Cheesy Baked Penne with Cauliflower and Crème Fraîche & VEGAN Version! SO GOOD!

18 Mar 2010 10 Comments

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Who does not love Mac&Cheese? My friend Shalon gave me this recipe which she super enjoyed and I had to agree! Of course I made this Vegan so I could partake in all the fun and I am SOOO happy I did. Michael and I are obsessed with this dish! This made a huge batch and we were happy to have it to eat all week long 🙂 Thanks Shalon!! YUM!!!!

Note: Daiya Cheese – Ummm have you tried this yet? It is ABSURDLY AMAZING! There has never been a Vegan Cheese this good! I have had it before at restaurants but this was my first time cooking with it. SO amazing!! It was easy to find at whole foods, so awesome!

SO Yummy!

Without Breadcrumbs - Look how cheesy!

Cheesy Baked Penne with Cauliflower and Crème Fraîche – VEGAN VERSION IN ITALICS AND BOLD

* 1 – 1 1/2- to 1 3/4-pound head of cauliflower, cored, cut into 1-inch florets
* 1 12oz can of diced stewed tomatoes (drained)
* 5 tablespoons butter (EARTH BALANCE)
* Coarse kosher salt
* 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
* 1 cup 1% lowfat milk (8th continent light soymilk)
* 21/2 cups coarsely shredded sharp cheddar cheese (DAYIA – Used 3 cups)
* 3/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, finely grated Parmesan cheese (Didn’t use)
* 1 cup crème fraîche (Tofutti vegan Sour Cream)
* 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
* 10-12 ounces penne (3 1/2ish cups) (Used 14.5 ounces high protein penne)
* 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs

  1. Cook cauliflower in large pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Using large sieve, transfer cauliflower to bowl. Reserve pot of water.
  2. Melt 2 tablespoons butter (earth balance) in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add cauliflower; sauté until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes. Cook 1 minute to blend flavors. Remove from heat. Season with coarse salt and pepper.
  3. Return reserved pot of water to boil. Add pasta and cook until tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain; return pasta to same pot. Stir in cauliflower mixture.
  4. Melt 2 tablespoons butter (earth balance) in large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add flour and stir 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk (soymilk). Cook until sauce thickens, whisking occasionally, about 4 minutes. Add 2 cups cheddar cheese (daiya cheese); whisk until melted and sauce is smooth. Whisk in 1/2 cup Parmesan (didn’t use), then crème fraîche (tofutti vegan sour cream) and mustard. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and stir into pasta and cauliflower in the pot.
  5. Butter 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Spoon in pasta mixture and with 1/2 cup cheddar cheese (daiya cheese). Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in small skillet. Add breadcrumbs and toss to coat. Remove from heat; mix in 1/4 cup Parmesan (didn’t use). Sprinkle crumbs over pasta.
  6. Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake pasta uncovered until heated through and bubbling, about 35 minutes.

Short Ribs with Pasta

22 Feb 2010 1 Comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking Tags: ,

I love making Michael Short Ribs because I know it is one of his favorite things. Rare that I cook red meat at all, but I do this sometimes because I know he likes to eat it every once in a while. He really liked this dish but, as I found out, prefers his meat separate from his pasta. So all the leftovers I packed up were meat only 🙂 He also said that the chocolate didn’t add much, so forget about it if you don’t have that, although it did add a pretty touch to the dish. Overall, he really liked this dish, but I don’t think he has met a short rib he didn’t like.

Short Ribs with Pasta
Recipe adapted from Giada De Laurentiis
Serves 4-6

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 pounds short ribs
  • Salt and Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 carrot, peeled and chopped
  • 1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 (14-ounce) can tomatoes (whole or diced)
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
  • 2 teaspoon fresh thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 1/2 cups beef broth
  • 3/4 cup red wine
  • 1 pound pasta
  • 4 to 6 teaspoons shaved bittersweet chocolate
  1. Place the olive oil in a large heavy soup pot over medium heat. Season the short ribs with salt and pepper, and dredge in the flour. Add the short ribs to the pan and brown on all sides, about 7 minutes total.
  2. Meanwhile, combine the onion, carrot, parsley and garlic in a food processor and blend until finely minced. Then add the tomatoes and tomato paste and pulse.
  3. Once the short ribs are browned, carefully add the mixture from the food processor to the pot. Add the rosemary, thyme, oregano, bay leaf, beef broth, and wine. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Remove the lid and simmer for another hour and a half, stirring occasionally.
  4. Remove the meat and bones from the pot. Discard the bones. Shred the meat and return it to the pot. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper, or to taste.
  5. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until done. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Add the pasta to the pot and stir to combine. Add the reserved pasta liquid 1/4 cup at a time, if needed, to moisten the pasta.
  6. Transfer to serving bowls, top each bowl with 1 teaspoon of chocolate shavings. Serve immediately.

Short Ribs and Sauce before cooking

Short Ribs after cooking and shredding

Provencal Chicken with Rosemary Orzo

16 Feb 2010 Leave a comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , ,

This was a great dish. Michael loved it all and I thought the orzo was so simple yet super flavorful! I forgot to drain the can of tomatoes so it took me longer to reduce the sauce, so please do not make the same mistake I did 🙂 Although I did not eat the chicken, I knew this was going to be a good one because I love these flavors. Tomatoes, Olives, Leeks and White Wine, OH MY! YUM! Enjoy!

Check out those boiling bubbles!!!

Provencal Chicken with Rosemary Orzo
Recipe adapted from Gourmet

Provencal Chicken
Serves 6

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 garlic cloves, minced
white part of 4 leeks, halved lengthwise, sliced 1/4 inch thick crosswise, washed well, and drained (make sure to drain!)
2 cups chicken broth
a 28-to-32 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
1 teaspoon freshly grated orange zest
1 cup drained Niçoise or Kalamata olives

Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. In a large heavy flameproof casserole pan or deep skillet, heat oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and brown chicken in 2 batches, transferring with tongs as browned to a large plate.

Turn on the fan, unless you want to the smoke detector going off 🙂 Add wine to casserole and boil, scraping up browned bits, until almost evaporated. Add garlic, leeks, broth, tomatoes, zest, and chicken with any juices accumulated on plate and simmer, covered, turning chicken once, until chicken is cooked through, about 15-20 minutes. Transfer chicken to a platter.

Add olives to tomato mixture and boil sauce until thickened slightly. Season sauce with salt and pepper and serve with chicken and rosemary orzo.

Rosemary Orzo
Serves 6

1 pound orzo
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves

Bring a 6-quart saucepan of salted water to a boil and cook orzo until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain orzo well and in a large bowl toss with oil, rosemary, and salt and pepper to taste.

Wild Mushroom Lasagna

18 Jan 2010 2 Comments

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , , , ,

Yum! Wild Mushroom Lasagna! Is this not the most perfect, comforting food for a Sunday? This wasn’t just any Sunday, it was the day after the big blizzard in NYC and I had no intention of leaving the house at all 🙂 Although there is still a bunch of cheese in this recipe, I tried to tone down the amounts I used and made it a little more low-fat than the original recipe. But this is definitely a deelish and uplifting meal.  I love mushrooms and especially that decadent porcini taste. Plus of course, this meal also feeds a crowd, at least 8-10 people! So invite some friends over and Enjoy 🙂

Sorry, this is not the best side picture, but at least you get some idea.

Wild Mushroom Lasagna
Adapted from recipe in Gourmet

For mushroom filling

  • 3 cups water
  • 2 ounces dried porcini mushrooms (about 1 cup)
  • 2 pounds fresh white mushrooms
  • 2 large zucchini, diced
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 6 tablespoons Sherry or White Wine
  • 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For sauce

  • 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 4 cups low-fat milk
  • 1 cup of heavy cream
  • 4 1/2 ounces freshly grated Parmesan (about 1 1/2 cups)
  • 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • eighteen 7- by 3 1/2-inch sheets dry no-boil lasagna (about 1 pound)
  • 1/2 pound freshly grated mozzarella (about 2 cups)
  • 1 1/2 ounces freshly grated Parmesan (about 1/2 cup)

Make filling:
In a small saucepan bring water to a boil and remove pan from heat. Stir in porcini. Soak porcini 20 minutes. Lift out porcini, squeezing out excess liquid, and reserve soaking liquid. In a sieve rinse porcini to remove any grit and pat dry. Chop porcini and transfer to a large bowl. Simmer reserved soaking liquid until reduced to about 1/4 cup. Pour liquid through a sieve lined with a dampened paper towel into bowl with porcini.

Quarter white mushrooms and in a food processor pulse in 3 batches until finely chopped. In a 12-inch heavy skillet heat 1 tablespoon butter over moderate heat and cook one-third white mushrooms with 2 tablespoons Sherry, stirring, until liquid mushrooms give off is evaporated and they begin to brown. Add mushroom mixture to porcini. Cook remaining mushrooms in 2 batches in butter with remaining Sherry in same manner and add to porcini mixture. In skillet cook zucchini in 1 tablespoon butter until tender and stir into porcini mixture. In skillet cook onion in remaining tablespoon butter, stirring, until softened. Stir in garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir onion into mushroom mixture until combined. Filling may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered.

Make sauce:
In a 3-quart heavy saucepan melt butter over moderately low heat and whisk in flour. Cook roux, whisking, 3 minutes and whisk in milk. Bring sauce to a boil, whisking constantly, and simmer, whisking the whole time for 3 more minutes. Stir in Parmesan, mustard, and salt. Remove pan from heat and cover surface of sauce with wax paper. Sauce may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring sauce to room temperature before proceeding.

Preheat oven to 375°F and spray or butter a 13 x 9-inch (3-quart) baking dish.

Assemble lasagna:
Spread 1 1/4 cups sauce in baking dish and cover with 3 pasta sheets, making sure they don’t touch each other. Spread one-third filling over pasta sheets in dish and top with 3 more pasta sheets, gently pressing down layers to remove air pockets. Top pasta sheets with one-third mozzarella. Continue layering in same manner with sauce, pasta sheets, filling, and mozzarella, ending with mozzarella (dish will be filled to rim). Spread remaining sauce over top and sprinkle with Parmesan. On a foil-lined large baking sheet bake lasagna in middle of oven until bubbling and golden, about 45 minutes. Let lasagna stand 20 minutes. Lasagna may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring lasagna to room temperature and reheat before serving.

Cold Sesame Noodles

13 Jan 2010 3 Comments

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

I was always obsessed with Cold Sesame Noodles from Chinese restaurants. If there is one food that I remember loving from my childhood, it is this one. And although I occasionally indulge in it now, we rarely order it in.  We ordered some recently from Vegetarian Paradise 2, so yummy! I love this place but since it basically is just vegan chinese food, we almost never treat ourselves to it.  After having that small taste, a couple of days later I was hankering for more. I chose to whip some up for myself and I was pleasantly surprised by how deelish it came out!

Before Mixing

After Mixing - don't they look so authentic!?!?!

Cold Sesame Noodles

3 tablespoons tamari
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
A squeeze of Sriracha
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
1/2 cup water
1 pound spaghetti

In a pan combine the soy sauce, vinegar, Sriracha, brown sugar, peanut butter, oil, ginger, and water. Simmer the mixture while stirring until thickened and combined, only a few minutes. Cook the noodles and drain. Toss with the sauce and chill until it reaches your desired temperature or if you just can’t wait any longer. if you want it traditional add chopped scallion and cucumber strips

YUM!!

Ginger-Poached Noodles

16 Sep 2009 1 Comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

This was deelish! I love soba noodles because I love pasta and I feel so much better eating buckwheat pasta than regular ole’ semolina. It was strange boiling the pasta in such a small amount of liquid but it became this thick soupy sauce that tasted delightful. Scooping out all the ginger pieces was quite a task so maybe consider tieing them up in a cheesecloth that you can quickly remove. We do not normally cook too much tofu in my house, but this was  a great tofu dish. It was able to soak up so much of the flavor from the ginger and the broth. Enjoy 🙂

IMG_2245

Ginger-Poached Noodles
adapted from 101cookbooks

4 cups vegetable broth
2 ounces fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
8 ounces firm tofu, cut into small cubes
1-2 cups (half a bunch) of broccolini, broccoli, or baby broccoli – trimmed
8 ounces dried spinach noodles, soba, or noodles of your choice
1 – 2 tablespoons shoyu or soy sauce
1/4 cup fresh basil, shredded
scant 1/4 cup fresh mint, shredded
a squeeze of lime juice
crushed red pepper flakes (opt)
toasted sesame oil (opt)

Place the broth, ginger and tofu in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and gently simmer for ten minutes or so. Remove (just) the tofu from the pan using a slotted spoon and set aside. Now add the broccoli to the simmering broth. Cook for just a minute, until bright, and remove from pan with slotted spoon. Add pasta to ginger broth and cook until done, stirring regularly. Remove pasta with fork, set aside, and remove all the ginger slices. Return the tofu, broccoli and noodles to the pot. Stir in the soy sauce, basil, mint, and a squeeze of lime juice. Finish with a couple pinches of crushed red pepper flakes. Taste and season to taste with salt, soy sauce, and perhaps a drop or two of toasted sesame oil.

Serves 3-4

IMG_2244

Grilled Lemon Chicken and Moroccan Couscous Salad

21 Jul 2009 6 Comments

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking Tags: , , , , , ,

The couscous came out so gorgeous! So colorful and delightful. This could easily be a vegetarian recipe by substituting the chicken broth with vegetable broth. I also loved that the veggies were not cooked, they only get a light steaming due to the hot couscous when you combine them. The smell was incredible! Lemon chicken in any form is popular in our house, especially when grilled. This is just a classic, simple way to prepare chicken. Great meal!

 cous cous and chicken

Grilled Lemon Chicken and Moroccan Couscous Salad
Recipe adapted from Bon Appétit August 2008

Couscous:

2 cups low-salt chicken broth (use veggie broth to make this vegetarian)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon ground ginger
2 garlic cloves, pressed
2 teaspoons salt, divided
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 10-ounce box plain couscous
1/2 cup raisins
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 2 cups)
1 large carrot, peeled, quartered lengthwise, thinly sliced crosswise
1 cup trimmed sugar snap peas, cut in half
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

Chicken:

2 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil plus additional for drizzling
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
5 large skinless boneless chicken breast halves
1/2 cup chopped toasted almonds (optional)
1 lemon, cut into 6 wedges

  1. Marinate the chicken
  2. Prepare the CousCous
  3. Grill the chicken
  4. Serve

For couscous:
Bring chicken broth, 1 tablespoon oil, ginger, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, turmeric, cinnamon, and cumin to boil in heavy large saucepan. Stir in couscous and remove from heat. Scatter raisins over, cover, and let stand until couscous softens, about 10 minutes. Fluff couscous with fork, breaking up any lumps with fingertips. Transfer couscous to large bowl. Add cucumber, red bell pepper, carrot, green beans, and lemon peel. Whisk remaining 1 tablespoon oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and lemon juice in small bowl. Add to couscous; toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

For chicken:
Place 2 1/2 tablespoons oil, lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in large resealable plastic bag. Add chicken and seal bag, releasing any excess air; turn several times to coat. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes. Alternatively, chill 1 to 3 hours and bring to room temperature before continuing.

Prepare barbecue (high heat). (or Griddler in our NYC Apartment’s case) Brush grill rack with oil. Transfer chicken from bag to barbecue with some marinade still clinging and grill until slightly charred and just cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to platter and let rest 10 minutes. Sprinkle almonds over, if desired and garnish with lemon wedges.

cous cous

I love these colors!!

Soy-Marinated Chicken Breast with Watercress-Pasta Salad and Mango-Lime Purée

19 Jul 2009 6 Comments

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , ,

I thought this dish was so pretty with all the bright colors. Plus I loved throwing super good for you watercress into a pasta dish. Perfect! The pasta dish is also completely vegetarian and could be an entree on its own. I separated the recipe out on the bottom to make the vegetarian pasta dish.

mango chicken

Soy-Marinated Chicken Breast with Watercress-Pasta Salad and Mango-Lime Purée
Recipe from SELF  July 2000

1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tsp chili paste
4 scallions, chopped, green and white parts kept separate
1/4 cup red wine
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 tbsp minced ginger
1/4 tsp black pepper
4 boneless chicken breast halves (1 lb)
8 oz linguine
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp sesame oil
3 tbsp canola oil
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and julienned
3 bunches watercress
2 mangoes, cubed
2 tsp fresh lime juice
Vegetable-oil cooking spray

  1. Preheat broiler.
  2. For marinade, combine soy sauce, chili paste, scallion whites, red wine, garlic, ginger, and black pepper in a bowl. Add chicken and let marinate.
  3. Cook pasta in salted boiling water until al dente; drain.
  4. For dressing, whisk together mustard, vinegar, sesame oil, and 2 tbsp canola oil.
  5. Toss pasta, red pepper, watercress and all but 2 tbsp scallion greens with dressing.
  6. In a blender, puree mangoes, lime juice, and remaining 1 tbsp canola oil.
  7. Coat broiler pan with cooking spray and add chicken in a single layer. Broil 6 to 7 minutes per side, until browned and cooked through. Cut breasts diagonally in half.
  8. On each plate, place 1/4 pasta and 2 pieces chicken. Drizzle with mango puree and garnish with remaining scallion greens.

noodles

Watercress-Pasta Salad (vegetarian pasta dish recipe)

4 scallions, chopped, just green ends
8 oz linguine
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp canola oil
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and julienned
3 bunches watercress

  • Cook pasta in salted boiling water until al dente; drain.
  • For dressing, whisk together mustard, vinegar, sesame oil, and 2 tbsp canola oil.
  • Toss pasta, red pepper, watercress and all but 2 tbsp scallion greens with dressing.
  • Garnish with rest of scallions and serve

Fresh Summer Bruschetta Pasta

12 Jul 2009 2 Comments

by marisashealthykitchen in Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , , , ,

pasta

This was the perfect mix of a meal for Michael and me. I was able to have the raw super fresh bruschetta-like sauce as a salad for dinner and Michael loved it all together with the pasta and the cheese. What a great and simple summer dinner! It also doubled as a fabulous cold lunch in the park over the weekend.  You could also just make the bruschetta to top bread or eat as a salad or side. So yummy!

  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 2 small garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 1/2 pounds roma tomatoes, chopped
  • 1/4 teaspoon hot red-pepper flakes
  • 1/3 cup coarsely chopped basil
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  • 1 pound dried orecchiette or another pasta (I love orecchiette pasta! It means little ears in Italian 🙂 )
  • 3/4 cup bucheron, goat or fresh ricotta cheese
    1. Combine all ingredients (except pasta and ricotta) in a large bowl. Set aside and stir occasionally.
    2. Cook the pasta according to direction, but do not forget to add salt to the water. This is the only time you will have to salt the pasta.
    3. Drain pasta and toss with tomato mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve with the cheese placed on top.

tomatoes

Turkey Piccata & Vegan Cauliflower and Swiss Chard over Mushroom Couscous

03 Jun 2009 Leave a comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , ,

Michael and I made dinner together tonight which was so fun! Thank goodness he was there to help out because my fingers were covered in dredging flour. Plus with him sauteing the turkey, I was able to dredge the pieces at the same time. This would have taken so much longer if I was doing both since there were so many pieces of turkey! I know this is strange, but I loved seeing how these little pieces of turkey became these really wide and flat pieces after pounding. So cool! There is a ton of butter in this dish, but it does serve 4-6 people and every once in a while it is ok to splurge like that! Plus the shallot sauce looked so good! They were so pink and smelled so good!

turkey

Turkey Piccata

Adapted from Alton Brown’s Recipe
Serves 4-6

Ingredients

  • 1 whole turkey breast, approximately 2-3 pounds
  • Sea salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley leaves

Preparation

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F, or turn your warming drawer on.

Cut the turkey breast crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces. Place pieces of turkey, 1 at a time, between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Squirt the meat lightly with water and squirt the top of the plastic wrap as well. Pound to no less than 1/8 inch thickness.

Season both sides of meat with salt and pepper and then dredge in flour. Shake off the excess flour. Set aside.

In a large saute pan over medium to medium high heat, heat olive oil and 4 tablespoons butter. Once hot, but not yet smoking, brown turkey scaloppine quickly, about 1 minute on each side, and remove to an ovenproof platter. Place in oven to keep warm. I love my warming drawer for times like these, so that is where my turkey went.

Reduce the heat to low and add the shallots to the pan. Saute for 1 to 2 minutes or until they begin to turn translucent. Add wine and lemon juice to the pan and simmer until slightly reduced, about 2 minutes. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter and whisk to combine. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, if necessary. Pour sauce over turkey, sprinkle with parsley, and serve immediately.

Cauliflower and Swiss Chard over Mushroom Couscous

This could definitely be a vegan entree. It looked really good! Plus I was happy to serve something so healthy next to the turkey.  To me there is nothing like fresh herbs, so if you have them available I would suggest that.
Serves 2 entrees or 4 appetizer dishes

Ingredients
1 bunch of red swiss chard, chopped
2 cups of cauliflower florets
1/2 cup baby portobello mushrooms, sliced
1 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2/3 cup dry whole wheat couscous
1 cup water
1 teaspoon dried tarragon, or fresh
1/2 teaspoon dried sage, ground or fresh
garlic powder to taste
salt to taste

Preparation
Put red swiss chard, cauliflower and olive oil into a pot with a lid and cook on medium heat until swiss chard is cooked down and cauliflower has softened slightly. Add sage, tarragon, lemon juice and any salt. Turn off and let sit covered.

Bring water and mushrooms to a boil, turn off heat, and add dried couscous. Cover and let stand for 5 minutes. Serve cauliflower and swiss chard over couscous.

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