Chili Cornbread Casserole

It is that time of year. The temperature is dropping, the leaves are turning, and I start listening to music I deem appropriate for fall. I also get kinda giddy sometimes and enjoy doing work on the couch rather than at my desk. Fall has arrived officially in my mind. A slow wonderful process to winter! This new season also makes me want to make classic comfort food. I want root vegetables, hearty greens, dense breads, all of which are consumed warm.

I also want one pot dishes. One of my favourites is chili. My Mom decided to make chili on Sunday so I immediately knew how I wanted to modify it. Just before she added the ground beef. I scooped up some chili to make this Cheddar Chili Cornbread Pasta Bake from How Sweet It Is. It first caught my eye on edible perspective and I knew I would make it one day. That day was Sunday. It is a really simple recipe that was perfect for my first comfort food dish of the season.

1. Grease a casserole dish.
2. Add pasta.
3. Add chili.
4. Add cheddar.
5. Top with corn bread batter.
6. Bake according to cornbread directions. Some time will have to be added to the baking time.

I would definitely make this dish again. But next time I would make some changes.

1. Less pasta, a lot less pasta. I found after baking it was too pasta heavy when really I wanted more chili.
2. More chili, with more liquid. Adding to the note above, more liquid in the chili would have made a more saucy consistency.
3. Add only 1/2 of corn bread batter. I added a bit more and it was just too much.
4. Add less jalapeno to the cornbread, if at all. I found that it was just too spicy, and was too much with the spice I added to the chili. I only added 2 jalapenos even though it called for 3!

Other than those changes, it was a great dish which is perfect for this time of year. You can expect more recipes of this type in the coming weeks.

To all you Ontarians out there, I hope you voted today!

Homemade Beet Pasta with Zucchini and Goat Cheese

I finally did it! I finally made homemade pasta! This has been something I have wanted to do for over a year, and finally I made an attempt at it! Now, it might seem like all I do now is eat and make Italian food since I got back from Italy. I swear, that is not the case. I still have been making overnight oats, lentil stews, and salads galore. However, as I was looking at some of my evernote recipes, I came across this beet pasta by bell' alimento. Bell' alimento is filled with Italian recipes, so I suggest you take a look around the site. Anyway, this caught my attention because not only was the pasta beautiful, but we had some beets from the garden that were ready to be pulled. Perfect timing.

Homemade pasta is incredibly simple to make, especially when you have a kitchen aid mixer. I am lucky enough to have access to one right now so making the dough was a breeze. I followed the recipe from bell' alimento almost exactly, so you can reference from there. However, I did substitute some kamut flour (1 cup) for some of the all purpose.  I also had to add some more water, which may be due to the flour substitution. It also might be because my beet puree was not as fine as it should have been. I recommend you really pulverize those beets.

Addition of the Beet Puree

Mixing in the Beet Puree

While i did have a kitchen aid to make the dough, I do not have any utilities to actually make the pasta itself. This means that I was working hard rolling out the dough as thin as I could, and then using a pizza cutter to make my pasta. Let's just say it was rustic.

Wearing a pane (bread) apron my Nonna brought my Mom from Italy

Since I was making this for dinner and it was already 6:30 when I started, I made the pasta in batches. The first batch was for dinner that night. It was a little thick.

The First Batch Drying

This made it difficult to cook and the pasta was very large. It really didn't matter though. Because it was homemade it didn't feel too chewy, and was still delicious. It was a little disappointing though when the vibrant red colour turned pale pink upon boiling, and the water took up most of the colour. It still look pretty against that green zucchini and the goat cheese. It was such a beautiful dinner.

Homemade Beet Pasta with Zucchini and Goat Cheese

1 serving of homemade beet pasta
1/2 medium zucchini, sliced thinly and in half
2 garlic cloves finely minced
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 serving of goat cheese

1. While pasta is cooking, heat olive oil on medium heat until pan is hot.
2. Add garlic and sautee for a few minutes until fragrant.
3. Add zucchini and heat until cooked through.
4. Drain pasta and add to the pan, tossing to combine.
5. Add goat cheese in crumbled and toss to combine.

How pretty is it! It isn't only pretty but it tasted good too. Such a good dinner that was worth the effort! Next time it won't be so effort filled though. After dinner I took the rest of the dough out of the fridge and rolled it out, thinner than I had before. I also cut this one into lots of different shapes. This was really one big experiment.

I made some lasagna noodles, linguini, and farfalle. I allowed them to dry overnight between two tea towels. the lasagna noodles needed some extra time, but in the morning I bagged up the pasta in ziploc bags and stuck them in the freezer. We will see how the recipe handles it.

I am really excited to try out some more pasta recipes since it isn't all that hard. I think I might put a pasta roller/maker on my Christmas list though.

Trofie con le Acciughe

This post is coming later than I would have liked but it has been a busy week. I think I am FINALLY settled back in, living with my parents. Shortly after my return from Italy I really wanted to recreate a pasta dish I had in Venice, at a restaurant called Osteria alla Botte. It was linguinie with anchovies, and was amazing. The sauce was very "harsh" just like the waiter said, but I loved it. Most people may not share this love, but I love anchovies. I enjoyed every bite of that dinner. I knew during my trip I would come across dishes I would want to recreate. This was a perfect contender. It was amazing, but simple. I was fairly certain the sauce contained olive oil, onions, and anchovies. That is it. I will never know if I am correct or not. After attempting to recreate this dish, I wouldn't be surprised if I was right. I added a little healthy flare to the dish but it was still delicious. Not quite as rich as the Venician variety but I was okay with that. The recipe is very vague as it was over a week ago and I didn't really measure anything when I was cooking. But, I did use these two items in the dish, both brought back from Cinque Terre.

Trofie con le Acciughe
serves 3

~3 tbsp olive oil (be generous)
1/3 cup onion chopped into ~2 cm pieces
anchovies (according to your taste, I added maybe 1/4 of the jar)
2 cups finely chopped Kale
spinach trofie pasta

1. Cook pasta according to package instructions. I used a bag of dried pasta I purchased in Cinque Terre. Any type of pasta would work here. I think linguini or rotini would be nice.
2. Head olive oil on medium and then add onions. Saute until about half cooked.
3. Add anchovies and stir while sauteing for ~5 minutes. Once the anchovies have disolved into the sauce that is forming, add the kale. Stir until kale is cooked and wilted.
4. Turn heat to low and add the pasta. Add enough so you reach the ratio of pasta to sauce you like.
5. Serve hot.

I absolutely loved this pasta dish, probably the best I have ever made. You definitely need to be generous with the oil, as I attempted making this sauce again with less, and it just wasn't as good. The oil helps the anchovies dissolve into the sauce and give it a nice even consistency (note that you can't see any anchovies in the picture). The sauce was also a little less 'anchovie-y' than the version I had in Italy. I could have gone for some more. My Dad said it was really good, and said to me afterwards, "I knew there was a reason we let you live here." Even my Mom who doesn't really care for anchovies liked it! There is a misconception that anchovies taste very fishy, but that is only if you pop a whole fillet in your mouth. When part of a dish such as this one, they really just add some salt and a unique flavour. You can add 1 or 10, and you will get more or less of that flavour. I encourage all of you anchovy haters out there who have never tried anchovies to give this recipe a shot, starting out with just one fillet. I have a feeling you will be adding more of them in no time. And if you are like me and love anchovies, you MUST try this recipe adding as many fillets as your heart desires.

Kale and Pasta Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

How is everyone handling the heat? I am handling it okay, but only because of the decision to finally turn the air conditioner on in our house. I am unsure if it has turned off since the heat wave began. That should be fun when the bill comes around! With all the heat, it is hard to get motivated to cook. Yesterday I made the mistake of making tea (to ultimately chill it), kale chips, and veggie burgers. The kitchen was a HOT MESS! Literally though, I spilt tea everywhere at one point. Luckily, I had an amazing lunch which was nice and cold. A kale and pasta salad with balsamic vinaigrette.

The salad came together rather quietly. It was the result of a series of fortunate events.

1. First it was just a container of leftover pasta. Maybe I will eat it with some pesto? Maybe I will just eat it cold straight from the fridge if I get THAT hungry?

2. But, when I was making a salad for dinner Wednesday night I saw the kale I had from my parent's garden. "Let's just throw that in there!" I said. So I did.

3. As I was chopping up some cucumber (from my Grandfather's garden) for the dinner salad, I had some extra. "Let's just toss that in the leftover pasta container too."

4. Kale is best raw when it has been in some dressing at least a few hours. Well, I was already dressing a salad, "why don't I just pour some of it on the pasta too?"

5. In the morning, I threw in some orange tomatoes, some goat cheese, and called it a day. A great day that is...because of this salad of course.

Kale and Pasta Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

farfelle pasta, cooked (penne, Conchiglie or rotini would also work well)
kale
tomato
cucumber
zesty balsamic vinaigrette
crumbled coat cheese

1. Toss together (everything except goat cheese and tomato), the night before. Refrigerate overnight.
2. Add tomato, goat cheese, and serve.

When I opened up the container for lunch I was so excited, and also very hungry. It looked so beautiful and vibrant that I had to take the 10 second to take a picture with my phone. I think it captures the colour rather well! The salad was really good and very filling. Be sure to use whole wheat pasta to get the same effect ; )

By the way, you should really check out this link. Deciding what pastas would work well led me to that wikipedia page. So many pasta types! I think I better brush up on my Italian pasta vocabulary!

Clam and Pesto Spaghetti with Peas and Shallots

Spring is finally starting to arrive! In my mind it is anyway. There is no snow in the 7 day forecast, and the highs are all above 5 degrees. This makes me very happy. Regardless of the weather, I can feel the winter gloominess lifting, and that is all that matters really.


I have mentioned before how much I love clam pasta. It is so simple when you use canned baby clams and is a great source of protein. I wanted to use up some leftover pesto from when I made this, and thought that pesto + pasta + clams would be a great combination. I added some peas to get in some vegetables. The resulting sauce, or shall I say green mush, turned out better than expected considering the appearance. I have been thinking about this recipe for well over a week so I was very excited to finally put it all together.

Clam and Pesto Spaghetti with Peas and Shallots

Serves 3

1 tbsp olive oil
1 large shallot
2 cloves of garlic
sprinkle of red chili flakes (whatever you can handle)
3/4 can peas (if you have fresh or frozen...use them instead)
1 can baby clams, drained
~1/4 cup pesto (depends on your taste really...)
spaghetti, cooked

1. Heat olive oil in pan on medium-high heat.
2. Saute shallot for 1 minute and add garlic. Heat until fragrant. Add chili flakes.
3. Reduce heat to medium and add peas and clams. Once warm, add pesto and stir to combine.
4. Remove from heat.
5. Top spaghetti with pesto and clam mixture.

This meal was really quick to put together. If I were to do it again (and I probably will), I wouldn't use spaghetti. I would use rotini or farfalle (bowtie) or even cheese tortellini. The chunky "sauce" does not really mix well with the long noodles and I ended up cutting up my spaghetti like a 6 year old. I would also top it with some fresh Parmesan cheese if I had it. Finally, as noted in the ingredient list, I would use fresh or frozen peas over canned peas if I had them (canned peas up the mushy factor). Now, if clams or canned seafood are not your thing, then by all means substitute chicken, small cubes of tofu, or even lentils. However, it won't make the dish look any better I suspect. While tasty, this might not be a meal you serve your friends unless you show a track record of good cooking and they trust that you are not trying to serve them baby food.

Brie Macaroni and Cheese

I was not a huge fan of macaroni and cheese while growing up. My brother loved it, so I ate it when it was made for me, but I would never ask for it. Of course, this was Kraft cheddar mac 'n cheese. This convenience food is often a staple for University students. Incredibly cheap, quick, and easy. For me however, I can distinctly remember the three times I ate mac 'n cheese during my undergrad. The first was in first year. I lived in a dorm-style residence with no kitchen amenities beyond a microwave and refrigerator. We managed to make Kraft dinner in a plastic container of some sorts, and it was only palatable doused in ketchup. The second two times came out of no where (about a year apart) where I had an intense craving for President's Choice white cheddar macaroni and cheese. I have not had it since, but the craving has creeped up again.

I have been wanting to make my own from scratch for quite a while, becuase I know with some real cheese it could be quite a treat. A couple weeks ago Just Flourishing mentioned brie mac 'n cheese. I knew this is how I wanted to make my first homemade macaroni and cheese. With brie! When I saw brie cheese at No Frills for a reasonable price, I picked some up and knew that it would be used to make my first ever homemade macaroni and cheese.

This recipe is really my own but I took ideas from a number of recipes. I accepted that it wouldn't be heathy, but I put some "healthier" twists on it anyway. I like the idea of adding a vegetable which came from the Kitchn. I also liked the idea of using cottage cheese to amp up the creaminess from Smitten Kitchen. In this recipe the cottage cheese was blended to blend the "curds" which tend not to melt when heated. This added some cheesyness and protein without the fat of traditional cheddar or the brie which I used. Oh, and I didn't use macaroni.

Shells with Brie Cheese and Mushroom Sauce
Serves 2-3

1 tsp butter
3 large cremini mushrooms
1 cup milk (I used skim)
1 tbsp flour (use all purpose - whole wheat results in brown specs in the sauce - see picture)
1/2 cup cottage cheese, blended smooth (I used 2%)
1/2 small wheel of brie cheese (100 g, rind removed)
2.5 cup dry vegetable shell pasta

1. Heat butter on medium heat. Add mushrooms and saute until soft. Cook pasta according to package instructions.
2. Turn heat to medium-low and add 1/2 cup milk and stir continuously while simmering.
3. Add 1/2 tbsp flour (sprinkle it), and continue to stir until sauce thickens.
4. Add blended cottage cheese and the rest of the milk. Stir until a simmer is reached.
5. Sprinkle the rest of the flour and continue to stir until the sauce thickens. Add brie cheese, cut into chunks. Simmer and stir until desired thickness.
6. Add sauce to cooked pasta.

For making the sauce on the fly, it didn't turn out too bad! It was a little thick so I think I would add another 1/4 to 1/2 cup milk next time. The problem with homemade cheese sauces is they tend not to do very well as leftovers. This is all to do with texture as they become clumpy rather than saucy. The taste does not change though so all is not lost.

I recommend you make this recipe if you are looking for a protein packed (15 g per 1/2 cup) slightly healthier 'real' mac 'n cheese, and love brie. But really, you can substitute any cheese you want for the brie to suit your taste. Making sauces can be fun as long as there is no pressure for them to turn out perfectly, so experiment! It might not look very pretty, but it will always taste good...it is cheese after all!

Mushroom and Bean Bolognese

I realized this weekend after my weekly grocery store trip that I need to start to use up my pantry items. I really should take a picture to show you how full my cupboard is. The problem is, I head to the grocery store every week to get the essentials: milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, eggs, apples, bananas (locally grown exception). I then end up buying other things I don't need right now (but will need one day) that are on sale because I cannot pass up a sale. Over the Holidays I also took a trip to Goodness Me to use a gift card my wonderful Grandmother got me for my Birthday. This resulted in stocking up my pantry even more with some foods I have been wanting to try for a while (wheat berries, sucanat) and other items that are a bit too expensive to buy on a regular basis. Now I have a pantry crisis that I must begin to deal with. OH and how could I forget my freezer. I have numerous portions of cabbage rolls, soups, veggies, ripe bananas, meat, you name it, that needs to also be dealt with.

The need to use up my pantry items as well as some mushrooms (which I don't like to keep for very long after purchasing) lead to making this mushroom and bean bolognese adapted from 330 Vegetarian Recipes for Health.

Mushroom and Bean Bolognese adapted from 330 Vegetarian Recipes for Health

1 tbsp
1/2 large red onion, chopped
18 white mushrooms, sliced
2 garlic cloves
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
~ 1/3 cup chopped roasted red peppers (from my freezer)
1.5 tbsp tomato paste
3 tsp oregano
salt and pepper to taste
3 cups dry vegetable shell pasta
Parmesan cheese for serving

1. Heat olive oil in large pot on medium heat. Add onions and saute for 3-5 minutes.
2. Add mushrooms and garlic and saute until soft, about 5 minutes.
3. Add diced tomatoes, kidney beans, roasted red peppers, tomato paste and oregano.
4. Bring to a simmer then reduce to low, allowing to simmer for 15-20 minutes while you cook the pasta.
5. Season sauce with salt and pepper to taste. Top pasta with sauce and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

A bolognese sauce is traditionally meat heavy and has very little tomato sauce too it, often just with chunks of tomatoes. Therefore, draining the diced tomatoes would give a more authentic vegetarian bolognese, but I wanted something a little more saucy. This sauce was very thick and almost stew like. I could definitely eat it on its own.

Oh, and I know in my last post I said I would talk about a soup in my next post, but that soup was abysmal. After forcing myself to eat it two days in a row for lunch I decided that no one should make that soup for themselves; unless of course you like flavourless, watery, cruciferous soup. If you do, give me a shout, I have a recipe for you ;).

That's all for now! I should tend to the beets roasting in my oven before I forget about them.

Baked Foods Equal Comfort Foods

I love when foods are baked in the oven. I am fairly certain that any and all comfort foods are baked for some period of time. Think about it: cookies, muffins, macaroni and cheese, lasagna, chili (not usually baked but I think it would be even more comforting), and many more I'm sure. I had just made some fresh tomato sauce and was really craving cheesy pasta. The only cheese I had on hand was cottage cheese and goat cheese so I worked with what I had. I also had kidney beans cooked up so the next day I finally got to make a dish similar to one I've looked at (ok, maybe drooled over) so many times on 101cookbooks that would use up more tomato sauce.

Tomato and Cheese Baked Macaroni

~1 cup whole-wheat macaroni
~1 cup tomato sauce
1/3 cup cottage cheese
crumbled goat cheese

I tried to make a layered baked pasta but the layers mixed a bit in the oven. I first added half the pasta to the bottom of the pyrex dish. I then added the cottage cheese and mixed it in. Add half the sauce. Add the rest of the macaroni and then the rest of the top. Crumble goat cheese on top. Baked in a 375 degree F oven for 20 to 30 minutes, until it is heated through and slightly crispy on top.

This wasn't the cheesiest pasta dish and would have worked better using mozzarella or ricotta cheese. But, it definitely hit the spot and was a great use for the fresh tomato sauce.

Tomato Baked Kidney Beans adapted from 101cookbooks.com

~1 cup of kidney beans
~1 cup of tomato sauce
1 small stalk of kale, leaves removed from tough stems
1/4 cup cottage cheese
crumbled goat cheese

Into a pyrex dish, add beans, sauce, kale and cottage cheese and mix together. Crumble goat cheese on top. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, until slightly crispy on top. I had the beans with some polenta chips that I made. I am still working on perfecting the polenta chips so I wont share a recipe for those quite yet.

This recipe deviated largely from that on 101cookbooks because I already had sauce made and I dislike cilantro greatly. I even made pesto to go on top (made with parsley) but I forgot about it and never added it on top as Heidi Swanson's recipe suggests.

I would love to one day make the Giant Chipotle White Bean Recipe with authenticity, but this version suited me fine....for now.

Tomorrow is my first official day as a Master's student, wish me luck :)

Fresh House, Fresh Tomato Sauce

I am now blogging from my new kitchen in my new house! It is a wonderful kitchen with more gadgets and small appliances than any other student house, I am sure. We are now fully settled in, and I am enjoying my last few days of summer before school starts. Along with everything I own, I made sure to bring some veggies from my parent's garden when I moved in. I brought tomatoes, leeks, eggplant, chili peppers, and managed to dry some basil in time for the move.

I had 5 very ripe plum tomatoes on hand and knew I could not forgive myself if I didn't make some tomato sauce at the end of my personal tomato season (no longer right out my back door). I usually rush sauces when making them for myself and do not take the time to do it properly. I figured I would do it differently this time since I currently feel like I have all the time in the world. The sauce turned out pretty good and has been used in two different recipes which I will be posting in due time.

Fresh Tomato Sauce

5 Plum tomatoes
1 tbsp olive oil
1 clove of garlic, chopped finely
1 small leek, chopped
1 cm of chili pepper, chopped finely
oregano (sprinkle to taste)
basil (sprinkle to taste)
1 bay leaf
2 tbsp tomato paste
salt and pepper to taste

To remove skin and seeds from tomato:
Bring a pot of water to a boil, leaving enough room for tomatoes. Make very shallow slices all around the tomato to make a cross shape.

Add tomatoes to boiling water. Boil until skin starts to peel back, a minute or two. The riper the tomatoes are, the quicker this will happen. Remove from water and allow to cool. Peel off the skin and cut off the tough stem areas. Cut into quarters. Remove seeds and put into a fine strainer over a bowl. Cut remaining tomato flesh into bite sized pieces. Once all the tomatoes have been seeded, move the fleshy seeds around in the strainer to remove all the juices. Add these juices to the diced tomatoes.

To make the sauce:
In a medium pot, add olive oil, chili pepper, and garlic. Heat on medium-high for a few minutes until fragrant. Add leeks and saute for 3 to 5 minutes, until soft.

Add tomatoes, tomato juice, and tomato paste. Heat until simmering for 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and use a hand blender to blend the tomato pieces. This can be done as much or as little as you wish. I do not normally do this but wanted a traditional sauce this time. Put blended sauce back on heat and add oregano, basil, bay leaf, and salt and pepper to taste.

Simmer until sauce has reduced to desired consistency, about 15 minutes. Remove bay leaf.

This sauce was very fresh and delicious. It really would not have been the same without the fresh overripe tomatoes. I will miss those guys. I used this sauce to make a baked pasta as well as a baked bean dish. Good comfort food let me tell you.

I'll leave you with a few pictures of the new place and some meals I've created in it.

blogging station #1

blogging station #2

Leeks, Zucchini and Tomato with Black Pearl Medley Rice

Roasted Eggplant and Red Pepper


Dilled Carrots and Beans with Cottage Cheese on Lavash