What's A-cookin'?, Post your favorite dinner recipes! Options

[stargelman]

In our modern times, the ability to cook for oneself has become one of the most important cultural assets. In a world that is increasingly inhabited by "singles" - people who live by themselves - everyone has to have this ability.

In recognition of this fact I am opening this thread as an opportunity for everyone to share their favorite recipes. I will begin by posting one of my favorites.

The recipe I'm sharing with you I picked up in one of the finer italian restaurant in my town. It is a sardinian recipe that supposedly the shepards of that beautiful island enjoy.

Ingredients (2 persons):

500 gr (~1 lb) Pork meat
250 gr (~1/2 lb) sheep cheese - the soft kind
6-8 large tomatos
15-20 black olives
2 onions
1 TS Herbes de Provence
1/2 TS Salt

Preparing this dish is rather easy. First, you prepare your ingredients for frying:
Slice the meat into stripes, peel and cut the onions and wash and cut the tomatos to quarters.

Then, heat up the ole' frying pan at maximum burn. Be sure to put enough oil in it and get it well heated up - don't want your meat to get dry! When it's really hot (you can test this with a piece of onion - if you sink it into the fat and it instantly starts to fizzle, then you're set - watch your fingers!), you put the meat in and get it a good tan from both sides.

When the meat is good, add onions and decrease heat. Keep this up with regular stirring until the onions are glassy.

Now, add half a cup of water and the cut tomatoes. Put the lid on the frying pan and let this work on its own for at least 45 minutes on small heat - it can simmer a bit, but it shouldn't be too hot. Stir every now and then.

In the meantime, get the cheese and cut it into small pieces. We want the cheese to dissolve entirely, by cutting it in small pieces this process is sped up a little. Also, cut the olives into rings.

When the tomatos have become soft enough for your taste, add the cheese. Let this work for another 10 minutes, then add the olives, the herbes de provence, the salt and perhaps a bit of pepper if you like, but not too much.


After another 5 or so minutes, you're done! Serve with pasta of your choice. I recommend Rigatoni


Note: some people prefer to not melt the cheese entirely. This may look better, but the consistency of the sauce is better if you let it melt. Same goes for the olives: optic is better with whole olives, but taste is better with cutting them into pieces

[Om]

I have a folderfull of some of my (and my family's) favorite recipies, this is just one of my favorites out of favorites

Quinoa

• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 cup quinoa
• 1 bay leaf
• 1½ cups hot water
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• ½ red bell pepper, deseeded and diced
• ½ bunch scallions, diced
• ½ tsp fresh garlic, finely chopped
• ¼ cup carrot, grated
• salt (to taste)

In a heavy, medium saucepan place the ¼ cup olive oil and heat it on high until it is hot. Add the quinoa and stir it so the grains are well coated with oil.

Add the bay leaf. Stir the ingredients for 5 minutes or until the quinoa is lightly toasted.

Carefully add the water (it will sizzle), cover the pan, and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Simmer the ingredients for 20 minutes or until the quinoa is cooked. Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool.

In a large sauté pan place the 2 tbsp of olive oil and heat it on medium high until it is hot. Add the pepper, scallions and garlic. Sauté the ingredients for 2 minutes.

Add the grated carrots and cooked quinoa. Sauté the ingredients for 2 minutes more. Add the salt and stir it in.
o
Enjoy (if you can find quinoa to make it with, I don't really know how readily available it is)

The rest of my folder o' goodies is here, unfortunately all in .doc format, most of them are pretty nice

This post has been edited by Om: Oct 30 2005, 12:21 AM