Crock Pot Pizza Pasta

Crock Pot Pizza Pasta

By Chef Lippe

Great meals can come from a crock pot believe it or not and the best part is you start it in the morning and then spend the day at the beach and come home to a great meal. A crock pot meal in the summer does not heat your kitchen up and with the kids at home from school it really frees up your day.

Here is my families favorite crock pot pizza. You can change the toppings to any toppings your family likes.

Ingredients:

1 pound rigatoni uncooked

2 jars tomato sauce (or your own marinara sauce)

1 Tablespoon dried oregano

1 pound ground beef

1 pound Italian sausage (removed from casing)

1 onion, chopped

1 green pepper chopped

1 – 2 cups sliced mushrooms

4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (or any combo of cheese that you enjoy)

Sliced pepperoni to taste

Directions

In a large skillet, brown the ground beef and drain excess fat.  Set to side. Do the same with the sausage, making sure pieces are small.

Mix the sauce, uncooked pasta and oregano in a large bowl.

Spray the inside of the crock pot with cooking spay.

Make layers using half of each ingredient and then repeat using other half. (pasta, cheese, meat, onions, peppers, mushrooms and pepperoni) Finish top layer with cheese and a few pieces of pepperoni on top to look like a pizza.  Have fun with toppings adding a as much or as little as you like.  If you don’t like mushrooms add olives. Be creative and have fun.

Use lots of sauce because the pasta absorbs a lots it cooks. I even add extra like it was a layer of its own.

Cook on low heat for 6 hours.

 

Balsamic Chocolate Cake otherwise known as Guilt Free Chocolate Cake

By Chef Lippe

One bite of this cake and you will be hooked! The cake is rich and moist and the Balsamic vinegar pairs up nicely with the chocolate. I used grapeseed oil which has almost no flavor of its own, is high in vitamin E, C and Omega 6. It also contains a natural chlorophyll; a lot of people say to me “why is chlorophyll good?” and the answer is that it helps to eliminate body odors. If you know someone who has smelly feet just have them take alfalfa pills from your local vitamin shop and it will help if not totally eliminate the smell. Grapeseed oil also helps to raise the good cholesterol (HDL).

Now ladies if you were paying attention I have just given you 5 reasons to feel guilt free about eating this wonderful chocolate cake! Maybe I should change the name to: Guilt Free Chocolate Cake.

Balsamic Chocolate Cake otherwise known as Guilt Free Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

2 cups water

2 Tablespoons Balsamic vinegar

½ cup Grapeseed Oil

1 Tablespoon vanilla

3 cups flour

2 cups sugar

2/3 cup unsweetened powdered chocolate

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

Directions

Sift dry ingredients together.

Blend wet ingredients.

Slowly blend the wet and dry together

Bake 1 hour at 350 F

Let cool and serve with Strawberry Whipped Cream (below)

Fresh Strawberry Whipped Cream

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups strawberries, plus more for garnish

1/3 cup sugar

2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped

2 1/4 cups heavy cream, divided

12 ounces high quality, bittersweet chocolate

2 Tablespoons powdered sugar

Place strawberries, sugar, balsamic vinegar, vanilla bean seeds and pod into a small saucepan. Simmer over low heat until the strawberries break down and the mixture becomes thick and syrupy. Remove from heat and set aside to cool completely.

Finely chop the chocolate and place in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan, warm 1 cup of the heavy cream until steam starts rising from it. Pour the warm cream over the chopped chocolate and stir until smooth and shiny. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whip the remaining 1 1/4 cups heavy cream until soft peaks begin to form. Sprinkle in the powdered sugar and continue beating until medium stiff peaks form. Gently fold in the cooled strawberry syrup.

Top cake with desired amount of strawberry whipped cream.

Spoon the chocolate on the top, gently spread it to the edge of the cake so that some falls down the sides. Top with fresh-cut strawberries. Allow the chocolate to set. Keep refrigerated but allow the cake to come to room temperature before serving.

Cornmeal Cake with Strawberry Balsamic Syrup

Cornmeal Cake with Strawberry Balsamic Syrup

By Chef Lippe

Strawberries have been on sale for a while now and the other day they were buy one pound and get one free at the grocery store and they looked good.  Once I got them home I remembered why I love the Farmers Market!  The strawberries were big, bright red but so sour and did not taste like farm fresh strawberries!  The only thing I could think of doing with them was to cook them with Balsamic syrup.

This cake is full of texture and golden summer flavor (sometimes I even add a little of our left over corn to the batter).  The strawberries are first bathed in a little sugar to produce some juices that will turn into pockets of rich fruit.

It’s important to have butter and eggs at room temperature for the butter and sugar to aerate properly and the fats to emulsify. One way to quickly take the chill off of eggs is to place them in a bowl of hot water for a few minutes while you gather and measure out your ingredients.

The sugar level for the fruit will depend on the tartness of your strawberries. Add more to taste if you desire. Same for the balsamic syrup.

When placing small pockets of strawberries into the cake batter, drain most of the juice off so the strawberries are still moist but the cake batter doesn’t become soupy.

FOR THE CAKE:

1/2 cup fine yellow cornmeal

1/2 cup cake flour

1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary leaves

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups powdered sugar

4 large egg yolks

2 large eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Butter and flour an 8-inch round cake pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, cake flour, minced rosemary, baking powder, and salt.

Using a mixer, on low speed beat the butter and vanilla together until combined. Slowly add the powdered sugar. Once the sugar is incorporated increase the speed to high and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg yolks and eggs, 1 at a time. Reduce the speed to medium and add the sour cream. On low speed add the dry ingredients just until incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and smooth the surface with a spoon.  Take some of the strawberries that have been soaking in the Balsamic Syrup and press them into the cake batter at random spaces.

Bake in the lower third of the oven until the cake is golden and pulls away from the sides of the pan, about 35 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool. Transfer the cake from the pan to a serving plate.

FOR THE BALSAMIC SYRUP:

 

1/2 cup sugar (or more to taste)

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar dissolved in a 1/4 cup of water

Small sprig fresh rosemary

Place the sugar, balsamic vinegar, strawberries (chopped) and rosemary in a small sauce pan. Bring to a boil and simmer until the sugar is dissolved, about 5 minutes. Discard the rosemary sprig and let the syrup cool.

To serve, place a slice of cake on a serving plate; spoon some syrup around the plate.

Lemon Carrot Cake

Lemon Carrot Cake with lemon grapeseed oil

By Chef Lippe

Today’s Sweet Tooth Tuesday recipe is Lemon Carrot cake and is one of my favorites.  I use lemon flavored grape seed oil from Salute Sante.  The lemon flavor is a great combination with the Carrots and cuts down on some of the sweetness that you get with the pineapple.  Carrots have been used in cakes since the medieval period as a sweetener when sugar was scarce.  They became popular once again in WWII because of rationing but they really took off as a food fad in the 1970s and have been a family favorite ever since.

 

Ingredients:

3 large carrots (two cups grated)

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup grapeseed oil

½ cup  lemon flavored grapeseed  oil

4 large eggs

1 can of pineapple chunks chopped and drained

1 cup sweetened flaked coconut

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (more for decorating sides, if desired)

2/3 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 350˚F.    Cook on the middle rack of your oven. Butter and flour two 9-inch cake pans, knocking out excess flour.

Shred enough carrots on smallest teardrop holes of box grater or with fine shredding disk in a food processor to measure 2 cups.

Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon into a large bowl. Stir in sugar, oil, eggs, carrots, pineapple, coconut, walnuts and raisins.

Divide batter between cake pans and bake until a wooden pick or skewer inserted in center of cakes comes out clean, 35 to 45 minutes. Cool layers in pans on a rack for 5 minutes, then run a thin knife around edge of each pan and invert layers onto rack to cool completely.

Place one cake layer bottom side up on a cake plate and spread with some of frosting. Place remaining cake layer right side up on top and spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake.  Decorate as desired.

Cream Cheese Frosting

8 oz. cream cheese; kept cold

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter; cubed and kept cold

2 teaspoons lemon extract

1 pound confectioners sugar

Cream all ingredients together until light and fluffy. Decorate cake as desired.

Lemon Thyme Olive Oil Cookies

Lemon Thyme Olive Oil Cookies

Cookies for adults!  Warm and spicy, these unique cookies have a lively taste and are ready within 30 minutes! Slightly crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, these will not last long at your next party.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ingredients:

•  2 cups all-purpose flour
•  1 cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ¼ cup naturally flavored Lemon Olive Oil
• ¼ cup naturally flavored Thyme Olive Oil
•  4 tablespoons milk
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Stir together:  flour, sugar, baking soda, pepper. Mix in: Lemon Olive Oil, Thyme Olive Oil, milk. The dough will be crumbly, but if it’s too much so, add a tiny splash of milk.

Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and place about 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheet. Bake 14-15 minutes, or until the tops are very lightly browned. Do not over bake. Yield: about 2 dozen cookies.

GLUTEN Free version – 1 1/2 cups of almond flour and 1/2 cup grapeseed flour instead of regular flour.

Rib Eye with Strawberry and Blue-Cheese Chutney

Rib Eye with Strawberry and Blue-Cheese Chutney

By Chef Lippe

Steak is delicious. You didn’t need me to tell you that, but I just wanted to remind you that it is especially delicious if you pair it with blue-cheese and strawberries.  Now I know I have mentioned my partner and her love of plain food. You all know the type… (True Monk type personality when it comes to food. Don’t let the vegetables touch the meat, plain hot dogs – not even ketchup) So the sky must have fallen and day turn to night when I put her favorite steak in front of her covered with strawberries and blue-cheese!

After 5 minutes of talking (you know the kind that the neighbors can hear) she put a bite in her mouth… and it was true love! Happy ending! In that 5 minutes, I pointed out that there is strawberry salsa that is so good on salmon, that there is a strawberry and fish taco and the list went on and on before she took that first bite.

So I was confident that I have a winning recipe when she asked for a second helping. By the way did I tell you she HATES blue-cheese.

Ingredients:

Steaks
6 rib eye steaks
2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper

Chutney
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 purple onion
1 cup strawberries, rinsed and quartered
1 and 1/2 cups blue-cheese

Prep Time: 35 minutes
Yields: 6 servings

First, deck out those steaks. Cut the garlic into thin slices and sprinkle over steaks.  Then, in a small bowl, mix together olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper.  Pour over steaks, pop them into the fridge, and let marinade for 4 to 8 hours.

Next, place those steaks on the grill and cook at a high heat to taste.  I prefer mine medium-well.

Remove from grill and let the steaks sit for about 5 minutes.

Slice onion into rings and then half the rings. Bring olive oil and white wine to a simmer in large pan.  Add onions and stir fry for about 3 minutes or until onions are soft.

Toss strawberries into pan and cook just until the juices turn pale pink or roughly 2 minutes.

Now, plate your masterpiece.  Spread 1/4 cup blue cheese on each steak and top with strawberry mixture. Watch the blue cheese melt onto the steak.

Serve immediately with a salad and asparagus.

Grilled Curried Pork Burgers with Sweet Pickled Peaches

Grilled Curried Pork Burgers with Sweet Pickled Peaches

By Chef Lippe

Soon we will be harvesting the peaches from our tree. Usually I make a canned sweet pickled peach, which we give as gifts throughout the year.  I always get the question, “what do you do with these?”  Here is my families favorite combination of sweet pickled peaches and grilled curried pork burgers that work well together.  They are hot and spicy with a sweet peach topping.

Sweet Pickled Peaches

Ingredients

• 4 pounds peaches
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 1 stick cinnamon
• 1 pint vinegar
• 4 whole cloves
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger

Directions

Boil sugar, ginger, vinegar and 1 stick cinnamon to make syrup. Peel small peaches. Stick 4 whole cloves into each peach. Cook peaches in syrup until tender. Pack peaches into wide-mouthed jars and pour syrup over them to cover. Seal by following directions on the canning jars you are using.

Curried Pork Burgers

1pound lean ground pork
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 tablespoons curry paste
1 teaspoon dried ground ginger
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded & minced
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon each salt & pepper

Mix all the meat, the feta, and all the seasonings together & form burgers. Grill. Serve on buns and top with pickled peaches.

Sweet Tooth Tuesday!

Sweet Tooth Tuesday

By Chef Lippe

Sweet tooth Tuesday comes after meatless Monday and before Crockpot Wednesday! In my book any day can be a sweet tooth day! Caramels are a tricky candy to make and you might have to practice to get just the right consistency. In most cases even the bad batches can be tasty….too soft and runny is good for ice cream, too hard might only be good for those with good teeth and no fillings.

Sprinkle a little salt on top for a nice twist or dip in chocolate for a great gift!

Ginger Cinnamon Caramels
2 cups heavy cream
3 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into chunks
3 teaspoons fresh-ground cinnamon
4 teaspoons ginger extract
1/2 teaspoon salt

Line a 9×13 baking sheet with heavy-duty foil and butter generously. Put the cream in a small saucepan and let it warm over low heat.

Put the sugar, water, and corn syrup in a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat and stir vigorously until the sugar melts and dissolves. Stop stirring and turn the heat to high. Cook until the sugar turns dark amber. Take off the heat.

Whisk in the butter. VERY CAREFULLY pour in the cream and whisk it. The caramel will bubble up furiously and steam. Whisk until well-combined and return to high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring, then turn the heat to medium-low. Clip on the candy thermometer and let the caramel cook until the temperature hits 250°F. Remove from the heat and quickly whisk in the ginger extract, cinnamon, and salt. Pour into the prepared pan and let it cool.

When it has cooled for a couple hours, put it in the fridge to harden overnight. The next day, cut into small pieces and wrap. These are fine at room temperature. I sprinkled them with fine sugar  or salt for an extra little crunch, which was very tasty too.

Summer Salad with Orzo and Lemon Olive Oil

Lemon Orzo Salad

By Chef Lippe

Now that the kids are on summer vacation we spend a lot of time at the beach and need some good picnic food. This salad is fun and easy to make and you can make it with any vegetables and server it warm or cold. It travels well without spoiling because it has olive oil instead of heavy mayonnaise.  The kids love it because I let them pick out the color of the orzo (red, white, green) and the vegetables that we use. One time we had spinach orzo with yellow corn and red tomatoes. Today we are having white orzo with green peas, artichoke and white beans with lemon flavored olive oil. You can add chicken or shrimp to either dish if you have some way to keep it cold until you serve it at the beach.

Enjoy the water!

Ingredients:

1/2 pound orzo pasta
1 cup cooked fresh peas (or frozen peas if you are in a hurry to get to the beach)
1 can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped into bite-sized chunks
1 can white beans, drained and rinsed in cold water
2 cups arugula
sea salt (try lemon or garlic flavored sea salt)
freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil lemon flavored

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Season the water with some salt, then cook the orzo pasta according to package directions (about 9 minutes). Drain well and set aside in a large mixing bowl. Add the peas, artichokes, white beans, and arugula on top of the orzo and season the salad with salt and pepper to taste. Add the lemon olive oil.  Toss with a spoon until all the ingredients are well combined. It’s ready to serve, but tastes best if made a few hours or even the night before so flavors can really develop.   Add some crumbled feta cheese or shaved parmesan if you like just before you serve it.

Here is another version that is good on its own or as a bed for a nice piece of grilled salmon.

Ingredients:

1 cup orzo

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 teaspoons freshly flavored Lemon Olive Oil

8 asparagus spears, chopped

1 cup packed fresh spinach

1/3 cup feta cheese

Salt and pepper, to taste

Lemon wedges or slices, to garnish (optional)

Bring 4 cups of salted water to a boil. Stir in orzo. Cook until tender, about 9 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Sauté garlic in 1 teaspoon Lemon Olive Oil over medium heat. Add asparagus pieces and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Stir in spinach. Continue cooking until the asparagus is tender and the spinach wilts.

Stir together orzo and vegetables in a medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with remaining teaspoon of Lemon Olive Oil. Sprinkle feta cheese over the top of the salad.

Olive Oil Ice Cream

Olive Oil Ice Cream

By Chef Lippe

Okay it is hot outside and every ones favorite is ice cream! So here is the fast and easy version first….(for those who are short on time) One gallon of your favorite vanilla ice cream, drizzle lemon or orange flavored olive oil over it and sprinkle with coarse sea salt.

This is unbelievably good! However if you have the time homemade ice cream is even better!

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups whole milk

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

2/3 cup sugar

5 egg yolks (I used duck eggs just to be different)

2/3 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon bourbon

A pinch of salt

The duck eggs just make the ice cream particularly indulgent with little change to the taste so regular extra large egg yolks work just as well.

Warm the milk and sugar in a saucepan. In a separate bowl, I poured in the cream and set a mesh strainer on top.  In a second bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and warm milk, whisking constantly and then add back into sauce pan. Stir over medium heat until mixture starts to coat my wooden spoon. Over cooking here will give you scrambled eggs. Once mixture has thickened strain it into bowl containing the cream. I stirred in the olive oil as the bowl cooled in an ice bath. I put the bowl in the refrigerator to completely chill (about an hour) Then add it to the ice cream maker and let it do its thing. Just before the ice cream is done add the bourbon and salt.

Now try this ice cream with the drizzled flavored olive oil of your choice with a sprinkle of coarse sea salt.  This is 10 times better than the store bought!