Sweet Serendipity
Sorry we’ve been under such a construction/transition period as I’ve graduated college and started life back home in New York!
-> late this month: Medical Brigade 2015
TCC is retiring, but will return soon for a more wine-focused experience at:
❤ stay tuned.
_B
SQUIRE FOODS, inc.
-B
Every one who’s eaten italian with me knows one thing: I LOVE PASTA! Especially baked pasta. lasagna and baked ziti are my two favorite things in the world. (Del Posto’s 100 layer lasagna, any one?!) So with my new “lifestyle” (going to the gym 6 days a week, eating a pretty- lenient but still hard for me because I love dessert If It Fits Your Macros (IIFYM) diet– I really wanted to find a way to make a leaner baked ziti that wouldn’t feel like a cheat, but still have the cheesy goodness we all love so much- especially in below 0 weather that we get to enjoy here in Ithaca for months on end!
Here’s my easy recipe for 6, with the macros attached to it- & yes, it really is just 341 calories per serving!!!
Ingredients
Beef – Ground, 95% lean meat / 5% fat, ( 10 oz )
Wegman’s – Whole Wheat Pasta – Penne, 3 cup
Wegmans – Organic Baby Spinach — Triple Washed, 2 cups (85g)
Ricotta Cheese – Fat Free, 1 cup<
Wegmans – 2% Milk Mozzarella Cheese, 1 cup
Tuttorosso – New World Style Tomato Puree, 1 container (3 3/10 cups ea.)
Goya – Adobo (With Pepper), 1 tsp (1g)
To Make
Preheat Oven to 350 degrees
Brown meat in pan (do not add fat, the 5% fat is enough!) and boil pasta.
Add spinach to the meat, to wilt the spinach slightly
Stir all ingredients together (use only 1/2 cup mozarella!)
Put mixture in 9×9 square (or similar) oven pan
Top mixture with the remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella
Bake for 25 minutes, and allow to cool before cutting!
Enjoy!
Live long.
B
Flyer for our management night
Happy new year! It wasn’t a resolution, but over winter break I have designed a healthy eating plan for myself, and have been exercising/lifting weights. I am feelings great, and am now a firm believer that one does not need to eat bland to eat well. Clean eating is enjoyable, and you feel so much better physically from eating this way that I don’t know if i’ll ever go back to not being more conscious of what I consume on a day to day basis. Here’s one of my go-to recipes when I want a fulfilling and flavorful meal.
Stuffed Peppers
Enjoy!
B
While in NYC for the Hotel show, we had the honor of enjoying a [5 hour] meal at Aquavit on 55th Street. In addition to the aquavit [flavor infused vodkas] we had amazing wine pairings, and got a tour of the property following our meal. The service was amazing, and we met a fellow CIA-graduate [I’m doing the joint degree program with Cornell’s Hotel School] who we got to share our experiences regarding school, career choices, etc. with.
I had the opportunity to go visit a friend in Istanbul, Turkey last month- an ate my way through the city [within days]
Being Israeli, a lot of the food in Turkey is similar- though there are so many amazing, unique dishes and flavor profiles that don’t come close to anything I’ve seen before. It was very interesting to experience them, and try so much in such a short time.
I’ve been trying my luck with Simit since I’ve left- but no luck thus far! Lokma cafe was definitely my favorite- probably because I loved breakfast more than anything else. Kaymak is a clotted-cream and honey mixture that is eaten during that time, usually with a bread such as Simit. For me, it is the perfect start to a day!
Happy Travels!
B
Nothing goes better with a good juicy porterhouse than creamed spinach. Sick of the typical spinach and cream- I made a bacon’d out spinach [this bath eventually had chopped clams thrown in and then re-added into the shell and baked for a end-of-july baked ‘stuffy’
Easy Bacon Creamed SpinachTo make:
in a saucepan, melt down and slightly brown a stick butter, adding about half a cup of onion and garlic, cooking until fragrant
add flour, stirring regularly, allow to cook briefly, then whisk in the heavy cream [i usually add a dash of nutmeg here]
cook and stir over low/med heat until thickened
in the bacon fat, sauté spinach down, and then add to the cream mixture stirring in pernod if desired
add salt & pepper to the taste
Cheers!
B
I made this very simple and delicious meal for my mom, and while I wont be divulging my risotto recipe just yet, Chicken Francese is a perfect dish whether for date night or for a tuesday night pick me up. It can be served over pasta, and modifying the quantity is easy.
Ingredients
Flour (season with salt & pepper!)
Eggs, beaten
Chicken Cutlets, Boneless, Skinless and Thin
Lemons: 1 lemon sliced, 2 juiced
Pinot Grigio or other white wine (optional)
Chicken Stock
Butter
Parsley, chopped
Salt & (white) Pepper
Oil (canola is fine)
To Make
Heat oil in a sauté pan
Dredge the Chicken Cutlets in seasoned flower, and then dip in eggs
reduce heat to medium, and cook chicken until golden, about 5 minutes on each side
remove chicken, and hold in aluminum foil while you make the sauce
In the remaining oil, place slices on sauté pan, and cook until fragrant, hold on top of chicken cutlets in aluminum foil
deglaze with wine and/or chicken stock (3/4 cup white wine & 1 3/4 cup stock, for 2 1/2 cups of liquid total), bring to a simmer and reduce by 3/4
Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 a stick of butter, and lemon juice
Serve sauce over chicken, and sprinkle chopped parsley on top.
*Recommended wine pairings: Pinot Grigio, Pouilly-Fuisse, Sauvignon Blanc, or Champagne*
Enjoy!
-B
I love entertaining, and am always thinking of new ways to incorporate favorite ingredients to make dinner menus. This time around, we made a mozarella, spinach, and ricotta cheese stuffed chicken breast. The top marinade is parsley, garlic, oil, sale, and pepper- simple, and delicious! (If you’re uncomfortable fabricating chicken, you can buy boneless skinless breasts, and roll up the filling inside a roulade)
Stuffed, Roasted Chicken
To make:
The stuffed chicken breasts go well with just about anything. I served them with green beans, and mashed potatoes (mostly because that was what I was in the mood for)
-B
TheCoutureCook 
