me + giada + ina + martha = bff.

When it comes to cooking, I like keeping things simple. I'll experiment with the occasional tricky or time consuming recipe, but they end up disasters more often then not. With Giada and Ina and even Martha, what you see is what you get. A few fresh, quality ingredients paired with a little tender loving care results in culinary magnificence every time. Case in point- my favorite summertime pasta sauce. I finely chop up 5 or 6 farmstand plum tomatoes and toss them with some olive oil, julienned basil, salt and 1 or 2 minced garlic cloves. Let the mixture sit at room temp for an hour or so to let the flavors meld and serve over hot angel hair pasta with lots of parmesan cheese. Perfection! And oh so easy!

Shrimp is one of my favorite things to cook. And now that we've perfected several methods of cooking them, I'm always on the lookout for great shrimp recipes. This one is a keeper. Healthy it's not, but it has a delicious, unique flavor that my husband and I crave. Logan's a shrimp lover too, so this is perfect for all of us!

recipe: nonna luna's rice
source: giada at home

1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, divided, at room temperature
2 cups parboiled long-grain rice, such as Uncle Ben's
3 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 clove garlic, minced
2 pounds small shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
1 tablespoon hot sauce
1 cup whipping cream
Freshly ground black pepper

In a medium nonstick saucepan, heat 1/2 of the butter over medium-low heat. Add the rice and cook, stirring frequently, until golden, about 6 to 7 minutes. Add the chicken stock and salt. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer covered for 20 to 25 minutes until the rice is tender and all the liquid is absorbed. Remove the pan from the heat and rest covered for 5 minutes.

In a large skillet, melt the remaining butter over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for 1 to 2 minutes until aromatic. Add the shrimp, lemon juice, and hot sauce. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the shrimp is pink and cooked through. Stir in the cream and heat through. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Using a fork, fluff the rice and arrange on a platter. Spoon the shrimp cream sauce over the rice and serve.


So yesterday, I also had a couple of small zucchinis...perfect for zucchini pancakes!!

recipe: zucchini pancakes
source: barefoot contessa at home

2 medium zucchini
2 tbsp. grated red onion
2 eggs, lightly beaten
6-8 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
unsalted butter and vegetable oil

Grate the zucchini into a bowl using the large side of a box grater. Immediately stir in the onion and eggs. Stir in 6 tbsp. of the flour, the baking powder, salt and pepper. If the batter gets too thin from the liquid from the zucchini, add the additional 2 tbsp. of flour.

Heat a saute pan over medium heat and melt 1/2 tbsp. butter and 1/2 tbsp. oil. When the butter is hot but not smoking, lower heat to medium low and drop batter into pan by the large spoonful. Cook 2 minutes each side or until browned. Serve hot.

My husband isn't a fan of zucchini...but he LOVED these- in fact, all my boys did! A great way to get veggies into all 3 of them. :) But I'll tell you what he IS a fan of. Brownies. And since I almost never make brownies (not even the box kind), I decided to whip up a batch from scratch this morning. Ina has a recipe from one of her episodes for Outrageous Brownies. I tested the recipe out a few months back...not so outrageous. Way too rich of a brownie for my tastes. Plus the texture was off to me. I was disappointed because they were time-consuming and expensive...so continued the search for the perfect brownie. And I found it, thanks to Martha. Her Double Chocolate Brownies are easy to make and only consist of a 1/2 dozen ingredients. They taste better than they look. I sure hope my husband appreciates the results of my efforts!



recipe: double chocolate brownies
source: martha stewart living magazine, april 2010

1 stick unsalted butter, cut into large pieces
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, sifted
Directions
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment, leaving a slight overhang on all sides. Melt butter and chocolate in a double boiler or a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat, and whisk in sugar. Whisk in eggs, 1 at a time, until combined. Whisk in cocoa and salt. Fold in flour until combined.
2.Pour batter into pan. Bake until set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with moist crumbs, 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool slightly in pan, about 15 minutes. Lift brownies from pan using parchment. Remove parchment, and transfer to a wire rack. Let cool completely. Cut into 9 squares.