Linguica & Potato Stew in the Crockpot

Linguica is a very flavorful Portugese sausage. This stew is very hearty and filling.

Ingredients


6 slices of turkey bacon
1 Tb extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion sliced
2 cloves of garlic chopped
12 oz linguica sliced
1 1/2 lb potatoes cubed
4 zucchini sliced
16 oz tomato sauce
1/2 cup red wine
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 Tb dried basil

Method

• Cook the bacon, I do mine in the microwave. Crumble and place in crockpot.
• Use the olive oil, cook the onion and garlic over medium heat, until translucent. Place in crockpot.
• Add linguica to the pan and brown. Place in the microwave.
• Add the rest of the ingredients to the crockpot, stir, cover and cook on High for 4-5 hours or until potatoes are tender.
  
  
  

Bigos (Polish Stew)

This is a Polish stew. It is very heart and perfect for a fall or winter dinner.

Ingredients
1/4 cup dried mushroom
1 cup pitted prunes
8 ounces lean pork
16 ounces chuck steaks
8 ounces kielbasa or any other Polish sausage
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 onions, sliced
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup dry madeira wine
2 lbs sauerkraut, rinsed
4 tomatoes, chopped
4 cloves
1 cinnamon stick (2-in piece)
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon dried dill
2 1/2 cups stock
1 1/2 lbs sweet or regular potatoes
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper

Method

• Cover prunes and dried mushrooms in boiled water. Let stand for 30 minutes then drain.
• Cut all meats into 1-inch cubes, put in a ziploc bag, add the flour, close the bag and shake.
• Saute the onions in the oil until soft. Remove.
• Add the meat and brown in batches. Remove and set aside. Add the wine and simmer for 2 minutes stirring.
• Return the meat to the pan with the onion, sauerkraut, tomatoes, cloves, cinnamon, bay leaves, dill, mushrooms and prunes. Pour in the stock and season with salt and pepper.
• Bring to a boil, lower the heat, cover and simmer for 1 1/2 - 2 hours. Uncover for the last 20 minuntes to let the liquid evaporate.
• In the meantime, peel and cut the potatoes into 1-in cubes. Boil them in water until tender, drain and toss with parsley.
• Add potatoes to bowl and top with the stew, sprinkle with parsley.

Upside-Down Pineapple Cake

Ingredients
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup canola oil (can use 1/4 cup to make it lighter)
1 Tb white vinegar
1 (20 oz) can pineapple slices (in unsweetened juice)
7 cherries
1/4 cup brown sugar (not packed)

Method

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Arrange pineapple slices on the bottom of a 12-inch spring form pan. Place a cherry in the middle of each pineapple ring. Sprinkle with the brown sugar.
• Mix flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.
• Pour juice off pineapple can into a measuring cup, add water to make 1 cup. Add to the pineapple juice mix, oil and vinegar.
• Mix wet ingredients into the dry ingredients (don't overmix). Dump the mix into the spring form.
• Bake for 38-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
• Let cool for 20 minutes, loosen sides of ring using a knife or a spatula. Remove ring. Flip cake onto a serving plate and remove bottom.

Easy Marble Cake with Rich Ganache Frosting

I admit it, I do use sometimes cake mixes, I apologize to the universe for that, but hey it makes my life easier.

This cake is very rich and the frosting is decadent. Save it for a special occasion.

Ingredients
Cake
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 (18 ounce) box yellow cake mix
4 large eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Icing
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup butter (I use I can't Believe it is not butter light)
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups powdered sugar

Method
Cake

• Preheat oven to 375.
• Spray Bundt cake with non-stick.
• Microwave chocolate with 20-30 sec intervals. Stir and repeat until most of the chocolate is melt but not all (usually takes 1 minute). I usually do not let it melt completely, which creates a nice effect in the cake.
• Combine cake mix, eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream, vegetable oil, sugar and water. Beat on high for around 3 minutes.
• Stir third of the batter into the melted chocolate, mix well.
• Spread half of the vanilla batter in the pan, then the chocolate batter and then the rest of the vanilla batter. Swirl the batters with a butter knife to create the marble effect.
• Bake for 35-40 minutes, cool for 20 minutes in pan, remove from pan and cool completely.

Icing

• Melt the chocolate and butter (you can do this in the microwave as well, but be careful).
• Cool the mix for 5-10 minutes, add sour cream and then the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time. Spread the icing on the cake when it has cooled completely.

Fancy Asparagus Tart

This is so impressive, yet easy. The individual tarts can be used as lunches or divided in half for appetizers.

Ingredients
1 (15 ounce) can white beans (I like to use butter beans)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup raw cashews
1 teaspoon dry basil
1 teaspoon prepared mustard
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice or lime juice
1-2 tablespoon rice milk
3/4 lb fresh asparagus
1 sheet puff pastry

Method

• Defrost 1 sheet of frozen puff pastry (usually this takes 40 minutes at room temperature).
• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Drain and rinse the beans. Clean the asparagus, trim their tough ends and cut them in half.
• Add all ingredients, except for the asparagus and puff pastry, to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until everything is nice and smooth. You might need to use more or less rice milk depending on the consistency you want.
• Lay a parchment paper on top of a cookie sheet. Spread the puff pastry on it (you can roll it a bit if you want to). Cut the pastry sheet into 4 equal pieces.
• Spread your bean mix on top of the pastry leaving a 1/2 inch border on all sides. Top with the asparagus halves.
• Bake the individual tarts for 22-24 minutes.