Best Green Bean Casserole

 So, I like green bean casserole but I wanted a more sophisticated version and found this at daringgourmet.com

I made it for Thanksgiving and it was the best green bean casserole I've ever had so I wanted to post it here to share and also to save for the future. The only thing I changed is that I subbed gruyere instead of white cheddar, because, of course. 

INGREDIENTS

  

• 3 slices thick-cut bacon , diced
• 1/2 cup finely chopped yellow onion
• 2 cloves garlic , minced
• 12 ounces fresh button or cremini mushrooms , chopped
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup shredded white cheddar cheese
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound fresh green beans , trimmed, halved, and blanched (boil 5 minutes, place beans in ice water for a couple of minutes, drain)
• 1 can quality French fried onions
• or gluten free French fried onions

INSTRUCTIONS

 

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Fry the bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until crispy. Add the onions and cook until soft and translucent, about 4-5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and garlic and cook for another 4-5 minutes until the mushrooms are soft. Transfer the mixture to a bowl.
• Melt the butter in the same skillet and whisk in the flour. Once combined, continue whisking for another 2 minutes until the mixture has slightly deepened in color. Add the half-and-half and chicken broth while constantly whisking to prevent lumps. Once slightly thickened, add the cheese and whisk until melted and combined.
• Next add the mushroom/bacon mixture along with the salt and pepper. Let the sauce simmer for a couple of minutes, then add the green beans. Stir to combine.
• Pour the bean mixture into a 9x13 casserole dish and sprinkle the French fried onions all over the top. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes until bubbling and the onions are golden and crispy. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Italian plum crisp

 I made this last night from my plums off our tree and it was a huge hit so I want to remember the recipe!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

-2-3 cups quartered Italian (small) plums

-1/3 cup pure maple syrup

-1 tsp vanilla

-1/2 tsp cinnamon

-1/4 tsp cloves

-3 Tbsp corn starch 

Mix above together in a bowl until all the fruit is coated.  Pour in a buttered 9X9 pan. 

Combine the following in a food processor with blade:

-1/2 cup and 1/8 cup flour

-1/4 cups rolled oats

-1/4 cup brown sugar

-1/8 cup white sugar

-1 stick cold salted butter cut into cubes

1/4 cup sliced almonds

Pulse until mixture looks lumpy and starts to stick together.  Pour over top off fruit and cook for 35-45 minutes.  Fruit should be bubbly and the crisp topping should be starting to brown around the edges.

Garlic lemon grilled shrimp

-large bag peeled and uncooked frozen shrimp, thawed

-1 lemon zested

-1 lemon juiced

-4 large cloves garlic, finely chopped

-1Tbsp Italian seasoning 

-1/4 cup white cooing wine

-1 1/2 tsp salt

-pepper

-1/4 cup olive oil 

Place thawed shrimp in a large bowl and pour oil, salt, garlic, pepper, Italian seasoning, white wine and lemon zest. Stir to coat all the shrimp with the marinade. Marinate for 30-60 minutes. Squeeze lemon juice over shrimp and toss again to distribute. Marinate for another 5 minutes and then thread shrimp onto metal skewers. Pierce through just above the tail and toward the top so the shrimp will lay flat on the grill. You should have about 4-5 shrimp on each skewer. 

Reserve marinade and transfer to a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Let boil for 2 minutes and then turn down to simmer until it reduces by half. Preheat your grill to smoke and smoke the skewers for 10 minutes. Remove the skewers and keep warm while you turn the heat up 350 degrees. Place skewers back on the grill and cook for 3 minutes and then flip the skewers and cook for two more minutes or until all shrimp is pink. Remove shrimp from skewers and place on a platter. Pour the reduced marinade over the top and serve immediately. 

Chicken in sundried tomato cream sauce

This recipe is so good and the sauce is amazing! I serve it with mashed potatoes so you can use the sauce as a gravy. I promise you will want to drink it!

INGREDIENTS:

• 8 chicken breasts
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or more, to taste
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup julienned sun dried tomatoes in olive oil, drained
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 cup basil leaves, chiffonade

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper, to taste.
3. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large oven-proof skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken, skin-side down, and sear both sides until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes per side; set aside.
4. Melt remaining tablespoon butter in the skillet. Add garlic and red pepper flakes, and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in chicken broth, heavy cream, sun dried tomatoes, Parmesan, thyme, oregano and basil.
5. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until slightly thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Return chicken to the skillet.
6. Place into oven and roast until completely cooked through, reaching an internal temperature of 175 degrees F, about 25-30 minutes.
7. Serve immediately, garnished with basil.

Recipe from damndelicious.com

Classic French Croissants

This was the main recipe I based my croissants on:
https://www.weekendbakery.com/posts/classic-french-croissant-recipe/https://www.weekendbakery.com/posts/classic-french-croissant-recipe/
Warning: you need a kitchen scale for this recipe!
However, since I was unwilling to spend THREE DAYS on making croissants, I made the following alterations.
I started the recipe first thing in the morning, at like 8 or 9 am. I put the dough together as described, then allowed it to chill for 12 hours. Before getting in bed that night, I rolled the butter into the dough, allowing it to chill for 20 minutes between each roll out, rather than a half hour. Then I let it chill over night. 
Also, between lamination layers I brushed a very tiny amount of cold water because I read that gives you extra puff.
The next morning, I shaped my croissants and allowed them to rise. I added frangipane (almond paste) in the center and sliced almonds on top after the last egg wash to half of my croissants, and a simple chocolate ganache to the center of the other half, to further fancify my croissants.

The Celsius/convection oven setting calculation was a little confusing, so I preheated my (conventional) oven to 430F, immediately reduced it to 400F as soon as they went it, kept it there for 10 minutes, and then further reduced it to 375 for another 8 minutes.


When making the dough, another options is to activate the yeast in the warmed water for 5 minutes, then add it to the other ingredients. Allowed it to rise until it doubled in size, then rolled it into the square and chilled it for an hour instead of overnight both times it says to do so. This way is a lot faster, but the texture of the pastry and definition of the layers is much better if you wait the 12 hours.

The frangipane was
3 tbsp SOFT unsalted butter
1/4 cup white sugar. Cream those then add 1/2 cup of almond flour, 1 egg and 1 tsp vanilla. Mix those then add 1 Tbsp white flour.

The chocolate ganache was
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream. Heat in the microwave 1 minute until HOT. Add 6-8 oz semisweet chocolate chips. Stir until smooth.

Marianne's Fresh Strawberry Pie

I made this for my neighbor the other day and she declared: "This is the BEST pie I have ever eaten in my entire life!" I decided I should post it. :)

Marianne's Fresh Strawberry Pie

Use this pie crust recipe: https://www.joyofbaking.com/PieCrust.html

Bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees, until lightly browned at the edges.

Filling:

In a saucepan, combine:

1 1/2 cups crushed fresh strawberries

3/4 cups sugar

1/4 tsp lemon juice

2 tsp cornstarch

2 Tsp water

Heat until boiling, stirring continually until sugar dissolves and mixture thickens slightly. Allow to cool. Pour over 3 pints fresh strawberries, whole and cut in half (the larger ones). Toss to combine. Pour into baked, cooled pie shell. 

Top with heavy whipping cream whipped with vanilla and 2 Tsp of sugar. 

Tip: make with the sweetest, freshest berries you can find. Preferably from a farm, your backyard, or a market. It's not worth making this unless they're at their best. 

Enjoy pure summer!

Moroccan Vegetarian Tangine

I made this for a dinner party and served it with naan bread, plain yogurt, and rice. It was scrumptious and easy!

INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 cup Private Reserve extra virgin olive oil, more for later
• 2 medium yellow onions, peeled and chopped
• 8–10 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
• 2 large carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 large russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
• Salt
• 1 tbsp Harissa spice blend
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 2 cups canned whole peeled tomatoes
• 1/2 cup heaping chopped dried apricot
• 1 quart low-sodium vegetable broth (or broth of your choice)
• 2 cups cooked chickpeas
• 1 lemon, juice of
• Handful fresh parsley leaves

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INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a large heavy pot or Dutch Oven, heat olive oil over medium heat until just shimmering. Add onions and increase heat to medium-high. Saute for 5 minutes, tossing regularly.
2. Add garlic and all the chopped veggies. Season with salt and spices. Toss to combine.
3. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes on medium-high heat, mixing regularly with a wooden spoon.
4. Add tomatoes, apricot and broth. Season again with just a small dash of salt.
5. Keep the heat on medium-high, and cook for 10 minutes. Then reduce heat, cover and simmer for another 20 to 25 minutes or until veggies are tender.
6. Stir in chickpeas and cook another 5 minutes on low heat.
7. Stir in lemon juice and fresh parsley. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more salt or harissa spice blend to your liking.
8. Transfer to serving bowls and top each with a generous drizzle of Private Reserve extra virgin olive oil. Serve hot with your favorite bread, couscous, or rice. Enjoy!