Category Archives: Dinner Ideas

Garlicky Marsala Mushrooms with Pasta

Dinner Ideas January 5, 2013 Leave a comment
Mushroom Stew

Salsa di Funghi
Mushroom Stew

Always try to use fresh herbs purchased in the vegetable section of your grocery store.  They have a remarkable fresh flavor and add such nice aroma and flavor to your dishes.  Most fresh herbs will last at least a week in your refrigerator, or can be put in a plastic bag and kept in the freezer.  If you use dry herbs, you will not need as much as the recipe calls for; dried herbs have a more pungent flavor.

In this recipe you can replace the type of mushrooms used for another variety you prefer.  Always use fresh mushrooms purchased in the grocery store rather than canned.

Garlicky Marsala Mushrooms with Pasta

  • 5 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 pound of white mushrooms – quartered
  • 1 pound of porta bella mushrooms – quartered
  • 2 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 1 medium shallot, thinly diced or small onion mince
  • 1-1/2 tsp minced rosemary (try to use fresh)
  • ½ cup dry Marsala wine
  • 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • 1 cup of minced green, yellow and red peppers
  • 1 package of frozen or fresh Tortellini or pasta of your choice
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • 2 large garlic cloves, grated or minced
  1. In a very large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, cover and cook over high heat, stirring onion, until the mushrooms are browned all over, about 2 – 3 minutes. Add the sliced garlic, the shallot or onion, peppers and rosemary and cook, stirring until fragrant, about 2 minutes.  Add the Marsala and cook until evaporated, about 30 seconds. Add the vinegar and cook, stirring for 30 seconds. Stir in the minced garlic, and remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cover and keep warm.
  2. Prepare pasta according to directions
  3. After draining the pasta return to the pot or a large bowl, stir in the butter and mushroom mixture, stir in the 1/3 cup of fresh Parmesan cheese until melted.

Enjoy

Baked Apple Pancake

Dinner Ideas January 4, 2013 Leave a comment

Image

Baked Apple Pancake

Yes, you bake it in an oven in a skillet.  It is fabulous, tasty and makes a great Sunday brunch.

  • 2 – 3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and sliced
  • ½ stick butter
  • ½ cup sugar mixed with 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 2 – 3 cups Pancake batter (instant is fine)

Heat oven to 375 degrees

  1. Melt butter in an 8 inch skillet (oven proof), add the sliced applies and stir until tender
  2. Sprinkle with the sugar / cinnamon mixture
  3. Stir and cook until applies are soft and sugar is melted
  4. Add prepared pancake batter on top of apples
  5. Bake in oven for 20-30 minutes until pancake is set (knife inserted in center comes out clean) – remove from oven
  6. Invert onto a plate and cut into wedges

Salmon Cakes

Dinner Ideas, Fish January 1, 2013 Leave a comment
Salmon Cakes

Salmon Cakes

I just had the best Salmon Cakes I’ve ever tasted and they were pretty easy to make.  Any kitchen should have a mini food processor, such as a Cuisinart Mini-prep plus.  It does all the chopping for you.  Let me start my story with I was hungry and it was lunch and I am home from work to celebrate New Years Day.  So I had time to do this.  I purchased 3 envelopes of Chicken of the Sea Skinless & Boneless Pink Salmon at Walmart *(in the tuna area) the other day, mostly because I eat a lot of salad and like to add protein like tuna, crab or salmon to my salad – which will be another story another time.  So I had this salmon in my pantry and saw a recipe on the back of the envelope for “Simple Salmon Cakes”  I looked at the ingredients I would need and had almost everything I needed except for bread crumbs, but I did make a loaf of bread a few days ago in my bread maker and it was sitting there, and I knew I wasn’t going to finish the bread before it got hard, so I chopped the remaining loaf in my Cuisinart Mini-Prep plus into tiny, soft bread crumbs.  I only needed a cup, so I put the rest in a zip lock and put it in the freezer for another day.

I didn’t have “green onions” so I used my left over red onion and threw it in the Cuisinart and chopped it fine, I had mini bell peppers from another recipe so I did the same with them and chopped them fine. So there you go, you can substitute veggies with what you have.  I also didn’t have any lemon juice, but had lime juice and used that instead.  So here is the actual recipe:

  • 1 5oz pouch of Chicken of the Sea Skinless & Boneless Pink Salmon
  • 1/4 cup chopped green onion (or red or scallions)
  • 1/4 cup Mayonnaise
  • 1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice
  • 1/2 tsp Garlic powder
  • Dash Cayenne pepper
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped bell pepper
  • 1 medium egg (beaten)
  • 1 cup breadcrumbs (fresh is best!)
  • 3 tablespoon butter (I sprayed the pan with “pam” and used 1 tsp of butter)
  • 1/4 tsp of seasoned salt – I didn’t use salt

Combine onion, mayo, lemon or lime juice, and seasonings in a bowl. Add salmon, egg and 1/4 cup breadcrumbs or more if mixture is too loose to gather into your hand, mixture will and should be soft and loose, not stiff and sticky.  Gather about 1/2 cup mixture in your hand and form into a loose ball, roll around in remainder 3/4 cup of breadcrumbs to form a crust and place on a plate while you do the same with the rest.  Heat skillet spray with cooking spray and melt a tsp of butter on skillet.  Add each cake and cook for 4 minutes on the first side on medium heat (electric stove is #5) while this is cooking – wash your dishes.  It is better to be busy instead of bothering the cakes while they cook.  After 4 minutes, flip over and cook for 4-5 minutes.  Finish cleaning your mess.  When they are done, you can eat on a plate with a tablespoon of mayo (I use Kraft Mayo with Olive Oil reduced fat)  and tablespoon of relish (I use Famous Dave’s hot and sweet) or put between bread and dress how you like.  These are really good – you can be creative and use this stuffing in mushrooms and bake in a 350 oven for probably about 20 minutes.  Enjoy!

Welcome to Kitchen Moxy

Dinner Ideas December 31, 2012 Leave a comment

Here it is New Year’s Eve 2013, Happy New Year!  It is mid-winter here in Montana and have decided I need something to keep me entertained for the next 5 months.  So rather than cooking and eating and cooking and eating for the next 5 months, I have decided to share my cooking knowledge and experiences with you.  I really hate to exercise, although I tackle the tread-mill 30 minutes every day, that is about the extent of my  self induced “pain-no-gain” every day.  So I opt to eat healthy whenever I can.

I have been cooking for about 40 years, I had to be sure dinner was on the table for my dad who worked shift work – when my mom was working. My mom, was born and raised in Europe, so she showed me how to make many recipes and I would like to share them with you as I did with my son and daughter.

I realize some folks do not know the basis or fundamentals of cooking or baking so I will be here for questions, and I also realize some of you are not “prep” savy, which is a learned talent, but very important for a successful dish.

I hope you follow me and interact with your own questions and if you have a recipe you would like to share or learn to make, let me know.  Time for 2013 to roll in – with this, I wish you all a good evening and a very Happy, Prosperous New Year!

Moxy