Baked Shells and Winter Squash

Prep Time: 40 minutes (25 minutes hands on). 

Bake Time: 15 minutes 

Grade: A 

Make Again: Yes 

Recipe Source: Everyday Food (October 2003) 

I made this probably 10 years ago when this issue of the magazine was published. I remembered that I liked it but I wasn't reviewing recipes then. I really wanted to make it again to make sure. 

 

I actually don't like winter squash all that much, but since I remembered liking the finished product, I decided to make it. I couldn't find the pureed squash in the freezer section (I did the first time), so I bought some already cubed squash in a bag. I had to cook it in the microwave and then puree in my food processor. That probably added 5 minutes of work (but not to total time, because cooking the onions, takes the most time.) 

I hated the smell of the squash. I tried a taste, and didn't care for it. I was feeling skeptical. But I forged on and completed the dish. I did cut back on the olive oil, by 1 T, but still used 2 T for the onions and used the full amount of cheese. I wanted to make sure I could make the squash taste good.

One fortuitous thing was that I had leftover Rosemary Focaccia in the freezer, so I used that for my topping instead of crusty bread with oil and rosemary added. It worked perfectly.

The final dish was very, very good. I didn't taste the squash at all, and the smell of the squash was gone, overpowered I suppose by the Rosemary and caramelized onions. 

I am not sure how the leftovers will freeze, but I think it won't be too bad, because it wasn't too 'saucy' so there isn't a lot to soak up. 

I hope I can find the pureed squash in a different grocery store, because I would love to make this again. I really isn't too hard, you just need some time for the onions to cook. 

Rosemary Focaccia

Total Time: 24 hours, with very little work

Hands on Time: 20-25 minutes 

Bake Time: 30 minutes

Cool Time: 30 minutes 

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes 

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (September 2010)

The Focaccia is very easy to make, but you do need to be patient. You need to start the biga the night before. The dough is very wet and does not kneading – just folding, every 30 minutes, 3 times. 

My dough was probably a little too wet because I couldn't really make it into a ball at the end and it spread out in pan without my help, but it turned out fine. 

It was very good, but a little greasy. I even used a bit less oil. I also used a little less salt because it seemed like so much, but it could have handled more. 

I have already reviews CI's earlier version of this recipe here. I definitely like this recipe more so this will be the one I use if I want to make focaccia again.

Stir Fried Beef with Garlic and Rosemary

Total Time: 30 minutes

Grade: B-

Make Again: No

Recipe Source: Everyday Food

I  didn't love this as much as I thought I would. It was an Italian twist on stri-fry served on top of polenta.

I guess part of the problem was having trouble getting the broccoli cooked properly. It tasted ok, but I don't think I will make again. The picky eater liked it, and it was easy, so maybe I'll change my mind, but I would cook the broccoli separately probably, then mix it in at the end.

Rosemary Focaccia

Prep Time: 30-35 minutes (mostly hands-off time)
Rise Time: 2 hours (shape after 1 hour)
Bake Time: 23-25 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Baking Illustrated
Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (May 1997)

I just noticed when looking for the link to the recipe on CI's website that they have a new recipe that they published this past summer. I will have to try that one later.  This was good, but I'm not sure I'm compelled to make again soon, so it will be interesting to try the other one.

I used no oil on top, but the oil from pan added enough richness. This was an easy recipe, but you do need to boil a potato which adds to the complexity a touch.

Pizza Bianca

Prep Time: 40 minutes
Rise Time: 2.5 hours
Bake Time: 20-30 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes


Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (September 2008)
Recipe: America's Test Kitchen TV (Season 9) 

The prep time includes 20 minutes of rest time, and 10 minutes of kneading time with mixer at the end.  It was very simple with very little hands on work. 

I didn't make this perfectly, even though I weighed my flour and water.  My dough was too wet.  It is supposed to be wet, but mine was really, really wet.  I really don't know why.  It still worked though.  The dough rose, and then I poured it into the pan. 

I ended up baking a little too long and the bread was more crispy than it probably should have been, but it was still really good.

I definitely want to try this again and see if I can get it closet to what it is supposed to be.

Oven-Roasted Canned Tomatoes

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 2+ hours

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: The Italian Country Table

This is another great simple recipe from The Italian Country Table. It makes a delicious spread or something nice to put on pasta. It takes a long time to cook, but there is very little hands on time here.

Chicken with Bacon and Rosemary

Total Time: 32 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (October 2005)

I use boneless chicken a lot cut up in various things or with stir-fries, but rarely do the full breasts. But this is a recipe that works really well, and produces delicious breasts with lots of flavor. Mine took longer than the suggested 8 minutes to cook, but it was still a quick dish to make. I will definitely make these again, if I have some rosemary on hand.

The sauce called for a little bit of lemon which I forgot to add, and I don't think it suffered. I served on egg noodles which was very good with the sauce.

Grilled Garlic Rosemary Potatoes

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes

Grade: C

Make Again: No

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (July 2007)

This recipe was one of the few from Cook's Illustrated that was not a winner for me. It tasted fine, but not GREAT. I would probably just prefer to roast the potatoes, even though that means having the oven on, because it is so much easier. If I want the grilled taste, and was willing to put in just a little bit more effort than this recipe, I would make one of the Grilled Potato Salads, which are much more flavorful, IMO.

Penne and Chickpea Soup

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated Magazine (Sept 1999)

This is such a simple soup recipe, and very flavorful. It calls for 4 pieces of bacon (including rendered fat) and 1/4 c. olive oil. However, I soak up much of the rendered fat from the bacon (leaving about 1 T.) and then add only 1 T. of olive oil. This still leaves you with a very rich broth. The broth flavor comes from the bacon, garlic, rosemary, and the tomatoes.

The biggest problem with the soup is that it doesn't save well, because of the pasta. The pasta soaks up all the broth in the leftovers. So, I take some out of the pot for freezing before I add the pasta and then add less pasta.