DONNA'S DAILY DISH
  • Blog
  • Recipes
  • Contact

mother nature

8/7/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture
Recently when I was in the mood for meat loaf. Many years ago, I purchased a steel grill meat loaf pan from Williams-Sonoma. The loaf pan has an open bottom with a handled insert and a perforated base that allows fat to drain and is meant to be used on a grill. Although no longer available, a similar product can be found at Amazon or  Sur La Table.
 
Cheesy Meat Loaf with Bacon and Herbs was the recipe that was included with the pan. The ingredients needed are extra-virgin olive oil, carrots, celery, an onion, fresh garlic, fresh bread crumbs, warm water, fresh flat-leaf parsley, mozzarella cheese (shredded and cubed), salt, pepper, ground beef, eggs, fresh thyme and thick-cut bacon. ​I used fresh herbs from my garden for this dish. 


Read More
0 Comments

what happened to spring?

5/3/2023

0 Comments

 
​I saw a funny meme on Facebook recently. “I just realized why this month is called May. It may rain, it may snow, it may be 70 degrees or it may be 20 degrees. However, we seem to have turned the corner and the weather is becoming more enjoyable.
 
If you’re like me you like to have an extensive collection of various preparations for poultry and beef. My husband has been in a stir fry mood, which brings me to my first recipe. It’s from the website “Dinner at the Zoo.” This website specializes in easy dinner recipes that appeal to kids; aren’t we all kids at heart? The recipe, Honey Garlic Chicken Stir Fry was a quick meal to prepare. For the recipe you’ll need vegetable oil, carrots, broccoli florets, boneless skinless chicken breasts, fresh garlic, chicken broth/stock or water, soy sauce, honey, cornstarch, salt and pepper. 

Read More
0 Comments

simply the best

4/22/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture
​Recently I was selected as a brand ambassador for Alexian Pâté and Specialty Meats. I love their pâté for their assortment of preparation (coarse cuts, creamy and spreadable, vegetable and vegan varieties), quality and flavors. Whether part of a charcuterie platter or on their own, its entertaining made easy.
 
One of the pâtés I received was Wild Forest Mushroom Pâté. I thought this might be an easier way to prepare Beef Wellington than make my own duxelles. With that in mind, I scoured the web for a traditional Beef Wellington recipe. Two recipes that piqued my interest were by Melissa Clark of The New York Times and Tyler Florence of the Food Network.  I decided to follow Ms. Clark’s recipe albeit they were similar in preparation. I am going to list all the ingredients you’ll need If you are going to prepare the mushroom duxelles. For the recipe you’ll need, tied center-cut beef tenderloin, pancetta or bacon, unsalted butter, assorted mushrooms (mix of cremini, white, shiitake, chanterelles or oyster), a shallot, extra-virgin olive oil, fresh garlic, fresh thyme, dry sherry or dry vermouth, kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, Dijon mustard, thinly sliced prosciutto, an egg and a 16-ounce package of puff pastry.


Read More
0 Comments

It’s not pasta night but…..

4/16/2023

0 Comments

 
Last week was a hit and miss with new recipes. I shook things up a bit by moving our traditional Thursday pasta night to Wednesday. There was a terrific recipe in The New York Times by Anna Francese Gass for Rigatoni all Zozzana. While in Italian zozzana means filthy, or some website translations say dirty, in either case this recipe has many layers of flavor.
 
For the recipe you’ll need kosher salt, large rigatoni pasta, extra-virgin olive oil, guanciale (or pancetta), small onion, hot or sweet Italian sausage (removed from casing), tomato paste, cherry tomatoes, red wine, egg yolks, Pecorino Romano cheese, 1 cup reserved pasta water and freshly ground black pepper.

Read More
0 Comments

a new month

4/9/2023

0 Comments

 
​​The year is going by in a flash. I spent the past week trying out a half dozen new recipes and baking Easter bunny sugar cookies for my grandchildren’s Easter baskets. 
 
The first recipe I tried last week was Sheet-Pan Tostadas with Black Beans and Peppers. For this recipe you’ll need three bell peppers, an onion, kosher salt, fresh sage, fresh thyme sprigs, 2 cans of black beans, diced tomatoes, chipotle chile in adobo, fresh garlic, dried oregano, ground cumin, tortillas, a lime, queso fresco or white cheddar cheese and cilantro leaves.
 
The recipe is from Melissa Clark of The New York Times and indicates you’ll get 4 to six servings from this meal. I beg to differ with Ms. Clark, as did someone else in the Cook’s Comment section of this recipe. You’ll more than likely get 2 to 3 servings, which is more realistic. Although the recipe calls for roasting the peppers and onions on a sheet pan, I sautéed mine in a frying pan on the stove top. You can probably get away with less oil with this method. The beans, tomatoes and chipotle chile and sauce are also cooked on a sheet pan, but as another person pointed suggested in the comments section, you can use one skillet and a sheet pan to heat up the tortillas. 

Read More
0 Comments

a little of this and that

2/27/2023

0 Comments

 
It’s Monday, time for me to catch up and give you my input on some recipes I recently prepared. I’ll start with the past two Friday’s meals since it is the start of Lent. For the first recipe I made Shrimp Fritters from the “Library at Vendue Inn,” located in Charleston, South Carolina. The recipe is from the book “Signature Tastes of Charleston.” The other is Spaghetti with Red Clam sauce from “The Classic Italian Cook Book,” by Marcella Hazan.
 
I had such high hopes for the fritter recipe, but it fell short in the taste category. For the recipe you’ll need all-purpose flour, baking powder, kosher salt, cayenne pepper, eggs, milk, olive oil, yellow onion, garlic, shrimp and flat leaf parsley. The recipe calls for one pound of shrimp with the fritter batter consisting of 3-1/4 cups of flour and 1-1/2 cups of milk and three eggs. I thought that sounded excessive and decreased the amounts by half. Also, the recipe called for cooked shrimp. In my opinion, adding cooked shrimp to the batter and then sautéing them in the fritter may overcook the shrimp, so I opted not to cook mine.

Read More
0 Comments

low and slow or fast and quick?

2/15/2023

0 Comments

 
Last week I had some time to braise a chuck roast for dinner. I found a delightful recipe in “Lidia’s Italy” cook book for Beef Braised in Barolo. The meat cooked in a liquid consisting of Barolo wine flavored with onions, carrots, celery, garlic, fresh rosemary, dried porcini mushrooms and fresh sage leaves. For seasonings, freshly grated nutmeg, salt and whole peppercorns. I went to Palmer’s Quality Meats in Neptune City, NJ to select a well-marbled piece of chuck. The recipe serves 6, but since it was just my husband and I, a 3-pound piece was perfect for braising.
 
To prepare the meat, I is seasoned with salt, browned and caramelized in a large pan with extra virgin olive oil. After browning, the meat is removed and the vegetables are placed in the pan and coated with pan juices. Next, herbs, grated nutmeg, peppercorns, dried porcini, additional salt and pepper are added and the mixture is cooked for several minutes. The vegetables are moved to the outer rim of the pan and the meat and its accumulated juices are returned. A bottle of wine is added with the beef immersed halfway.

Read More
0 Comments

what to serve a football crowd

1/19/2023

2 Comments

 
With food prices on the rise, preparing home cooked food for your Super Bowl viewing party will save you money and perhaps give you some extra cash to purchase an extra square or two in the football pool.
​

I’ve looked over my extensive recipe listing and have some ideas for your Super Bowl party. First on my list are some favorite appetizers such as hot dogs and bourbon, Mixed Antipasto is a great do ahead salad or Tomato Olive Focaccia. You can use the focaccia recipe as a starting point and add any type of toppings you desire. 

Read More
2 Comments

is the knife that sharp or the meat that's so tender?

10/10/2022

0 Comments

 
Jump to recipe
Picture
I recently started to work at  Palmer’s Quality Meats in Neptune, NJ and I’m amazed at the various cuts of beef that a whole animal butcher shop has to offer.  It’s a nose to tail shop offering locally grown beef, pork and poultry.  Have you ever heard of coppa steaks, Thor’s Hammer or organ beef blend, neither did I until now. Now when I read recipes with beef cuts such as Bavette or teres major, I know where to find them. If I need advice about a cut of beef for a recipe, knowledgeable butchers are available to offer suggestions.


Read More
0 Comments

one pan steak salad

8/5/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
​I enjoy preparing recipes that appear in Southern Living Magazine. The recipes are well tested, a diverse offering and turn out well when I prepared. One such recipe that I tore from their magazine appeared in the May 2021 issue, Seared Steak-and-Field Pea Salad. This is a wonderful one pan meal. I was unsure as to what field peas were, but discovered it could be a bean. Field peas include speckled butter beans, crowders, pink-eyed peas, butter beans and lady cream peas. This clarifies what I was seeing in the image from the magazine.


For this recipe you’ll need brown sugar, white balsamic or white wine vinegar, olive oil, flank steak, field peas, kosher salt, fresh corn, orange and red bell peppers, black pepper, fresh chives and flaky sea salt. Although this recipe calls for flank steak, I thought I would try flat iron steak which was on sale last week at my local ShopRite.


Read More
0 Comments
<<Previous

    meet donna

    A former teacher, shop-a-holic, empty-nester redefining quick, family approved dinners. 

    archives

    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016

    categories

    All
    30 Minute Meal
    Appetizers
    Baked Goods
    Beef
    Beverages
    Breakfast
    Cookies
    Dessert
    Dinner
    Fish
    Food Reviews
    Fruit
    Game
    Grilling
    Meat
    Miscellaneous
    One Pot Meals
    Pasta
    Pork
    Poultry
    Pressure Cooker/InstaPot
    Salad
    Sauces
    Seafood
    Sheet Pan Supper
    Side Dish
    Soup
    Vegetables
    Vegetarian
    Venison

Proudly powered by Weebly
  • Blog
  • Recipes
  • Contact