Recipe of the Day - Grilled Cheese Tomato Chutney Sandwich

Tomato Chutney
by Penny Rich

1 tablespoon canola oil
1 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 onion, finely diced
1-2 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated on fine rasp
2 cloves garlic, grated on fine rasp
2 pounds tomatoes, skin removed and diced
1-2 jalapeno peppers, finely diced
¼ cup raisins
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon chipotle powder
2 tablespoons sugar
4 Cardamoms pods, grind in mill
2 tablespoons vinegar
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons water

Heat oil in a medium pot on high heat. Add mustard and cumin seeds. When seeds begin to pop, lower heat to medium high and add onion, ginger and garlic, cook for 3-5 minutes to release flavors. Add tomatoes, peppers, raisins, slat and pepper. Cook until tomatoes begin to break down about 15 minutes. Add sugar, crushed cardamom and vinegar. Cook uncovered for 45 minutes. Mix cornstarch and water in a small bowl and add to chutney. Cook for 5 minutes and turn heat off. Cool to room temperature before serving or store in a glass container in the fridge for up to one week.




We had a wonderful sandwich at the Chatham Market Friday night with Hinda. Brody and I just had to re-create this Grilled Cheese and Tomato Chutney sandwich. We made chutney, recipe above and then added cheddar cheese, fresh baby spinach and left over London Broil for Mikko and Chris. Yum! New favorite in our house.

Recipe of the Day - Stuffed Mushrooms

Stuffed Mushrooms
by Penny Rich

4-6 servings

Had to whip up something fast for my committee meeting. The remaining mushrooms disappeared quickly when I asked my son to help me clean up. Wonder where they went?

25 medium sized mushrooms, washed and stem removed [save stems]
½ onion
12-16 mushrooms, washed
3-4 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper
¼ cup panko bread crumbs or fresh bread crumbs
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 tablespoon basil, chiffonade
1 teaspoon olive oil

Place mushrooms up side down on a cooking sheet lined with foil in a 350° oven. Cook for 10-12 minutes to release juices. Remove from the oven and cool.
Place the onion, mushrooms, mushroom stems, and garlic in a food processor fitted with the metal blade and pulse until the mixture is chopped finely.
Heat olive oil in a medium frying pan and add the mixture from the processor, cooking for 10-12 minutes until the juices are release and evaporated. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat and stir in panko, Parmesan, basil and olive oil. Stuff each mushroom cap and place on a cooking sheet lined with foil and sprayed with cooking oil. Bake on 350° for 15 -20 minutes. Remove from oven to serving platter. Top with parsley.

Scallop Scampi with Lemon Parsley Pasta
By Penny Rich

4 Servings

1 pound linguini
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
Zest of 1 lemon
¼ cup parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon butter
5 scallions, chopped in ½ pieces
1 ½ pounds bay scallops
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
¼ cup dry vermouth
1 lemon, juiced
1 tablespoon parsley

Cook paste to direction on package. Drain and toss with butter, oil, lemon zest, parsley, salt and pepper. Place on a serving platter.
Heat butter in a large frying pan on a high flame. Add scallions and sauté for 3-5 minutes. Add scallops and cook for 5-7 minutes until they turn opaque. Remove from heat and place on top of lemon pasta. Return the pan to heat and add garlic, vermouth and lemon juice. Cook for 2-3 minutes and pour over scallops and pasta. Sprinkle with parsley, serve.

Recipe of the Day - Vegetable Samosa

Vegetable Samosa
Makes about 12


Dough:
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup yogurt or buttermilk
Salt and pepper
Flour for kneading
Stuffing:
2 teaspoons canola oil
1 onion, small dice
2-3 potatoes, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
2 teaspoons dried coriander
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup peas, frozen, thawed
1 table cilantro, chopped



Dough:
In a food processor fitted with the blade, add all the ingredients. Pulse until the dough forms and them pulse a few more times just till it all comes together. Turn out on a floured surface and knead 10-12 times. Cover with plastic wrap until ready to use. You can make this early in the day and keep in the fridge.
Stuffing:
Heat oil in a large frying pan. Add onions and cook just until they are translucent. Add the rest of the ingredients except the peas and cilantro, and sauté until potatoes begin to soften. Add ½ cup of water and cover for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and place mixture into a medium bowl. Mash potato mixture to a chunky consistency. Stir in peas and cilantro. Adjust salt and pepper.

Heat over to 425°
To make samosa, rip off about an inch size ball of dough. Flatten with a small rolling pin to a 5 inch circle. Place about 1 tablespoon of the filling in the center. Wet the outside edge of the dough with water and fold the edges together. Crimp the edges to get a tight seal. Place on a greased baking sheet.
Bake 15 minutes at 425°, flip the samosa over and cook an additional 10 minutes on 375°. Turn oven to warm and leave samosa in the oven until ready to serve. Serve with your favorite chutney.

Recipe of the Day - Parsnip Bisque

Parsnip Bisque with Smoked Paprika
By Penny Rich
6 Servings

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 onion, coarsely chopped
2 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 pounds parsnips, peeled and coarsely chopped
4 cups vegetable broth
2 cups half-and-half
2-3 teaspoons smoked paprika
Salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter in a large soup pot. Add onions and celery, cook 5 minutes until just tender. Add parsnips and broth and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. With an emersion blender, carefully puree the mixture to a creamy consistency.




Add half and half, paprika, and salt and pepper. Return to flame and heat to a simmer. serve

Recipe of the day - Lemon Pound Cake

Lemon Pound Cake
by Penny Rich
Inspired by Nick Malgieri
1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
6 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
Zest of one lemon
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 powdered sugar

Preheat to 325 degrees. Butter and flour 10-inch bundt pan, shaking out the excess. Combine butter, sugar, flour and baking powder in mixer with paddle. Beat on low speed 2 minutes. Combine remaining ingredients and add to mixer in 3 additions, beating 1 minute between each addition. Scrape batter into prepared pan and bake for about 1 hour. Place cake on a rack in pan. Cool. Remove from pan onto a cake plate. Sprinkle with powered sugar.

Recipe of the Day - Cioppino

Mother's Day Dinner for my mother was a wonderful feast staring with her favorite salad, farmer's market local tomatoes, local mozzarella cheese, basil from my garden, olive oil, salt and pepper. The big pot of Cioppino was the main dish and we all enjoyed dipping the crusty bread in the broth. YUM!

Cioppino
by Penny Rich
Serves 8

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4-5 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
4 cups fish stock
2 pinches saffron
1 pound uncooked large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 pound bay scallops
1/2 pounds cod, ½ inch chunks
1 pound clams, scrubbed
1 pound mussels, scrubbed, debearded

Place clams and mussels in a large bowl and cover with water. Add 2-3 tablespoons of corn meal and let the fish sit for 10-12 minutes. Rinse 5-6 times to remove all the sand and debeard mussels.
Heat the oil in a very large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic, red pepper flakes, and salt, sauté 2 minutes.
Stir in the tomato paste. Add tomatoes with their juices, wine, fish stock and saffron. Cover and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat and simmer covered for 20-30 minutes. Add the shrimp, scallops and cod, cook for 3-5 minutes. Add the clams and mussels, cover and cook until the clams and mussels begin to open, about 5-7 minutes. Serve with 2 large loafs of crusty bread.