4 green onions, sliced

6 oz, cheddar cheese, shredded (1 ½ c)

1 t black pepper/ ½ t salt                     1 T butter

1 container 8 oz low fat sour cream

These are just like twice baked potatoes, but my mom made them in the microwave to make it easier.  These were really tasty, we all really enjoyed them!

Pasta with Bolognese Sauce

We had Pasta with Bolognese Sauce from Cook's Illustrated New Best Recipe Cookbook for dinner tonight.  This was something new for all of us to try, and it was different than I expected it to be, and it was a fun change for us.  I think we'll probably stick to our normal meaty tomato sauce, but this was a great change.  I like that it is sweeter and less tomatoe-y, and I like how much meat there was.  We all gave it an 8, and for 1/8 of the total the calories were 405.  Here's the recipe:
Pasta with Bolognese Sauce
1/2 oz dried porcini mushrooms (I used dried oyster mushrooms, since that's all I could find)
1/2 c water
1 1/4 c sweet white wine (I used 1 c chicken broth and 1/4 c wine vinegar)
1/2 small carrot, peeled
1/2 small onion, peeled
3 oz pancetta (I used 3 slices bacon)
28 oz canned tomatoes
1 1/2 T unsalted butter
1 small garlic clove, minced
1 t sugar
1 1/4 lbs ground meat (I used 1 lb ground beef)
1 1/2 c whole milk
2 T tomato paste
salt
1/8 t pepper
1 lb pasta (I used 1/2 lb pasta)
Freshly grated parmesan cheese for serving

1. Rinse the dried porcini mushrooms in a small strainer under cool running water; drain.  Add the mushrooms and water to a small bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap, cut several steam vents in the plastic wrap with a paring knife, and microwave on high power for 30 seconds.  Let stand until the mushrooms soften, about 5 minutes.  Lift the mushrooms from the liquid with a fork and mince.  Pour the liquid through a small strainer lined with a single sheet of paper towel set over a measuring cup.  Reserve the mushrooms and strained soaking liquid separately.
2. Bring the wine to simmer in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat; reduce the heat to low and simmer until the wine is reduce to 2 T, about 20 minutes.  Set aside.
3. Meanwhile, pulse the carrot in a food processor, about 10 1-second pulses.  Add the onion; pulse until the vegetables are broken down into 1/8 inch pieces, about ten 1-second pulses.  Transfer the vegetables to a small bowl.  Process the softened mushrooms until well ground, about 15 seconds.  Transfer the porcini to the bowl with the carrot and onion.  Process the pancetta until the pieces are no longer than 1/4 inch, 30-35 seconds; transfer to a small bowl.  Pulse the tomatoes with their juice until chopped fine, six to eight 1-second pulses.
4.  Heat the butter in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat; when the foaming subsides, add the pancetta and cook, stirring frequently, until well browned, about 2 minutes.  Add the carrot, onion, and porcini; cook, stirring frequently, until well browned, about 2 minutes.  Add the carrot, onion, and porcini; cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are softened but not browned, about 4 minutes.  Add the garlic and sugar; cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Add the ground meat, breaking the meat into 1-inch pieces with a wooden spoon, about 1 minute.  Add the milk and stir to break the meat into 1/2-inch bits; bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to medium and continue to simmer, stirring to break up the meat into small pieces, until most of the liquid has evaporated and the meat begins to sizzle, 18-20 minutes.  Stir in the tomato paste and cook until combined, about 1 minute.  Add the tomatoes, reserved porcini soaking liquid, 1/4 t salt, and the pepper; bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the liquid is reduced and the sauce is thickened but still moist, 12-15 minutes.  Stir in the reduced wine and simmer to blend the flavors, about 5 minutes.
5.  Meanwhile, bring water to a boil, add 1 T salt and the pasta of your choice.  Cook until al dente.  Drain, reserving 1/4 c pasta cooking water and put pasta in serving dish.  Add the cooking water and 2 c sauce; toss well.  Divide the pasta between individual bowls and top with more sauce.  Serve immediately , passing the parmesan separately.

This is nice because unlike traditional bolognese sauce, this can be made in an hour, and so it works as a weeknight meal if desired.  We all liked it, and it was fun to try a new sauce.

Monday we're having the shrimp.