Barley & Roasted Beet Salad

Our garden is overflowing with beets right now.  We typically roast the beets and eat them cold on a salad sprinkled with goat cheese.  Here is another delicious way to cook the beets.

Barley & Roasted Beet Salad
adapted from Clean Eating Magazine

Preheat oven to 400.  Wrap 4 beets in foil and roast in oven until tender, about 45 minutes.  Peel and cut into small wedges.  Whisk together 1/4 cup olive oil, 2 tbsp orange juice, 1/2 tsp sea salt, and 1/2 tsp ground black pepper until emulsified.  Combine 1 cup cooked barley, beets, 1/4 cup toasted almonds and dressing; toss gently.  Garnish with 1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese and 1 tbsp minced fresh parsley.

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New York–Style Cheesecake

For Mother's Day dessert I served fresh picked organic strawberries with a delicious cheesecake. 

New York–Style Cheesecake
Adapted from Bon Appetit Desserts

For the crust
9 whole graham crackers, broken into pieces
5 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1⁄2-inch cubes
3 tablespoons granulated sugar

For the filling
Five 8-ounce packages cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract (I did a tbsp vanilla bean paste)
Pinch of salt
1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour

Directions

Make the crust
1. Preheat the oven to 325°F (163°C).

2. Grind the graham crackers to coarse crumbs in a food processor or with a rolling pin and a resealable plastic bag. Add the butter and sugar and process or stir until the crumb mixture is well blended and begins to stick together.

3. Press the crumb mixture onto the bottom (but not the sides) of a 9-inch-diameter spring-form pan with 2 3/4-inch-high sides. Bake the crust until golden and firm to touch, about 25 minutes. Cool the crust in the pan on the rack. Wrap the outside of the pan with 3 layers of heavy-duty foil. Keep the oven at 325°F (163°C).

Make the filling

4. While the crust bakes, beat the cream cheese in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy. Gradually add the sugar and beat until blended.

5. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing just until just blended after each addition. Then add the egg yolk, scraping down sides of bowl. Beat in the lemon juice, vanilla, and salt. Sift the flour over the filling and beat on low speed just until blended. Scrape the filling over the cooled crumb crust.

6. Place the foil-wrapped cake pan in a large roasting pan. Place the roasting pan on the oven rack, pulling the rack out slightly. Carefully add enough hot water to the roasting pan to come halfway up the sides of the cake pan. Bake the cheesecake in the water bath, rotating the pan once halfway through, until the center is softly set, about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Remove the roasting pan from the oven.

7. Let the cake pan stand in the water bath for 5 minutes. Remove the cake pan from the water bath and transfer it to a wire rack. Using a sharp, slender knife, work around the sides of the pan to loosen the cake. Cool completely at room temperature. Cover and—here’s the hard part—refrigerate overnight or for up to 2 days prior to slicing.

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Bolognese Sauce- Quick and Easy

One of my friend's has been raving about Barefoot Contessa's new book How Easy is That.  I decided to give it a try when another friend came for dinner.  This simple, fast bolognese didn't disappoint!    I can't imagine I'll ever slave for hours over the stove again to make a hearty meat sauce! 

I've served this over homemade spinach egg pasta and gnocchi.

Weeknight Bolognese

Adapted from Barefoot Contessa, How Easy is That?

•2 tbsp olive oil

•1 pound ground meat (I've used bison & beef)

•1 tbsp dried oregano (or a bunch of fresh- can you ever have too many fresh herbs?)

•¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes

•1 ¼ cups dry red wine, divided

•1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes

•2 tbsp tomato paste

•2 tsp salt

•1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

•¼ tsp ground nutmeg

•¼ cup chopped fresh basil leaves, lightly packed

•¼ cup heavy cream

•½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving

Directions

1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground meet and cook, crumbling the meat until the meat is no longer pink and has started to brown. 
2. Add oregano, and red pepper flakes and cook for 1 more minute. 
3. Pour 1 cup of the wine into the skillet and stir to scrape up any browned bits. 
4. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, salt, and pepper, stirring until combined.
5.  Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer for 10 minutes.  
6. Add the nutmeg, basil, cream, and the remaining ¼ cup wine to the sauce and simmer for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally until thickened.

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