Sausage and Cannellini Beans

I'm not one to get starstruck and don't watch television often but a few weeks ago (yes, just recently) I discovered the cooking show, Extra Virgin, and became an instant fan.

Given my fondness for the food prepared so lovingly on Extra Virgin, I wanted the cookbook also named, Extra Virgin, that was about to be released and reserved a copy. It arrived a day or two after its release on May 6th and this is the first dish I've made from the cookbook.

This dish, simply named, "Sausage And Beans" (salsiccie e fagioli) in the cookbook, was a hit with my family. I chose this recipe because my daughter loves Cannellini beans as does my son but he loves tomato sauce and meat even more. So this dish was perfect. I served it with toasted ciabatta to soak up some of the sauce. We placed a toast on our plates and ladled heaps of beans, red sauce, and sausage over the top. Delicious and flavorful!

Rather than the eight sausages called for in the recipe, I had a rope of sausage on hand which I cut into pieces before cooking, the reason the ends of the sausage look funky. Next time, I'll cook the rope sausage whole and slice after it's cooked or I'll buy individual sausages and keep the sausages whole for a nicer presentation.

Roasted carrots and red peppers was a nice side dish. To make week night dinners quick and easy I often roast vegetables in the oven while I'm preparing the main dish on the stovetop.

The recipe for Sausage and Beans can be found on the Cooking Channel website. It's a little different from the cookbook but sounds just as delicious.

Local Food In Providence

The local food at Nick's On Broadway was amazing! So glad I finally ate here. My friend and I thoroughly enjoyed the charcuterie and mussels appetizers. My sea bass dinner was perfect.

Skillful hands. Artists.

A surprise -- both the beautiful artistic chocolate treat we were each given at the end of dinner and the combination of flavors.

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It was such a lovely warm (and dry) spring evening we decided to have dessert at Pastiche. Even though we ate inside, we enjoyed the fresh air from the open windows.

Part of the mural on the wall next to where I sat. I marveled at the very simple strokes used to create the images of the people working in the field.

Organic In Worcester

Living Earth Market and EVO Dining

Love this place! I was just there today for lunch and realized I never mentioned it in my blog.

It's an organic market and restaurant in one building. 

When my daughter started her freshman year of college last fall, worried about the way she'd eat to keep her kidneys healthy (even though she's in remission we want to keep it that way!), we found this great organic food market, The Living Earth Market. Lots of organic food choices in a small setting and to make things easy for the busy college student, the market also has prepared foods like sandwiches, soups, salads, etc.  When I visit, we eat at the restaurant next door, EVO Dining. We always have a great fresh tasting meal. They are very accommodating to food allergies and offer vegan options. I'm never disappointed!

Cheers!

Craving A BLT

The warmer weather here in New England is making me crave BLT's but there aren't any good garden tomatoes around!

If you're like me and won't buy off season tomatoes from the grocery store, but can't wait any longer for a decent traditional BLT, try this idea.

Blend a handful of organic grape tomatoes (they have a nice sweet tomato flavor and aren't mealy) in a food processor with a large basil leaf (or a few small ones), one small garlic clove, one very small shallot, and a pinch of salt and pepper. 

Spread that tomato mixture on your BLT and enjoy with other organic fillings or goodies from local farmers. 

Can't wait for this to open so we can enjoy fresh garden tomatoes again! 

Franklin Community Farm and Homestead

Roasted Butternut Squash And Cauliflower

Roast these winter vegetables together for ease. 

Store them separately in the fridge. 

Enjoy them in your meals all week. 

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The butternut squash tasted great with organic chicken and apple sausage. These pea tendrils I picked up at the farmers' market were very versatile - we've had them in salads and sandwiches, with fish tacos and cod cakes. The butternut squash was handy to have on hand and a nice side dish all week.

Here is roasted cauliflower reheated with some goat cheese as a side dish to roasted pork and carrots. Feta cheese would be a good alternative.

For another side dish, I added walnuts to the roasted garlic with goat cheese.

To roast butternut squash and cauliflower, I placed them in a baking sheet with a touch of olive oil, another healthy high heat oil would be fine, and some seasoning. This time I used just a little salt and pepper and also added some garlic cloves so I'd have them ready to use during the week as well. I roasted everything at 400 degrees in a pre-heated oven. Once the cauliflower started to look golden brown, everything else was done, maybe 15 to 20 minutes. I like the squash soft but not mushy.

Then I stored the roasted vegetables in separate containers until ready to use. I froze the roasted garlic in a small herb jar for later use.

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Cod Cakes With Bechamel | Cod Cake Burger With Remoulade

Cod Cakes

I was planning on making dinner by cooking cod fillets from The Local Catch in a skillet but they were thin and broke apart too much when I flipped them. So I stopped cooking and quickly searched for a recipe online and found a nice potato based cod cake recipe from Saveur.

The cod cake recipe can be found here. I made adjustments to the ingredients that suited my portion of fish. I didn't serve the cod cakes with a chow chow as recommended because I didn't have those ingredients. Rather, I made a quick Béchamel sauce.

Béchamel, lactose-free
For the Béchamel, I made this quick version because I didn't have a lot of time:

For the roux, I combined 1 tablespoon butter (I used organic lactose-free Earth Balance Buttery Spread, I read that olive oil can also be substituted) with 1 tablespoon flour until well blended in a small sauce pan over medium-low heat.

Then I added 1 1/2 cups milk (I used Organic Valley lactose-free), 1 bay leaf, a little onion powder,  sea salt, and fresh ground pepper to taste. I omitted the traditional clove-stuck onion and nutmeg for this sauce but it could be made that way.

I cooked the sauce on medium-low, whisking until the flour flavor was gone and it coated the bay leaf, like below. Then I discarded the bay leaf and sprinkled in some Old Bay seasoning to taste. I thought of Old Bay seasoning because it's what my father uses often when he makes seafood meals. 

I topped the cod cakes with the savory Béchamel and we ate them with leftover roasted vegetables. Cheese can be added to the sauce, but I liked it just like this and wanted to keep it lactose-free.

Cod Cake Burgers

I made burgers with the leftover cod cakes. The Remoulade was a nice condiment by itself but I would have also liked a slice of tomato. However, it's winter and I stay away from grocery store tomatoes -- they are no substitute for a fresh summer garden tomato!

Quick And Easy Remoulade

To 1 cup of mayonnaise (I used the Just Mayo brand I talked about in the previous post), I added 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon tabasco/hot sauce, and minced 4 very small sweet gherkins. 

I served the cod cakes on local Portuguese sweet bread rolls that I toasted.

And if that isn't enough carbs, why not have a nice local craft beer with the cod cake burger! This light tasting Rhode Scholar is my favorite.

"Rhode Scholar"
from the Bucket Brewery, Pawtucket, RI

Don't want all the carbs (or the lactose from the milk in Portuguese sweet bread)? A cod cake with Remoulade tastes great with these pea greens.