Chicken Marsala Meatballs

I love making meatballs at home since they are super easy to make and they aren't very time consuming. I was watching Giada on the food network a few months ago and saw an episode where she was making Chicken Marsala Meatballs. I saved the recipe and I finally got around to making these gems. Dr. Sweetpea LOVES Chicken Marsala, so I knew these would be something that he would enjoy. I'm super bummed that I waited sooooooooo long to make these! The Chicken Marsala Meatballs were FABULOUS! They were super tender and the sauce was perfect! I did add 2 teaspoons of cornstarch to thicken it up a bit though. I served the meatballs on top of homemade risotto to make it a meal.

Chicken Marsala Meatballs

(Source: Giada De Laurentiis)

1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons milk, room temperature

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon Marsala wine

1 pound ground white meat chicken

1/4 cup grated pecorino, plus extra for serving

1 large egg, beaten

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

8 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced

1 large shallot, minced

1 1/2 teaspoons flour

1 1/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth

Preheat the broiler to high.

In a large bowl, mix together the breadcrumbs, milk and 1 tablespoon Marsala. Leave to soak for 5 minutes. Add the chicken, pecorino, egg, parsley, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and the pepper. With your hands, gently mix together the ingredients until just combined. Form the mixture into tablespoon-size balls and place on an oiled baking sheet. Broil for 5 minutes, or until the meatballs are beginning to brown and are just barely cooked through. Remove from the oven and set aside.

In a straight-sided skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the mushrooms are brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. Add the shallots and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook for another 2 minutes. Lower the heat to medium and stir in the flour and the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add the 1/3 cup Marsala and stir until the mixture is smooth. Whisk in the chicken broth and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the meatballs to the sauce and simmer for an additional 5 minutes to let the flavors blend. Serve hot, garnished with grated pecorino.

***Edit: 4/12/2015 - I have made this for Dr. Sweetpea several times now over the last few months. I have made a few changes to this recipe, and I think my adjustments creates a more pronounced Marsala flavor. I use 2 large shallots instead of 1. I also double the Marsala wine, so instead of 1/3 cup of Marsala wine, I use 2/3 cups of wine. I reduce the amount of chicken broth to 1 cup. To thicken the sauce, I mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water, create a slurry and mix it in after the chicken meatballs have cooked in the sauce for a few minutes.***

***Edit: 6/13/2015 - I made some more changes to the original recipe and Dr. Sweetpea said this version is the best that he has tasted so far. I doubled the panko in the meatball, so I used 1/2 cup of panko breadcrumbs. I used 2 large shallots instead of 1. To make the sauce more flavorful, I increased the Marsala wine to 1 cup and reduced chicken broth to 1 cup. I simmered the sauce longer so the wine could cook off before adding the chicken meatballs. To thicken the sauce, I mixed 3 tablespoons of wine with 1 tablespoon of corn starch to create a slurry. Then poured that mixture into the skillet to thicken the Marsala sauce.

Almost Hands-Free Risotto

(Source: America's Test Kitchen)

5 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups water
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large onion, chopped fine
Salt and Pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
2 cups Arborio rice
1 cup dry white wine
2 ounces Parmesan Cheese, grated (1 cup)
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Bring broth and water to a boil in large saucepan over high heat. Cover and reduce heat to medium-low to maintain bare simmer. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and 3/4 teaspoon salt and cook until onion is softened, 4 - 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in rice and cook, stirring often, until grain edges begin to turn translucent, about 3 minutes. Stir in wine and cook, stirring constantly, until fully absorbed, 2 - 3 minutes. Stir in 5 cups hot broth mixture. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until almost all liquid has been absorbed and rice is just al-dente, 18 - 19 minutes, stirring twice during cooking. Add 3/4 cup hot broth mixture and stir gently and constantly until risotto becomes creamy, about 3 minutes. Stir in parmesan. Remove pot from heat, cover, and let stand for 5 minutes. Stir in remaining 2 tablespoons butter and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Before serving, stir in remaining broth mixture as needed to loosen texture of risotto.

Spiced Upside-Down Apple Bundt Cake

So it's officially Fall!! Which means it's time to do a ton of baking using apples and pumpkin. Who doesn't love the smell of apple pie or pumpkin bread baking in the oven?! Anyhow, I wanted to do something different last weekend. One of my coworkers shared her Food and Wine cookbook with me and showed me the Spiced Upside-Down Apple Bundt Cake recipe. I'm so glad I made a copy of this recipe and made it over the weekend because it's SOOOOOOOOOOOO good! I'm pretty sure the streusal topping added a unique touch to this bundt cake. This is definitely one of my favorite apple cakes that I've tried over the last couple of years. Definitely try making this at home if you want bake something with apples this year.

Spiced Upside-Down Apple Bundt Cake

(Source: Food and Wine)

STREUSEL TOPPING

1/4 cup pecan halves

2 tablespoons rolled oats

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

CAKE

2 1/4 cups granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon allspice

4 Granny Smith apples (2 pounds)—peeled, cored and cut into 1/2-inch dice

2 sticks plus 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup Calvados

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest

3 large eggs

Preheat the oven to 325°. On a parchment paper—lined baking sheet, toast the pecans for about 12 minutes, until lightly browned and fragrant. Let cool. In a medium skillet, cook the oats over moderate heat, tossing frequently, until fragrant and lightly toasted, about 4 minutes. Let cool.

In a food processor, pulse the flour with the toasted pecans until the nuts are finely ground. Transfer to a medium bowl and stir in the oats, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, salt, black pepper and cinnamon. Using a fork, stir in the butter until large clumps form. Spread the streusel on the parchment-lined baking sheet in a single layer and bake for about 25 minutes, until golden brown. Let cool. 

Increase the oven temperature to 350°. Generously butter and flour a 10-inch Bundt pan. In a large bowl, combine 1/4 cup of the sugar with the cornstarch, nutmeg, cinnamon and allspice. Add the apples and toss until the apples are thoroughly coated.

In a large skillet, melt 3 tablespoons of the butter. Add the spiced apples and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until they're almost tender, about 6 minutes. Scrape the apples onto a baking sheet and refrigerate until they are cool, about 15 minutes.

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the baking soda and salt. In a measuring cup, mix the buttermilk with the Calvados and vanilla. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle, beat the remaining 2 sticks of butter and 2 cups of sugar with the orange zest at medium-high speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between additions. At low speed, in 3 alternating additions, beat in the dry ingredients and buttermilk mixture; scrape down the side of the bowl as necessary.

Spoon the cooled apples into the bottom of the Bundt pan, spreading them out. Scrape the cake batter over the apples and smooth the surface with a spatula. Bake the cake in the center of the oven for about 1 hour, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the cake cool for 5 minutes.

Set a cooling rack on a baking sheet. Invert the cake onto the rack and scrape any apples stuck to the pan back onto the cake. While the apples are hot, pack the streusel topping over the top of the cake. Let stand until cool, about 1 hour. Slice the cake with a serrated knife and serve.

Moussaka

I'm waaaaay behind on posting recipes on my blog! I have been cooking and taking pictures but I always seem to fall behind with posting recipes. That said, I made a wonderful Greek dish a few weeks ago and I'm finally getting around to posting it. It's a layered casserole style meal with potatoes, ground beef, eggplant, and topped off with bechamel sauce. It's definitely very time consuming to make, but well worth the time because it's delicious. Dr. Sweetpea devoured all of it within days! P.S. I know it looks ugly in the picture but I promise this Moussaka is absolutely delicious :o)

Moussaka

(Source: Brown Eyed Baker)

2 1/4 pounds eggplant, peeled and cut into ½-inch rounds

1/2 cup olive oil

1 yellow onion, grated

2 garlic cloves, sliced

2 pounds lean ground beef

16 ounces tomato puree

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar

Salt and pepper

1 egg white, lightly beaten

5 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley

5 tablespoons plain breadcrumbs

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 1/4 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch rounds

For the White Sauce:

3 cups whole milk

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Salt and white pepper, to taste

5 tablespoons heavy cream

3 egg yolks, lightly beaten

1. Sprinkle the eggplant slices with salt and let drain in a colander for 1 hour. Rinse, squeeze out any excess water and pat dry.

2. Heat ¼ cup of the olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the eggplant and cook, turning occasionally, for 6 to 8 minutes, or until lightly browned on both sides (if you don't have a pan big enough, do this in two batches). Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon or spatula and drain on paper towels.

3. Reduce the heat to low and add the remaining ¼ cup of olive oil to the pan. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, or until the onion is softened. Increase the heat to medium, add the ground beef and cook, stirring and breaking up the meat with a spoon, for about 10 minutes, or until browned. Add the tomato puree, allspice, and sugar, and season with salt and pepper. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until all the liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat and let cool, then fold in the egg white and parsley.

4. Meanwhile, prepare the white sauce. Place the milk in a small saucepan and bring to barely a boil, then remove from the heat. Melt the butter in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat, then stir in the flour and cook, stirring frequently, for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat and gradually pour in the hot milk, whisking constantly until the mixture is smooth. Return the sauce to medium heat and simmer, whisking constantly, for 10 to 15 minutes, until thickened and smooth. Remove from the heat, and whisk in the nutmeg, salt and pepper.

5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a 10x15-inch lasagna pan with butter and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of the bread crumbs. Cover the base of the dish with the potato slices, overlapping them slightly. Spread half of the meat mixture on top and sprinkle with half of the Parmesan cheese and 2 tablespoons of the remaining bread crumbs. Cover with the eggplant slices, overlapping them slightly. Spread the remaining meat mixture on top, sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan cheese and the remaining breadcrumbs. (At this point, the dish may be covered and frozen. Thaw before baking.)

6. Whisk the cream and egg yolks into the white sauce and spread it evenly over the surface of the dish. Bake for about 50 minutes, or until the top is golden brown. Remove from the oven and let stand for 15 minutes before