What Do You Feed Picky Eater Kids?

When I was young, I ate just about anything put in front of me. There were a few exceptions that I still avoid today like beets. I think I was destined to enjoy cooking and eating! I always feel terrible for parents whose children are picky eaters. I cannot imagine how frustrating it is to cook every night for someone with four or five foods in their repertoire of things they will eat without a meltdown.

I am not offering any advice because I am positive these parents are sick and tired of being judged by their inlaws and acquaintances. Instead, I thought I would list out one or two twists on some tried and true recipes that you might test. If your children are old enough, you can ask them to help prepare the new entree. I’m not sure it will make a difference, but perhaps seeing familiar ingredients presented in a new way would encourage their little brains to give it a try!

Cheeseburger Muffins

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef or turkey
1 package buttermilk biscuit dough
1/2 cup catsup
1 Tbs mustard
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Salt
Pepper
Cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brown and drain meat. Mix in catsup, mustard, Worcestershire, salt, and pepper. Use no-stick spray or butter in muffin tins. You can use any size. I used the giant muffin pan. Flatten individual biscuits with a rolling pin or stretch out by hand and press into muffin cup. Fill with meat. Top with your choice of cheese. I used shredded cheddar, but use whatever your child prefers (if any).

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes or until browned.

Mummy Hot Dogs

Ingredients

1 package hot dogs
1 package crescent rolls
1 can black beans or black olives

Directions

Why wait until Halloween? Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Unroll crescent roll dough and slice into strips. Carefully wrap each hot dog with 1-2 strips and place on baking sheet covered with parchment paper or a baking mat. Add two tiny bits of black bean or black olive for eyes.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until browned.

Very Simple Chicken Legs

Ingredients

Chicken legs
1 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1-2 good shakes seasoned salt
Dash cayenne pepper

Whatever your kid likes to dip chicken into, or nothing at all.

Directions

Pour 1 cup flour into a pie plate. Mix in seasoning. Dredge each leg in flour mixtures and place in a 13×9 inch baking dish you have greased with no-stick spray or olive oil.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Serve with BBQ sauce, ranch dip, honey, or whatever your family prefers.

Please add a comment and include your favorite recipe for picky eaters. Who knows, your recipe could help someone else find one more entree their child will eat!

Bradley Nierenberg’s Top 10 Cooking Websites

Unlike many cooking bloggers, most of my home cooking adventures are the result of delicious looking recipes I’ve found online. But there are an overwhelming number of websites for cooking, (39,700,000+ Google results to be exact), so how does one choose which ones to use?

This is one of those personal preference lists which I hope you will contribute to by leaving a few comments with your favorites. Here are mine:

10. http://www.foodnetwork.com/ I like watching the Food Network and frequently search the site for recipes I’ve seen made on the show. The website has very good search options, plenty of videos, great photos, and recipe reviews. In fact I featured a couple of Emeril’s recipes in my previous blog post on Creole cooking.

9. http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/ Believe it or not, the Williams-Sonoma site has a fantastic recipe collection. It’s a smart idea because I am always tempted to order another kitchen gadget while searching for recipes! I recently made their pomegranate salad and was not disappointed. And the Breakfast Skillet is a home run!

8. http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/ Looking for quick and easy? Look no further than Six Sisters Stuff. I first found them on Facebook and now drool over their photos and recipes.

7. http://ourbestbites.com/ I really like the recipes that come out of the kitchens of these Mormon Moms. I use their first cookbook regularly. It is nice the way they build upon recipes. For example, after you make their shredded pork, they offer a number of recipes that use it. Their caramelized green beans are truly amazing.

6. http://www.finecooking.com/ I started using the Fine Cooking website and app after I received a gift subscription to the magazine. I must say, if this was a magazine list, it would be my top choice! Every recipe I’ve tried from this site is a keeper. If you are wondering how to cook your own chick peas and then how to use them up, go to Fine Cooking. I’ve made a pastry wrapped roast chicken, baked Alaska, and many other delicious meals because of this exceptional website.

5. http://www.tasteofhome.com/ When I’m looking for a recipe for something I ate as a kid, but don’t have it in my mish-mash handwritten collection of recipes, I go to Taste of Home. This site seems to have a great collection of recipes moms and grammas (dads and grandpas too) have been making for ages. Are you craving that baked oatmeal you loved in your childhood. Guess what? It’s in this website waiting for you!

4. http://joyofbaking.com/ This is really a website for baking, but belongs on my list because I use this site all the time. Stephanie Jaworski’s scone recipes are fantastic. I also like her quick breads. In fact, her zucchini bread with coconut is the best recipe out there. I like how Stephanie explains things as a preface to each recipe. There are also plenty of videos if you need visual help on a technique.

3. http://barefootcontessa.com/ I like to watch Ina Garten on the Food Network and then try the recipes she demonstrates. I have a couple of her cookbooks too. Ina’s recipes are always a hit for dinner parties. If you have not yet tried her coconut cake, you don’t know what you are missing! And yes, it calls for five sticks of butter!

2. http://thepioneerwoman.com/ Ree Drummond is my go to gal for comfort food. You cannot beat her meatloaf, mashed potatoes, mac & cheese, or sweet rolls. It’s not health food, but when you want to sink your teeth into something really delicious, check out The Pioneer Woman.

1. http://www.epicurious.com/ It is the only cooking app I even use on my iPhone. It combines recipes from Bon Appetit, Self, and Gourmet magazines and features guest recipes from other chefs too. The photos, instructions, and reviews never let me down. I’ve used it for years.

Remember to add your favorites below!

It Was a Creole Christmas

I select a different theme for my Christmas Eve dinner each year. This year’s pick was “Creole Christmas.” The food of Louisiana has a rich history. The flavors are layered and rich. I have yet to come across a Creole or Cajun dish I didn’t like! The menu included red snapper, shrimp etouffee, corn maque choux, and bread pudding with raisins and bourbon sauce. Yum!

One time-saving method I used this year was to prep all my vegetables in advance. Since most creole dishes include a mirepoix of onion, celery, and bell pepper, I chopped enough of each for all the recipes.

Red Snapper with Creole Sauce

I used a recipe from the James Beard Foundation to make the fish. I was fortunate to find two lovely pieces of red snapper at a local Harris Teeter. They usually have a decent fish and seafood department. The recipe called for sliced black olives, crumbled bacon, and chopped hard-boiled egg on top for serving. I was skeptical at first, but the overall effect was amazing. Here is the full recipe: http://www.jamesbeard.org/recipes/baked-fish-creole

Shrimp Etouffee

I had never tried shrimp etouffee before making it for this year’s dinner. It was a hit. I think this is one of those dishes that improves with time. Had there been any leftovers, I assume it would have been even more delish. I do think the shrimp, though cooked perfectly, would have tasted better if I had been able to find domestic shrimp. I don’t know whether anyone else agrees, but IMO nothing beats fresh shrimp from the waters near Savannah, Georgia. Unfortunately by the time I made it to the grocery store Christmas Eve day, all that remained was imported shrimp. I used Emeril’s recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/shrimp-etouffee-recipe.html

Maque Choux

The maque choux was creamy with a slight kick. It is probably one of the best corn dishes I’ve ever eaten. I had to alter the recipe a tad because I was unable to find tasso ham. I substituted andouille sausage instead which was a perfect choice. I rendered the sausage then cooked the corn mixture in the same pan. I think it came out great! This was another Emeril recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/tasso-maque-choux-recipe.html#!

Bread Pudding

I’ve never met a bread pudding I didn’t like! It’s a traditional Louisiana dessert. I kept it very simple and the bourbon sauce was a complete hit. I did not have whole milk, so instead I mixed half skim milk and half heavy cream. The result was pure heaven in a bowl! It was just as yummy the next morning when I rewarmed a small portion for breakfast! The recipe was from Mr. Food: http://www.mrfood.com/Puddings/New-Orleans-Bread-Pudding-with-Bourbon-Sauce-3289.

Hey baby! If you are in a New Orleans state of mind, give creole cooking a try.

10 Scone Recipes to Try

Since before the Starbucks craze hit the nation, I’ve been baking scones for friends. Creating these finicky little treats seems to improve with a practiced hand. The basic rule of thumb is to handle the dough as little as possible once you incorporate the wet ingredients.

Scones come in sweet and savory varieties and use different wet substances. This post focuses only on sweet scones. Most of the recipes are not my own, but I use these recipes over and over, adjusting them to my tastes or what I happen to have in the pantry.

10. Blueberry Scones with Lemon Glaze – This is a Tyler Florence recipe and one of the best blueberry scone recipes out there. If you’ve been blueberry picking, try these instead of muffins for a change. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/blueberry-scones-with-lemon-glaze-recipe.html

Tip: Don’t skimp on the zest!

9. Fresh Raspberry Scones – You’ll find joyofbaking.com a few times in this list because it is my go-to site for scones. This scone uses yogurt as its wet ingredient. It is moist and delicious. I like white chocolate chips in this one as opposed to dark chocolate, but that is a personal choice! http://joyofbaking.com/RaspberryScones.html

Tip: Fresh raspberries are nearly impossible to work with. Be gentle and try not to mush them!

8. Maple Oat Scones – If you are hungry for scones but feeling guilty, these are your best bet. Using buttermilk instead of cream gives them a different texture. They are lower in fat and the oats make them seem healthier! Plus, maple syrup makes everything in life taste better! http://bakingbites.com/2011/09/maple-oat-scones/

Tip: No need to roll and flatten these out. Remember that the less you handle them, the more tender the result. Just drop them on your parchment paper and bake. I make them the size of golf balls.

7. Pumpkin Scones – It is difficult to find a pumpkin scone recipe that is not too dense or too moist. This recipe from Pinch My Salt was first published in 2007 and is the one I always go back to when fall rolls around. http://pinchmysalt.com/pumpkin-spice-scone-recipe/

Tip: I’ve tried both icings and prefer the molasses one myself.

6. Iced Gingerbread Scones – Like pumpkin scones, these are perfect over the holidays. I use this recipe for the base, but I like to mix confectioners sugar and maple syrup for the glaze. http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2013/12/iced-gingerbread-scones-recipe-christmas-breakfast.html

Tip: You can rewarm scones in the microwave the next day.

5. Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Scones – These are perhaps a bit too desserty for a scone, but you cannot go wrong with chocolate and peanut butter. They’re good, but the guilt factor is high when you’ve reached over to grab a second! http://www.browneyedbaker.com/oatmeal-peanut-butter-chocolate-chip-scones/

4. Glazed Heart Scones – Guys, if you like to bake, these scones make a lasting impression on your Valentine. I suggest you put this recipe aside and try it in February! http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/glazed-raspberry-heart-scones-231579

Tip: Don’t be a cheapskate. Buy seedless jam.

3. Cranberry Orange Cream Scones – Ina Garten bakes up a very nice scone with this recipe. I am not a huge fan of dried cranberries, so I always substitute dried cherries instead. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/cranberry-orange-scones-recipe.html

Tip: Remember the rule about handling your dough. That would include rolling and cutting. I press into a round disk and cut into pie wedges using a pizza cutter.

2. Pecan and Chocolate Chip Scones – Using the coffee house scone recipe as a base, very few scone recipes are as delicious as this one. The texture is the best thing about these scones. Stephanie’s method of dusting the top with powdered sugar then sticking them under the broiler to form a sweet crust makes them absolutely perfect right out of the oven. http://www.joyofbaking.com/SconesPecanChocolate.html

Tip: Watch these under the broiler like a hawk. And eat them soon after. Buttermilk scones do not hold as well as cream scones.

Before

After

1. Cream Scone with Currants – This is my recipe. The one I use most often. Though the recipe calls for currents, you can substitute whatever you are in the mood for.

400 degrees
15-20 minutes

Ingredients:
2 cups flour (unsifted)
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
2 Tbs sugar
1 stick butter (1/2 cup)
¼ cup your choice of add-ins (dried currents, chocolate chips, dried cherries, or whatever you prefer)
1 egg
½ cup heavy cream
jam

Directions:
In bowl mix flour, baking powder, salt, sugar. Cut in butter. (I use a pastry cutter and work with it until butter incorporated like small peas)

If you are adding any dried fruit or chocolate chips, do so now.

This is where a good scone is made or spoiled. You can work the flour and butter as much as you’d like before wet ingredients are added. Just as with biscuits, to keep them tender, you want to minimize messing with the dough once you add wet to dry.

In same measuring cup add egg to heavy cream and fork mix together. Gently fold into dry mixture.

Turn out onto baking sheet lined with parchment or baking mat. Using your hands, form into a ball and mush it down into a disk about 8 inches in diameter.

Brush top with a bit of heavy cream. Sprinkle with sugar. Cut into 8 sections with a pizza cutter.

At this point I often use a small round measuring spoon or a melon baller and make a small indent in the center of each scone and spoon in a small dollop of strawberry jam.

Bake until firm. Serve warm with jam.

I’ve added another to my list of favorite scones. Check out my recipe for cinnamon chip scones!

Enjoy!

Cooking for a Crowd – Lessons Learned

I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving holiday. I really thought through my menu and preparations this year a bit differently because I was cooking for a few folks I had never hosted before. Here is a rundown of what worked well and what did not.

A Smoking Hot Turkey
Smoking the bird was a smart move this year because it freed up my double ovens for more sides. I concocted the brine in advance and immersed the turkey overnight in a big Gatorade cooler. Come morning all I had to do was rinse it off and place it onto my preheated smoker. The only hitch was my turkey reached optimal temperature sooner than I had calculated. The bird had plenty of time to rest and everyone raved about the delicious flavor. I just wish it had been a bit hotter by the time I served it.
Lesson Learned: Don’t overestimate cooking time!

Dessert Comes First
I made my pies the night before Thanksgiving this year. I know this is common, but I’ve always hesitated because some desserts taste so much better fresh out of the oven. Unfortunately I was up past midnight because my Heavenly Pie took much longer to make than I had planned for. Guest reviews were highly favorable!
Lesson Learned: Start earlier in the day!

Too Many Sides Sink the Buffet
Because I wanted a nice variety of side dishes for guests, I may have gone a bit overboard. I prepared green beans, brussels sprouts, two kinds of stuffing, cranberry sauce, rolls, two kinds of sweet potatoes, acorn squash, mashed potatoes, gravy, and corn casserole. It was a ton of work and even more dishes to wash! I think my friends were a bit overwhelmed by all the choices and walked away from the table overly full. Next time I will trim back the menu!
Lesson Learned: Sometimes, less is more!

Planning and preparation was fun this year since I knew I wanted to blog about my cooking. But in the future, I will cut myself a little slack. Either that, or I need to hire a home sous chef!

What were your wins this year around the holiday table? Feel free to comment and share your thoughts!

My Top 5 Thanksgiving Pies Revealed

In my previous article I listed my favorite pies for Thanksgiving David Letterman style, starting with number 10. Here is the rest of my list, including the recipes. I hope you like them! Let me know if you have any of the same recipes on your list. Be sure to include photos if you give one of these a try.

5. Chess Pie
Chess Pie is an old southern favorite. The beauty of chess pie is it’s very versatile. You can add one or two other ingredients to alter the flavor. Lemon or chocolate are the two most popular variations, though I’ve seen orange, coconut, and even peanut butter. There are a couple of different camps out there. Some recipes call for buttermilk and others use whole milk. I like both, but my favorite recipe comes from Southern Living, http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/classic-chess-pie.

4. Peanut Butter Pie
My favorite peanut butter pie combines elements from a couple different recipes. What I really love is that it does not use a typical pie crust, (which as you may recall, I am hopelessly inept as making) rather it is a solid chocolate shell. Yum! This does contain a raw egg. If you are uncomfortable with raw egg, you could leave it out.

Ingredients: small bag semi sweet chocolate chips, 8 oz. softened cream cheese, 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter, 1 cup powdered sugar, 1 egg, 1 pint heavy whipping cream, chocolate bar for making curls

Melt chocolate chips and pour into glass pie dish. Spread evenly on bottom and sides. Freeze. Beat softened cream cheese and peanut butter until smooth. Add powdered sugar and egg; beat until creamy. Whip heavy cream separately. (You could also use cool whip.) Fold whipped cream into peanut butter mixture. Pour into pie shell and refrigerate. Sprinkle with chocolate shavings before serving.

3. Easy No-bake Cheesecake Pie
This is my go-to pie throughout the year. It is super simple to throw together and is always a hit.

Ingredients: graham cracker crust, 8 ounces softened cream cheese, 3/4 cup sugar, 2 tsp vanilla, 1 pint heavy cream (also called whipping cream)

Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and vanilla and keep beating. Slowly add heavy cream and beat til thick and fluffy. Pour into cooled pie crust. Chill 24 hours. Top with canned fruit.

2. Heavenly Pie
This pie is light and delicious. It also takes considerable time and patience to make. I guess that’s why they say good things take time! The meringue crust makes an impressive base and the lemony whipped filling is pure heaven…thus the name! It is an old family recipe. Mine is never quite as ethereal as my cousin’s which is why it was on my menu this year. I need the practice! I’ve explained by steps.

Ingredients: 1 cup sugar, 1/4 tsp cream of tartar, 4 egg whites
Beat whites until stiff. Slowly add sugar and cream of tartar. When meringue makes glossy peaks, spread over bottom and sides of well buttered 9″ pie plate. Bake at 275 degrees for 1 hour. Cool. See image on left.

Ingredients: 4 egg yolks, 1/2 cup sugar, 3 Tbs lemon juice, whipped cream
Over a double boiler beat the egg yolks. Add the sugar and lemon juice. Continue stirring nonstop until thickened (8-10 minutes). Cool. Fold in 1 cup whipped cream. Pile into cooled pie shell. Chill 12-24 hours. Top with more whipped cream.

Drum roll please! And now for Bradley Nierenberg’s top choice pie choice for Thanksgiving…the one I bake every year…

1. Derby Pie
Are you surprised? I know this is not a typical choice for Thanksgiving! I was sold after a friend from Louisville served this to me once, many years ago. There are many many versions of this Kentucky favorite, and they are all delicious. I prefer a version without bourbon, but that is entirely up to you! This is my friend’s original recipe.

Ingredients: 1 pie shell, 1 cup chocolate chips, 1 cup English walnuts (broken), 2 eggs beaten, 1 cup sugar, 1 stick butter (melted and cooled), 1/2 cup flour, 1 tsp vanilla

Mix sugar and flour, then eggs, add butter, nuts, chocolate chips, and vanilla. Pour into unbaked pie shell and bake for 35-45 minutes at 350 degrees. If a toothpick comes out too gooey, bake longer. It depends upon your oven.

Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving! Please let me know if you give any of these a try. I would love to hear what you think!

Thanksgiving Sides – Tried and True or Something New

I realized this morning that Thanksgiving is next week. By now I’ve usually hunted through my grandmother’s recipe box and pulled out all my tried and true favorites, created a shopping list, and planned out a cooking schedule. Somehow the holiday crept up on me and I honestly thought I had a couple more weeks.

With only a week and a half to go, I see an opportunity to skip the tried and true family favorites this year and scout out a few new side dishes and desserts. I recently joined a couple of Facebook cooking groups (The Home Chef’s Hangout and Real Cooks of Facebook) which have inspired me to try new things. The question remains, will I miss Gram’s cranberry relish, apple sausage dressing, and green bean bundles come Turkey Day?

My go-to website for finding recipes is always Epicurious. Though some of the recipes are a bit too complicated for my novice cooking skills, I find the reviews really helpful. Plus I love the pictures and breadth of choice. The slideshow for Make Ahead Side Dishes for Thanksgiving will be one place I pull ideas from this year.

Another great resource I like to use is Yummly. While many of the entrees are not as sophisticated as those I find on the Epicurious site, I like creating my own collections as a way of organizing recipes I’d like to try. As you can see, I’ve started collecting Thanksgiving Sides already!

I’m looking forward to trying something new and perhaps creating a few new traditions. Which Thanksgiving recipes do you still pull from your Gramma, Great Aunt, or even Mom? Feel free to share in the comments section. You can include your recipe unless it is a family secret!

Pumpkin Quesadillas — And No, This is Not an Oxymoron!

I mentioned pumpkin quesadillas in an earlier blog which featured cooking with kale, and as you can see, I was not kidding. For some reason, I cannot get enough pumpkin flavoring whenever Fall rolls around, so here goes! Enjoy this Meatless Monday recipe from Rachael Ray:

http://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipe/pumpkin-quesadillas/

Ingredients you will need:
2 cups of canned pure pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Caramelized red onions (if you go for that sort of thing)
4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled (or your choice of cheese)
8 eight inch flour tortillas
½ cup chopped walnuts, toasted (or hazelnuts)
¼ cup of vegetable oil
Salt, pepper, cayenne pepper to taste

Foolproof* Directions (May not apply to ALL fools!):
These are seriously easy to make! I’d suggest saving them for a day when you need something quick. I added some caramelized red onions and cayenne, skipped the nuts, and it made these quite savory.

More Ideas for Quesadillas

Thought to have originated in colonial Mexico (so says Wikipedia), the quesadilla has Americanized over the years. This pumpkin recipe got me thinking about all the different ways you could make quesadillas other than the typical “cheese sandwich” ones. So I turned to one of my favorite foodie websites Yummly, and created a collection, http://www.yummly.com/profile/BradNierenberg/collections/Quesadillas. I plan on trying some of these combinations and will keep you posted! In the meantime, feel free to add your favorite!

NEVER Buy Chicken Stock Again

When I stop and consider how much money I’ve wasted on packaged chicken stock over the years, I cringe. It is loaded with sodium and yellow food coloring. How could I do that to my home cooking?

I saw the light back in 2012 when taking a knife skills cooking class in New York City. While learning the proper way to handle and use various knives, the instructor enlightened the students on how simple making your own stock really was.

I was converted. Here’s how I make mine. You can improve upon it however you’d like.

Waste Not, Want Not

Save every peeling, nub, core, seed, wilted, too soft to use in a salad vegetable you’ve got. Start a freezer bag and add to it whenever you are cooking with veggies. I save it all: onion peels (yes, the outer brown part contributes to a nice rich color), squash innards (seeds and all), carrot peels, wilted parsley, cauliflower cores. The sky’s the limit. Pack it in your freezer bag and wait for it to fill up.

In the meantime, save your chicken bones, chicken parts, wing tips, and whatever you’ve got. Store them in a separate freezer bag.

Watch Football While Stock Simmers

When you’ve got some bones and a gallon bag of veggies, throw them together in a stock pot (or deep pot), add a few peppercorns, bring to a boil, and then turn down the heat to simmer for a few hours. Sunday afternoons are a great time to make stock while watching football.

Let things cool off (including your temper if your team loses) and run your fresh stock though a strainer. At this point you could add the refuse to your compost pile, or if you don’t compost, trash it.

TIP: Here’s one more brilliant tip given to me by a friend. You see, I got to be so stock crazy, my freezer was filled with little tupperware containers. I barely had any room for ice cream! So he suggested I use freezer bags for my stock. Now, I zip them up, lay them flat until they freeze, then stack them against the side. They take up much less room and are easy to thaw under some warm water!

Note: If you are super eco-friendly and the thought of using plastic bags is painful, I reuse the veggie nub and chicken bone bags. I guess you could wash out and reuse the frozen stock ones too.

Cooking with Stock

You will need to make seasoning adjustments to your cooking with home-cooked stock because there’s no added salt to the real stuff.

That’s it. Enjoy! And let me know how you like it.

“Fall”ing in Love Again with Kale

It’s Fall again, and that means no one will question why you want to incorporate kale or pumpkin into every plate. Sometimes both! I’d personally start with kale, because there will be plenty of time in November for pumpkin pies, lattes, quesadillas (no, really!), cake, and anything else you can sneak pumpkin into. But kale is one of best ways I know of to say goodbye to summer and hello to fall. It is the perfect accompaniment to pastas, soups, and stews.

In this seriously simple recipe http://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipe/fettuccine-with-sausage-kale/, Rachel Ray serves up Fettuccine with Sausage and Kale for four people.

All you’ll need are:

1 lb fettuccine
1 lb spicy Italian sausage, removed from the casings
1⁄2 cup heavy cream
1 large bunch kale, trimmed and coarsely chopped
1⁄2 cup grated Parmesan

When making this, I added an extra half pound of sausage (sweet Italian), but that’s a personal preference. Also, try boiling the fettuccine in vegetable or chicken stock, rather than water, for additional flavor.

TIP: I always buy DeCecco pasta. It is not much more expensive than other brands, but IMO it is a much better product. I am friends with a few Italians and this is the brand they use. Who am I to argue with a native?!?!

As you can imagine, the directions for this are simple. I modified them a bit to reflect my own preferences.

1. Bring stock (or salted water) to rolling boil. (Always salt your water after it starts to boil. That way it comes to a boil faster.)

2. Cook pasta until the noodles are slightly under-cooked. Seriously, there is nothing more disgusting than over-cooked pasta. Save a couple ladles of the pasta water before you drain your noodles.

3. Drain.

4. While preparing pasta, saute sausage on medium low until browned. Break it up as you go. Make sure you pan is large enough since you will soon be dumping your cooked pasta in there too.

5. Add 1/2 cup of pasta water and the heavy cream.

6. Simmer until reduced to a consistency you like.

7. Add kale; stir until wilted. This won’t be very long.

8. Add your pasta and simmer for a few moments longer. This way your pasta (the real star of any pasta dish) soaks up all that good flavor. Never. And I mean NEVER dump plain pasta onto a dish and ladle your sauce or topping over it.

9. Add a handful of Parmesan and gently incorporate. Give it a taste. Add salt and pepper if needed.

10. Serve and enjoy promptly!

P.S. I was not paid by DeCecco to mention their brand. The simple truth is, that’s what I use!

Brad Nierenberg the Home Chef

brad | the | gourmand

Category: Uncategorized

What Do You Feed Picky Eater Kids?

Bradley Nierenberg’s Top 10 Cooking Websites

It Was a Creole Christmas

10 Scone Recipes to Try

Cooking for a Crowd – Lessons Learned

My Top 5 Thanksgiving Pies Revealed

Thanksgiving Sides – Tried and True or Something New

Pumpkin Quesadillas — And No, This is Not an Oxymoron!

NEVER Buy Chicken Stock Again

“Fall”ing in Love Again with Kale