December « 2010 « Great Eats with Petes

Archive for December, 2010

Stuffed Mushrooms

Monday, December 27th, 2010

My mother was always in charge of the stuffed mushrooms when it came to the holidays. Whether it be Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s or Easter she made them and everyone loved them. I now had to take over that role. The first time I ever made them was for Thanksgiving at my Dads then, I made it again for Christmas and I plan on making it at some point during my New Year’s vacation to the Poconos. It makes a great appetizer for any entertaining you may be doing. They come a close second to my mom’s and I hope you all enjoy them as much as my family did this Christmas. Enjoy!

2 tablespoons Olive Oil

28-40 ounces of mushrooms (I forgot how much I used it was the big box of stuffing mushrooms that you find during the holidays at the local grocery store)

1/2 large onion minced

3 garlic cloves, minced

Salt

Pepper

2 cups white wine, separated

1 cup breadcrumbs

1/4 cup grated cheese, plus more for sprinkling

1 cup chicken stock, plus more if necessary

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large pan heat olive oil over medium heat. Remove the stems of the mushrooms and finely chop. Place the mushroom caps in a roasting pan. Add the onions and mushrooms stems to the saute pan. Cook until the onions are translucent and the mushroom stems have browned. Add in garlic and cook for one minute. Add in 1 cup of white wine. Bring to a boil and then turn off the heat. Add in breadcrumbs and grated cheese and mix to combine. This mixture will be like a paste.

Stuff the mushrooms with the stuffing. I use one to two tablespoons for each mushroom, depending on the size of the mushroom. Place the mushrooms back into the pan. Place the remaining white wine and chicken stock into the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle with grated cheese. Bake in oven until the mushrooms have browned, approximately 30 minutes. Check on the mushrooms occasionally and add in more chicken stock if it evaporates.

Serve warm or cold (warm is better) and Enjoy!

Tags: appetizer, christmas, mushrooms, new years, side, stuffed mushrooms
Posted in Recipes | 3 Comments »

Herb Roasted Turkey Breast

Saturday, December 25th, 2010

This Christmas I was not in charge of cooking yet somehow I managed to end up in the kitchen for hours. On Christmas Eve I spent the day making sauce and all the meat to go into the sauce (meatballs, short ribs and sausages). Today, on Christmas, I was put in charge of the turkey breast. You are probably wondering how did I go from not cooking to spending two days in the kitchen well, it is because my sister is quite the picky eater and I love her too much to starve. Because I love her and because she doesn’t really eat red meat I took on the last minute task of making her something she could eat. So here it is, a Herb Roasted Turkey Breast just for her. I hope you all are enjoying your holidays (or your long weekend or just your weekend). Merry Christmas!

1 whole bone in turkey breast, patted dry

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon dried mustard

1 teaspoon dried rosemary

1 teaspoon dried sage

1 teaspoon dried thyme

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons yellow onion, finely minced (or shallot)

4 tablespoons butter, softened

1 cup white wine

1 cup chicken broth

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a small bowl combine the mustard, rosemary, sage, thyme, salt, pepper, onions and butter. Stir with a fork to combine. Gently loosen the skin of the turkey breast using your fingers. Then place some of the butter mixture under the skin. Rub the remaining butter all over the turkey breast.

Season cavity with salt and pepper. Place turkey breast on a roasting rack in a roasting pan. Pour the wine and chicken stock into the bottom of the roasting pan.

Roast turkey in the oven for 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours or until a thermometer reads 165 degrees F and the skin is golden brown. If the skin browns too quickly cover with some aluminum foil. Allow to rest for at least 15 minutes before carving. Serve and enjoy!

Tags: dinner, entree, herb roasted, roasted turkey, roasted turkey breast, turkey, turkey breast
Posted in Recipes | 3 Comments »

Chocolate Dipped Marshmallows

Thursday, December 23rd, 2010

Chocolate and marshmallows are two of my favorite things. I always look forward to a holiday (not just Christmas) because I can always find a chocolate covered marshmallow in a shape representing that season (my personal favorite is the heart at Valentine’s Day, because it is probably the best way to my heart). So this year I decided to make my own. I added it into the gift baskets for my coworkers but hid my own stash for my own personal consumption. The chocolate hardens on top of the marshmallow adding a nice contrasting texture to the soft marshmallow. Since the marshmallow is only dipped in chocolate it is not overly sweet either. I loved them so much (I actually need to make more because I am running low) and I hope you enjoy them too!

12 oz of your favorite chocolate (I used dark chocolate chips)

2 bags of large marshmallows

Dusting sugar(s)

Additional Equipment: double boiler, parchment paper, baking sheet

Place chocolate in a double boiler (or a heat proof bowl over simmering water, make sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water). Stir the chocolate occasionally until the chocolate is melted and smooth.

Dip the marshmallow top in the melter chocolate. Allow excess chocolate to drip off the top. Then dip it in the dusting sugar. Place it on a baking sheet covered in parchment paper with the chocolate facing up. Continue until all marshmallows are dipped in chocolate and sugar. Allow to chocolate to harden. (Do not put it in the refrigerator the marshmallows will become hard.)

Pop them in your mouth and Enjoy!

Tags: chocolate, chocolate marshmallow, christmas treat, dessert, marshmallow, sweet, sweets
Posted in Recipes | 2 Comments »

Chocolate Lollipops

Tuesday, December 21st, 2010

My coworker and I decided to make homemade gift baskets for our nurses and patient care techs. We wanted to thank them for all the hard work they do all year round and all the help they give us. There’s no better way to say thanks than with some homemade goodies. These chocolate lollipops are just one of the many things we made for them. These lollipops can be decorated for any season, not just Christmas. Here I used white, red and green dusting sugar as well as some snowflake sprinkles, although really you can use any color you want or any type of topping. They are also really easy and quick to make and no molds are required. It a great gift for your co-workers or as a favor at a party and also a real stress free way to do something special at this very stressful time of year. Enjoy!

16 ounces chocolate, I used a mixture of dark chocolate and semisweet, but use your favorite

Double boiler

Sprinkles or your favorite toppings

Parchment paper or silicon baking sheets to cover your baking sheets

24 lollipop sticks

24 Treat bags (for storage)

Place chocolate in a double boiler (or a heat proof bowl over simmering water, make sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water). Stir the chocolate occasionally until the chocolate is melted and smooth.

Then using a spoon, pour about 1- 1 1/2 tablespoons of chocolate onto the lined baking sheets, making a round lollipop shape as you pour. Then take the lollipop stick and place it in the center of the chocolate mound and roll the stick so it gets covered in the chocolate (don’t put the stick all the up to the top of the mound, place it from the middle down). Sprinkle with your favorite topping. Once you fill up a sheet place it in the fridge to harden, approximately 20-30 minutes.

Cover with treat bags and give to your friends, Enjoy!

Tags: chocolate, chocolate lollipop, christmas treat, lollipop, lollipops
Posted in Recipes | 1 Comment »

Meatloaf

Tuesday, December 14th, 2010

I am always surprised at how much my appetite, well, cravings change when it gets cold out. I definitely crave more hearty home cooked meals this time of year. It is freezing here in NYC tonight, it is so windy that my eyes teared and burned from walking just a half a block and continued to burn for at least 20 minutes after I got into the warmth. Tonight definitely called for one of those hearty meals and I was craving meatloaf. I had never made meatloaf until tonight. Yes I have had it before, my mom made it regularly for us but I never wanted to make it myself until tonight. I unfortunately never had my mother’s recipe for it either so I searched on the Internet for the closest thing I could find and it was an Ina Garten recipe that I finally settled on. So I adapted it to make it like my mom’s. Next time I will add some tomato sauce to the top so the bacon sticks more. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did and that you stay warm this evening!

Adapted from Ina Garten

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 1/2 onions, diced

Salt

Pepper

1/4 teaspoon thyme

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/3 cup beef broth

1 tablespoon tomato paste

3 tablespoons Worcestershire

2 1/2 pound ground beef

2 eggs

1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs

Cooking Spray

6 slices of bacon

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Heat olive oil over medium heat. Add in onions. Season with thyme, salt and pepper. Cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add in garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes, until fragrant. Turn off heat and add in beef broth. Then add in tomato paste and Worcestershire sauce.

In a large bowl add in the ground beef. Then add in the eggs. Next add in the breadcrumbs. Season with salt and pepper. Lightly mix to combine. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray or parchment paper. Turn out the meat mixture on the baking sheet (It will be a very wet mixture) and form into a loaf. Top with the bacon slices. Cook in oven for approximately and hour or until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F. If the bacon is not crispy turn on the broiler, without walking away, broil the bacon until crisp.