Corn Party!

Natalie Dee

Clearly I am blogging too infrequently. Here we are at another theme party and scarcely a post has passed between them. The corn party is this weekend. I decided to make Caramel Corn, for the most part because TWO servings of corn would be involved, syrup and kernels. Part of the build up to the celebration is thinking of the corniest Facebook updates possible. Since I am awfully fond of writing lyrics, I did more than was necessary. Can you name all of the bands?

I'm bringing corny back. Them mother shuckers don't know how to act. Let me make up for the maize you lack. Yeah!

Alllll I can say is that my life's a corny grain. I like watching the kernels gather maiize. And aaalll I can do is just pour some ghee for two and peek a bushel view but it's not grain. (It's not grain)

We'll make corn like a pair of black kernels! You free me from the cob You shucked the kernels out of me. Oh well, those ugly days, they made us so sick. We are just kernels now, we've learned the salt and butter trick.

The corn it sleeps alone tonight after, the cobs turn out their lights. And send the kernels swerving into the corniest evening. And I am finally seeing that I was the one worth shucking.

Well this is a corny all about chow my life got flipped turned upside down I'd like to take some butter and salt right there, I'll tell you how I became the corn of popped air.

We are the corn we are the niblets. We are the ones to make a buttery day so lets all dig in. There's a EAR we're shucking We're cobbing all our liiiiives. It's true corn will make a buttery stain falling on your tee.

Lasagna

Though my love of cheese is well established here, I must confess that what makes this lasagna so special is the sauce. Saucing your lasagna can be a tricky business. Add too much and the whole thing turns into a soupy sloppy mess, add too little and you've shortchanged the most flavorful component of your dinner. The compromise? Set aside a hearty portion of sauce to serve alongside your lasagna. 

Lasagna

1 lb hot italian sausage

1 large yellow onion chopped fine

8 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1 cup red wine

2 tsp dried oregano

1 1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

3 (28oz cans) crushed tomatoes

1 TBLSP sugar

2 eggs

1 cup parmesan 

15oz ricotta cheese

1/3 cup chopped fresh basil

2lbs mozzarella, sliced

1 lb barilla lasagna noodles (The kind that do not need to be cooked before the lasagna build.)

Remove sausage from it's casings and crumble into a large dutch oven. Use the back of a spoon to break apart sausage as you brown it over medium heat. When sausage has browned nicely remove it from the pan using a slotted spoon. Eyeball the pan, if it looks as if there is less than 1/3 cup oil left from the sausages add olive oil, or if there is more than 1/3 cup remove some of the sausage drippings. Add onions to pan and cook until translucent. Add garlic to the pan and cook for 1-2 minutes making certain that garlic does not brown. Add sausage back to the pan, along with 1 cup of red wine. Cook over medium heat, until wine has reduced in volume by half. (About 10 minutes) Add the oregano, thyme, dried basil, salt, pepper, tomatoes and sugar to the pan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally for 30 minutes. Taste the sauce and add more salt if needed. Set sauce aside.

In a medium bowl mix the eggs with the parmesan. Once combined, stir in the ricotta, then gently fold in the basil. 

Lightly grease a 9 x 13 pan* with olive oil. Coat the bottom of the pan with 1/2 cup sauce. Layer pasta, ricotta, mozzarella slices, and sauce in pan repeating until all the ricotta is gone. Create one final layer of pasta, (Coat this one lightly but completely with sauce. Any pasta that is not covered won't cook properly.) You should have quite a bit of sauce left over. Set this aside to serve with the completed lasagna) Top with a final layer of mozzarella slices and bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour. 

*If you'd like, you can make two smaller lasagnas rather than one big one. After you have cooked both lasagnas, cool one, wrap it well in foil and place in a freezer bag. The lasagna should stay fresh for 3-4 months in the freezer. Don't forget to freeze some sauce as well! To serve, defrost the lasagna completely in the fridge and then bake at 400 degrees for one hour. 

Best Day Ever

My husband's album was released on iTunes today! I can't tell you how excited I am. So many hours went into the making of this cd. Even though I have heard every note about a billion times, I still love every bit of it. It's THAT good. Check it out here. If you don't have iTunes you can also listen to a few songs at RollonRed.com.  OR just hit the big pink button. You'd be crazy not to! 

Big Three Oh

A Cheesy Post

Cheese and I? We're BFFs. Despite the fact that I am mildly lactose intolerant I make a point of including this delightful dairy bomb in every meal. I've always thought of myself as the sort of person who could never get enough cheese. I was wrong, I was beaten by a formidable foe known simply as "The Cheese Party".*
My husband travels often and the timing of his last trip couldn't have been more fortuitous, he landed at 4pm on the day of the notorious event, his suitcase packed with french cheese. The overhead bin on a transcontinental flight is not the ideal way to store perishable food so by the time we hit the party we were rocking some interesting odors. Fortunately, our friends are blessed with adventurous palates and the cheese was sampled by nearly everyone. I just couldn't do it. I love trying new things but when massive amounts of bacteria may be involved I have a really tough time forcing myself to dive in. Fortunately there were plenty of other cheese temptresses to distract me from that foul odored fare. In fact, by party's end I could not eat another piece. I even skipped my usual midnight quesadilla! I was not about to let our friendship die so first thing next AM I reunited with my favored friend, fromage. It was a rough road back, but we are besties again.

The recipe that I made for the cheese party, Baked Goat Cheese with Caramelized Onions, Garlic, and Mission Figs can be found here. I served from a crock pot so the goat cheese stayed warm and soft throughout the party. (As soon as the goat cheese cools it can be difficult to spread.) The addition of the caramelized onions and figs transform each bite with a delightful mix of salty, tangy, and sweet flavors. And at the end of a lazy Sunday, the leftovers make a lovely light dinner served with a green salad.

*Brought to you by the makers of The Potato Party

Hey look, a HOT DISH!

If you consider that my blog title is "Hot Dish" it really is incredible that it has taken me so long to post one! To be honest, the name does not refer to a midwestern style baked casserole, it is a nod to my obsession with consuming my food while it is still blazing hot. Seriously, at times I take my food right off the stove and heat it in the microwave. Especially pasta, I can't ever seem to get that stuff hot enough. Don't worry, my hubby points out how ridiculous this is on a daily basis. 

I awoke to a frigid house yesterday, one of those chills that follows you around till you beat it into submission. The heater can only do so much damage so I decided to bring the oven into play. The Final Score? Eviedee 1  Cold Ass Apartment 0

This is extremely hearty fare, the sort of thing that warms you from the inside out. The kale makes it vaguely healthy and the cheese makes it all go down nice. I would consider adding a bit more cider to the dish next time. That lovely vinegar kick got a bit lost amongst the other more assertive flavors. The original recipe can be found here. Below is the version I made. 

Potato, Kale and Kielbasa Casserole

4 large baking potatoes, peeled and cut into large, evenly sized chunks

1/4 cup butter

3/4 cup chicken broth

4 Tblsp cider vinegar

2 lbs kale course stems discarded and leaves washed

2 cups shredded sharp cheddar

1lb smoked turkey kielbasa, sliced

2 large onions, sliced lengthwise and sliced thin crosswise

Bring a medium sized pot of water to boil. Add kale to pot and cook until crisp-tender. (20 minutes). While the kale is cooking, cover potatoes with cold water in a large pot. Bring water to boil and cook until tender, drain and mash with butter, 1/2 cup of broth, vinegar, and generous amounts of salt and pepper. When kale is done cooking, drain, refresh under cold water and press out excess water. Add kale and one cup of the cheese to potato mixture and spread the mixture in a buttered 13 by 9 inch baking dish. 

Cook the kielbasa in a large skillet over medium heat. When nicely browned, spread over potato kielbasa mixture. Cook onions in the fat left in the skillet until golden. Sread cooked onions over kielbasa. Top the whole shebang with the remaining shredded cheese and broth. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes.

Domino is Dead

Damn.

When Budget Living folded I was given a subscription to Redbook. Now I will be receiving issues of Glamour which "like Domino is geared towards smart, style savvy women like you, with inspiration and tips on fashion, hair & beauty, health & diet, and sex & relationships." Uh, hello? I actually read the magazine, I have back issues, you can't expect me to believe that is a description of Domino! 

Meatfest!

I can't take any credit for this fabulous looking meal. My friend Mary (also known as the Merry Baker) has been living here in Southern California for the past three months. The poor girl's dwelling boasted beach access but no kitchen, so Mary asked if she could use mine. What she had in mind was a meal that she dubbed "Meatfest". With title like that, how could I deny her request?

We began the day with a trip to the farmers market. She wandered through the stalls until she found veggies to her liking. It was early spring so we wound up with a mix of root vegetables and some wee, tender asparagus. Since our fest was thus far lacking in meat, we made a trip to Costco for warehouse worthy steaks.  The results were simple, savory, and sublime fare that I won't soon forget.  

I dropped Mary off at the airport this week to wing her way back to Boston. Though I'll miss our talks and trips to Tall Mouse the most, Meatfest 09 is definitely reason to think fondly of my recently departed dear friend.