Buttered Herb Noodles

This is a super quick and easy pasta side dish that goes with almost anything. If you need a simple starch to round out your meal, this goes great with pork, chicken, fish, you name it.

Just some great simple flavors at work. 

This recipe is really just a basic starting point. I don't measure anything for this, just sort of eyeball it. It's easy to make larger or smaller amounts, using this as a starting point. I've also used dried parsley instead of fresh, and swapped feta cheese for the parmesan. I'm sure there are quite a lot of great variations that could be made from this!

Buttered Noodles
From: Taste of Home
Serves: 4 (as a side dish)

You'll need:
2 1/4 c uncooked egg noodles
2 T butter, melted
2 T grated Parmesan cheese
2 t minced fresh parsley (or about 3/4 t dried)
1/4 t salt
1/4 t garlic powder
1/8 t pepper
1/4 c shredded mozzarella cheese

Cook the egg noodles according to the package directions.

While the pasta is boiling, melt your butter and chop the parsley. Drain the pasta and transfer to a serving bowl. Pour in the melted butter and stir to coat.

Add all the remaining ingredients EXCEPT the mozzarella...

... and mix well. Finally, grab a small handful of mozzarella....

... and stir it in and watch it melt.

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Bread

I absolutely love homemade breakfasts that can be prepared the afternoon or night before because, well... mornings are not my thing. I can muster the energy for oatmeal or toast on a school day, and pancakes or muffins on the weekend, but getting up at 6 to bake... Let's just say I have other gifts, and early-morning baking (or early-morning anything, really) is not on the list.

Which brings me back to bake-ahead breakfasts, like this soft, delectable pumpkin bread. I'm sure everyone has had a bad experience with some kind of quick bread: maybe a Christmas gift from a well-meaning neighbor, maybe it showed up at a pitch-in... and initial excitement gives way to disappointment as you realize it is less than flavorful, and often so dense and dry that it sucks all the moisture from your mouth. Oftentimes people cheat by throwing in chocolate chips in the hopes of resurrecting a bad recipe. (Chocolate chip banana bread... chocolate chip zucchini bread... chocolate chip pumpkin bread... You get the idea.) And while normally I'm in favor of adding chocolate to almost anything, this recipe doesn't need it. So soft, so moist, so delicious, substantial without being dense... This is what a quick bread is supposed to be.

Pumpkin Bread

From: Grandma Esther

Makes: one 9 x 5" loaf

You'll need:

1 3/4 c flour

1 t baking soda

3/4 t salt

1/4 t baking powder

1/2 t cinnamon

1/2 t ground cloves

1/3 c shortening

1 1/3 c sugar

2 eggs

1/2 can (approx. 15 oz can) canned pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling) (see note)

1/3 c water

In a small mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and cloves, and mix well. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, cream the shortening and sugar. I always think... "snow!"

With the mixer on low, blend in the eggs, pumpkin, and water, scraping sides as needed.

Add the dry ingredients by stirring them in OR using the mixer on its lowest setting for a few seconds and then finish by manually stirring. Do NOT overmix the batter.

Pour into a well-greased loaf pan and spread evenly.

Bake at 350 degrees for 55-65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry.

Cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Run a knife or thin spatula around the edges, then remove from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack.

Note: if you don't want to make two loaves at a time, just put the other half of the can of pumpkin in a resealable bag or container and freeze it. Just make sure it's thawed completely before using it to bake.

Store at room temperature in a sealed container.

Pizza Dough

This is a great recipe from my great friend, Chrissy. I use it for lots of varieties of pizza and calzones. Start to finish, it only takes about an hour, doesn't need to be kneaded (see what I did there?), and you don't need any special equipment - just measuring cups and a spoon.

It's nice and dense and always bakes great: crusty on the outside, soft on the inside.

Pizza Dough

Makes: 11x14" pizza OR 12" round pizza OR one large (family size) calzone OR 8 small calzones

You'll need:

2 t active dry yeast

1 c warm water

1 t sugar

1 t salt

2 T olive oil (or vegetable oil)

2 1/2 c flour

Dump the yeast into the warm water and let it stand for 5 minutes. Don't bother stirring, because it'll pretty much dissolve itself. After 5 minutes, it looks like this:

Stir in the sugar, salt, and oil...

... and add the flour last.

Just stir with that spoon until it comes together into a ball.

Cover the bowl with a towel and let it stand for 15-20 minutes. Time to shape the dough.

If you're using something other than a pizza stone or a good nonstick baking pan, you'll want to grease the pan. This dough is quite sticky. You can spread it by just pushing it around with the back of a metal spoon, or grease your fingers and stretch it by hand, but the best option by far is a silicone dough roller like this one from Pampered Chef. It'll roll out that dough for you in about 30 seconds.

Sometimes having a specialized tool is TOTALLY worth it.

After shaping the dough and topping your pizza or filling your calzone, bake it at 425 degrees for 15-18 minutes.

Tip: Put some cornmeal on your pizza stone or greased pizza pan/cookie sheet, then slide your rolled-out dough on top, for a great crunch to your pizza.

Baking Powder Biscuits

This is a recipe for anyone who thinks that baked goods from scratch are too much work or take too long. I have personally never been a big fan of those dinner rolls from the grocery store bakery, or those so-called biscuits that come in the exploding tube... but light, fluffy biscuits warm out of the oven? I'll take that every time. What's that you say? They're ready, start to finish, in less than 30 minutes? And all you need is a bowl, a spoon, and a floured surface?

Let's get started. 

 

Baking Powder Biscuits

From: Grandma Esther

Makes 12 

You'll need:
1 3/4 c flour, plus more for dusting
1 T sugar
2 1/2 t baking powder
3/4 t salt
3/4 c milk
1/3 c vegetable or canola oil

Mix together the dry ingredients, then stir in the milk and oil. You'll have a thick, sticky dough. I dare you not to eat some... Whenever I make biscuits, every single member of my family troops into the kitchen for a bite. It's that good.

Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface and knead lightly 10 times, adding flour to the dough and work surface as needed. If you like uniformly-shaped biscuits, try to get the dough into a roughly rectangular shape near the end of the kneading.

Useful tip: if you scatter a thin layer of flour over the dough before folding it over that tenth time, your biscuits will split apart in the middle perfectly.

Smush the edges together and push and pull until it's a rectangle (if you care), and cut the dough into 12 even pieces. Place on an uncreased cookie sheet. Don't worry if they're close together; they'll expand upward, not outward.

Bake at 425 degrees for 9-11 minutes, until the tops and bottoms are just starting to brown.

See how beautifully they split open?

Serve with butter, jam, honey, or my personal favorite... apple butter. Mmm.

One more thing: if by some strange occurrence you have leftovers, they reheat beautifully in a toaster oven for breakfast. :)

Easy Cheesy Polenta

I had never heard of polenta until I became a Food Network junkie a few years ago. Turns out, it's an incredibly easy and versatile starch that can accompany any number of delicious meals. And once you've mastered the basic technique, you can start playing with the flavors and add-ins. 

Easy Cheesy Polenta
From: adapted from Giada de Laurentis
Serves: 4-5 (see note about leftovers)

You'll need:
4 1/2 c water
1/2 T salt, plus more for seasoning
1 1/4 c polenta or yellow cornmeal
1/2 c grated parmesan cheese
3/4 c milk, room temperature
5 T butter, room temperature, cut into 1/2" pieces
3 T chopped fresh parsley
ground black pepper

Bring the water to a boil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add the salt, and reduce heat to low. Gradually whisk in the cornmeal and cook, stirring often, about 15-20 minutes, until the cornmeal is soft and the mixture is thick. Remove from heat and stir in the parmesan, milk, butter, and parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

Note about leftovers: Something happens to polenta when it cools... namely, it hardens from something like mashed potatoes to something like a hard cheese. You can reconstitute it by heating and adding some milk. However... there is a far more fun and delectable alternative.

I first had fried polenta at a Brazilian restaurant a couple years ago, and my husband and I fell in love with it. So, here's my recommendation: make a larger batch of polenta than you actually need, and before the leftovers cool, spread them evenly into a square or rectangular container. A day or two later, heat about 1/4" of oil in a shallow pan. Cut the polenta into rectangular bars about 1/2" thick. Fry them in batches about 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden brown.

Drain on paper towels and immediately sprinkle with a little salt. Serve with hot marinara or pizza sauce for dipping.

Mmm.