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 These are the best of what we've made lately.  The pot roast was to die for.  The wedding soup is yummy (I did double the pasta and added more liquid).  The fruit salsa sounds weird, but it won us second place in an appetizer competition (for the second year in a row!). 

V's Crock Pot Bottom Round Roast 
3 lbs boneless bottom round roast  
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 
1 tablespoon brown sugar 
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 
1 cup dry red wine 
2 cups beef broth 
1 large onion, coarsely chopped 
2 large carrots, coarsely chopped 
kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
Place chopped onion and carrots in bottom of crock pot. Season all sides of the roast liberally with the kosher salt and ground pepper. Place roast on top of onions and carrots, fat side down. Combine mustard, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, beef broth and red wine in a separate bowl and pour over roast. Set crock pot to low and cook for 3 hours. After 3 hours, turn the roast onto one side and cook for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, turn the roast on the next side and cook 20 minutes, repeat until the roast has the fat side on the bottom again.  Cook for about 2 more hours usually 6 hours total. The roast is done when it shreds easily with a fork. (Cook time can vary depending on size of roast and size of crock pot.)  You can remove meat, add a bit of cornstarch to thicken sauce to gravy.  Also, mushrooms are a wonderful addition.

* Recipe by VLizzle at Food.com.


Crock Pot Italian Wedding Soup
1 lb lean ground beef
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/4 cup breadcrumbs  
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped  
1 teaspoon oregano  
1 teaspoon basil  
1/2 teaspoon salt  
1/2 teaspoon pepper  
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated  
6 cups chicken stock  
1 cup boneless cooked chicken breast (baked or boiled and chopped into shreds)  
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped  
1/2 cup carrot, finely chopped  
1/2 cup celery, finely chopped  
2 cups escarole or 2 cups spinach, torn into small pieces  
2 bay leaves  
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder  
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper  
1/4 cup pastina pasta or 1/4 cup acini di pepe pasta  
parmesan cheese, for serving
Meatballs: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients together. Form into very small balls (I get approximately 90 meatballs from 1 pound ground beef. I bake mine on a nonstick cookie sheet and turn them half-way through the cooking time). Bake about 10-15 minutes, until the meatballs have browned but are still soft (watch closely). Remove from oven and drain on paper towel, if necessary. Soup: Place all of the ingredients, except the pasta and escarole or spinach, into the crock pot with meatballs. Cook on low for 8 hours (Add pasta and escarole or spinach during the last hour of cooking and salt to taste, if necessary). Remove bay leaves. Top each serving with grated parmesan or romano cheese.Note: The meatballs must be prepared before being put into the crock pot (make them the night before and put them in the refrigerator, or even keep a batch in the freezer. I basically prepare as much as I can in advance so all I have to do is just put it all in the crock pot in the morning).
* Recipe by Lainey6605 at Food.com.

Annie's Fruit Salsa & Cinnamon Chips
2 kiwis, peeled and diced
2 Golden Delicious apples - peeled, cored and diced (I did not peel)
8 ounces raspberries
1 pound strawberries
2 tablespoons white sugar (I did not add this)
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons fruit preserves, any flavor (I used apricot)
10 (10 inch) flour tortillas (whole wheat)
butter flavored cooking spray
2 tablespoons cinnamon sugar  
In a large bowl, thoroughly mix kiwis, Golden Delicious apples, raspberries, strawberries, white sugar, brown sugar and fruit preserves. Cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 15 minutes.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Coat one side of each flour tortilla with butter flavored cooking spray. Cut into wedges and arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Sprinkle wedges with desired amount of cinnamon sugar. Spray again with cooking spray. Bake in the preheated oven 8 to 10 minutes. Repeat with any remaining tortilla wedges. Allow to cool approximately 15 minutes. Serve with chilled fruit mixture.
* Recipe by Ann Page from allrecipes.com.

Orecchiette coi Broccoletti & Sauteed Fish with Radishes and Leeks

Friday, June 11, 2010
We were on vacation for a couple weeks and then spent time cleaning out the fridge/freezer to make way for our upcoming Community Supported Agriculture deliveries (a variety of fresh vegetables and herbs delivered weekly and fresh off a local farm). 

This is our first year having a share from a farm.  We received our first delivery yesterday.  Our radishes and leeks were from our CSA and that dish was one of our favorite fish creations that we have ever had.  We also had a delicious salad with nasturtiums - edible flowers!

Yesterday we also went strawberry picking and came home with 6 quarts (picked 7, but we ate that before we left!).  We have saved some for eating at home and today made the rest into Strawberry Jam.  It took some time to find a highly rated recipe that didn't have more sugar than strawberries.  We haven't tested it yet and I'm not sure that it gelled, but it looked and tasted good before freezing. 

Strawberry Jam
2 pounds fresh strawberries, hulled
4 cups white sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
In a wide bowl, crush strawberries in batches until you have 4 cups of mashed berry. In a heavy bottomed saucepan, mix together the strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice. Stir over low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to high, and bring the mixture to a full rolling boil. Boil, stirring often, until the mixture reaches 220 degrees F (105 degrees C). Transfer to hot sterile jars, leaving 1/4 to 1/2 inch headspace, and seal. Process in a water bath. If the jam is going to be eaten right away, don't bother with processing, and just refrigerate.
~ Water bath is about 10-15 minutes in boiling water for those that don't know.
 ~ To test for jelling Place three plates in a freezer... after about 10 minutes of boiling place a tsp of the liquid of the jam onto the cold plate. Return to freezer for a minute. Run your finger through the jam on the plate... if it doesn't try to run back together (if you can make a line through it with your finger) it's ready to be canned!
* Recipe from allrecipes.com.

Orechiette coi Broccoletti
1 pound broccoli florets
1/2 cup salted ricotta, grated (we don't use fresh and think it's almost as yummy).
2 cloves of garlic, minced
A small bunch parsley, minced
1/2 cup grated cheese, either all Parmigiano or half Parmigiano and half Pecorino Romano
1/4 cup olive oil
Pepper to taste (salt should not be necessary)
1 pound orecchiette or other short firm-walled pasta, e.g. farfalle (butterflies or bow ties)
Set a pot of salted water to boil. Meanwhile, wash the broccoli florets and break them up into fairly small pieces. When the water comes to a boil, throw in the pasta, stir it, and add the broccoli. While the pasta and broccoli cook, mince the parsley and the garlic, and sauté them gently in the oil, in a large skillet. Do not let the garlic brown. When the pasta is still a minute or so shy of being done, drain it and transfer the pasta-broccoli mixture to the skillet (it should still be a little moist, so don't shake all the water out of it while it's in the colander). Stir in the ricotta, season the pasta with pepper to taste, and continue cooking over high heat until the pasta's done, stirring vigorously. Transfer the pasta to a serving dish, dust it with the grated Parmigiano, and serve.
* Recipe from Kyle Phillips, About.com

Sauteed Trout with Radishes and Leeks
4 Tbsp butter
1/4 c minced shallots
2 leeks, cleaned and thinly sliced
2 bunches radishes, cleaned and sliced
2 Tbsp olive or vegetable oil
4 lake trout fillets (we had cod in the freezer, so we used that)
floru seasoned with salt and pepper
chopped fresh chives
Heat butter in skillet over medium flame; add shallots and leeks and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender.  Raise heat, add radishes, and cook quickly until barely tender; set aside. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high flame. Dredge fish fillets in flour, shake off excess flour, and place in hot pan.  Cook about 3 minutes per side.  Remove to a serving dish or individual plates and top with radish mixture.  Sprinkle with chives and serve immediately.  Makes 4 servings.
*Recipe from From Asparagus To Zucchini - Leah Caplan, The Washington Hotel

Italian Grillout

Saturday, May 15, 2010
We brought together some friends to share one of the things we miss so dearly from Italy - their grillouts.  Although we couldn't entirely recreate that experience, we shared some wonderful food and great conversation with friends. 

Everything was delicious.  I'm still on the hunt for Salsiccia (Italian Sausage) with no fennel.  The salsiccia that we ate in Northern Italy didn't have any and I'm not fond of sausage with fennel.  I found some that didn't have fennel listed, but it turned out it was still in there.  The sausage was still tasty, but after 4+ years of searching I'm still hoping to have true salsiccia that I can grill at home.

The rhubarb pie and carmelita bars were fantastic - even had people asking for the recipes.  They were both successful experiments!  The whole wheat crust is one we've been using for a few years - I'm not even sure where we found it.  It is delicious with anything.

Grilled Salsiccia
Klements Italian Sausage (I believe they were a new line that has no Nitrates and other additives)
We butterflied them (split down the middle) and put them on the grill, just as our Italian friends did!

Grilled Hot Dogs (for the kids)
Oscar Mayer Naturals

Grilled Marinated Chicken
Tossed with: Red Wine Vinegar, soy sauce, garlic salt, maple syrup, salt and pepper to taste

Grilled Marinated Veggies
2 pkgs baby bella mushrooms
colorful assortment of bell peppers
Italian oil-based dressing (we used Paul Newman's Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing)

Baked Polenta "Chips"
3 cups water
1 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup fresh Parmesan cheese
Sale Roma (an Italian spice)
Bring 3 cups water to a boil in a saucepan. Slowly pour in a continuous stream of cornmeal, stirring constantly. Add the salt. Reduce the heat to low and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the polenta begins to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 20 minutes. Shut off the heat and stir in cheese and seasoning. Working quickly, grease 13x9x2 with olive oil and pour in cornmeal mixture, spreading it out over the whole surface (the thinner you spread it the crispier it will get). Let the polenta set and cool for at least 1 hour. When the polenta has cooled completely, cut into squares. Oil both sides and arrange them on a baking sheet, leaving space around each one so that the edges can crisp. Broil on the top rack in the oven for 15 minutes, or until browned.
 
Whole Wheat Pie Crust
1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. vegetable shortening
3 tbsp. water
Mix all ingredients together with a fork. Roll out and put in pie pan. [If using crust in unbaked pie - preheat oven to 425 degrees. Prick bottom and sides and bake 10-15 minutes.]

Rhubarb Strawberry Crumb Pie
1 egg
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tsp cornstarch
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 pound fresh rhubarb, cut into 1/2 inch pieces (about 2 cups)
1 pint fresh strawberries, halved
1 (9 inch) unbaked pie shell *see above
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup quick-cooking or rolled oats
6 Tbsp cold butter
In a large mixing bowl, beat egg. Add the sugar, flour and vanilla; mix well. Gently fold in rhubarb and strawberries. Pour into pastry shell. For topping, combine flour, brown sugar and oats in a small bowl; cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over fruit. Bake at 400 degrees F for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly. Cool on a wire rack.
* Recipe from allrecipes.com by Paula Phillips 
 
Oatmeal Carmelita Bars
2 c. flour (used half white/half wheat)
2 c. oatmeal
1 1/2 c. brown sugar, firmly packed
1 tsp. baking soda
1 c. butter, softened (used Earth Balance)
1 (12 oz.) jar caramel ice cream topping (used dulce de leche sauce)
3 tbsp. flour (used wheat)
1 cup(6 oz.) chocolate chips (used dark chocolate chips)
1/2 c chopped pecans
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13x9x2 inch pan. Blend 2 cups flour, 2 cups oatmeal, 1.5 cup brown sugar, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 cup butter at low speed until crumbly. Press half (about 3 cups) into pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Combine caramel and flour, set aside. Sprinkle warm crust with chocolate chips. Drizzle caramel mixture over top; sprinkle evenly with reserved crumbs. Bake 18 to 22 minutes or until golden brown. Refrigerate 1 to 2 hours until filling sets. Cut into bars.