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7/14/2023

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The summer is off and running at my house. My granddaughters are taking swimming lessons at a local health club, so they’re at my home every Thursday. Depending on my daughter’s calendar, it could be for the day or a few days, hence my delay in posting.
 
It’s very rare that I prepare the same recipe twice for my husband, especially since I’ve started this blog. During CSA season, where there’s an occasional bumper supply of radishes, carrots or zucchini coming in, I need to come up with a new preparation.
 
Such was the case recently when another bunch of radishes came in my share. Although I have some recipes, this time my search led to the Food Network’s recipe for Chili-Lime Roasted Radishes. This was so easy to prepare as I already was in possession of Chili-Lime Seasoning from Williams-Sonoma. Besides fresh radishes and chili-lime seasoning you’ll need kosher salt and olive oil.
The radishes are sliced in half and tossed with olive oil, chili-lime seasoning and kosher salt. I placed the sliced radishes cut side down on a baking sheet and roasted them in a 425° oven for 30 to 35 minutes until tender and golden. Yum, what a nice spin on radishes. They became less peppery, slightly sweet and then you’re hit with a bit of spice from the chili-lime seasoning, delightfully tasty.

I also recently made a delightfully different flavor of meatball, Jerk Chicken Meatballs with BBQ-Pineapple Glaze by Chef Millie Peartree. In preparing this dish, I decided to swap the chicken for the turkey that I already had in my freezer. You’ll also need either a yellow or red onion, an egg, breadcrumbs, Jamaican jerk seasoning paste, fresh parsley or cilantro, garlic powder, kosher salt and black pepper. For the sauce, pineapple juice, brown sugar, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, fresh garlic, onion powder, red pepper flakes, kosher salt and cornstarch.
 
It's a 30-minute recipe that requires a sheet pan for baking the meatballs and a pot for making the BBQ glaze. You can prepare the glaze ahead to save time and just reheat before adding the cooked meatballs.
 
This was a wonderful meal. You can serve as a main course over rice, an appetizer for a party or even a sandwich. They were moist and tender and very flavorful. The Jamaican jerk seasoning paste added complexity, with just a bit of heat. The glaze complimented the flavor of the meatballs. 
​
As I was breaking down a twin pack of pork tenderloins and removing the silver skin, I decided to keep one out and make Marian Burros’ recipe for Grilled Rosemary Pork Tenderloins. Other than the pork, you’ll need salt, pepper, fresh clove of garlic, fresh rosemary (or dried), dry red wine and nonstick spray or neutral oil for the pan. The marinade is made with crushed garlic, rosemary leaves and wine. Although the recipe doesn’t offer a length of time for marinating, I had mine go overnight.
 
After preparing this once, I should have heeded a few suggestions by other cooks. While Ms. Burros recipe calls to slice the pork into 1/4-inch-thick slices before marinating, I could have either left it whole or butterflied.
 
I cooked the sliced tenderloin medallions in my non-stick grill pan for 2 to 3 minutes per side to avoid overcooking. I served it along with my chili-lime roasted radishes, and tri-color fusilli salad .
 
The pork was moist and tender, but my husband was looking for a little sauce to go on top. In the Cook’s Comment section, someone reduced the marinade and added a bit of butter to make a pan sauce.
 
Another item in a recent CSA box was a bunch of fresh carrots. While I have a few recipes using carrots, I went with an unusual offering, Carrot Risotto with Chile Crisp. I found this recipe by Alexa Weibel on The New York Times Cooking app. For the recipe you’ll need fresh carrots, store-bought or homemade Chile crisp (I found it at Wegmans), kosher salt, chicken or vegetable stock, unsalted butter, a shallot, fresh garlic cloves, ground coriander, dry white wine, Arborio rice and finely grated Parmesan cheese.
 
Part of the carrots need to be roughly chopped either in a food processor or by using box grater. The carrots are to be “confetti-like,” therefore, I chose to use the shredding disc on my food processor. The rest of the carrots are sliced on a diagonal, tossed with the Chile crisp, salt and pepper and roasted on a baking sheet until tender.
 
The risotto starts by sautéing the uncooked carrots, shallot, finely chopped garlic, coriander, salt and pepper in a wide saucepan. I like using my LeCrueset Braiser for risotto. Once the ingredients are fragrant, the wine is added and reduced until almost evaporated. Next, I added the rice and stock all at once and turned the flame up so that there was a vigorous simmer. (See my post for Risotto Simplified for this method.) Once the rice is tender and creamy, I added butter and stirred quickly to release the starch from the rice. I tasted to see if the seasonings needed adjusting then topped with the chile-crisp roasted carrots and Parmesan cheese. Surprisingly, this was a fabulous dish! The rice turned a slightly orange color and a bit of heat from the chile crisp. Overall, very flavorful.
 
Also, in the same box was a zucchini. I was going to make Jerrelle Guy’s Zucchini Muffins with Cinnamon Crunch Topping, but I came across another New York Times Cooking recipe from Jesse Szewczyk for Chocolate Zucchini Loaf Cake. It sounded delicious and it received good reviews from other cooks.
 
For the recipe you’ll need nonstick cooking spray or a neutral oil, eggs, light brown sugar, vanilla extract, kosher salt (Diamond Crystal), 1 large or 2 small zucchini, all-purpose flour, unsweetened natural cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate chips, and turbinado or Demerara sugar.
 
Unfortunately, I didn’t have enough unsweetened cocoa powder so I supplemented with Dutch process cocoa powder. Although I had only one zucchini from my Dreyer Farms CSA box, after grating the zucchini, I had the needed two cups.
 
The recipe came together quite easily. The eggs, brown sugar, oil and vanilla extract and salt our whisked together until smooth. Next, the grated zucchini is incorporated into the mixture. The dry ingredients are sifted in last along with the chocolate chips.
 
The batter is then added to a loaf pan that has been greased and lined with parchment paper that hangs over the sides (a sling to help remove the cake) and baked for 75 to 80 minutes. After cooling for two hours, the cake is ready for eating. This was as good as the posted comments claimed. I reduced the chocolate chips to just 1/4 cup as my husband can’t tolerate too much chocolate any more. The cake was moist, tender and scrumptious! I even sent two slices to my neighbors, who also enjoyed it.
 
My husband adores pasta in any shape or type of sauce. So, when Rosemary Chicken Ragu appeared in The New York Times column “What to Make Next Week,” on March 25, 2023, I had to take advantage of the fresh rosemary in my garden.
 
For the recipe you’ll need unsalted butter, tomato paste, fresh garlic, anchovy fillets, red pepper flakes, a sprig of fresh rosemary (you can use dried), skinless and boneless chicken thighs, 28 ounces crushed or whole tomatoes, salt, pasta such as pappardelle or fettuccine and grated Parmesan cheese. In lieu of chicken thighs, I used bone-in chicken breasts.
 
The sauce starts with melting butter in a pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the tomato paste and cook until it turns darker. Add the garlic, anchovies and red pepper flakes and cook for 2 to 4 minutes. If you have, you can also add 1/2 cup of white wine and reduced until almost totally evaporated. Next, add the chicken and tomatoes and gently simmer until the chicken is cooked through. When the chicken is done, shred in the pot using two forks.
 
In the meantime, start your pasta water. Cook the pasta until al dente and reserve one cup of pasta water before draining. Add the pasta to the sauce and toss until well coated. Add the pasta water as needed to create a glossy sauce.
 
My goodness was this ever so tasty! It was a nice change from our usual fresh tomato sauce with meatballs. My husband couldn’t even detect the anchovy paste that I added to the sauce for umami. The use of fresh rosemary really enhanced the taste of the sauce.
 
Well, my granddaughters were only down overnight this week, which will give me a chance to further catch up on two more new recipes I found, plus my review of my pre-theatre lunch at Ci Siamo in Manhattan before seeing “Good Night Oscar.”

Grilled Rosemary Pork Tenderloin
Plain and Simple column from The New York Times
“Winter Grill: Rosemary-Infused Pork”
December 7, 1994
 
Servings: 2
 
Ingredients
8ounces pork tenderloin
Salt and pepper
1clove garlic
1tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped (or 2 teaspoons dried rosemary)
½cup dry red wine
Nonstick spray or neutral oil for the pan
 
PREPARATION
  1. Wash and dry tenderloin, and cut into ¼-inch-thick pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Place in small bowl.
  2. Crush garlic; rinse and remove leaves from rosemary stems, and chop. Combine garlic and rosemary with wine, and pour over pork. Turn pork to marinate well.
  3. When ready to cook pork, spray stove-top grill with pan spray, and heat. Place pork slices on grill. Cook for about 5 minutes total, turning once and basting once or twice with marinade.
 
Donna’s Note:
As noted by one cook’s comment, they took the marinade and reduced it; added a chunk of butter to create a pan sauce. A few also marinated the tenderloin or butterflied it. 
grilled_rosemary_pork_tenderloin.pdf
File Size: 60 kb
File Type: pdf
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​Jerk Chicken Meatballs With BBQ-Pineapple Glaze
By Millie Peartree
The New York Times/NYT Cooking
 
Time: 30 Minutes
Serves: 4 servings
 
FOR THE MEATBALLS
 
Neutral oil
1 pound ground chicken or turkey
1 small yellow or red onion, finely diced
1 egg, beaten
¼ cup bread crumbs
2 tablespoons Jamaican jerk seasoning paste, such as Grace or Walkerswood
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley or cilantro leaves
1 teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
 
FOR THE GLAZE
1 cup pineapple juice
½ packed cup light or dark brown sugar
¼ cup ketchup
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 small garlic clove, minced
½ teaspoon onion powder
Pinch of red-pepper flakes
Pinch of kosher salt, plus more to taste
1 tablespoon cornstarch
White rice, for serving

  1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil and very lightly coat it with oil.
  2. Prepare the meatballs: In a medium bowl, combine the chicken, onion, egg, bread crumbs, jerk seasoning paste, parsley, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly to combine, being careful not to overwork the meat. Using lightly wet hands, form the mixture into 12 meatballs, each a bit larger than a golf ball, and space them out on the prepared pan. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. (Alternatively, you can fry them in a nonstick pan coated in oil over medium heat for about 4 to 5 minutes per side.)
  3. While the meatballs cook, prepare the glaze: Whisk the pineapple juice, brown sugar, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, onion powder, red-pepper flakes and salt together in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer until it reduces enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 10 to 15 minutes.
  4. In a small bowl, mix together the cornstarch with 1 tablespoon water. Slowly whisk into the sauce, increase the heat to medium and stir until you reach the desired consistency. (Sauce should look like a thicker gravy.) Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
  5. Add the meatballs to the sauce and stir until coated. Cook over medium-low heat for 2 minutes, until the meatballs are evenly glazed and deepen slightly in color. Serve hot on their own or over rice.
jerk_chicken_meatballs_with_bbq.pdf
File Size: 67 kb
File Type: pdf
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Carrot Risotto with Chile Crisp
By Alexa Weibel
The New York Times/NYT Cooking
 
Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
 
Ingredients
2¼ pounds carrots, peeled
2 tablespoons store-bought or homemade chile crisp, plus more for serving
Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) and black pepper
5 cups chicken or vegetable stock
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
 1large shallot, minced
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
½ teaspoon ground coriander
½ cup dry white wine
1½ cups/10 ounces arborio rice
2½ ounces finely grated Parmesan (about 1¼ cups, packed), plus more for serving (optional)
 
PREPARATION
  1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Prep the carrots: If you’ve got a food processor, roughly chop ¾ pound carrots. Add them to the bowl of your food processor; pulse until they form very small, confetti-like flecks no larger than ¼-inch big (you should have about 2 cups); set aside. (You can also coarsely grate the carrots using a box grater.) Slice the remaining 1½ pounds carrots on a sharp diagonal about ¼-inch thick; transfer to a baking sheet. Toss the sliced carrots with 2 tablespoons chile crisp. (If your chile crisp is predominantly crunchy bits, you can thin it with a little canola or vegetable oil, if needed.) Season the carrots generously with salt and pepper and bake until tender, about 15 minutes, stirring halfway through.
  2. Add the stock to a lidded saucepan (any size that will hold it will do); cover and warm over low.
  3. In a medium saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat. Add the uncooked carrots, shallot, garlic and coriander; season generously with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until very fragrant, 2 minutes.
  4. Add the wine to the carrot mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, until mostly evaporated, about 3 minutes.
  5. Stir the rice into the carrot mixture, reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Add 1 cup warmed stock and cook, stirring frequently, until the liquid is almost absorbed, about 3 minutes. Repeat 4 more times, adding warm liquid and stirring until absorbed.
  6. Once the rice is tender and creamy and all the stock has been absorbed, add the cheese and the remaining 2 tablespoons butter; stir vigorously to combine until the risotto feels silky, creamy, luxurious. Season the risotto to taste with salt and pepper.
  7. Divide risotto among shallow bowls or plates and top with the roasted carrots. Serve with additional chile crisp, for drizzling on top.
carrot_risotto_with_chile_crisp.pdf
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Chocolate Zucchini Loaf Cake
By Jesse Szewczyk
The New York Times/NYT Cooking
 
 
Time: 1-1/2 Hours, plus cooking
Yield: 1 loaf (about 8 servings)
 
Ingredients
Nonstick cooking spray or neutral oil
2 large eggs
1½ cups/330 grams packed light brown sugar
¾ cup/180 milliliters neutral oil (such as vegetable or safflower)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
2 cups/280 grams lightly packed coarsely grated zucchini (from about 1 large or 2 small zucchini)
1¾ cups/223 grams all-purpose flour
⅔ cup/63 grams unsweetened natural cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup/173 grams bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon coarse sugar (such as turbinado or Demerara)
 
PREPARATION
  1. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and line with a strip of parchment paper that hangs over the long sides to create a sling.
  2. In a large bowl, vigorously whisk together the eggs, light brown sugar, oil, vanilla extract and salt until smooth and glossy, about 30 seconds. Add the grated zucchini and mix with a rubber spatula until incorporated.
  3. Using a fine-mesh strainer, sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda directly into the bowl and stir with a rubber spatula just until combined and no pockets of unincorporated flour remain. (Try not to overmix.) Add all but 1 tablespoon of the chocolate chips to the batter and stir until evenly distributed.
  4. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Sprinkle the top with coarse sugar and the reserved chocolate chips, pressing them in slightly so they stick. Bake until the cake puffs slightly and a skewer or cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs attached or with smudges of melted chocolate chips (the chips will be dark brown versus the lighter color of uncooked cake batter), 75 to 80 minutes.
  5. Let the loaf cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Using the parchment paper, lift the cake out of the pan and let cool completely on a rack before slicing, about 2 hours.
 
“TIP: The cake can be baked in a 9-by-2-inch round cake or springform pan. Grease the pan and line the bottom with a parchment paper round. Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs attached, 50 to 55 minutes.
chocolate_zucchini_loaf_cake.docx
File Size: 15 kb
File Type: docx
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Rosemary Chicken Ragù
By Ali Slagle
The New York Times, “What to Make Next Week”
March 25, 2023
  
Time: about 1 hour
Yield: 4 servings
 
“Requiring just 30 minutes of simmering, this is the ragù to make any old night. Made with chicken, it is lighter than traditional ragù, but has strong flavors from butter, anchovies, rosemary, garlic and a hefty kick of red-pepper flakes. (You can use less if that scares you.) With such a savory base of ingredients, you can skip browning the chicken and still be rewarded with juicy meat that willingly shreds when pulled with forks. The silky sauce and delicate strands of chicken like to twirl with long noodles, but they would also be great over polenta, mashed potatoes, white beans or farro. Meal planners, you should know that this recipe makes 6 cups of sauce and will keep 3 days refrigerated — and improves with time.”
 
Ingredients
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons tomato paste
6 garlic cloves, finely grated or chopped
4 anchovy fillets
1 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
1 rosemary sprig (or ¾ teaspoon dried)
½ cup dry white wine (optional)
1½ to 2pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 (28-ounce) can crushed or whole tomatoes
Salt
1-pound long noodles like pappardelle or fettuccine
Grated Parmesan, for serving
 
Preparation
  1. Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven or pot over medium. Add the tomato paste, garlic, anchovies, red-pepper flakes and rosemary. Stir until the tomato paste is a shade darker and sticking to the bottom of the pot, 2 to 4 minutes. If you have some white wine open, add ½ cup and simmer until nearly all evaporated, 2 to 4 minutes.
  2. Add the chicken and tomatoes and season generously with salt. If using whole tomatoes, break them up with your spoon. It may not seem like a lot of liquid, but the chicken will give off juices in time. Bring to a boil over medium-high, then reduce heat to gently simmer over medium-low until the chicken’s cooked through and the sauce is flavorful, 30 to 35 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
  4. When the chicken is ready, turn off the heat under the sauce. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta water, then drain the pasta. While the pasta’s cooking, remove the rosemary from the sauce. Using two forks, shred the chicken right in the pot. Taste and adjust with salt. Return to medium-low to keep warm and thicken slightly until the pasta is ready. (Some chicken is so juicy that the sauce might seem thin; just simmer it until it’s thickened.)
  5. Add the pasta to the sauce and toss assertively over medium-high until the pasta is well coated. Add pasta water as needed to help the sauce cling to the pasta. Serve with grated Parmesan on top.
rosemary_chicken_ragù.pdf
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    ​meet donna

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

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