Category Archives: Mains

Corn Cakes

2 cobs corn
1 cup self rising flour
2 eggs
1/4 cup cilantro, shredded
1 tspn ground cumin
1 tspn baking powder
pinch sea salt

Cook corn until tender, let cool. Remove corn from cob. Palce the flour, eggs, coriander, cumin, baking powder and salt into a food processor and process until combined. Add the corn and process until corn is roughly chopped.

Spread 2-3 tablespoons of mixture into hot, greased frying pan and cook for 3 mins each side or until golden. Keep warm and repeat w/ remaining mixture.

We serve w/ tomato, cilantro salsa or avocado salsa and oven roasted tomatoes. Keep the juice from the tomato pan as it also adds yummy flavor.

Roast Vegetable Frittata

20 oz roast sweet potato or pumpkin (butternut squash)
1 red pepper, cut inot 8 pieces
2 zucchini, quartered
4 new baby potatoes, quartered
olive oil and sea salt for sprinkling

frittata mix
6 eggs
1 cup cream (whipping or heavy)
1/2 cup grated aged cheddar or parm
2 tablspoon shredded basil

roast veg for about 40 mins or until soft and golden. Place in a non-stick frying pan (we use our large cast iron because it handles the heat in the oven). Make frittata mix: whisk together eggs, cream, basil and pepper. Pour over vegetable in pan and cook over low heat 8-10mins or until the frittata begins to set. Place pan under a preheated grill/boiler and cook about 2mins until golden. Allow to stand for 5 mins before slicing into thick wedges. Serves 4-6.

So, that is exactly as it is in the book. I use whatever I have on hand… green beans, asparagus, eggplant, you name it. For a lower fat option make it 7 eggs and replace the cream with milk. Doesn’t make it as rich but also not nearly as fattening or costly! I prefer to use thyme than basil but again, it is very forgiving to whatever you have/like.

Enjoy!! Trish

Tomato Goat Cheese Strata

6 large eggs
1 cup heavy cream
3 tbsp of minced fresh flat leaf parsley
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves roughly chopped
1 tbsp of fresh minced sage
½ teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes with their juice
1 tsp coarse sea salt or kosher salt
½ pound of day old artisanal bread, cut into 1-inch cubes
¼ pound of goat cheese
¼ pound freshly grated parmesan

1. Set a rack on the middle shelf of the oven and preheat to 450
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, parsley and set
aside.
3. Place a 10-inch ovenproof sauté pan or 3-qt brazier over high
heat. When the pan is hot, add the onion. Cook until lightly
browned, about 2 minutes. Add the oil, garlic, sage, and red
pepper flakes and sauté, stirring, for 1 more minute. Add the
tomatoes and salt and bring to a simmer.
4. Stir the bread into the tomatoes. Crumble the goat cheese over the
bread, then pour the egg and cream mixture over all and sprinkle
with the parmesan cheese. Bake until the strata has set and is
golden on top, about 25 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Roasted Vegetable and Sage Lasagne

This is Trish’s favorite main of all time.  I am not sure why it has not made it up here yet but here it is.  The reipe has evolved over time and it is pretty forgiving.

Roasted Vegetable Lasagna with Sage Butter
Ingredients:
1 lb Sweet Potato cut into 1/4″ slices
2 red peppers, sliced into 4
2 large red onions, cut into 1.4″ slices
2 parsnips halved crosswise and lengthwise (optional)
4 large tomatoes – preferable heirloom
1 large bunch of sage, 2 is better
1 stick butter
Olive oil
Fresh lasagne sheets (store bought or homemade) cut into squares half the width of the sheet.
Fresh parmesan (grated and shaved)
Directions:
Toss the vegetables in a little olive oil.  Spread on a bakign sheet and add around half of the sage.  Bake in the oven at 350 for around an hour.  Melt the butter and add the rest of the sage.  Cook on medium heat for 2-3 minutes until sage is crispy but butter is not burnt. Be sure not to cook on too high a heat as you wnat that nutty butter taste, but not so far as it is bitter.  Some times I will cook the sage separately in a little clarified butter to let it get crispier then add to the rest of the butter. Cook the pasta in salted water.
Place a square of pasta on a plate.  Top with a vegetable.  Add a little sage butter and grated parmesan.  Add another pasta sheet, and vegetable, continuing to layer until you finish with a pasta sheet.  Top with shaved parmesan, a little cracked pepper, sage butter and a few pieces of the crispy sage.  Server immediately.
 Variations:
Play with the vegetables, and use what is in season.  This recipe works with most root vegetables.  I will use pumpkin often, but any vegetable you can imagine roasting with sage will work fine. You can also try crisping the sage in olive oil then adding to the butter.

Mrs. Joyce’s Spaghetti Sauce

1/3 cup olive oil
4 medium onions
5 pieces of garlic chopped (or more if you want it spicier)
chop above ingredients fine and simmer for 1 hour
add 1 can 28 oz tomatoes (whole or chopped)
1 can 28 oz. bravo spaghetti sauce or good quality sauce
1 14 oz. can tomato sauce (sometimes i put a bigger can of sauce)
mel adds one can tomato paste (small can)  this is not in the recipe from mrs joyce
1 tsp pepper
2 tsp oregano
4 tbsp ketchup
couple of drops of tabasco sauce
recipe calls for 1 tsp sugar (we don’t put that in the sauce)

simmer in good pot for a couple of hours.

Grandpas Meat Balls

2 lbs ground beef
1 or 2 lbs ground pork
1 cup parmesan cheese ground
1 cup bread crumbs or (2 slices of bread soaked in milk)
4 eggs
2 cups chicken stock or tomato juice

mix well in bowl.  it will be very loose

make meat balls and place in open pan.  add chicken stock to cover at least 3/4 of meat balls .bake at 350 for 35 to 60 minutes depending on size of meat balls.
note
if using chicken stock, don’t add salt as the stock is salty
if using tomato juice  add some salt unless the tomato juice is salty.
we use the chicken stock 99 % of the time
if i were to use the tomato juice, i would dilute some brands of it.  it can be overpowering.
add the meat balls to the sauce or serve separately.  i have also used these meatballs in leftover turkey or chicken gravy.  it also makes a great meatloaf with ketchup on top and maybe a slice of bacon before baking.