Crab and Ziti Bake

1/2 lb ziti
12 oz. Crab meat, drained
1/4 cup flour
3 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp canola oil
1 leek, cleaned and diced
3 cups milk
1/2 tsp dried dill weed
Dash red pepper flakes
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 1/2 cups shredded Fontina cheese
Palmful fresh parsley leaves, minced
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add ziti, stir and cook until al dente.

Meanwhile make a Bechamel sauce by melting the butter and oil in a saucepan. Add the leek and cook about 6-8 minutes, until softened and beginning to brown. Add the flour and cook, whisking continuously, for about 3-5 minutes. Add about half the milk, whisking often. Bring to a boil and add remaining milk, the mustard, red pepper flakes and the dill to make a smooth sauce. Add a bit more milk if the sauce is very thick - it should not be too thick or the casserole will be too dense.

Drain the ziti and toss in a large bowl with the crab. Fold in the sauce, the cheese and parsley. Tip mixture into an oiled casserole and top with Parmesan cheese. Bake until bubbly, about 20-30 minutes.

Serves 6-8.

Three Bean Salad with Edamame

1 can garbanzo beans, drained
1 can light red kidney beans, drained
1 cup frozen Edamame
¼ red Bermuda onion, minced
¼ cup shredded carrot

Vinaigrette:
3 Tbsp spiced rice vinegar
juice of ½ lemon
¼ cup olive oil
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp dried dill weed
fresh ground pepper

Microwave Edamame for about 2 minutes in a glass bowl with two tablespoons water, for about 2 minutes. Drain and cool off in a bowl of very cold water. Drain well. Whisk vinaigrette together and toss with remaining ingredients. Allow to marinate for at least half an hour.

Cooking Orange

Frittata of Sweet Potato, Butternut Squash and Carrot, etc.1 medium sweet potato, peeled, cubed to 1/2 inch; about 2 cups
2 cups butternut squash, cubed 1/2 inch
1 medium zucchini, diced
1 large or 2 small leek, trimmed, washed and diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
Dash red pepper flakes
8 eggs
1/2 cup half-&-half or light cream
1/4 lb Gruyere or Swiss cheese, diced
Fresh grated nutmeg; just a bit
1/2 tsp dried dill weed

Preheat oven to 375F. In a large oven-going non-stick skillet, sauté potato for about 5 minutes in a bit of olive oil. then add squash and zucchini and cook for another 15 minutes, or just until the squash softens. Remove to a bowl. Sauté the leek for about 10 minutes then add the garlic and pepper flakes. Cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Whisk together the eggs, cream and nutmeg. Salt and pepper to taste. Return all veggies to pan and turn heat to high. Add eggs to pan and let eggs set a bit. Lift eggs and tilt pan to redistribute uncooked egg. I tend to pull in the eggs to the center of the pan like an omelet. Distribute cheese evenly into uncooked egg and sprinkle with dill.

Bake for about 15-20 minutes, until well browned.

BBQ Buffalo Wings

Ever have trouble deciding whether to go with the BBQ or Buffalo wings? Well this preparation has a bit of the best of both - which is great since this is a food we should enjoy probably only as a rare treat. It's got the smooth, round heat of the Buffalo, with the smokey, sweet of the BBQ. And garlic of course.

Sauce:
3 Tbsp Tabasco
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp BBQ sauce
1 Tbsp rice vinegar
2 Tbsp honey
1/2 stick butter
5 fresh sage leaves, minced
2 tbsp Jalapeno pepper, minced (pickled)

1 dozen wings, trimmed and split

Preheat oven to 400F. Bring wings to room temperature (or the butter will gel on very cold wings). Stir all sauce ingredients together in a glass bowl and microwave for 10-second intervals with stirring, until butter melts. Toss together with wings in a large bowl, and lay out on a baking pan sprayed with a bit of oil. Bake for 10 minutes. Reduce oven to 350F and turn wings over. Bake another 10-15 minutes until cooked through and browned.

Apple Flax Pancakes

Our kids love pancakes, but I don't like the simple-carb aspect of regular pancakes. So I beef them up with flax, bran and double the eggs. These will last you until lunch!

Dry ingredients:
2 cups white flour
1 Tbsp milled flax seeds
1 Tbsp wheat bran
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt

Wet ingredients:
4 Tbsp butter, melted
1½ cup milk
½ cup applesauce
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

Whisk together the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients. Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients without over-mixing; a few lumps are okay. Cook pancakes on a non-stick skillet or griddle, being sure not to over-brown, or they will be tougher and less fluffy.

Fillet Mignon Kebobs with Fresh Sage

Any fresh herbs work well for marinating fillet mignon, and if you are out of fresh, use a nice French Herbs de Provence or Italian herb mix. If you don’t have sage leaves, use basil.

2 lb beef filet mignon, tenderloin, cut into 16 1-inch cubes
16 fresh sage leaves
1 large red Bermuda onion, quartered into wedges (16 needed)

Marinade:
1 cup red wine
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 shallot, minced
1 clove garlic, pressed through garlic press
1 Tbsp fresh oregano, minced
2 tsp fresh thyme, minced

Heat grill. Whisk marinade ingredients together. Marinate beef for half an hour. Skewer on 3-4 skewers, alternating onion, sage and beef. Salt and pepper to taste. Grill for 3-4 minutes per side.

Eggplant and Lamb Ragout

1 eggplant, cut into ½-inch cubes
1 lb (grass-feed, local) ground lamb (or beef)
1 large or 2 small leek, cleaned and diced
1 carrot, peeled and finely diced
2 stalks celery, finely diced
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp dried, or 1 Tbsp fresh oregano, minced
2 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 10-oz package mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, strained, juices reserved
½ cup red wine

Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high flame. Add eggplant and heat through with stirring for about 2-3 minutes. Then add a few tablespoons olive oil, tossing to distribute the oil evenly. Continue cooking another 5 minutes or until the eggplant is nicely browned. Set aside in a bowl.

Brown the ground lamb (or beef) in the pan in a bit of oil until cooked well through. Set aside with eggplant. In same skillet, sauté the leek, carrot and celery in a bit of olive oil until softened and beginning to brown, about 8-10 minutes. Add cumin, oregano, rosemary and garlic half way through. Set aside with the lamb and eggplant.

Heat the skillet on high heat and add a bit of olive oil. Tip in the mushrooms and cook without stirring until they begin the release their liquid. Stir and cook about 8-10 minutes total. Tip into bowl with lamb and eggplant. Reheat skillet to high and add a bit of olive oil. Add the strained tomatoes and sizzle for about 8-10 minutes, stirring only every so often, so tomatoes brown a bit and begin to caramelize. Return all ingredients to the skillet, including the wine. Bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer with stirring. Simmer sauce for at least 30 minutes. Even best if served the next day.

Angel Hair Pasta with Zucchini and Fresh Tomato

½ lb. Angel Hair Pasta
2 large, fresh tomatoes
10 fresh basil leaves
2 medium zucchini, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
dash red pepper flakes
1 shallot, minced
handful fresh chives
¼ cup chicken broth or white wine or pasta water

Set salted water to boiling for pasta. Dice tomatoes and strain out seeds and juices. Stack basil leaves, roll and thinly slice to for a chiffonade – thin slivers. Heat 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet. Saute the zucchini over medium-high heat, until beginning to brown.

Meanwhile cook the pasta until just al-dente; since this is angel hair, it will take only 3-5 minutes. Drain pasta and tip into serving bowl; cover. Add the garlic, pepper flakes and shallots to zucchini, lower heat a bit, and cook another 2-3 minutes. Add the chives, basil and chicken broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and fold in the tomatoes. Tip veggie mixture over the pasta. Serve with grated Parmesan Cheese.

Comfort Meatloaf with Sherried Mushrooms

1/4 cup ketchup
2 eggs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1small onion, finely minced
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
dash Tabasco sauce
3-5 fresh sage leaves, minced
2 cloves garlic, pressed through garlic press
About 1/3 cup herbed Italian bread crumbs
1 tsp salt
Fresh ground pepper
2 lbs ground beef chuck

1 12-oz package mushrooms, sliced
2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup sherry, cognac or brandy
1/4 cup cream (I use light cream)

Preheat oven to 400F. Mix all ingredients except meat together. Add beef and mix together lightly Don't over-mix as this will make meatloaf dense. Transfer to a loaf pan or casserole. If desired, top with a little tomato sauce or ketchup. Bake for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 325F and continue cooking another 30-40 minutes until meatloaf is cooked through.

Meanwhile, melt butter with oil in a large skillet until butter bubbles and spurts. Toss in mushrooms and stir to coat evenly. Cook over high heat without stirring so one side of mushrooms begins to brown. Stir and allow the mushrooms to release their water and allow them to dry up a bit. Remove from stove and carefully add the sherry. Allow the mushrooms to steep for a few minutes in the sherry then add the cream. Cook to reduce the liquid down to a thicker sauce. Serve mushrooms over the meatloaf.

Crab-Stuffed Salmon