Easy Weeknight Bolognese Sauce

September 28, 2015 ~ Marlee And Christie ~ 2 Comments

If you didn’t already know, we love pasta. We could cook and eat pasta until we’re blue in the face, and if you didn’t guess, one of our favorite sauces is bolognese.

Most bolognese recipes take a lot of time and when you’re in a pinch the last thing you want to do is wait 3+ hours for dinner and a sauce. What’s great about our Easy Weeknight Bolognese is that you get the wonderful flavors of a classic bolognese in half the time!

And most of the ingredients are things you already have in your fridge at home. And if you’re super lazy, and don’t want to chop, you can buy those prepackaged mirepoix (meer-quaw) mixes, that include diced onion, celery, and carrots!

Now, don’t be alarmed by the amount of ingredients, those are what make this recipe great and delicious!

Easy Weeknight Bolognese Sauce

Ingredients

1 Cup Chopped Onions
1 Cup Chopped Carrots
1/2 Cup Chopped Celery
1 Pound Ground Beef (Or any other meat)
1 Jar Your Favorite Canned Marinara Sauce (24oz)
1 Cup Red Wine
1/2 Cup Beef Stock
2 Tablespoons Garlic (Minced)
3 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
1 Bay Leaf
1/2 Teaspoon Dried Basil
1 Tablespoon Parmesan (Grated)
Olive Oil
Kosher Salt
Pepper

Step 1:

In a large pot, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is “dancing” add the ground meat, and season liberally with salt and pepper. Cook until no longer pink.

(Sidenote, ground meat does not photograph well…)

“De-fat” if necessary.

Step 2:

While the meat is browning, heat one tablespoon of olive oil on high heat. Again, when the oil is “dancing” and hot, add the onion and sauté for three to four minutes.

Step 3:

Next add the carrot and sauté for another two to three minutes. If needed add a little more olive oil. Then add the celery and garlic, and cook until garlic is fragrant.

Step 4:

When the garlic is fragrant, add the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic back to the meat. Stir until combined.

Step 5:

Add the wine and beef stock and raise the temperature to high. Allow the mixture to cook on high for about 15 minutes or until the majority of the liquid has cooked down.

Step 6:

Once the liquid is cooked down, add your jar of marinara sauce and stir together. Lower the temperature to low.

We highly recommend Rao’s Homemade Sauces. Super delicious and you can read all the ingredients! But really, just pick any sauce that has the least amount of ingredients, and you know is super delicious.

Step 7:

Next, add the tomato paste, bay leaves, parmesan, and dried basil. Stir together. Allow to cook for at least 15 minutes. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.

Serve with your favorite pasta and top with freshly chopped basil.

Traditional Carne Asada

September 20, 2015 ~ Marlee And Christie ~ Leave a comment

Today feels like the perfect BBQ weather, so we give you the perfect food accompaniment: Carne Asada! Grill it up with a chilled beer in hand (We like Modelo) and you’ve got it made.

If you don’t have a grill you can always use a grill plan like this.

Traditional Carne Asada

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons Carne Asada Seasoning*
Juice from one Lime (fresh)
1/2 Cup Orange Juice
1/2 White Onion (Thinly Sliced)
1 Bunch Cilantro (Chopped) *Optional*
2 Pounds Skirt or Flank steak

*Equal parts: salt, garlic powder, sugar, paprika. Dashes: Cumin, oregano, black pepper, cayenne pepper. ( You can use what’s leftover as a season salt for anything else).

Step 1:

In a small bowl, mix together lime juice, orange juice, seasoning and cilantro.

Step 2:

In a shallow dish, place the carne asada and onions down. Cover with the marinade making sure to coat both sides of the meat. Cover and place in the fridge for a minimum of at least 45 minutes.

Remember the longer you allow it marinate, the more flavor the meat will have.

Step 3:

Thirty to forty minutes before you plan on grilling your meat, remove from the fridge and allow to come to room temperature.

By doing this, the meat will cook more evenly.

Step 4:

Grill over medium heat for about 2-3 minutes per side. Allow to rest for five minutes before slicing and enjoying.

Eat with tortillas and all the fixings or just by itself! Just enjoy it!

Quick and Easy Pasta Carbonara

August 20, 2015August 20, 2015 ~ Marlee And Christie ~ Leave a comment

Pasta Carbonara is one of our favorite dishes. Christie had it at least 9 times while we were in Rome for two weeks.

We nicknamed our favorited restaurant “The Little Tomato”. Well, when you hear the ingredients, you might think “Breakfast?”, but this is definitely a delicious dinner or breakfast if you’re into that sort of thing!

Pasta Carbonora

Ingredients

1 Box of Spaghetti
2 Large Eggs
1 Cup Parmesan (Grated)
5 Slices of Bacon (Diced)
5 Garlic Cloves (Minced)
Kosher Salt
Fresh Cracked Pepper
3 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley (Chopped)

Step 1:

First, fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Next add the salt and cook the pasta according to the boxes instructions. Before draining, reserve at least one cup of the cooking water. Set the pasta aside.

Step 2:

Over medium-high heat, heat a large skillet. When the skillet is hot, add the bacon and cook for about 6 minutes. You want the bacon to be cooked, but not over cooked. Drain the excess fat.

Step 3:

Next, stir in the garlic and cook for about a 1minute or until the garlic is fragrant. Turn the heat to medium.

Step 4:

In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs together and then add the parmesan.

Step 5:

Stir the pasta into the bacon and garlic and slowly pour the egg mixture over the pasta. Making sure you are stirring constantly. Add a little pepper and salt if needed.

Step 6:

One tablespoon at a time, add the reserved pasta water until you achieve your desired consistency. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.

We found inspiration from this blog for today’s recipe

Summer Evening Pasta

August 6, 2015August 6, 2015 ~ Marlee And Christie ~ Leave a comment

This is a perfect meal for those who don’t want to spend a lot of time in a hot kitchen during the summer. Fresh basil and tomatoes and your favorite tomato sauce make this recipe quick and easy.

And who doesn’t love a meal that could be cooked in 15 minutes or less. Aren’t there tons of shows on the food network that have that as a selling point? Either way, this recipe is delicious, healthy and a low hassle meal.

Summer Nights Pasta

Ingredients

3 to 4 Roma Tomatoes (diced)
2 Tablespoons Garlic (minced)
12 Large Basil Leaves (chiffonade)
2/3 to 3/4 Cup of your favorite Marinara
Red Pepper Flakes
Kosher Salt
Fresh Cracked Pepper
1 Box Pasta
Garlic Olive Oil

Step 1:

In a large pot, fill with water and bring to a boil. Add salt and begin to cook your pasta.

**You should be able to do the next few steps during the pasta’s cook time, if you’re pasta’s cook time is less than 4 minutes, start with step two and then cook your pasta.

Step 2:

In a large sauté pan, heat one tablespoon of garlic olive oil.

Step 3:

When the oil is hot and ‘dancing’ add the garlic and cook for 30 to 50 seconds or until the garlic is nice and fragrant.

Step 4:

Add the tomatoes and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes stirring constantly, making sure the garlic doesn’t burn.

Step 5:

Next, add the marinara sauce and stir until combined. Mix in half the basil and reduce the heat to low.

Step 6:

Just before the pasta is ready to be drained, reserve at least one cup of the pasta water. Drain the pasta and immediately place the pasta into the sauté pan.

Step 7:

Add a little bit of the pasta water and mix everything together until evenly coated. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes, fresh cracked pepper, and the rest of the basil and serve immediately.

Easy Homemade Biscuits

July 18, 2015 ~ Marlee And Christie ~ 1 Comment

We have a confession to make. We don’t often eat fast food (anymore), but when we get a craving for quick and easy food we always want fried chicken and biscuits from Popeyes. But with most things, we figured if we like it so much, we could find a recipe and make it ourselves.

So we did just that, and after a day of searching and looking through recipes, this is what we came up with. They didn’t rise as much as we would have liked so we added some additional proofing time (letting it get puffy), but they taste just like the biscuits from Popeyes, and honestly, much better.

Ingredients

4 Cups Bisquick Mix
3/4 Cup 7-Up (not diet)
1 Cup Sour Cream
4 Tablespoons of Salted Butter (melted)

Step 1:

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Step 2:

In a medium bowl, using a wooden spoon, mix together, bisquick, 7Up, and sour cream in a bowl. Mix until everything is combined and starts to form a dough. Form into a ball, let it proof for 20-30 minutes.

Step 3:

Transfer the dough ball to a floured surface, and gently roll the dough out.

Step 4:

Brush the bottom of a baking stone or baking sheet with melted butter, place the biscuits on the stone or sheet. Brush the tops with the melted butter and put in the oven and bake for 11 minutes.

Step 5:

When the timer goes off, brush the biscuits with remain butter and cook for another two minutes. Remove from oven, cool and enjoy!

Easy and Healthy Shredded Chicken

June 30, 2015 ~ Marlee And Christie ~ Leave a comment

We love chicken! Why? Because it’s so versatile, you can make grilled chicken, fried chicken, baked chicken, chicken wings, chicken thighs, chicken tenders, shredded chicken, you get the idea… you can use chicken in almost any dish!

Today’s recipe is super easy, and super healthy! We like to make a batch on Sunday’s and use it through out the week.

What’s great about this recipe is you don’t have to use marinara, it’s really a flexible dish and you can use all different kinds of seasoning! You can use this chicken on salads, burritos, tamales, sandwiches, soups, virtually anything you can think of, you can eat this chicken with.

Easy Shredded Chicken

Ingredients

4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
1 Cup Marinara Sauce
1 Onion (Sliced)
1 Tablespoon Fresh Rosemary or Rosemary Salt
1/2 Chicken Broth (Or Water)
Garlic Salt

Step 1:

Rinse and pat the chicken dry with paper towels.

Step 2:

Season both sides of the chicken with garlic salt (or any salt of your choosing.)

Step 3:

In your crockpot, cover the bottom with marinara sauce. Put about half of the onions at the bottom on top of the marinara. Then place the seasoned chicken onto the onions. Cover with the rest of the marinara, onions, rosemary salt, and half a cup of chicken broth.

Step 4:

Set the crockpot to high and cover and cook for 3.5 to 4 hours.

Rosemary Balsamic Apricot Glazed Chicken Thighs

June 21, 2015June 21, 2015 ~ Marlee And Christie ~ 2 Comments

Happy Father’s Day!

Want to really impress your dad/husband? Make these delicious chicken thighs and make your father’s day extra special! What makes these thighs special is the mouthwatering combination of fragrant rosemary, tangy balsamic, and sweet apricot preserves.

These babies are a definite crowd pleaser and super easy to make!

Rosemary Balsamic Apricot Glazed Chicken Thighs

Ingredients

1 Cup Apricot Preserves
2 Tablespoons Thick Balsamic Vinegar
1 1/2 Tablespoons Rosemary (Chopped)
1 Teaspoon Crushed Red Peppers
Kosher Salt
Pepper
1/2 Cup Chicken Broth
1 Tablespoon Cornstarch
4-6 Chicken Thighs (Boneless and Skinless)*

Step 1:

Remove the chicken from the package, rinse with warm water and pat dry with paper towels.

Step 2:

Season the chicken liberally with kosher salt and pepper and set aside

Step 3:

In a small bowl, mix together the apricot preserves, balsamic, rosemary, and red peppers together. Spoon about half the mixture over the chicken thighs. Cover the chicken with plastic wrap and set in fridge for at least half an hour.

(The longer in sits, the more flavor it will soak up!)

Step 4:

When you’re ready, preheat the oven to 350°F. Take the chicken out of the fridge while the oven heats up. Place chicken in oven safe dish or pan. Cook for 45-50 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165°F.

*If you want to use chicken thighs with the bone in, cook for 50-60 minutes.

Step 5:

While the chicken is cooking, take the remaining marinade and place in a sauce pan. Combine with the half a cup of chicken broth and bring to a boil.

When the mixture is hot, pour a little of the hot liquid out into a small bowl. Mix in 1 tablespoon of cornstarch. Stir until cornstarch dissolves. Pour back into marinade and chicken broth mixture. Lower the heat, and let simmer.

Step 6:

When the chicken is cooked, remove the oven and and cover with the sauce. Serve and enjoy!

Traditional Pork Carnitas

June 17, 2015June 17, 2015 ~ Marlee And Christie ~ 1 Comment

Happy Pre Taco Thursday! Today’s recipe is not only easy, but super delicious and a definite crowd pleaser.

We made these for a family dinner and everyone loved them! Did you know that carnitas translates to “little meats” and is typically made by braising the pork in oil or traditionally lard. Obviously our recipe doesn’t involve cooking the pork in lard or oil, but cooking it in the next best thing: BEER!

Remember when you get your pork shoulder/butt don’t trim the fat! The fat helps keep it juicy and gives it SO MUCH FLAVOR.

Traditional Pork Carnitas

Ingredients

6 pounds of pork shoulder/or butt
Kosher Salt
3 Tablespoons of Vegetable Oil
2 Bottles of Modelo or Your Favorite Beer
2 Cinnamon Sticks
2 Bay Leaves
2 Teaspoons Chipotle Chili Powder
2 Teaspoons Chili Powder
1/4 Teaspoons Cumin
4 to 5 Tablespoons Garlic (Minced)

Step 1:

Preheat your oven to 350°F.

Step 2:

Depending on the size of your meat, you may want to cut the meat into manageable size chunks. Season both sides of the pork liberally with kosher salt.

Step 3:

In a cast iron pot/dutch oven/or pot, heat your vegetable oil. When the oil is hot, brown all sides of the pork. Remove from the pan and and blot them dry with paper towels.

Step 4:

Pour in two cups of beer to deglaze the bottom of the pan of all the delicious brown bits. Next add the cinnamon sticks, the bay leaves, chili powders, cumin and garlic. Stir until everything is mixed together.

Step 5:

Next, add the pork back to the pot. If needed add a little bit more beer (or water if you’re out) to cover the pork about two/thirds of the way. Place in the oven uncovered for about 3.5 hours.

Step 6:

When the meat is ready, remove the meat to a platter and let cool. Strain the cooking liquid and return to the pot. Skim as much fat off the top as you can. Turn on the heat and bring the liquid to a boil and then lower the temperature.

Step 7:

While the liquid is reducing, allow the meat to cool until you can handle it. Shred the meat. Return the meat to the pot with the reduce liquid and serve.

Classy Bolognese Sauce

May 22, 2015May 23, 2015 ~ Marlee And Christie ~ Leave a comment

One of our favorite dishes to make is Pasta Bolognese. We can’t tell you how many times we’ve made different variations of this dish, but we never tire of making it. For the first time we made our own version of Pasta Bolognese. That’s right, no recipe. We just did it straight from our brains. And it turned out pretty fucking great.

This recipe is a no frills kind of recipe, just classically beautiful, like two young ladies should be!

Classy Bolognese

Ingredients

1 Shallot (finely diced)
1 Cup Celery (About 4 Stalks, finely diced)
1 Cup Carrots (3 Large, finely diced)
1 Medium Onion (finely diced)
1 Cup Baby Bella Mushrooms (About 9 mushrooms), finely diced)
Meat Trio 1lb Each (Beef, Pork, Veal, Italian Sausage, it’s really up to you which ones you use)
Garlic Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Butter
1 Cup Red Wine
2/3 Cup Whole Milk
2 to 3 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
1 28oz Can Crushed Tomatoes
1 28oz Can Whole Tomatoes
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
2 Basil Leaves ( Cut into Ribbons)
1 Bay Leaf
1 Teaspoon Onion Powder
1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 Teaspoon Crushed Red Peppers
Few Chunks of a Parmesan Rind
1 Tablespoon Garlic
Kosher Salt
Pepper

Step 1:

In a large pot, heat 2 tablespoons of garlic olive oil and one tablespoon of butter over medium-high heat.

Step 2:

When the oil is shimmering add the diced onions, mushrooms and shallot. Sauté for two to three minutes.

See how the oil dances?

Step 3:

Add the carrots and sauté for another three minutes. Finally, add the celery and continue cooking for at least 1 minute.

Celery has a lot of water, so adding it last is a must!

Step 4:

If needed, at a little more oil, and then add your Meat Trio. Season liberally with Kosher salt and pepper. Break and brown the meat until the meat is just barely pink.

Step 5:

Next, add your red wine and raise the heat to high. Cook until all the liquid has cooked off, about 3 to 5 minutes.

It’s okay if it takes longer, we all have different stoves, so don’t be alarmed!

Step 6:

Once the wine has been cooked off, lower the heat to medium and add the milk. Cook until most of the liquid is gone, this can take anywhere from 20 to 40 minutes.

Step 7:

Add the tomato paste in and mix well.

Step 8:

If you haven’t, squish your whole tomatoes in a separate bowl, you can do it in the pot, but you run the risk of hot splatter, and we don’t think anyone wants that.

Pour your tomatoes in the pot and stir until combined. Add the 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder. At this point you can add a splash of red wine.

Step 9:

Stir in the basil, bay leaf, onion powder, garlic powder, parmesan rinds and red peppers. Taste and season accordingly, if it needs more salt or pepper or any seasoning…add it!

Lower the heat and cook un-covered for 1.5 hours.

Step 10:

After 1.5 hours of cooking, add 1 hearing tablespoon of chopped garlic. Continue cooking un-covered for 2 to 3 hours. Stir occasionally.

Again, at this point, taste and season accordingly. But go easy on the salt, the rinds have a really nice salty flavor, and release the salt flavor as they melt.

Step 11:

During the last hour of cooking, you can slowly start to defeat your sauce. This step isn’t necessary but we always defat in the last hour.

Step 12:

When the sauce is ready, cook your pasta and toss the sauce and pasta together.

*We always reserve at least a cup and half of our pasta water (after the pasta is cooked, but before you drain) and use to toss with the pasta and the sauce.

We’re Hammin’ Creamy Pasta

April 24, 2015May 22, 2015 ~ Marlee And Christie ~ Leave a comment

This is a recipe that one of our Moms (Marlee’s) makes whenever we have leftover Honey Baked Ham.

This is such a simple recipe and it utilizes a lot of ingredients you may already have in your pantry. So it’s delicious and it helps you clear your pantry.

Also, be mindful about adding salt. Ham is already incredibly salty and if you add too much, the dish can very easily be over salted! And it’s much easier to fix and under salted dish than an over salted dish.

Ingredients

Leftover ham from Easter (or any other fun Ham-casion)
All those leftover peas in the freezer
Onion or shallot or BOTH
Chicken broth
Cream of mushroom or chicken soup
Pasta
Cayenne pepper
White pepper
Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper

Step 1: Dice the shalion (shallot/onion) and ham.

Step 2: Heat pan with some olive oil, when ready, sauté the shalions. (We added a splash of white wine to deglaze the pan, INA style).

Step 3: Add chicken broth, then cream of mushroom soup. Whisk until it’s smooth.

Step 4: Add spices: cayenne, white pepper, salt and black pepper.

Step 5: Cook pasta, drain, put back into the boiling pot, and add the sauce.

Step 6: Mix in ham and peas, give it all a good mix and enjoy!

Cultured Swines

Cookbook Lovers, Recipe Hoarders, Travelers, Sisters, Best Friends

Dinner

Easy Weeknight Bolognese Sauce

Traditional Carne Asada

Quick and Easy Pasta Carbonara

Summer Evening Pasta

Easy Homemade Biscuits

Easy and Healthy Shredded Chicken

Rosemary Balsamic Apricot Glazed Chicken Thighs

Traditional Pork Carnitas

Classy Bolognese Sauce

We’re Hammin’ Creamy Pasta