Stories Collected While Living in France
Tell me in the comment section, please, a new favorite stand by recipe.
A bowl of cereal, take out, nor something out of the freezer counts because I know those tricks.
What is your go to when there is nothing to go to and your hungry? Yann would say pasta with butter.
Today, I went online looking for dinner ideas and this popped up from my Moveable Feast category on my blog:
We were having dinner with our friends Vlad and Denise:
Our big change in the past year has been incorporating plant-based meat substitutes into our diet a few days a week, to re-introduce slightly revised versions of old dishes we used to like to eat before I went vegetarian (and Farmboy Husband has, mostly).
The quality and variety of plant-based meat substitutes havs really improved lately, so we’ve identified burgers, faux chicken tenders and strips, and imitation bacon strips that are as satisfying as real meat, while being made entirely of non-animal products.
This is a work-in-progress for us, as we keep experimenting. But we’re enjoying exploring something new at our age!
We do roasted garlics probably once or twice a week. Cut the garlic in half, start with butter then go to olive oil. Sea salt and pepper while cooking. Love them and there is definitely variety in taste. Serve it as a side dish with fish.
A simple recipe to make from ingredients always on hand is Spaghetti (or Linguine) Carbonara — except, as you may have inferred from my earlier post, instead of pork bacon rashers we use plant-based bacon strips (our favorite brand is MorningStar Farms), which we cut into ½” pieces, then sauté lightly.
Besides fake bacon and pasta, the other ingredients are items we always have on hand — a little chopped garlic, a bit of olive oil, white wine, beaten egg, grated Parmesan cheese, fresh or dried chopped parsley leaves, and salt and pepper to taste.
Buon appetito!
Here you go! grease a frying pan ( I use my non stick crepe pan) with a little sweet butter and a little olive oil. whisk 3 or 4 eggs and a little milk. chop or slice half an apple and gently saute til it softens, then pour the eggs over the apples and sprinkle grated gruyere or other flavorful cheese over it all, and folding the omelet when it is still slightly wet. top with a pat of sweet butter, and drizzle a little maple syrup on top. this can also be made for a crowd… really dramatic to separate the eggs and beat the whites till stiff, then brown the whole thing in the oven and watch it puff!
My newest go to…Sheet Pan Gnocchi by Maria. It is SO easy, and so yummy. https://www.foodbymaria.com/sheet-pan-gnocchi/
I use gluten free Delallo mini gnocchi, I leave out the lentils, because they are not my favorite, and add in zucchini and yellow squash. It’s easy and yummy. I hope you like it.
My other go to, is Jovial pasta (gluten free), taglietelle is my favorite, with chopped ham, grated mozzarella, parmesan, cream, whatever veggies you want to toss in (I like grated zucchini or fresh spinach), and Italian spices, salt, pepper, Aleppo pepper too. YUM. Bon Apétit!
Another go-to of ours is to make (mostly) fresh fruit salad with whatever’s in season.
The base is the one non-fresh ingredient, a quart jar of home-canned peaches (made from seconds purchased in bulk last summer at the local farmers’ market) plus assorted other fruit. Lately it’s been apples, oranges, banana and red grapes, and even a few slices that we cut up of canned pineapple left over from making a pineapple upside-down cake.
But you can improvise based on what’s available to you at a reasonable price.
Soup is my go to and it can be made with almost any leftovers, any broth or vegetable juice. “everything except the kitchen sink” as my Mother would have said! It Always starts with sautéed onions then any veggies, beans, potatoes, seasonings appropriate for the regional flavor profile desired. Spanish, Greek, Portuguese etc. Leave it to simmer as long as possible then serve with added dairy product if desired for a cream soup. Serve as is or puree into a smooth and more classic version. And always top each serving with added flavor-appropriate garnish …. and generous “chunks” of fresh crusty bread and olive oil or unsalted butter.
My go-to is polenta. I always have this on hand, as well as Parmesan.
I sometimes add grilled Bayonne ham.
Perfect Polenta
• ¾ cup water
• 1 teaspoons and ½ teaspoon fine salt
• 1 cups and ½ cup polenta
• ¼ cup and 1 teaspoons and ½ teaspoon butter, divided
• ¾ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus more for garnish
Directions
• Step 1 Bring water and salt to a boil in a large saucepan; pour polenta slowly into boiling water, whisking constantly until all polenta is stirred in and there are no lumps.
• Step 2 Reduce heat to low and simmer, whisking often, until polenta starts to thicken, about 5 minutes. Polenta mixture should still be slightly loose. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, whisking every 5 to 6 minutes. When polenta is too thick to whisk, stir with a wooden spoon. Polenta is done when texture is creamy and the individual grains are tender.
• Step 3 Turn off heat and gently stir 2 tablespoons butter into polenta until butter partially melts; mix 1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese into polenta until cheese has melted. Cover and let stand 5 minutes to thicken; stir and taste for salt before transferring to a serving bowl. Top polenta with remaining 1 tablespoon butter and about 1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese for garnish
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