Cookbook Challenge: Mushroom Ragu

I am behind schedule in my cookbook challenge. For the month of May I was cooking from Giada's Everyday Italian, and now it's getting close to mid-June and I'm just now posting my last recipe. Things got busy somewhere in there! I think for the month of June I'm going to take a break, since we're already a week into the month. I will still be cooking though, maybe even from cookbooks... we'll see what happens! Come July, though, I'm going to go back to focusing on one cookbook for the month. This challenge to myself has been great so far-- I'm doing a much better job of utilizing the collection of cookbooks that was previously collecting dust on the shelf.

I have to admit I tweaked the mushroom ragu recipe just a little, because I had a couple extra ingredients on hand that I didn't want going to waste. I decided to research a little bit online, and it turns out the vegetarian feature of this dish makes it a fake ragu, since traditional ragu involves slow cooked meat. So I decided if it wasn't too authentic in the first place, that was all the more reason to add onto it to make it my own. The recipe below is Giada's original version, and in red I've added my changes. It was a substantial, satisfying dish, which really hit the spot. I served it over quick and easy baked polenta, with sauteed asparagus and salad on the side. We didn't miss the meat at all, which is the sign of a good vegetarian dish from my meat-eating point of view. I don't see myself making this again incredibly soon, but come fall and winter it will be a dish that shows up on our table on a more frequent basis.

Everyday Italian Review-- I was really happy with my choice of cooking more out of this cookbook. Overall, the recipes are simple, fresh, and great tasting. I would like to challenge myself to cook more complicated dishes, but for a busy weekday night, these are the kinds of recipes I'm looking for. I appreciate that the ingredients are easy to find, and that there are no really intensive methods involved. This cookbook has been one that has really helped me gain confidence in the kitchen, and I'm sure it will remain a go-to source even as I move on to more challenging recipes.


Mushroom Ragu- from Everyday Italian

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound mixed mushrooms (cremini, oyster, shiitake-- I used portabella, cremini, and shiitake) chopped
2 Tbsp chopped fresh sage leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup Marsala
1/2 cup tomato paste
2 cups chicken broth
1/3 cup heavy cream
5 fresh basil leaves, chopped (I omitted)
1/4 cup flat-leaf Italian parsley, chopped
1/2 to 3/4 cup grated Parmesan



In a large skillet heat the oil. When almost smoking, add the onions and garlic over medium-low heat until the onions have wilted, about 8 minutes. Add the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Raise heat to high and saute until mushrooms are tender and all the liquid has evaporated. Stir in the fresh sage when the liquid is about halfway reduced.


Remove pan from heat and pour in Marsala. Return pan to stove and allow wine to evaporate, about 3 minutes. Add chicken broth and tomato paste (stirring well) and simmer for 1/2 hour until the sauce has reduced by half. Add heavy cream and mix well. Take the pan off the heat and add the fresh herbs and Parmesan and mix thoroughly.


Baked Polenta- from Everyday Italian by Giada de Laurentiis

Vegetable oil, for greasing pan
1 (16-ounce) package instant polenta
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Sea Salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease an 11 by 17-inch baking sheet pan with oil. Line pan with waxed paper. The oil will secure the waxed paper onto the pan.

In a large pot bring to a boil 2 quarts of salted water. Stir in extra-virgin olive oil. When water has reached a boil, reduce heat to medium high and slowly add the polenta, whisking constantly for 3 minutes. When polenta is thick and smooth, pour it into the prepared pan. Spread the polenta evenly.

Bake in oven for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan. Note: the polenta will not brown or change in color. When cool enough to handle, cut into any shape you desire.

Cookbook Challenge: Tomato Vegetable Casserole

This is the second time I've made a baked vegetable casserole, and once again I really liked the results. You have to put in some effort at the beginning, chopping and layering all the veggies. But then it just bakes without any effort from the cook, allowing the other dishes to be prepared at a relaxed pace. Joe and I couldn't decide if the Vegetable Tian or this dish was better... overall they're very similar and both delicious. As Giada suggests, this dish has room for interpretation, so feel free to try it with whatever vegetables you favor. Just be sure to chop the vegetables in consistently sized pieces, so they all cook evenly. And I don't know about you, but baked/roasted tomatoes are one of my favorite flavors, so I might add more next time.

Tomato Vegetable Casserole from Everyday Italian by Giada De Laurentiis

1 medium potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 medium yam, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

5 tablespoons olive oil

1 red onion, thinly sliced into rings

2 small or 1 large zucchini, cut crosswise into 1/4 inch thick pieces

salt and pepper

2 large ripe tomatoes, cut crosswise into 1/4 inch thick pieces

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

2 Tbsp dried breadcrumbs

Fresh springs of basil, for garnish


Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Toss the potato, yam, bell pepper, carrots, and 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking dish to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss until coated. Spread vegetables evenly over the bottom of the pan.

Arrange the onion slices evenly over the vegetable mixture. Arrange the zucchini over the onion. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Arrange the tomato slices over the zucchini.

Stir the Parmesan and bread crumbs in a small bowl to blend. Sprinkle the Parmesan bread crumbs over the vegetables in the baking dish. Drizzle with the last tablespoon of olive oil.

Bake uncovered until the vegetables are tender, and the topping is golden brown, about 40 minutes. Garnish with fresh basil sprigs, if desired.

With the relaxed kitchen atmosphere as my vegetables baked, I decided to bake some cracked wheat bread. I will post it soon, I promise!


And as always, I have to put the full plate shot. The pasta was pretty basic, and I also made pan seared yellow fin tuna that was fantastic. Tuna is great rare, and is best simply prepared, with salt and pepper.

Cookbook Challenge: Vegetarian Lasagna

It's a new month, so it's time for a new Cookbook Challenge. This month I decided to try more recipes from a cookbook I already use a lot: Everyday Italian by Giada de Laurentiis. I love the simplicity of a lot of Giada's recipes, and I almost always have fantastic results from her recipes. This is a crazy busy month, with moving and Joe getting ready for his level 2 CFA test, so I thought I'd keep it simple.

For the first week, I chose Individual Vegetarian Lasagnas. I made one big pan, though, to save myself a bit of extra work. I changed a few things, and ended up wishing I'd stuck more to the original recipe. My biggest change was using ricotta instead of canellini beans, which ended up being pretty bland. I could have tried more salt & pepper or spices, but next time I think I'll just stick with the original recipe. The chopped veggies were a lot of work, but tasted fresh and healthy. I do think I'd add a few more spices to the veggies, but I was happy with them overall. Also, I used more sauce than recommended. It was one of those recipes that I might try again to hopefully improve, but I'm really not sure if it's worth the effort. If anyone tries this, let me know your suggestions!

This is the original recipe from Everyday Italian by Giada de Laurentiis

Individual Vegetarian Lasagnas
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium Spanish onion, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
1 medium zucchini, finely chopped
1 medium summer squash, finely chopped
8 asparagus spears, cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 pound fresh plain lasagna sheets
2 cups tomato sauce, recipe follows
1 1/2 cups canned white beans, rinsed and drained
2 (10-ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
3 cups shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, halved
Salt and freshly ground pepperPreheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a saute pan over medium heat, add extra-virgin olive oil. When almost smoking, add the onion and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the carrot and cook for 3 minutes. Add the zucchini and squash cook for 5 minutes. Add asparagus and cook for 2 minutes. Remove from heat when all vegetables are completely cooked but still have a good crunch. Allow to cool.

Using a 6-inch round cookie cutter, cut circles out of the lasagna sheets. You will need 18 circles. Coat the bottom of 6 (6-inch) gratin dishes with a teaspoon of tomato sauce in each. Place a circle of pasta on the bottom of each ramekin. Rinse the beans with water and season with salt and pepper. Divide the beans between each ramekin. Next, divide the spinach between the ramekins.

Place a second layer of pasta on top and gently press down. Divide the sauteed vegetables among the ramekins and top with a tablespoon of tomato sauce in each. Place the third layer of pasta in each ramekin and coat with a tablespoon of tomato sauce. Sprinkle ramekins with the mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, and top each with 1/2 tablespoon of butter.

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place gratin dishes on top. Bake in oven for 20 minutes or until brown and bubbling.