Balsamic tilapia with spinach pesto potatoes

These recipes look super fancy and difficult, but they were actually really simple and easy to pull off! I think they're great for a night when you want a little fancier dinner, but don't feel like standing in the kitchen for hours to get it!

First, the potatoes. This recipe is straight from Joy the Baker, one of the recipe blogs I like to read. I cut it in half since there's only two of us:

• 2 russet potatoes
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• salt
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil

Preheat over to 425. Thinly slice garlic cloves. Scrub potatoes well, and slice a small layer off the bottom to give it a base. Cut thin rounds in the potatoes, but don't slice all the way through the potato. Place slices of garlic in between every other slice, like this:

The slices kind of like to stick together, but if you get a knife in between that helps spread them apart. Place the potatoes on a baking sheet, cover with a pat of butter and drizzle of oil. Bake for 1 hour, basting with the melted butter every 15 minutes - this will make the potatoes nice and crispy!

For the spinach pesto:

• 2 loosely packed cups of spinach
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/4 cups roasted cashews (I used pecans and toasted them until fragrant)
  
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/3 cup olive oil

Blend everything but the olive oil in a food processor until finely chopped. Slowly add oil while pulsing. Make sure to taste for the seasonings!

Yum!

The original recipe for the balsamic tilapia was courtesy Rachael Ray - the tilapia was salted, peppered, and lightly dusted with flour. I sauteed it for about 4 minutes on each side. After removing the fish, lower heat to medium and add 3 Tbsp. butter. Allow the butter to brown (about 3 minutes) then add 1/4 C. balsamic vinegar. Simmer 1 to 2 minutes and allow mixture to reduce by half.


The sauce gets nice and thick and sweet-smelling! Just pour some over the fish.

When the potatoes are done they look like this:


See how the sections separate? So pretty!!


The finished product was super yummy, and really light and fresh-tasting. I still have some leftover pesto, I'll probably put over pasta or chicken.

Side note - there is a bit of butter/oil in these recipes, but I think they could be pretty easily substituted with margarine or olive oil, if you want.

Don't be afraid to try these, even though they look kind of complicated. They were actually quite simple, but they look really impressive on the plate! Enjoy!

Rustic spinach and cornmeal soup

I saw this recipe in my Bon Appetit magazine, and it caught my eye for a couple reasons. First, I had bought a bag of coarse cornmeal to make polenta a month or so ago, and I wanted to use some of it up. Second, I had gotten some bags of spinach on sale and needed to eat them before they go bad. And third, it was "cold" today (by Miami standards, a.k.a. below 60) and who doesn't love soup on a chilly evening?

Here are the ingredients:

• 6 C. chicken broth
• 3/4 C. polenta (coarse cornmeal)
• 3 Tbsp. flour
• 3 Tbsp. butter
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled, crushed
• kosher salt
• 8 oz. baby spinach leaves

To start, heat the broth until simmering, and whisk together the polenta and flour in a separate pot.


Add a cup of the broth to the polenta mixture, and whisk until smooth. Add the butter and smashed garlic and stir.



Slowly add the rest of the broth and simmer until the soup thickens and the cornmeal is soft (20-25 minutes). Whisk often to prevent sticking. Once the cornmeal is cooked, stir in the spinach, and let cook until wilted.


Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve!


Mmmmmm, just what I needed tonight! (but I think Evan would have liked it better with some sort of meat...) I thought there would be big chunks of garlic in the soup because I didn't chop it, but it kind of melted into everything and was delicious!

I'm super excited to have the leftovers for lunch tomorrow!!

Beef ragout with spaghetti

This post could also be titled "recipes that don't go quite as you planned". But that happens to me all the time! So here goes....

My plan was to use up some leftover seasoned ground beef I had in the freezer. I had mixed up a batch of Italian burgers a month or so ago, and had about 3/4 lb. of the mix left after making 4 burgers. I froze it with the intention of making meatballs! Here's what went in the mix...

• 3/4 lb. ground beef
• 3 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 egg
• 1/4 C. bread crumbs
• Parmesan cheese
• sprinkle of dried basil and oregano
• sprinkle of garlic powder
• salt & pepper

I topped the burgers with a slice of provolone, and they were super yummy! So I figured the meatballs would be good too.

I started with a can of tomato sauce over low heat, and made cutesy little meatballs and stuck in the sauce. I covered the sauce and let it simmer.


When I tried to move the meatballs around to stir, though, all the meat decided to fall out of its pretty ball shapes. I think I maybe should have added some more bread crumbs and maybe another egg, since the condensation from defrosting seemed to make the meat moister than it had been before. So I improvised and broke up all the meat with my spoon, and just made a yummy meat sauce! Since I just used tomato sauce, I added s & p, garlic powder, and basil & oregano to taste.

This post also turned into a review of.......


The Pasta Boat!!!!

I know.

I don't usually like gadgets like these, mostly because I feel like I'm cheating and Giada would not be proud of me for cooking pasta in the microwave. But I got it at a white elephant gift exchange, and I figured I should try it out!

I tried it once before, following the direction booklet exactly. I used the proper time and water for "al dente" pasta, and apparently my definition of "al dente" was very different from that of Mr. Pasta Boat. The pasta was super mushy and flimsy. So this time I was supposed to cook my spaghetti for 16 minutes - I cut it to 10 and it was perfectly chewy. (I added it directly to my sauce after draining, so it probably cooked for another minute there).

So though it wasn't what I planned, it was pretty tasty! Add a little fresh spinach sauteed in garlic-infused evoo, and we had a yummy dinner tonight!


Hopefully you guys learn from my mistakes!!

Creamy Barley with Tomatoes and Greens

This is a recipe from Real Simple, and it is like a risotto, but with barley. We prefer barley to rice, so this has become one of our new favorite recipes!

We ate this as a meal on its own the first time. It was good for a vegetarian dish in terms of being filling, but we preferred it with some Cousin Darlene's chicken on the side.

Ingredients:

2 T. olive oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

Kosher salt and black pepper

2 cups quick-cooking barley (I used regular barley, it just has to cook for longer!)

1 28-oz can diced tomatoes, drained (I have only ever used fresh tomatoes)

1 cup dry white wine (I sub. chicken broth)

8 cups torn mustard green leaves or spinach (spinach of course!)

2 ounces Taleggio or Brie (rind removed), cut into small pieces (I just used extra Parmesan)

1/2 cup grated Parmesan (2 ounces)

Heat the oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Add the onion, 1/2 teasp. salt, and 1/4 teasp pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 6 to 8 minutes.

Add the barley, tomatoes, wine, and 2 1/2 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the barley is tender, 12 to 15 minutes (this is where it takes longer with regular barley).

Add the spinach, Taleggio, and 1/4 cup of the Parmesan and cook, stirring occasionally, until the spinach is tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Divide among bowls and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup of Parmesan.

Here is what ours looked like:

It was much prettier in natural light (sorry Becca!)

Here is the original recipe from Real Simple.