White Mushroom Sauce on Linguine Pasta

I was not feeling all that well last night and my girlfriend made sure that I was going to be alright. I think she did amazing at it even though it wasn't much, but it's the thought that counts. So today on my way home from work, I stopped by the store and picked up some Mushrooms since I was going to whip up some amazing food for her dinner today. So let me know what you think!

Ingredients
Pasta
bunch of Linguine Pasta
Italian Herb Mix
Sea Salt

Mushrooms
1 lb White Button Mushrooms
3 Shallots
1/2 stick Butter
1/2 cup White Wine
Italian Herb Mix
Ground Black Pepper
Onion Powder
Garlic Powder
Fennel Powder
Sea Salt
Fenugreek Seeds
Flax Seeds
Sesame Seeds

I began this with the knowledge that she loves Mushrooms. I have been slowly getting into making sauces because I find the process quite interesting and want to be able to make them for any occasion. So I gathered my materials and began this endeavor.

I filled a pot about halfway with water, a dash of Sea Salt, and a heavy dash of Italian Herb Mix. I turned the heat for it to high. Once it started to boil, I turned the heat down to medium and proceeded to grab the Linguine Pasta. I took out a good amount and snapped it all in half and put them in the pot. Make sure to keep an eye on it at first so it doesn't boil over. Pay no attention to the 2 Chorizo Sausages I am cooking up for tomorrow's lunch in the small pot! Then turn your attention to the Mushrooms.

I diced the Shallots and sliced the Mushrooms first. In the saucepan, I put the half stick of Butter in and turned the heat to high medium. Once the butter was mostly melted, I turned the heat down to just below medium and threw in the diced Shallots.

Once they started to turn translucent, I added in the sliced Mushrooms and half cup of White Wine. Mix really well to get all the Mushrooms covered with the sauce in there. Check your Pasta at this point, it should be close to being done. Once it is done, turn off the burner and cover.

About 1 minute later, I added in the spices. First I went with a heavy pinch of Italian Herb Mix with slightly smaller pinches of Onion and Garlic Powder. Fennel Powder was next and I used about the same amount as I did for the Italian Herb Mix. To finish it a dusting of Flax, Fenugreek, and Sesame Seeds went in. Mix together thoroughly.

Once the Mushrooms are spongey, they are done cooking. Turn off the burner. Now turn your attention to your Pasta. Get a strainer out and pour the pasta into it. Use a pair of tongs to take the pasta out to serve. I used a ladle to scoop out Mushrooms and the sauce mixture from the pan and carefully pour on top of the pasta. I added some grape tomatoes as garnish around the edges, which I must say the color contrast is quite nice. Enjoy.

Asparagus with Buttery Shallot Sauce

I picked up some Shallots this past week because I have never actually used them for cooking. Well, that needed to change. I've seen many recipes with them used and thought that a recipe I threw together would be a good start before delving into more complicated usages. So stay tuned if you like Shallots since I will most likely be using them in a lot of sauce creations in the future!

Ingredients:
5 Shallots
3 Garlic Cloves
1/2 stick of Butter
1/4 cup White Wine
Paprika
Sea Salt
Fennel Powder

First, I made sure I had everything I needed.

Once I had every thing together, I grabbed the Asparagus I had bought as well thinking that I can make this work. Well, I was right. The Shallots I diced up into as small of pieces as I could without mortally wounding my delicate fingers. I then did the same to the Garlic Cloves. Now that that is done, I turned to the Asparagus and trimmed off the thick ends. I did this because I wanted to cook everything properly without worrying that most of the stalks go bad just to cook the thick end.

Using a saucepan on the stove and setting the heat to medium, I waited for my half stick of Butter to melt. Once it was mostly melted, I dumped the diced Shallots and Garlic in and mixed them around with a pinch of Sea Salt. Once that was done, in went the half cup of White Wine and I topped it all off with a pinch or three of Paprika.

Once the Shallots started turning translucent I put in the Asparagus itself. Mix this around to get the buttery shallot mixture over everything. Taste test every once in awhile to find out if it is cooked properly.

Once it is done, turn off the heat and transfer the Asparagus to a plate. I put this plate in the microwave to let it stay warm easier, longer.

Now at this point I turned to making my Buttery Shallot Sauce. This part includes everything not Asparagus that was left in the saucepan. Scoop all of this, liquid included, into a small food processor. To this I added a little bit of Italian Caesar Dressing, a pinch or two of Italian Herb Mix, and some Fennel Powder. I closed it up and pureed the life out of it.

The final step in this recipe it to plate it. I chose a long narrow plate to compliment the shape of the Asparagus. I thought that skewing them by placing them diagonally would make the whole dish come together better. To top it off, the sauce I laid down in two simple lines to accent the length of the dish, almost make it seem even longer than it is. Enjoy.

Mellow Shrimp

I cooked up some shrimp today for a tasty snack for my girlfriend. When I cook shrimp normally, it's spicy. However, this time I made it a bit more mellow and laid back so there's no kick to the face.







Ingredients:
1/2 lb Shrimp
1/2 stick Butter
1/2 cup White Wine
1/4 cup Olive Oil
1/4 cup Teriyaki Sauce
1/4 cup Soy Sauce
1/3 cup Lime Juice
1/4 cup diced Chives
6 shredded Basil Leaves
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Paprika

I began by mixing the Teriyaki Sauce, Soy Sauce, and Lime Juice in a mixing bowl. I put the Shrimp directly into the bowl and set it to the side to marinate. I then turned my attention to dicing the Chives and shredding the Basil Leaves.

At this point I grabbed my container of Sun Dried Tomato Herb Butter and put about 1/2 a stick's worth into the saucepan. I then turned the heat to medium and poured in the Olive Oil. I let the Butter melt and swirled the pan to make sure it mixed together properly. I then grabbed the Chives and Basil and dropped them in.

I then stirred it around and proceeded to pour in the marinade and Shrimp. Dust with Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, and Paprika. Mix together. Stir in the White Wine at this point as well.

Mix regularly. I flipped the Shrimp once they started to turn orange. Leave them for about 10 seconds at this point and turn off burner. They should be ready to eat.

I served them on a plate of Basil Leaves I still had with some Scallions on top. Enjoy.

Chef's First: Clams

This morning I took a trip to Central Market, a very amazing grocery type store close by. Here I decided to grab a lot of things I am not that used to cooking, which ended up being lots of things I've used before and clams. How does one cook clams I wondered, so I bought a 1/2 pound to see how it goes.



Ingredients:
1/2 lb small Clams
1/2 stick Butter
1/2 cup White Wine
1/2 cup Olive Oil
6 diced Garlic Cloves
1 diced White Sweet Onion
Italian Herb Mix
Sea Salt
Linguine Pasta
Parsley

This recipe is fairly simple and yields great results. I started by cleaning the Clams themselves with a brush to get rid of as much grit on them as possible. This takes a few brushings and is simple to do.

Once that was done, I decided to serve these Clams up on some Linguine Pasta. I leave the amount up to you as I have no idea exactly how much I used. So a pot on the side with water, some Sea Salt, and a bunch of Italian Herb Mix that the pasta went into once the water was boiling.

Now that that is going, to the clams! You have to dice up the Onion and Garlic beforehand. In a saucepan, put half of the butter you are going to use and all the olive oil in with the heat set to medium. Stir in about 1/2 of the diced onions and garlic. Wait until the onions start to go translucent to throw in the rest of the onions and garlic. At this point add in a light amount of Italian Herb Mix and a pinch or two of the Sea Salt. Put the clams in. I made sure none were touching each other. I also added in a little bit of fresh parsley.

Every once in awhile stir them around to make sure they continue to be coated with the olive oil mixture. Your pasta should be done around now, so strain that and put back into pot with cover to keep warm.

Once your clams begin to open up, that is the signal that they are done. So I dished the pasta out and arranged the clams on that, along with a garnish of parsley. Enjoy.

Main Course: Shrimp!

So after putting the appetizer and side dish together, I had to turn my attention to the main course. Shrimp.










Ingredients:
1/2 lb Gulf Coast Shrimp
Archer Farms Chili Lime Sauce
Italian Herbs Mix
White Wine
Cilantro

So I began by throwing together the marinade for the Shrimp. I began with Archer Farms Chili Lime Sauce and put in about 1/4 to a 1/3 of the bottle. To this I added about a 1/4 cup of Cilantro leaves and 2 pinches of Italian Herbs Mix. I poured in about a 1/3 cup of White Wine, and mixed all of this together. Then in went the Shrimp. I did all of this in a large ziploc bag and made sure to roll it up to make sure all the Shrimp was marinaded properly. It also pushes out most if not all the air to create a pseudo vacuum seal.

I then turned the stovetop burner to medium and placed a saucepan on. To this I poured the Shrimp and marinade into the pan.

Stir occasionally until done, which is evidenced by the Shrimp turning from pink to a light orange color.

Once done, turn off the burner and plate according to your tastes. I did sprinkle some Italian Herbs Mix on top as a finish, as well as a simple garnish of sage and cilantro. Enjoy.

Zesty Chops

I picked up a plethora of Pork Chops the other day and decided some cooking was in order. I have not Zestified anything as of late, so today I decided to Zesty it up.









Ingredients:
8 Pork Chops
Italian Caesar Dressing
Lemon Juice
White Wine
Italian Herb Mix

I began with trimming the Pork Chops because I demand lean cuts of meat! I am not a fan of the fat on pork, chicken, or beef unless it's a long cooking process where the fat will melt away.

So after trimming them, I created a Zesty marinade. I used 1 cup of Italian Caesar Dressing to start with. To this I added about a 1/4 cup of Lemon Juice. Then I noticed a delightfully non-empty bottle of White Wine nearby, which I poured about 1/2 a cup's worth into the mixing bowl I was using. I stirred all of this together.

Then I put in about a 1/3 of a cup of Italian Herb Mix in and stirred again. Then in went the Pork Chops that I used a fork to mix into the marinade mixture. I let sit for about 30 minutes while I cooked up some other foods.

I placed a large saucepan on the stovetop and proceeded to turn the heat to medium. Once I felt some heat coming off the pan, I poured in the mixture and Pork Chops. I cooked the Chops in the marinade for a more intense flavor. After about 5 minutes, I flipped them for an even cook through.

Then I took them off and served them with some spicy rice I cooked up in my rice cooker. Enjoy.

Broccolini!

I have never heard of Broccolini until I came to Texas, where I was informed within the past year or so of it's existence. Obviously this meant I would have to cook it.








Ingredients:
Broccolini
Sun Dried Tomato Herb Butter
White Wine
Ground Black Pepper
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Italian Herb Mix

Sauce Mix:
2 tsp Honey Mustard Salad Dressing
2 tsp Italian Caesar Salad Dressing
1 tsp Lemon Juice

I began by putting about a 1/3 of a stick of the Sun Dried Tomato Herb Butter into a large saucepan with the heat on medium. Once the butter mostly melted, I added in about a 1/2 cup of White Wine.

I put in about a 1/4 cup of the Italian Herb Mix and a light dusting of the Ground Black Pepper, Garlic Powder, and Onion Powder. On top of all this, I put in the Broccolini. I stirred things around to make sure everything was coated with the marinade present in the saucepan. I then covered it and let it cook for about 5 minutes, whereas the liquid mixture was almost gone.

I took out the Broccolini and created a simple sauce/dressing for them as well, which was simple stirred together. Enjoy.

Broccoli Bonanza!

Today while cooking the previously posted meal, I noticed something in my fridge. Something I do not care to eat, however I do know one person who loves it...BROCCOLI!!!







Ingredients:
Broccoli
White Wine
Port
Ground Black Pepper
Italian Herb Mix
Basil Leaves

So, after cleaning up from the Chef's Original, I decided to cook this Broccoli. I bought them in a bundle and not as Broccoli crowns. Seeing as that happened, I then had to use a knife and cut the crowns off. I suggest using a non-serrated blade knife to make it easier.

Once that was done, I turned the heat to medium and put my saucepan on the stovetop. I then poured in about 1 cup of White Wine and 1/4 cup of Port. Port is very strong, so only a little is needed for this recipe.

Once that started to simmer, I threw the Italian Herb Mix and Ground Black Pepper into the pan. I think 2 or 3 pinches was what I used, use more if you want more I guess? I also threw in about 6 Basil Leaves all shredded up.

About 5 minutes into stirring it, it appeared to be cooked and I turned off the stove. I let the pan sit and continue to cook while I made sure it was cooked. Enjoy.

Chef's Note: I have no idea who at work likes Broccoli, so find me and say Broccoli Five while giving me a high-five. First one to do so, gets some tasty Broccoli!