roasted – In search of flavor

Roasted Broccoli Rabe

April 26, 2020April 26, 2020 priyamhc09

This is a quick side dish that tastes great with seafood. Leftovers are great in a sandwich or chopped up in pasta. It also happens to be a super easy recipe; in fact, it really isn’t a recipe at all! Here is how I make it. Substitute with fresh broccoli florets if you can’t find broccoli rabe.

Preheat oven to 350F

Cut up two small bunches of broccoli rabe and arrange on a baking sheet.

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Drizzle generously with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.

Roast for 15-20 mins till golden brown.

Side dish sorted!

Comfort food, Savory, Sides

Perfect Pee-wee Potatoes

April 19, 2020 priyamhc09

Alright, I did not come up with the name. The sack of potatoes actually had these tiny potatoes labeled as “pee-wee”. I can not take credit for the cute name, but I certainly fell for the marketing ploy in the store !!!

This recipe is a no-brainer, but I have learned that it is easy to mess it up. So after a few trials, I believe I have come up with the perfect recipe for roasted potatoes

Ingredients:

2 cups of the tiny potatoes, sliced length-wise

2 Tbsp of olive oil

3/4 tsp of salt

1/4 tsp of pepper

1 Tbsp of fresh chopped parsley (you can omit this)

Method:

Preheat oven to 400F

Slice the potatoes lengthwise. Mix them with salt, pepper and olive oil.

Take a dark metal pan–this is important, you need good heat conduction and line it with tin foil.

Empty the potatoes on to the lined baking sheet along with every last little bit of the oil-salt-pepper mixture. You will need the oil for the potatoes to get golden and crispy.

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Arrange the potatoes cut-side down–this step is important. You want the cut-side to turn golden brown. Dumping the potatoes in a pile (like I used in the past) will steam the potatoes and only a few pieces will crisp up. You will note in the picture below, I accidentally started adding the parsley. I had to stop myself, not that it would ruin the potatoes, it’s just that fresh parsley tastes better as a garnish.

Bake for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, the potatoes will be tender but they will not be browned. At this point, you can continue to roast the potatoes for an additional 10 minutes at 400F. For my particular oven/sheet pan combination, I found that reducing the temperature to 375F and cooking the potatoes for an additional 15 minutes is ideal.

At the end of the cook-time, pull the potatoes out and let them rest for a full minute. This will make it easier for you to lift the potatoes off of the tin foil.

Sprinkle with parsley (and additional salt if you want some more) and serve. These are wonderful as finger food appetizers, but they taste best with a nice piece of juicy steak!

Fish & Seafood, Lent, Savory

Roasted Salmon

March 25, 2019March 23, 2019 priyamhc09

You either love it or hate it. I happen to love salmon and my husband is not a big fan. So on nights when I am cooking for myself, this is a go to favorite. It is quick and simple, but the most important step is to purchase fresh, sustainably sourced salmon. Frozen fillets never taste good, especially when the preparation is so simple. I love to have a fresh garden salad with this roasted salmon.

Ingredients:

2 fillets of salmon (6-8oz)

1/4 tsp of salt

1/4 tsp of coarsely crushed black pepper

Zest of one lemon

Olive oil for drizzling.

Method:

Pat the fillets dry and arrange on a tin foil lined baking tray.

Season fish with salt, pepper and lemon zest.

Drizzle with olive oil

Bake at 350F for 25-30 mins.

Now FEAST!

Savory, Sides

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

March 17, 2019March 16, 2019 priyamhc09

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A recipe for a super simple side. In fact, it is hardly a recipe since I never measure the ingredients. It also has also appealed to the palette of a certain “non-sweet-potato-fan”. Give it a shot, maybe the even the pickiest of eaters in your house will enjoy it!

Things you will need:

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3 large sweet potatoes, cubed

Olive oil, honey, salt, pepper, pumpkin pie spice (or Cinnamon) and smoked paprika (use as much of each as you like). I am heavy handed with the paprika–it is such a striking contrast to the sweetness from the potato and the honey.

Mix all the ingredients together.

Spread on a tin-foil lined baking sheet

Bake at 400F for 20-25mins, till the sweet potatoes are brown and soft

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Serve as a side or toss into a salad.

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Classics, Comfort food, Dinner, Poultry, Savory

Roasted Split Chicken with Rosemary and Lemon

October 10, 2018April 18, 2020 priyamhc09

IMG_20181001_183729 Roast chicken is a classic, but it takes time–more suited for a Sunday night. It has its benefits too. Plenty of leftovers for sandwiches and chicken noodle soup. However, when it is fall and you want a hearty, comforting meal on a weeknight, turn to this recipe. The trick is to remember to marinade the night before and take the time to brown the chicken (preferably in a cast iron skillet). Try it soon !

INGREDIENTS

½ cup olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic

1 teaspoon kosher salt

Fresh ground black pepper, to taste

2 large split chicken breasts

INSTRUCTIONS

Whisk together all ingredients except chicken.

Put split chicken in a re-sealable plastic bag and add marinade.

Seal bags, removing as much air as possible and massage marinade around chicken to coat evenly. Refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. convectional or 425 degrees F. conventional.

Remove chicken from marinade, discarding marinade. Heat a large heavy bottom skillet (I use my cast iron skillet) over medium heat. Once heated, put chicken skin side down in the skillet and cook until browned, about 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer skillet into the oven.

Roast until chicken is browned, meat is cooked through and juices run clear (an instant reading thermometer when inserted in the meat should read 165 degrees F.) about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and allow sitting 15 minutes to “rest” (this allows the juices to settle in the meat so they don’t run out when chicken is cut).

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Salad, Savory, Sides

Roasted Acorn-Squash Salad

October 21, 2012April 19, 2020 priyamhc09

This was my first time cooking Acorn Squash so I am quite excited about this salad. My lunches are going to be delightful this week ! The beauty of this recipe is that once the squash is roasted you could add it to a salad, like I did or make some soup out of it. It will also be a great side dish to any sunday roast dinner. I hope you enjoy it.

Ingredients:

1 lb acorn squash cut up into wedges

1.5 tbsp of olive oil

2 tbsp of balsamic vinegar

1/2 tbsp of dried rosemary

salt and pepper to taste

1, 7oz bag of arugul greens mix

Your choice of Nuts and dried fruit to dress up the salad. I used pecans and cherries !

Method:

Toss the wedges of squash with the oil, vinegar, rosemary, salt and pepper and roast for about 35min at 350F.

There will be some dressing left after coating the squash which could be used to dress the salad. If not, feel free to make extra dressing or use a dressing that you would use otherwise.

Add the squash to the leaves, add the nuts and berries and serve warm !

Note: Bacon, chickpeas, apples and pears would also make excellent additions to the salad. Enjoy !

Comfort food

Roasted Broccoli

May 30, 2012 priyamhc09

Most of my cooking memories are watching my mother cook. My father is a very good cook, but he rarely did cook lest he made a huge pile of dirty dishes ! My best memory with a father ( when in come to food) involves broccoli. His favorite way of eating it was steamed with butter and lemon pepper. There are pictures of me in my high chair with my dad feeding me tiny pieces of the broccoli from his lunch plate. Later my dad and I would just attack it straight from the steamer–my mother rarely got the chance to bring it to the table. Thus my love affair with broccoli began early and till this day, my fridge is never empty of this vegetable. I still steam it but sometimes when I am looking for a depth in flavor I roast it. So here we go !

Preheat oven to 400F. Spread out the broccoli on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, salt and lemon pepper. You could add red pepper flakes, balsamic vinegar, or just salt and pepper.

Roast for a good 40-45 minutes till the broccoli is nice and brown and crunchy ( you can adjust the cook time to you suiting)

Serve warm as a side dish, toss it in a salad, or just polish it off straight from the baking sheet–like what I do !