Cream of Mushroom Soup

Serves Four

10 oz chopped baby portabella mushrooms

8 oz white mushrooms

1 small onion, diced

1 small carrot, diced

1/4 stalk celery, diced

4 cups chicken or vegetable stock

Black pepper to taste

1 large bay leaf

4 fresh sprigs of thyme (leaves only)

1 tsp paprika

1 oz sherry

2 tbsp flour or corn starch

3 cups low fat milk

1 tbsp olive oil

Heat oil in a medium size soup pot.

Add the onions, carrots and celery and simmer for four minutes.

Remove from the fire and stir in the paprika, pepper and thyme. 

Return to the fire and add the stock and bay leaf.

Simmer for 20 minutes then remove from fire.

Remove bay leaf and puree the mixture, either in a blender or with a hand held immersion blender. (Be careful of the hot mixture).

Return blended mixture to the fire and add the milk.

Bring to a simmer.

Mix the sherry and flour in a cup until all lumps are gone. 

Add this to your soup and simmer for another four minutes.

Side note: During serving, I garnished each portion with a teaspoon of low fat sour cream.

To remove most of the saturated fat and still keep the creamy appearance of cream in your cream soup, I used a fat free milk like Smart Balance. You can also use evaporated skim milk, but this tends to burn if not consistently stirred while simmering.

Steak Pizzaiola

Serves Six

6 pieces beef short ribs (Flanken cut) approximately 6-7 inches long

1 clove garlic, chopped fine

1 28 oz can petite cut diced tomatoes in juice

6 oz red wine

12 oz chicken or beef stock

Fresh chopped herbs (10 sprigs of chives, 2 thyme stems, 3 basil leaves, 2 oregano stems,2 tsp parsley and 2 sage leaves).

Ground smoked black pepper to taste

3 tbsp olive oil

On a sheet of parchment paper, season the short ribs with ground pepper on both sides.

In a large lasagna pan, add the can of diced tomatoes. 

Evenly sprinkle the herbs over the tomatoes.

Heat large sauté pan.

When the pan is hot, add the olive oil, then place the short ribs face down.

Sauté until golden brown, turn and brown the other side.

Remove the ribs and layer over the tomatoes.

Add the garlic to the sauté pan and stir until lightly golden.

Add the wine, stir one minute and then pour the wine and garlic over the ribs.

Add 4 oz of stock to the same pan and again stir removing all flavorings from the pan. 

Pour over the ribs and place the pan in a 375 degree oven.

After 30 minutes, remove from the oven and add the remaining stock.

Cover the pan with foil and return to the oven for another 40 minutes. 

Test for tenderness as not all ovens cook the same. If not tender enough, add two ounces of water or wine and return to the oven for another 10 minutes.

I served this recipe with a side of penne, but any starch or grilled vegetable will do.

At table, season lightly with grated Romano cheese. 

PB&J Vodka Sauce

Serves 4-6

16 oz seasoned tomato sauce

1 tbsp diced red onion

1 tbsp diced Guanciale

1 tbsp olive oil

10 oz light cream

2 shots of PB&J Vodka (I used Van Gogh Peanut Butter and Jelly vodka) 

Red or black pepper to taste

Grated Parmesan or Romano cheese on the side during service

Heat oil in a sauce pan.

Add Guanciale and onions, simmer until tender, about 3 minutes.

Remove sauce pan from heat and add one shot of the PB&J vodka.

Return to heat and add the tomato sauce.

Simmer for about 15 minutes, then add the cream by tempering first. To temper, take one ladle of the tomato sauce and fold into the cream. Add a second ladle and again fold. Now you can add the cream mix back into the tomato sauce without the cream breaking down.

Hold over low heat until serving.

Just before service you can fold the second shot of PB&J vodka into the sauce.

I like to serve this sauce with Penne or Rotini pasta.

After you blanch and drain the pasta, fold half of the sauce into the pasta and place the remaining sauce into a gravy boat for table service.

Plate and garnish with diced Italian parsley.

Finish with grated cheese.

Note: If you are concerned about saturated fat, you can remove fat from the recipe by using one of the low fat milk products available in your market i.e. Smart Balance milk products.

PB&J Vodka! It gives you a hint of creamy nuttiness while also providing sweetness as so many Italians do when adding sugar to their tomato sauce.

This recipe was a big hit, even with those who compared its taste to what their grandmother would prepare.

Taco Soup

Serves Eight

1 1/4 lb small beef cubes

1 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, finely diced

1 - 14.25 oz can corn, undrained

1 - 14.25 oz can diced tomatoes

2 - 15.5 oz cans small red chili beans in sauce

32 oz light chicken or beef stock

2.5 oz packet’s low sodium taco seasoning

1 tbsp spanish paprika

2 soft round taco shells

1 1/2 cup shredded 2% cheddar cheese

1/2 cup fat free sour cream

In a 6-8 quart soup pot, heat oil and then brown the beef cubes.

When brown, add the diced onions and sauté until tender.

Take off fire and add the chicken stock, diced tomato, taco seasoning and paprika.

Return pot to fire and simmer on medium low temperature for approximately 45 minutes, until tender.

Add corn and beans and simmer another 15 minutes.

At service, roll two taco shells as if rolling a cigar.

Slice with a knife, cutting dough into rounds the size of thick noodles.

Place four rounds into each soup bowl.

Portion soup over noodles and garnish with the shredded cheddar.

Allow your guests to garnish with sour cream if desired.

Caesar Salad

What to do when you’re out of anchovies?

I love Caesar salad, not the bottled stuff, the real creation. Last Sunday I found myself in a bit of a predicament. Halfway through my recipe, (previously posted), I discovered I was out of anchovies. Caesar salad without anchovies just doesn’t cut it.

What to do?

Luckily I still had a can of really good sardines. I substituted a half of a filet for the usual 2-3 anchovies I mash into my recipe. Final product was quite good, with a slightly milder flavor.

How to Save a Broken Hollandaise Sauce

Saving a broken hollandaise sauce is really easy. If you should run into that problem, just follow these easy steps:

3 tbsp cold water or white wine

2 tsp corn starch

Whisk together the corn starch and cold water or white wine in a stainless steel bowl.

Place the bowl over the heat source you used when starting the hollandaise sauce - either a double boiler or direct heat.

Whisk well until the starch mixture becomes firm and pasty.

Remove from heat and slowly whisk your broken hollandaise into the pasty mixture one tablespoon at a time.

Steak for Two with Lemon Thyme Sauce

One Prime Porterhouse or Prime Sirloin Strip steak,  20 - 24 oz

1 tbsp salad oil, one with a high smoke point

2 tbsp margarine

6 sprigs fresh thyme

Freshly ground black pepper

Sea salt

1 fresh lemon

Liberally pepper and salt the steak 20 minutes before cooking.

Heat your oven to 500 degrees.

Heat a 10 -12 inch sauté pan over medium-high heat until pan becomes very hot.

Add the oil and then the steak.

Cook until golden brown, about 4-5 minutes.

Turn steak over and place in oven for 5-7 minutes, depending on how well done you want your steak.

Remove from oven and let rest for ten minutes.

With a pot holder, carefully hold the sauté pan and discard the remaining fat.

Return the pan to your burner on medium heat.

Slice the lemon in half and place the sliced side face down in your pan.

Add the thyme and margarine and sauté until the the margarine fully dissolves and just starts to foam.

Slice the steak and portion.

Spoon the sauce over the steak and garnish with the half lemon and thyme sprigs.