Recipes
Bella cooks mostly everyday for Charlie and herself and I thought it would be cool to include the recipes of what she makes.
Steak and potatoes
Ingredients
1/3 cup olive oil 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 cloves garlic, crushed
4 10-ounce sirloin steaks (1 inch thick
1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 Idaho baking potatos, scrubbed
2 tablespoons butter
Directions
Preheat oven to 400° F. Wrap the potatos in aluminum foil and place on oven rack. Bake until tender, about 1 hour.
In a small bowl, combine the oil, vinegar, rosemary and garlic. Place the steaks in a shallow dish. Pour the marinade over them. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Heat a skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Remove the steaks from the marinade and season with the salt and pepper. Broil for 5-8 minutes per side until desired term (medium rare to well done).
Remove potatos from the oven, halve them and place butter down the middle. Let rest 3 to 4 minutes before slicing or serving.
Chicken Enchiladas
Ingredients
1/2 can condensed cream of chicken soup (10.75 ounce)
1/4 cup sour cream
1-1/2 teaspoons unsalted butter
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 cup chopped cooked chicken breast
1/2 can chopped green chile peppers (4 ounce), drained
4 (8 inch) flour tortillas
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) heat.
In a small bowl mix the soup and sour cream; set aside.
Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Add onion and chili powder, and sautée until tender. Stir in the chicken, chile peppers, and 2 tablespoons of the soup mixture. Cook and stir until heated through dish.
Spread 1/2 cup of the soup mixture in a 9×13 inch baking dish. Spoon about 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture down the center of each tortilla. Roll up tortillas, and place, seam side-down, in the baking dish. Spoon remaining soup mixture on top, and sprinkle with cheese.
Bake 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until bubbly and lightly browned.
Penne Pasta with Meat Sauce
Ingredients
1/2 pound penne pasta
salt
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 cups chopped onion (about 1 large onion
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (blend of dried basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme, marjoram, and savory)
a dash of red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme (or a pinch of dried)
some fresh ground black pepper
1 pound lean ground beef
3 fresh basil leaves, chopped (or a 1/2 teaspoon of dried)
2 1/2 cups canned chunky tomato sauce (almost 28-ounce can) Hunt’s or something like it
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
Directions
Heat to a boil a large pot with 4 quarts of water in it. Once the water is boiling, salt it with 1 Tbsp of salt. Once the water returns to a boil add the pasta to the pot. Leave uncovered, let cook on high heat with a vigorous boil. Put the timer on for 8-10 minutes, or whatever your pasta package says is appropriate for al dente (cooked but still a little firm). Drain.
Once you’ve started to heat the water start working on the sauce. Heat olive oil in a very large skillet on medium heat. Add the chopped onion, Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes. Cook for 5 minutes stirring occasionally, until the onions are softened. Add the garlic, fresh thyme season with salt and pepper. Cook for an additional minute, until the garlic is fragrant. Remove from heat and set aside.
Heat a large cast iron pan (or stainless steel if you don’t have one) on high heat. Salt the bottom of the pan generously. Once the pan is hot, break up small chunks of ground beef and add them to the pan, without stirring. (You may need to work in batches; do not crowd the pan.) You want the meat to get well browned. If the pan is too hot and the meat is burning, not browning, take the pan off the heat a little while, and reduce the heat to medium high. Once the meat is browned on one side (a couple of minutes), use a metal spatula to flip the meat over to brown on the other side. At this point assuming you are using a cast iron pan, you can remove the pan from the heat. The residual heat in the pan will finish cooking the meat.
Use a slotted spoon to lift the meat from the cast iron pan and add it to the pan with the seasoned onions. Add tomato sauce. Use the edge of your metal spatula to break up the bigger chunks of meat into smaller pieces. Add basil and teaspoon of brown sugar. Bring to a simmer on low heat, let cook uncovered, for 15 minutes.
Once the sauce has simmered for 15 minutes adjust seasonings. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add a little more sugar if the sauce is too acidic. Add more tomato sauce if the sauce is a little dry. Stir in the cooked penne pasta. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and parmesan cheese and serve immediately.