Here is a quick main dish inspired by my trip to the newly opened Eataly here in Boston yesterday. A quick, one pot, done in under an hour, weeknight friendly (provided you like mushrooms) Triple Mushroom pasta. Neat trick: you cook the pasta in with the mushrooms, which saves a step (and an additional pot). This might have to go on my go-to rotation too as I think that I’ll be able to eat from this at least 3x meals (being the singleton that I am).
Switching gears to something sorts of Valentine’s Day like. I think that I say this every year, but I have a love-hate relationship with Valentine’s Day. Ok, it’s mostly a hate-hate because of the absurdity, the consumerism and contrived nature of it all. Love? Well the reason that I might like it a little is that it is an excuse in the middle of the winter to make lots of cookies, chocolates, truffles and the like. And what the heck, you might as well have a theme. So I figured I’d start now, in case anyone wants to use these recipes for their own creations.
It is miserable out. It’s been blowing a gale, dark as night even the middle of the day and we’re under flood watch because of all the rain. I hate rain. Give me snow — especially in January — and I’d be much happier. Although I’d likely be bitching about the snow then too. You can’t win, can you? In the meantime, this Meyer Lemon Upside Down Cake practically *glows* with brightness. And it tastes equally as vibrant. Caramelized Meyer lemons and light fluffy cake. Give me some whipped cream and we’re golden!
Still on my Meyer Lemon kick… while they are available, I will eat them! So I thought I would use some of the curd that I made last weekend and make some crumble bars (aka shortbread bars). And what pairs nicely with the tropical flavors of Meyer Lemons — why Macadamia Nuts! While these were a bit annoying to cut (should have chopped the nuts finer) they taste amazing!
This recipe isn’t so much about the ingredients as it is about the technique: butterflying (or spatchcocking) a whole chicken and then placing it in a searing hot cast iron skillet that you have heated to 500F in the oven. It’s a technique that was recently on America’s Test Kitchen and I thought that I would give it a go. The result: a yummy roasted bird in under an hour. I will have to remember to open the windows in the kitchen though, because it was a little smokey (just because my oven is old and there isn’t good airflow; most people likely won’t have this issue). Lovely comfort food on a wet January day.