Mini Cheeseburgers

A casa tenim una tradició sagrada, i és que el dia del teu aniversari esculls el sopar. No és que la resta de sopars de l’any siguin gaire dictatorials, de fet normalment es fan a quatre mans i sempre s’accepten propostes, però aquell dia pots menjar el que et vingui més de gust. No et cal pensar que estigui equilibrat amb el dinar, ni que tingui més part de verdura que d’hidrats de carboni, ni res semblant. Que vols pizza? Doncs pizza. Que ja has menjat pasta per dinar i després de sopar aniràs a dormir i la pizza t’anirà directament al cul? És completament igual.

Això ara pot no semblar gaire estimulant, perquè habitualment ja penses en què fer per sopar, però si ets petit i estàs acostumat a arribar a casa i trobar-te el plat de verdura al davant, tenir carta blanca per un dia és tot un esdeveniment. Tant, que aquest any la meva germana ha decidit que pel seu sant volia repetir el privilegi. De fet, més d’un mes abans ja tenia el menú pensat i clar, amb la il·lusió que li feia el seu sopar, pobreta, no li diràs que no, oi?

I ha demanat un menú festiu absolutament caòtic: figuretes de peix arrebossat (de les que són conglomerat pur i tenen forma d’estrella i de peixet i de cavallet de mar), brandada de bacallà amb torradetes i mini hamburgueses.

Sí, no pega ni per casualitat, però què esperàveu d’un menú ideat per un cervellet supercreatiu de 9 anys?

I jo, l’encarregada de preparar aquest sopar, per intentar salvar la situació i donar una mica de glamour a la diada de Sant Jordi, he transformat la seva petició de mini hamburgueses en tres mini cheeseburgers d’autor.

Swiss cheeseburger

• Mustard
• Emmental
• Mushrooms

Honey Goat Cheeseburger

• Goat cheese
• Honey
• Oregano

Parmesan Pesto Burger

• Pesto sauce (made of basil, pine nuts, parmesan and olive oil)
• Parmesan slices (or Grana Padano, if your budget is reduced, as mine is)

There’s no need to explain how to put it all together, right? Just cook, assemble, melt and eat.

Enjoy! 🙂

Annie

Crispy Zucchini and Corn Gnocchi

“Life is a combination of magic and pasta.” -Federico Fellini

So, pasta. Specifically, gnocchi. I love that stuff. They’re like pasta, but better than pasta. They’re like riotous balls of glorious Italian sunshine. They’re endlessly versatile. You can make them out of cheese.

Gnocchi are the food of the gods. Forget nectar and ambrosia. When no one was looking, or while the Spartans and the Athenians and the Persians where killing each other, or while the Greeks were hiding in their wooden horse at the gates of Troy, or while – well, you get the picture – while their worshippers were busy elsewhere, the gods were stuffing their faces with gnocchi. No, seriously, I’ve been reading into it. Prometheus was chained to that stone not for stealing fire, but for stealing the secret recipe for gnocchi. There’s been a massive mistranslation throughout history. Not fire – gnocchi.

OK, I may or may not have made up that last bit.

But they’re seriously good.

And this recipe is seriously easy. And you end up with crispy-soft gnocchi, a creamy sauce, and even vegetables, to keep the health-nut in you happy.

Life doesn’t get much better than this.

One year ago on May the Cheese Be With You: Strawberry-Almond-Brie Salad

Other Parmesan recipes: Spaghetti alla Carbonara, Parmesan Potato Wedges, Three Cheese Stovetop Lasagna, Parmesan Poppy Seed Twists, Date Bacon Parmesan Salad, Parmesan Lollipops, Rosemary Parmesan Butter

Servings: 4

Prep time: 30 minutes

You will need:

• 1/2lb, or 300gr, fresh gnocchi
• 2 medium zucchini, diced
• 4oz, or 100gr corn
• 1/3 cup cream
• 2 or 3 tablespoons Parmesan
• basil, fresh or dried, to taste
• olive oil, for cooking
• salt and pepper, to taste

Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large skillet. Add the gnocchi and leave unstirred for about 4 minutes, until the bottom is nicely browned and crispy. Toss the gnocchi and continue cooking until browned all around. Set aside.

In another skilled, cook the zucchini and corn, stirring occasionally until soft and lightly browned.

While the vegetables are cooking, beat the Parmesan cheese into the cream until well combined.

Remove the vegetables from the heat and stir in the cream and cheese mixture. Finally, add the gnocchi to the vegetable skilled, season with salt, pepper and basil to taste, and serve hot from the pan.

Enjoy!

Clara

Three Cheese Stovetop Lasagna

Yes, you read that right. Three cheeses. Three different types of Italian cheese. In one dish. One glorious, comforting, soul-warming dish. One pan, minimal preparation, no need to throw on the oven, 30 minutes and you’re set. This is a bit too easy for our own good.

And it has three cheeses.

Have I mentioned the three cheeses?

I love this lasagna. I mean, take a look, three cheeses.

It doesn’t get much easier than this.

It doesn’t get much better than this.

Why, even Cicero swooned over this. Well, maybe not excatly this, but man did the guy love his lasagna (go on, google that). I’m telling ya, the man was wise. He wore a toga.

Plus, there is a chance the word originates from the Greek lasana, or lasanon, meaning “chamber pot”, which the Romans borrowed as lasanum. Something got lost in translation, though, because the Romans, despite wearing togas, firmly believed the word to mean “cooking pots”.

I find this the most hilarious story ever. We’ve been eating chamber pots for millennia.

Personally, I need no other reason to cook this every day this week. In case you do: Have I told you yet that this has three cheeses?

One year ago on May the Cheese Be With You: Braised French Onion Chicken

Other Parmesan dishes: Parmesan Potato Wedges, Parmesan Poppy Seed Twists, Spaghetti alla Carbonara, Parmesan Lollipops, Date Bacon Parmesan Salad, Rosemary Parmesan Butter

Other Ricotta dishes: Lemon Ricotta Pasta, Vegetable Ricotta Pasta

Other Mozzarella dishes: Pistachio Mozzarella Salad, Vegetable Cannelloni, Potato Dauphinoise, Caprese Bread, Veggi Mozzarella Turnovers, Ultra fast Pasta with Mozzarella

 

Servings: 4

Prep time: 30 minutes

You will need:

• 250gr, or 1/2lb ground beef
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon basil
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed chili flakes
• 2 cups, tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 4-6 lasagna noodles, depending on the size of your pot, soaked in warm water
• 8oz, or 250 gr grated Mozzarella cheese
• 2oz, or 60gr Parmesan cheese
• 15oz, or 400gr Ricotta cheese
• salt and pepper to taste
• fresh basil to garnish, optional

First off, heat some olive oil in a deep pan or pot, and cook the ground meat until no pink bits remain. Season with salt, pepper, garlic, oregano, basil and chili, and stir well to combine, and cook until fragrant, about 30 second.

Stir in about a third of the tomato sauce and water, then top with the lasagna noodles, taking care to cover the meat as evenly as possible. Break up the noodles if it helps.

Pour the remaining sauce and water over the noodles, and whisk a bit to combine the liquids. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer over low heat for about 5 minutes. Once the noodles are nice and tender, uncover and sprinkle with half the Parmesan and Mozzarella. Place dollops of Ricotta all over the top, and sprinkle the remaining Parmesan and Mozzarella on top of that.

Cheese heaven.

Cover and cook for a few more minutes until the cheeses melt.

We definitely want the cheese to melt.

Garnish with basil, if desired (I didn’t), dish up, and enjoy!

Dig in. I did 🙂

 

Clara

A cheese-laden birthday feast!

Happy birthday to us!

We’ve been cheesing it for a year now, and we have been celebrating.

With cheese.

Of course.

So today we bring to you not one, not two, not three, but four recipes to put together an entire scrumptious meal orbiting around cheese.

We begin with an appetiser, featuring Feta cheese and ground walnuts, which technically make these little taste-bomb healthy. Almost. Be that as it may, these were absolutely, totally, like, awesome.

Our first course starred creamy pasta with Ricotta, paired with the freshness of lemon. The sheer simplicity of this dish belies the wonderful taste, which manages to transport you straight back into summer.

We chose chicken for our main course, and of course Parmesan, which simply had to make the cut. Dried tomatoes and basil rounded up this lovely, comforting one-skillet dish. We do, however, apologise for the pictures, but this was so good we literally forgot to take any more… You’ll just have to trust us on this one. Have we ever led you astray? 🙂

And last, but indeed not least, you cannot have a birthday without a cake. A cheesecake, of course. Scroll down and find out more about this little crowning jewel of today’s feast…

How can you say no?

Walnut Feta Cookies

Servings: about 40 cookies

Prep time: 20 minutes

You will need:

• 40 g ground or chopped walnuts
• 120 g, or 1/2 cup flour
• 120 g butter
• 120 g feta cheese
• salt and pepper

Let’s start out with the walnut. If you couldn’t find them ground, you can use a pestle and mortar to do the job. (We did 🙂 )

In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients until you obtain a homogeneous dough, then roll it out to a thickness of roughly 1,5 cm.

Cut them out in any desired shape. We used a round cutter, but any shape will do, really.

Place on a greased or lined cookie sheet. Leave a little space between them, but not much is needed, since they really don’t grow at all. You can brush them them with a slightly beaten egg, or even milk, at this point, but this really isn’t necessary.

Place in a low oven and bake for about 10 minutes, or until light golden.

Lemon Ricotta Pasta

Servings: 4

Prep time: 10 minutes (seriously)

You will need:

• 350gr short pasta
• 200gr fresh Ricotta cheese
• the zest of 1 lemon
• 2 teaspoons dried, or 10 leaves fresh basil
• grated Parmesan cheese, to garnish

Cook the pasta as per package instructions.

Reserve two cups of pasta water before draining.

Meanwhile, beat together the cheese, lemon zest and basil until thoroughly combined.

Thin out with pasta water until fairly liquid, but still creamy. Return the drained pasta to the pot and mix in the Ricotta mixture.

Serve garnished with Parmesan and a few basil leaves.

Creamy Parmesan Basil Chicken

Servings: 4

Prep time: 30 mintues

You will need:

• 4 large chicken breasts
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 bread crumbs
• olive oil to cook the chicken
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup cream
• 1/3 cup minced dried tomatoes
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, or 2 teaspoons dried
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons cream cheese
• salt and pepper to taste

Preheat a large skillet on low heat with the olive oil. Salt and pepper both side of the chicken breasts. Dip in the milk, then coat with bread crumbs and place in the pan. Cook for about 5 to 8 minutes on each side, or until cooked through (times may vary here depending on the thickness of the breast).

Remove from the pan, and add the broth to the same pan. When it boils, stir in cream and tomatoes and give it a good stir. Add the remaining ingredients and give it a few minutes to cook through.

Return the chicken to the pan.

Eat up. 🙂

Raspberry White Chocolate Cheesecake

Servings: 8

Prep time: 30 minutes, plus 50 minutes baking time, plus 2 hours chilling

You will need:

For the cheesecake:

• 1 cup shortbread cookies, crumbled
• 3 tablespoons ground almonds
• 1/4 cup melted butter
• 4 tablespoons cream cheese
• 3/4 cup white chocolate, cut into squares and melted
• 2/3 cup sugar (optional; I didn’t think it was necessary)
• 2/3 cup sour cream
• 3 eggs

For the raspberry sauce:

• 1 1/4 cup raspberry jam
• 1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries

Combine the crushed cookies with the ground almonds.

Mix in the melted butter until it forms a crumbly paste. Press into the bottom of a greased pan.

Combine the cream cheese with the melted chocolate.

Add the sour cream, sugar and eggs. Pour on top of the cookie crust.

Bake on medium high for 30 to 45 minutes or until golden brown and centre is still slightly wobbly, but set. It will firm up as it cools.

Place in the fridge to cool for at least 2 hours, ideally overnight.

Meanwhile, place the raspberry jam in a small sauce pan over medium heat until it melts down. Add the raspberries and bring to a simmer. Cover and chill until serving time.

Spoon the raspberry sauce over the cheesecake slices as you serve.

Enjoy! 🙂

Gorgonzola Herb Butter & Rosemary Parmesan Butter

Let me be completely honest with you. This start of term has been rough. It always is. Exchanging endless, lazy summer days and strolls in the mountains for dark, hectic early mornings and long, long, days on your feet trying to pound English and German into teenage brains, just isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

Every September, on the clock, procrastination gets the better of me. There just are no limits to what you can accomplish when you are supposed to be doing something else. I can’t get out of bed. These blankets have accepted me as one of their own and if I leave them I might lose their trust.

It takes me about a month to get things under control again. But during the up-hill month of September, things like changing into actual clothes before dashing to the grocery store don’t seem quite as urgent as they may any other month of the year.

That is, of course, the day you run into every single person you know. And you’re all “I’m usually beautiful and glamorous… but today is my day off”, and all they do is stare at your bunny slippers and hair, which chooses this precise moment to display its unique ability to defy the laws of gravity. I’m betting Newton had some bad-ass anti-frizz shampoo, or he wouldn’t have postulated such a debatable theory.

But to the point. As I announced two weeks ago, we’ll be trying our hand on butter today. These recipes are perfect for September procrastinators and start of term franticness (That is an actual word. I checked.). They’re quick, useful, delicious, and the perfect comfort food for those first crisp fall nights. Slather these butters on toast, savoury scones, English muffins or American biscuits. Place a pad on red meat or chicken, or melt it into a boring pasta dish. Trust me, this stuff is golden.

Gorgonzola Herb Butter and Rosemary Parmesan Butter

Servings: about 1 cups each

Prep time: 10 minutes

You will need:

For the Gorgonzola Herb Butter:

• 1/2 cup unsalted, softened butter
• 1/2 cup softened Gorgonzola
• 3 tablespoons fresh, or 2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 tablespoons fresh, or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 2 tablespoons fresh, or 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• a pinch of red pepper flakes, optional
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 pine nuts
• salt and pepper, to taste

For the Rosemary Parmesan Butter:

• 1 cup softened butter
• 3 tablespoons rosemary flowers, if you can get them, otherwise 2 teaspoons dried rosemary
• 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
• quality salt of choice, to taste, about 1/2 teaspoon

Let the festivities begin.

For the Gorgonzola Herb Butter, place the thyme, rosemary, parsley, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, pine nuts, salt and pepper in a mortar and grind with a pestle until roughly combined and pine nuts are broken up into little bits and pieces.

Place the butter and Gorgonzola cheese in a bowl and mix with a fork until creamy and well combined.

Add the herb-pine nut mixture and incorporate.

For the Rosemary Parmesan Butter, combine the softened butter with the Parmesan cheese until well incorporated, then mix in your salt.

I used about 1/2 a teaspoon, as the Parmesan is already plenty salty, but the level of saltiness is entirely up to you. Do use good quality salt here, though, as the taste shines out quite clearly. I used a fancy red Hawaiian salt I had on hand, but any other good sea or mineral salt.

Fold in the rosemary flowers carefully. If not using flowers, forget the “carefully” and just beat the daylights outta that butter.

These little butters freeze nicely if need be. I placed mine in an ice cube tray and stored them in the freezer for quick meals or snacks.

They’re best, in my humble opinion, simply slathered on hot toast.

Enjoy!

Clara

Date Bacon Parmesan Salad

I know what you’re thinking. Not Parmesan again. And salad, again? I know, I know. But you must understand, it’s Parmesan. The king of all cheeses. And this ain’t just any salad. It’s the best kind of salad. You know, the kind of salad loaded with cheese and bacon.

Also, Parmesan features in Boccaccio’s Decameron tale about an imaginary gourmet paradise. I’m talking XV century Italian literature here, guys. The passion for Parmesan has been around for longer than most modern countries. I mean, the man writes about mountains of Parmesan cheese. Like, mountains.

I’ve been looking for that place for a couple of years now. I’ll let you know if I get lucky. I won’t tell you were it is, though. I’ll just sent a postcard.

Anyway, this rich history is of course the main reason why I made this salad. Duh.

That, and I was so sleepy this morning it took about ten minutes for me to realize I was trying to fit both my legs into one leg of my pants. So this is all I could manage in the state I’m in.

But try it. You won’t regret it. The play of textures and the blend of sweet, salty and crispy ingredients is, in a word, heavenly. Did you hear angels sing? Because they did. And if you listen very closely, you’ll hear their silver voices chanting one word in a trance-like rhythm:

Parmesan…

And then of course there’s the celestial heavy metal band bellowing Bacooon!! at the top of their lungs in the background. They never miss a beat, those little rascals.

Let’s get the show on the road:

Sevings: it’s completely up to you and how much cheese and bacon you can eat

Prep time: 30 minutes tops

You will need:

• Baby greens
• Arugula
• Parmegiano Reggiano
• Bacon, cut into cubes or strips
• Pitted dates, cut into quarters
• Olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, to dress the salad

Note: This salad is super easy and super tasty, perfect for those sultry summer days, and good enough to impress your guests. If you need more salad recipes, check out our Strawberry Almond Brie Salad, Provolone Salad, and Pistachio Mozzarella Salad.

First off, wash your salad greens and arugula and place them in a large bowl. The amount of each depends on how much you like baby greens and arugula. In fact, you could just as well make this salad using only arugula, if you really like it. Plus, you will look like a goat whilst eating, which is always a perk.

Now cook your bacon in a pan with a drizzle of olive oil until nice and crispy, then place on a paper-towel-lined plate to catch any extra grease. Again, the amount is up to you, but don’t skimp. The bacon and date pairing is one of the best flavor combos ever.

Allow to cool.

Cut your Parmesan cheese into small, fine slices, until you feel you have enough to transport yourself or your guests to Parmesan Paradise, and add to the greens.

Now, you are absolutely entitled to eat this like this, and no one will judge you. At least I know I won’t, because, you know, been there, done that.

But bear with me if you can, the final result will definitely be worth your while.

Cut up your dates and add to the salad. Don’t be to heavy handed with these; a little goes a long way, and they’ll overpower the bacon and cheese, which we most certainly do not want happening. Ever.

Last, but not least, top the salad with the cooled bacon. Add a drizzle of good olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. That’s seriously all the dressing you’ll need.

Now, eat, drink and be merry. You’ll thank me later 🙂

Clara

Parmesan Lollipops

No, jo encara no estic de vacances. Molt maques les vostres fotos en bikini a llocs súper guais tots ultramorenos i tal, però jo segueixo tan blanca com sempre amb encara una setmana per endavant tancada al laboratori. I a l’agost, que tinc vacances, passaré d’estar tancada al laboratori a estar tancada a casa redactant la tesi de màster. Genial. Per això he decidit que aquest estiu, ja que jo no viatjo, us organitzo viatges a vosaltres. Seran els “viatges gastronòmics virtuals de l’Annie” (evidentment, gastronòmic en el meu cas serà sinònim de formatge, però això de viatges formatjosos, formatgils o formàtgics no quedava tan bé…).

La nostra primera destinació serà el bressol d’un dels formatges més coneguts (i sovint maltractats i falsificats) del món: sa majestat el Parmesà.

Diu la llegenda (en forma de vikipedia, en aquest cas) que el parmesà va néixer durant l’Edat Mitjana a Bibbiano, un municipi que pertany a la província de Reggio Emilia però que formava part de la diocesi de Parma, i d’aquí li ve el nom. Es veu que sobre el 1200-1300 ja es produïa, i que la recepta era molt semblant a la del formatge Lodi de l’època romana (la propera vegada que el malgasteu sobre una vulgar salsa de tomàquet de pot, penseu que esteu tirant per la finestra milers d’anys d’història).

Actualment es produeix a Parma (en vermell al mapa), evidentment, i també a les províncies veïnes de Reggio Emilia, Modena, Bologna, Mantova i Placenza (en blau). Tot i que pugui semblar que això de menjar-se un parmesà que no ve de Parma és una mica una estafa, en realitat la DOP Parmigiano-Reggiano és molt estricta, per tant no patiu, vingui o no de Parma si té DOP és Parmesà autèntic.

Però alerta! Sovint ens venen formatges tipus parmesà com si ho fossin i no ho són! La falsificació més coneguda és el Grana Padano, que moltes vegades en comprem i li diem parmesà i no ho és, o també hi ha els típics sobrets de “Parmesan Cheese”, sobretot a Estats Units, que de parmesà no en tenen absolutament res.

Aquest formatge es fa amb llet de vaca crua (crua la llet, no la vaca, la vaca normalment és viva quan fa llet), i es deixa madurar entre 1 i 4 anys. En teoria els del Consorzio Parmigiano-Reggiano inspeccionen amb molt de carinyo cada un dels formatges passats el primers 12 mesos de maduració i si compleixen els requisits els marquen amb el segell de la DOP i llavors ja pot ser venut com a autèntic formatge parmesà, que és el protagonista de la recepta d’avui.

Parmesan Lollipops

Servings: about 20 lollipops

Prep time: 10 min

You will need:

• About 150g grated parmesan
• Bamboo skewers
• Thyme, black pepper, sesame seeds or any spice you like (optional)

This recipe is really really easy. Like 5-year-old level of difficulty.

First of all, preheat your oven to 200ºC and line a baking sheet with baking paper. If you want fancy lollipops, take a round cookie cutter and place it on the baking paper. Now place a spoonful of parmesan inside the ring making sure the cheese covers the whole surface. Carefully remove the mold, put a bamboo skewer in the center of the cheese-circle and cover it with some cheese to prevent the lollipop from falling apart when cooked. Finally sprinkle each lollipop with the spices you want (I did some with paprika, some with black pepper and some with oregano).

Only 6 minutes in the oven and that’s all, deliciously crunchy parmesan lollipops ready to go.

Enjoy!

Annie