Thyme and Caramelized Onion Pizza

1 Tbs Olive Oil
2 medium Vandalia onions, sliced
3 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp fresh garlic, minced
tomato sauce (optional)
1 large ball fresh mozzarella, sliced

If you have a pizza stone, place it in the oven.  Preheat your oven to 425.

Stretch the pizza dough to form a roundish pizza on a piece of parchment paper.  Allow it to rest while you prepare the toppings.

Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and stir until it begins to turn golden (about 1 minute).  Add the onions, and stir regularly until they begin to caramelize and turn golden brown, about 30 minutes.  Turn off the heat and stir in thyme, salt and pepper.  Taste and adjust seasonings.

To assemble the pizza, pour the tomato sauce onto the pizza dough.  If you prefer a white pizza, brush the dough with olive oil.  Arrange the mozzarella in slices over the sauce followed by the onions.  Slide the pizza onto the hot stone in your preheated oven.  Bake for 20 minutes until the cheese is bubbling and the crust is brown.

Recipe Notes: If you want to skip a step, buy pre-made dough.  I haven't tried it, but I have heard that Whole Foods makes really good frozen pizza dough.  This pizza would also be delicious with goat cheese instead of the mozzarella cheese.  If you use goat cheese, however, don't use tomato sauce!

peeled peaches

Bring a large pot of water to boil.  Prepare a second pot of ice water.  Score the bottom of the peaches and add, in batches, to the boiling water.  Boil the peaches for 30 seconds and immediately place in the pot of ice water.  When cool, peel (the skin should easily come off).  Slice the peeled peaches.

Combine the peaches with the remaining ingredients in another pot.  Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook for 5 minutes.  The peaches should be soft, but not mushy.  Allow the peaches to cool completely in the syrup.

Recipe variations:

Peaches in Vanilla Syrup: replace the brown sugar with white sugar.  Instead of the spices, add 1 vanilla bean before you cook the peaches.  After the peaches have completely cooled, take a sharp knife and scrape the inside of the vanilla bean.

Peaches in Maple Syrup: Replace the brown sugar with maple sugar.  Proceed as directed.

Recipe notes:  These peaches are delicious alone, over ice cream, or with yogurt and granola.  They freeze beautifully (which is always good in the middle of the winter when you crave a little bit of summer).  Also, these peaches are not overly sweet--if you prefer sweeter cooked peaches, add additional sugar.

pasta with wild mushroom sauce

1 lb spaghetti or linguini

Heat a Dutch over or a large pot over medium-high heat.  Add the ground beef and stir regularly until the beef loses its raw appearance.  Add the onion and garlic.  Cook for about 12 minutes, until the onion is translucent and tastes sweet.  Add the salt and pepper.  Carefully add the wine to the pot and stir to deglaze the bottom of the pot.  Cook for about 4 more minutes so that the wine begins to reduce.  Add the tomatoes, oregano, mushrooms, and bay leaves.  Bring the sauce to a simmer and then reduce the heat to maintain a consistant, gentle simmer.  Cook the sauce for 1 hour until it is thick and flavorful.  Taste and adjust seasonings.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Add plenty of kosher salt and the pasta.  Cook until the pasta is al dente.  Toss the pasta in the sauce and sprinkle with plenty of freshly grated parmesan and the basil.

Recipe notes:  I used a mixture of crimini and porcini mushrooms, but really any combination will do.  You could also use fresh mushrooms, although I would still add the dried mushrooms to give the sauce a depth of flavor.  If you use fresh mushrooms, chop the mushrooms and add the mushrooms after you cook the onion and the garlic.  The mushrooms will release a lot of water, so make sure the onions and the garlic are cooked before you add the fresh mushrooms.  You can also make this sauce ahead of time and then reheat it when you are ready to eat.  If you have leftovers, it freezes beautifully.

Grilling the Chops

Combine all of the above ingredients, except for the lamb.  Trim the extra fat from the lamb chops and add them to the marinade.  Marinade the chops for 2-4 hours.  Light the grill (I always use charcoal because I prefer the flavor).  Grill the lamb chops over high heat for 4-6 minutes per side, depending on thickness.  If using charcoal, you should be able to see red embers.  Allow the meat to rest for 10 minutes before you serve it.  Drizzel with aged balsamic vinegar and enjoy!

For the Gazpacho:

4-5 medium sized tomatoes, quartered
3 medium cucumbers, peeled and quartered
1/2 orange pepper, quartered
1/2 yellow pepper, quartered
1 small sweet onion, quartered
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp fresh thyme ( I love thyme, but tarragon or basil would be great substitutes)
1/2 tsp fresh oregano (don't use oregano if you use tarragon instead of thyme)
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2-1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Combine all of the ingredients in a blender and puree for about 30 seconds.  Resist the urge to overly puree the soup--it should be a little bit chunky.  Taste and adjust the seasoning.  Allow to chill for at least 2 hours.  serve with crosatini (recipe is below) or croutons.  It is also delicious with lump crab meat or smoked salmon or trout.  Thanks to the acidic nature of the soup, it will last in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Recipe notes: I have a very powerful blender (a Vitamix.  I love it).  If your blender is not as powerful, you may need to peel the tomatoes.  Don't worry, this is easy. core the tomatoes and, using a knife, make an "x" in the bottom of the tomato.  Submerge the tomato in boiling water for about 30 seconds (you should see the skin peeling away) and then immediately submerge it in ice water.  The skin should easily peel off.  Squeeze the tomato to remove the seeds.  Even if you do have  a powerful blender, you may find the tomato seeds bitter.  If so, follow this step.

If you find this soup too thick, add some tomato juice.  Just be careful not to make the soup too salty.  Store bought tomato juice is very high in sodium.

For more information, see the blog post "Eating for Three."

For the Crosatini:

1 Loaf French bread, sliced
olive oil
aged goat cheese ( l used the Cherry Clen Crottin.  it's delicious)

Move a rack to the uppermost shelf in your oven and turn on the broiler.  Lay the bread in a single layer on a baking sheet or broiling pan and lightly drizzle or brush both sides with olive oil.  toast the bread for about 30 seconds per side until the edges are golden brown.  Grate some goat cheese over one side of the crosatini and return to the broiler for 10 seconds.

Recipe Notes:  If you don't like goat cheese, parmesan cheese would be a great substitute.  

Roasting the Red Pepper on Top of the Stove

Wash the peppers.  Place the peppers directly over a gas burner or under the broil.  As the skin blackens, rotate the pepper.  Continue rotating until the skin of the pepper is black.  Place the pepper under running cold water to remove the skin.  Cut pepper in half and remove the stem and the seeds.

Place all of the ingredients into a blender.  Blend until smooth. 

Recipe Notes: This pesto is delicious sauce for pasta or gnocchi.  It is also a great marinade for chicken or fish.  For more information see, "I hate Potatoes."

Chicken Soup always makes me feel better!

Put all of the ingredients into a large Dutch oven.  Add just enough water to cover the chicken by 1/2 inch.  Bring to a simmer uncovered.  Skim the foam off the top of the soup.   Continue to simmer covered for about 1 1/2 hours until the lima beans are tender.  Taste and adjust salt and pepper.  Remove the satchel of herbs.  Serve with egg noodles and enjoy!

Recipe Notes: It's important not to add too much water.  This soup is even better the next day.  Refrigerate Soup--the fat will float to the top and solidify.  Once this happens, you can skim it off the top of the soup.  For more information see, "A Perfect Day For Chicken Soup."

Golden Cornbread

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Combine the flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt.  In a separate bowl, combine the milk, maple syrup, butter and eggs.  Add the liquid to the dry ingredients and stir, just to combine.  Place in a greased 9 inch round baking pan.  Bake for 20-25 minutes until a cake tester comes out clean.

Recipe notes:Do not over stir!!!!  Even if the batter looks lumpy, this is ok.  I use "grade C" maple syrup.  It's hard to find, but has a very distinct maple flavor.  Even with the maple syrup, this cornbread is not very sweet.  I also always weigh the flour and cornmeal instead of using measuring cups--it allows for more accurate measurements!

Buffalo Chili with Maple Cornbread

Heat a large dutch oven over medium high heat.  Add the buffalo meat, and cook for about five minutes.  Add garlic, onions, and peppers and cook, stirring occasionally, for about five minutes.  Add cinnamon, garlic, nutmeg, cloves, salt, pepper, and tomato paste.  cook for about a minute until you can smell the spices and the tomato paste turns brown.  Add the beer and stir to deglaze the bottom of the pan.  Add the tomatoes, beans, and bay leaf.  bring to a steady simmer.  Cover, and adjust the heat to maintain a steady simmer.  Cook for an hour.  Remove lid and allow the chili to reduce.  Cook for another hour until the beans are tender.  Serve with cheddar cheese and maple cornbread.

Recipe Notes: You can beef or turkey if you don't want to use buffalo.  If you are a vegetarian, eliminate the meat and use a soy substitute.  Make sure you use chipoltle chili powder--it adds an amazing smoky flavor to the dish.  The chili freezes beautifully.  I prefer dried beans, but you can of course use canned beans (I would use 2 26 oz cans).  Just make sure you rinse the canned beans before adding them to the chili.  For more information see, "Celebrating The Last Day of Summer."

Lamb and Mushroom Moussaka

Slice the Eggplant into 1/4 inch slices.  Place the eggplant in a colander and season each layer of slices generously with salt.  Place the colander in a sink and allow the eggplant to drain for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Rinse the salt off of the eggplant and blot dry. Brush 2-3 baking trays with olive oil.  Place the eggplant onto baking trays and place into the oven.  Bake for 10 minutes, flip the slices, and then bake for an additional ten minutes.  Remove from oven and reserve.

Heat a large dutch oven over medium heat.  Add the lamb and cook until the lamb begins to release its juices.  Add garlic and onion, and cook for about five minutes until the onions begin to get translucent.  Add the mushrooms and cook for another five minutes.  Add the cinnamon, cloves, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, and nutmeg and cook for about 30 seconds until you can smell the spices.  Pour the wine into the pan and stir well, scraping the bottom of the pan.  Add the tomatoes, bay leaf, and thyme.  Bring to a simmer, but do not let the sauce boil (you may need to reduce the heat).  Simmer uncovered for 45 minutes, until the sauce is thick and flavorful.  Remove the bay leaf.  Taste and add salt and pepper if necessary.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Place a layer of eggplant into a casserole dish, followed by all of the lamb and mushroom sauce, followed by the rest of the eggplant.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.  Add the flour and stir constantly until the butter/flour mixture changes color and turns the shade of caramel.  Slowly add the milk and whisk until smooth.  Cook until the mixture has the consistency of mayonnaise.  stir in the nutmeg (if desired) and parmesan cheese.  Pour Bechemel sauce over the eggplant.

Place the Moussaka in the hot oven and bake for about 45 minutes until the bechemel sauce begins to turn brown.  Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes before slicing.

Recipe Notes: Salted the eggplant is supposed to remove some of the bitterness.  I don't know if this is true; maybe I will experiment next time and skip this step.  Make sure you thoroughly rinse the eggplant.  I forgot to once and the resulting dish was way too salty.  I don't peel the eggplant--the skin has lots of nutrients and tastes delicious. I use a mixture of mushrooms from the farm market, but the sauce is so flavorful on its own that regular white mushrooms or crimini mushrooms will work fine.  The Moussaka freezes beautifully and can be reheated in the oven or the microwave.  For more thoughts on moussaka, see the blog post "Luck."

Vegetarian Option: Omit the lamb and use two pounds instead of one pound of mushrooms.  Add 2 Tbs of Olive Oil to the Dutch Oven before you add the garlic and onions.