At Home Italian Cooking By JoElaine

Sweet & Sour Chicken made by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn recipe by Laura Vitali.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lb of Chicken Breast, cut into chunks

1 cup of Cornstarch

2 Eggs, whisked

1 Green Bell Pepper, roughly chopped

1 Yellow Onion, roughly chopped

1 Red Bell Pepper, roughly chopped

Frying Oil

For the sauce:

1/2 cup of Water

1/2 cup of Ketchup

1/3 cup of Rice Wine Vinegar

1/2 Cup of Brown Sugar

2 Tbsp Granulated Sugar

3 Tbsp of Soy Sauce

3 Cloves of Garlic, minced

Preparation 

1. Add some frying oil to a large cast Iron skillet and preheat until hot, meanwhile, preheat your oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Dip your chicken pieces in the beaten eggs and dredge in the cornstarch making sure to shake off any excess bits and then add to the hot oil and fry until crispy on both sides, only takes about a minute, remove to a paper towel lined plate and set aside.

3. Add the chicken, peppers and onions in a baking dish (make sure your baking dish isn’t too big or you’ll risk burning the sauce, the dish should hold everything nice and snug) then in a measuring cup or bowl whisk together all of the ingredients for the sauce and pour over the chicken and vegetables.

4. Bake for about an hour, making sure you give it a stir every 15 to 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

Grilled London Broil with Mustard Rub made by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn recipe by Elise Bauer

Ingredients:

2 pounds top round cut of steak

Kosher salt

Dry mustard

Pepper

Butter, softened to room temperature

Process,

1. Prep and salt the steak: Remove steak from refrigerator 2 hours before cooking to bring to room temperature (only do this with whole cuts of meat, never with ground meat.)Lightly sprinkle with kosher salt on both sides

2. Rub steak with dry mustard, salt, pepper, butter: Heat a large, grilling skillet to medium high heat. Pat the steaks dry with paper towels. Rub a little dry mustard into both sides of the steak. Sprinkle both sides again with salt, and with a little black pepper. Rub butter over both sides of the steak.

3. Grill steak on both sides on stovetop: Place the steak in the hot pan. Let cook for 2-3 minutes on each side (without moving), check before flipping to make sure it has nicely grilled.

4. Finish steak on stovetop or in oven, depending on thickness: At this point, if you have a steak only an inch thick or less, you can take the skillet off the heat and just let the steak sit for several minutes in the skillet (tent the steak with aluminum foil). The cast iron pan will retain enough heat to cook the steak to medium rare.You can use a finger pressure method to test for doneness. You can also test for doneness by using a small sharp knife and cutting into the center to check the color. Or, if the steak is brown on both sides and it is weeping red juice, it's done.If you have a steak thicker than an inch-thick, you can finish it off in the oven, at 350°F for 10 to 15 minutes or so.Use a meat thermometer to test the internal temperature of the steak. Pull it out of the oven at 130°F for medium rare (the steak will continue to rise in temperature for a few minutes after you pull it out).If you are using the oven method, when done, remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes before cutting into it.

5. You want to cook the steak only to medium rare, as cooking it further will make it more tough.Serve by slicing the meat across the grain.

Enjoy!

Spinach & Mushroom Stuffed Chicken in a White Wine Sauce by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Large plastic food storage bags or waxed paper

1 package (10 ounces) frozen spinach

2 Tbsps of  butter

8 large mushroom caps

2 cloves of garlic, smashed

1 small shallot, quartered

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 cup of ricotta cheese

1/2 cup of parmesan cheese, grated

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, fresh grated

Toothpicks

2 Tbsps of extra-virgin olive oil

 2 Tbsps of butter

2 Tbsps of flour

1/2 cup white wine

1 cup of chicken broth

Process,

1. Place breasts in the center of a plastic food storage bag or 2 large sheets of waxed paper. Pound out the chicken from the center of the bag outward using a heavy-bottomed skillet .

2. Defrost spinach in the microwave. Transfer spinach to a kitchen towel. Twist towel around spinach and wring it out until very dry. Transfer to a medium-mixing bowl.

3. Place a nonstick skillet over moderate heat. When skillet is hot, add butter, mushrooms, garlic and shallot. Season with salt and pepper and saute 5 minutes. Transfer mushrooms, garlic and shallot to the food processor. Pulse to grind the mushrooms and transfer to the mixing bowl, adding the processed mushrooms to the spinach. Add ricotta and grated cheese to the bowl and the nutmeg. Stir to combine the stuffing. Return your skillet to the stove over medium high heat.

4. Place a mound of stuffing on each breast and wrap and roll breast over the stuffing. Secure breasts with toothpicks. Add 3 tablespoons oil to the pan, 3 turns of the pan. Add breasts to the pan and brown on all sides, cooking chicken 10 to 12 minutes. The meat will cook quickly because it is thin.

5. Remove breasts; add butter to the pan and flour. Cook butter and flour for a minute, whisk in wine and reduce another minute. Whisk in broth and return breasts to the pan. Reduce heat and simmer until ready to serve. Remove toothpicks.

6. Serve breasts whole or, remove from pan, slice on an angle and fan out on dinner plates. Top stuffed chicken breasts or sliced stuffed breasts with generous spoonfuls of the sauce.

Enjoy!

Homemade Tortellini by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn Ingredients:

Pasta Dough

2 cups of flour + extra for rolling the dough

1/2 tsp of salt

3 large eggs

For Filling

1 cup of ricotta cheese

1/2 cup of parmesan cheese , grated

1/2 cup of asiago cheese , grated

1/2 cup of fresh parsley , chopped

1/4 teaspoon salt

Dash of nutmeg

Process ,

Pasta Dough

1. In a bowl combine the flour and salt with a whisk . Set aside.

2. In a bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment add your eggs and on low speed whisk till combined . Change your attachment to a dough hook and on low speed slowly add your flower until dough starts forming making sure you stop the machine to scrape the sides of the bowl to make sure all the flour mixture combines into the eggs . Once enough flour has been added, it will start forming a very soft dough. Don't worry if you haven't used all the flour.

3. Turn your speed up to medium and start kneading the dough. Incorporate more flour if needed. The dough is kneaded when it forms a smooth elastic ball .

4. In a bowl place the ball of dough inside and cover with plastic wrap. Rest for at least 30 minutes.

5. Sprinkle a large board generously with flour and scrape the ball of dough on top (it will stick to the bowl; use a spatula or bowl scraper if necessary). Divide the dough into four equal portions. Dust the portions with flour and cover with a clean dishtowel.

For Filling

6. In a small bowl mix together all ingredients and set aside.

To make Tortellini

7. Roll out the pasta into sheets. Divide the pasta dough into quarters. Work with one piece at a time and keep the other pieces covered. Run the dough through a pasta roller on progressively thinner settings until you have a sheet of paper-thin pasta. (Setting #6 on a KitchenAide pasta roller attachment.)

8. Cut the sheet of pasta into squares roughly 3-inches by 3-inches. Place 1 teaspoon of filling in the middle of each square of pasta. Dip your finger in the bowl and run it along two edges of the square. Fold the square into a triangle, pressing the top together and then working your way along the sides. Then draw the bottom two corners of the triangle together to form a kerchief shape. Press tightly to seal. Toss with flour, set aside on well-floured baking sheet, and cover. Repeat with remaining pieces of dough.

9. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add a tablespoon or two of salt. Lower the tortellini into the water a few at a time with a slotted spoon. Stir the pot occasionally to prevent the tortellini from sticking to the pot or each other. Cook until all the tortellini have bobbed to the surface of the water, about 5 minutes. Taste one to check for doneness.

10. Drain your tortellini in a colander and return to your pot and add any homemade sauce of your choosing. Note : I used my homemade alfredo sauce.

Enjoy!

Homemade Corned Beef & Cabbage made by JoElaine Quinn recipe by Paula Deen Ingredients:

1 4-pound corned beef brisket

3 cloves garlic

2 bay leaves

1/2 teaspoon hot pepper flakes

4 slices bacon

1 head green cabbage

4 (1 ½-pounds) potatoes

Mustard, for serving

Process,

1.Rinse the corned beef under cold running water and then place it in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add the garlic, bay leaves, hot sauce, and enough water to cover the brisket. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer about 4 hours or until the beef is tender.

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook the bacon over medium heat until crisp. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate to drain the bacon, retaining the fat in the skillet. Add the cabbage wedges and potatoes in batches; cook over medium-high heat until brown but not tender.

3. When the beef is very tender, transfer it to a warm serving platter and cover it with aluminum foil, retaining the cooking liquid. Add the potatoes to the simmering liquid, and cover and simmer them for about 15 minutes or until they begin to soften. Add the cabbage, letting it simmer for about 15 minutes more or until potatoes are easily pierced with a fork. Next, discard the bay leaves.

4. Using tongs or a slotted spoon, transfer the vegetables to the serving platter and crumble the bacon over it all. Now, you can serve it up with some delicious mustard.

Enjoy!

Corned Beef Brisket & Cabbage by JoElaine Quinn

Ingredients:

2 Tbsps of butter

4 lbs flat cut corned beef brisket with seasoning packet

1/4 cups of french's yellow mustard

3/4 cups of brown sugar

1 head of cabbage ( quartered )

6 carrots ( julienne 2 to 3 inches )

Process,

1. Place your corned beef brisket with seasoning packet into a large pot and cover with water . Make sure you include the juices from the package as well . Bring to a boil then simmer for 2 1/2 hours with the lid half on .

2. Line a baking pan with foil . Place brisket on foil . Add several ladles of corned beef broth onto the pan , this is called a wet bath . Combine the mustard and brown sugar and brush on top of your brisket with half the mixture . Place brisket in a heated oven at 275 degrees for 2 1/2 hours .

3. Reglaze with remaining brown sugar / mustard mixture after the first hour .

4. Before pulling brisket out of oven , set oven to broil and broil brisket 2-4 minutes till the sugar/mustard glaze carmelizes the top . ( Do not let it burn ) Let it stand for 15 minutes before slicing .

5. Take your broth made from the corned beef with seasoning packet and strain the broth to remove seasoning and any fat that came off the meat and place back in your large pot .

6. Add carrots and your quartered cabbage and continue to simmer 30 minutes more until cabbage and carrots are tender with a folk .

7. When serving , place 2 tablespoons of butter on top of your cabbage and carrots when placed on a serving dish .

Enjoy!

Chicken Breast stuffed with Garlic Stuffing by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast

2 tbsp of vegetable oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1 loaf of french bread , cubed

1/2 cup of butter

3 cloves of garlic , sliced

1 cup of onions, minced

1 1/2 cup of celery, minced

2 tbsp of savoury, fresh

2 cup of breadcrumbs

3 cups of chicken broth

Process,

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat; add onion, celery and savory. Cook until tender and add your garlic and cook until garlic has softened. Remove from heat and stir in french bread until well mixed. Stir in chicken broth . Stuffing should be moist enough to shape into 2 logs.

3. Put chicken breasts between layers of wax paper and pound to about ½ inch (1 cm) thickness. Season chicken with salt and pepper and place, smooth side down, on a cutting board.

4. Place 1 stuffing log down the middle of one chicken breast. Place a second chicken breast, smooth side up, on top of the stuffing. Tie breasts together securely with string so the stuffing is sandwiched in between. Repeat with the remaining two breasts. These chicken breast roasts serves two each.

5. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat and brown the roasts on all sides. Place on a baking sheet and bake for about 45 minutes or until a thermometer inserted into the chicken (not the stuffing) reads 165 degrees.

6. To serve, remove string and slice each roast . Serve with your favorite sides.

Enjoy!

Crown Pork Roast by JoElaine Quinn

Ingredients:

1 5-bone pork crown roast , ( could be 6 or 7 bone crown roast)

6 garlic cloves

6 whole cloves

3 lemons, zest removed in strips with a vegetable peeler and lemons juiced

3 oranges, zest removed in strips with a vegetable peeler and oranges juiced

20 fresh bay leaves

8 rosemary sprigs

2 tablespoons fennel seeds, coarsely chopped

1 tablespoon juniper berries, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Process,

1. Using a paring knife, make three 1-inch-deep slits on the fatty side of each pork rib roast closest to the bones. Stud the garlic cloves with the whole cloves and stuff them into the slits.

2. In a baking dish, combine the lemon and orange zests and juices with the bay leaves, rosemary sprigs, fennel seeds, juniper berries and 1/4 cup of the olive oil. Add the pork and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight, turning occasionally. Bring the pork crown roast to room temperature before roasting.

3. Preheat the oven to 350°. Scrape off the marinade and generously season the pork with salt and pepper. In a very large skillet, heat the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil. Add the pork and brown over moderate heat, turning occasionally, about 15 minutes.

4. Transfer the pork crown roast to a large roasting pan. Roast for about 1 hour and 20 minutes, rotating the pan once or twice, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat registers 140°. Transfer the pork to a cutting board and let rest for 20 minutes. Cut the pork between the rib bones into 5 or 7 chops. Transfer to plates, garnish with the roasted apples and pears and serve.

For Garnish Score the apples and pears to prevent the skin from splitting. Roast the fruit at 350° for about 1 hour, until tender.

Enjoy!

Homemade Baked Ziti by JoElaine ( Balsamo) Quinn

Ingredients:

1 16 oz package of Ziti Pasta

2 cups 16oz of Ricotta Cheese

2 cups of Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, shredded

1/2 cup of Parmesan Cheese, freshly grated

1 Egg

6 Fresh Basil , chopped in thirds

Pinch of nutmeg

2 Tbsps of Salt for large pot of water

Homemade Sunday Sauce (Recipe on dinner page )

Process.

1. Bring a large pot of water with salt to a rapid boil on high heat . Add ziti pasta to the water and cook till al dente. Drain , rinse under cold water and st aside. Note : you want the pasta cool.

2. Preheat oven at 375 degrees . Lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish and set aside.

3. In a large bowl mix together 1 cup of mozzarella cheese, 1cup of ricotta cheese , 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese, 1 Egg , chopped basil , and a pinch of nutmeg . Stir in 1 1/2 cups of Sunday sauce. Note: You can add more sauce to your taste. Then pour your pasta into the bowl with your cheese mixture and toss to coat.

4. To assemble your baked ziti , add half of the coated pasta to the baking dish , then dot the surface with 1/2 a cup of ricotta cheese. Add the rest of the coated pasta on top then add sauce on top and press the ziti down gently so it doesn't stick above the sauce to much.Top with dollops of remaining ricotta cheese and on top sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese, parmesan , and some chopped basil.

5. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes , or until lightly Brown on top and sides are bubbling . Remove from oven and let set for 5 minutes. Serve with additional sauce ..

Enjoy!