Wicked Domestic

Looking for a quick, easy, and delicious hors d’oeuvre that never fails to crowd please?  Look no further.  These mini beef wellingtons are the perfect app for a gathering of any size or fanciness – low key enough for football food, classy enough for more upscale entertaining.   There are lots of variations you can make; the puff pastry is really the key ingredient.  I truly think you could probably fill puff pastry with cat food and it would be delicious.  Who can resist the flakey, puffy, bready goodness of pastry?  Not this wicked domestic.

Ingredients: (makes 18 individual wellingtons)

1 package (approx 1 lb) beef stew meat (you’ll likely end up with extra meat)

1 box puff pastry sheets (2 sheets in one box)

horseradish cream (I used Inglehoffer)

Three ingredients – that’s it!  Told you it was easy.

First, cut the meat into 1 inch (give or take) cubes.  Keep them on the smaller side or they’ll be too big for your puff pastry squares and you’ll have a hard time closing them up.

Take each puff pastry sheet (make sure you defrost adequately before using) and cut into 9 equal squares.

Squirt a bit of the horseradish sauce onto each, then top with the beef.

Fold in two of the opposite ends, then the other two ends.  Press pastry together to create a seal.  If you have too much sauce and/or meat, they’ll be hard to close up.

I clearly oversauced.  It’s oooooozing out.

The seams don’t have to be pretty because you bake them seam side down.  No one will be the wiser!

You can spray the tops with cooking spray or use a light egg wash, but they should be fine without.  I usually forget that step and never have issues.  Bake at 375 for about 15-20 minutes or until the puffs are golden brown.

Seriously good.  Always very very hot, but the mouth burns are worth it.

Jackie and DiDi agree!

There are many variations you can make with this hors d’oeuvre.  Coincidentally, my friend Alyssa served them at a dinner party at her house this weekend.  Instead of horseradish sauce she used herbed cheese (the soft kind that comes in a tub… we couldn’t remember the name), and she had cut the puff pastry into rounds instead of squares.  They were so good!   A few years ago I made a Thanksgiving-themed puff, with a tiny bit of stuffing, cranberry sauce, and turkey inside.  (Like, really tiny.  There’s not much room in there.)   I think I called them “Harvest Puffs” or something goofy like that.  Again, I think you could fill puff pastry with almost anything – maybe… mushrooms and leeks?  Spinach and feta?  Buffalo chicken dip?!?!   Get creative – and share your ideas with us!

- Elizabeth

A few weeks ago I made a Barbara Lynch recipe for rigatoni with sausage and cannellini beans.  And it was AMAZING.  At the time, my camera wasn’t working, so I just had to make it again so that I could get some pics.  Here’s the recipe and here’s the finished product!  (Minus the grated parm and fresh basil garnishes… I was running a bit low…)

(Note:  I didn’t use rigatoni this time; I used rotini.  Same diff.)

I served the rotini with a simple salad of mixed greens and I made a really simple salad dressing.   I bought the dressing cruet at Stonewall Kitchen and the recipe is right on the bottle, along with markers to show the amount/level.  Couldn’t be easier!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup olive oil

2 1/2 tbsp cider vinegar

1 tsp dijon mustard

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp minced garlic

salt and pepper to taste

It’s important to add the ingredients in this order:  cider vinegar, s&p, garlic, cumin, dijon.  Then add the oil, shaking and stirring as you go.  If you just dump it in, it won’t emulsify properly and will just sit on top of the vinegar.  I’m no food chemist, but it really does make a difference!

Give the rigatoni recipe a try.  It’s not the easiest recipe, but it’s not difficult and it’s  soooo worth it.  It’s a perfect meal for a snowy day… and with 9-12 inches coming our way, stock up on the ingredients and enjoy a hearty and delicious dinner! 

- Elizabeth

Are you ready for another slow cooker recipe?  Last week when the snow day loomed ahead, I stocked up on the ingredients for this recipe, thinking that it would be the perfect meal for a blustery day.  The recipe required a bit more prep than most crockpot dishes, but it was worth it.  It was seriously so delicious and I can’t wait to make it again soon!

Ingredients:

1 package (6 oz) wild rice mix

3 boneless chicken breasts, halved

1/2 lb sliced fresh mushrooms (I used about 10 oz of baby bellas)

1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted

1 cup water

3 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled (I used turkey bacon)

1 tsp dried parsley flakes

1/2 tsp dried thyme

Place the rice in the slow cooker (set aside the seasoning packet for later use).

Sautee the chicken just until lightly browned on each side.  This step isn’t essential and I may skip it next time, but it does seal in moisture.

Place chicken on top of the rice in the crockpot.  Use the same skillet to sautee the mushrooms until tender.

Place the mushrooms over the chicken.  In a small bowl, combine the soup, water, bacon, herbs, and rice seasoning packet.  Pour over the top of the mushrooms.

Cook on low for 4 hours.

Oohhhhh man was this good!  It was the perfect balance of hearty but not heavy, flavorful but not too rich.  I loved it.  I do think you can probably skip the sautee steps and just put it all together in the crockpot and achieve the same result.  I urge you to give it a try!

- Elizabeth

Scones always make me think of a funny story my boss from my waitressing days once told me.   He pulled up to the drive through and ordered a cup of tea and a scone (which was SO him) and couldn’t figure out why no one was responding to him.  Turned out he was talking to the trash can.  I think you’d have to know him to fully appreciate the story, but it always cracks me up, and scones always make me think of it.

Anyway…  I adapted this recipe from the latest Martha Stewart Every Day Food magazine.  Scones are tricky because they often turn out too dry; I was determined to avoid this, so I doctored up the recipe a bit. 

Ingredients:

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp coarse salt

3 tbsp packed dark brown sugar

1/2 cup rolled oats (not quick cooking) – I used Irish steel cut oats

1/2 cup raisins

3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

1 large egg, beaten

1 cup buttermilk

1 tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 400.  Whisk together flours, baking powder, salt, brown sugar, oats, raisins, and cinnamon.

In a separate bowl, whisk together butter, egg, buttermilk, and vanilla extract.

Add wet mixture to dry mixture and stire until combined.  Drop batter by the 1/3 cupfuls onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet.  Bake for 15 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through.   Let scones cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. 

Serve warm and buttered with a cup of tea and a good book, preferably on a snowy day!

The scones turned out really tasty!  They were definitely more moist than most scones I’ve had – almost to the point of not being cohesive enough.   I think next time I’d cut down the vanilla extract.  But they were delicious and pretty healthy – Martha’s recipe (which does not include the cinnamon or vanilla) notes that each scone has 209 calories, 6 g fat, 6 g protein, and 3 g fiber.  Not the worst baked good out there, right?  

Enjoy!

- Elizabeth

Jackie and I have both mentioned buffalo chicken dip before; I even posted the recipe in a blog about party food (without pics).  But it’s such a good recipe that it bears repeating, particularly during football season.  This dip is such a crowd pleaser – it usually disappears within minutes, with people clamoring for the recipe.  I made it for a New Year’s Eve party and despite a competing buffalo chicken dip (gasp!), it was almost entirely gobbled up – with just a little bit leftover for me to freeze for next time (or a buffalo chicken craving).  It’s really easy and this recipe makes a huge party-sized casserole dish worth of dip.  You can cut it in half for a smaller group, or make the larger one and freeze half.  You can never go wrong with buffalo chicken dip in the freezer!

Ingredients:

3 boneless chicken breasts

2 8oz packages cream cheese

1 small bottle ranch dressing

1 medium bottle Frank’s hot sauce (you probably won’t use all of it, but you want to have plenty)

2 cups shredded cheddar

Boil the chicken breasts until fully cooked.  You can also bake them, but they’re more shreddable after boiling.   Shred into small chunks.

Layer the chicken evenly on the bottom of a casserole dish.  Melt the ranch dressing and cream cheese together in a saucepan.  In the past I’ve used an immersion blender to smooth the mixture, but it’s not necessary (and I was lazy and didn’t use it this time).  Spread the ranch/cream cheese mixture evenly over the chicken.

Next, add the Frank’s.  Drizzle over the white mixture until you can’t see any more white.  If you and all your guests really really like heat, you can be a little more heavy handed.  I was pretty conservative.

Top with 2 cups or so of shredded cheddar. 

Two possibilities for baking:

1) Bake for 40 minutes (or until cheese is golden brown and bubbling) at 375 – dip will be layered.

2) Bake for 30 minutes at 375, stir to mix, bake for 10 more minutes.

I chose option 2.  I like it all mixed up together so that each bite is the same.  What can I say?  I’m not a risk taker.  I would be totally grossed out by a bite that was just chicken and cream cheese. 

Special thanks to Dayna for introducing this recipe to us many years ago!  It has served us and others well. 

A few ideas:  My friend Kelly swaps out the ranch for bleu cheese.  I don’t care for bleu cheese, but apparently it’s a good switch!  My friend Beth has turned the dip into a filling for a calzone ,which just sounds amazing to me.  Again, you can freeze any leftovers and they should thaw to be just as good as the original dip.  It’s a good thing to have on hand!  

Serve with hearty chips or crackers (or vegetables, if you insist).  Perfect for football parties!   Go Pats!

- Elizabeth