Category: Special Occasions
Roast Steelhead with Citrus & Olives over Saffron Risotto
| November 1, 2010 | Filled under Fish and Seafood, Lent, Risotto, Shawn's Favorites, Sides, Special Occasions |
Welcome to the party! Today’s recipe is part of November’s Kitchen Play Progressive Party – a fun, new series where once a month, six bloggers are assigned a course and tasked with using a featured product to create an original recipe. This month’s sponsor isLindsay Olives and I’m serving up a delicious entrée of steelhead trout roasted with rosemary, orange, and olives over saffron risotto.
When the folks over at Lindsay asked which olives I would be interested in trying out, I was immediately drawn to their Naturals line, which are processed without artificial colors, preservatives, or other yucky stuff. These olives are pretty much as simple as you can get – the only ingredients listed on the can are olives, water, and salt! The olives themselves are meaty and buttery, with a smooth flavor that lends itself well to cooking.
I knew that I wanted to do something different with these olives than a typical tapenade and that I wanted them to be featured prominently in the entrée that I created. Since I loved the braised olives in Sally Bee’s Moroccan Chicken, I wanted to try another preparation in which the olives were served warm. I decided to keep things simple by roasting them along with a few other ingredients and serving it over risotto (my motto: when all else fails, make risotto) and I couldn’t have been happier with how this entrée turned out. Roasting the olives brought out their natural sweetness, and they paired perfectly with the fatty fish and bright citrus. This is a dish that I would happily serve to dinner guests (real or virtual) and that I look forward to making again!
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Cassoulet with White Beans, Sausage & Turkey
| October 10, 2010 | Filled under Fall, French, Shawn's Favorites, Special Occasions, Winter |
I don’t know how I managed to make it through 20-some years of life without trying cassoulet, but I have a feeling I’ll eat enough this fall and winter to make up for it. I made the one pictured here about two weeks ago, and I’ve been dying to have it again ever since. I actually have another one in the oven as I write this post.
Don’t let the fancy French name scare you off. When it comes down to it, cassoulet is nothing more than a white bean and tomato stew. A fragrant sauce flavored with fresh herbs cooks quickly on the stove before being mixed with the rest of the ingredients and baking in the oven. It’s pure stick-to-your-ribs comfort food full of rich and delicious flavors typical of the French countryside.
This dish takes a little longer to make than most of my recipes, requiring about 20 minutes of active time and an hour or so in the oven, but with a little planning it can definitely be made on a weeknight. Go ahead and make a big batch — it tastes even better the next day.
Traditional cassoulet uses duck or goose confit, but since that can be difficult to find (not to mention expensive!) I’ve taken the liberty of using turkey instead. I like the flavor that using some poultry gives the cassoulet, but you can leave it out and use only sausage just as easily.
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Cassoulet with White Beans, Sausage & Turkey
Carrots add a subtle sweetness to the rich tomato sauce that flavors this dish and lemon zest mixed with the breadcrumbs on top adds a nice burst of bright flavor! Who new a simple bean stew could taste so decadent?
- 2 links sweet Italian sausage, cut into rounds
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 ounce proscuitto, chopped (about 4 slices)
- 1 carrot, diced
- 6 plum tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary, chopped
- 2 springs fresh thyme, chopped
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 can Great Northern beans (or similar white beans)
- 4 ounces roasted turkey, chopped (dark meat is best)
- 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
- 1 Tbs lemon zest
- 1 Tbs olive oil
Preheat oven to 350.
Place a heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook through. Remove the sausage, leaving the drippings in the pan. Add the garlic and onion and cook in the sausage drippings until they begin to soften — about 5 minutes. Add the proscuitto and carrot and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, rosemary, thyme, and pepper flakes. Cook, stirring occasionally to help break down the tomatoes, for about 10 minutes. Stir in the beans.
Spoon half of the tomato and bean mixture into a 3 quart casserole dish or dutch oven. Scatter the turkey and sausage over it, then top with the remaining beans. Sprinkle the bread crumbs and lemon zest over the top, then drizzle with olive oil.
Bake for 60 minutes, or until the sauce is thick and the bread crumbs have browned (if necessary, you can put it under the broiler for 5 minutes at the end to help brown the breadcrumbs). Let sit for 15 minutes prior to serving.
Serves 6.
*****
Things are still crazy at work, so posting may be slow for the next month. I’ll try to post at least one new recipe a week though! If anyone is interested in contributing a guest post (a great way to share a favorite recipe if you don’t have a blog!) email me!
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