A delicious one-pan Shrimp and Rice recipe using Italian arborio rice becomes an easy weeknight dinner.
A collection of what I'm cooking...
February brings thoughts of chocolate. This indulgent scone, filled with chopped chunks of rich chocolate, glazed with a sweet sugar-cream glaze, fulfills all chocolate dreams. Perfectly paired with a glass of Brut Champagne, but equally lovely with your morning coffee.
The recipe is based on one from a cookbook titled Chocolate Passion by Trish Boyle and Timothy Moriarty. The contents of the book present a history of, great information about, and recipes for every type of chocolate. I have spent a lot of time with this book.
Making this recipe yields 16 large scones.* The baked scones can be frozen before glazing. Allow the scones to come to room temperature before adding the glaze. If not eaten soon after baking, I recommend warming them in the oven or microwave briefly to slightly melt the chocolate.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line 2 large sheet pans with parchment paper. Hand cut the chocolate bars into small, ragged pieces, using a large knife. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, add in the flour, baking powder, and salt, whisking to combine.
Cut the cold butter into small 1/2-inch pieces, adding them to the flour mixture. Using your hands, toss the butter pieces to coat each piece in flour. Using a pastry cutter or your fingers, cut or rub the butter into the flour mixture until the butter is the size of small pearls. Stir in the sugar to combine.
In a separate medium bowl, add in the cream, eggs, and vanilla, whisk to combine. Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture, stirring to combine. Stir in the chopped chocolate. The dough will be lightly sticky and shaggy. Turn the shaggy dough onto your work surface, kneading a few times until the dough comes together. Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Form each piece into a 7-inch round disk. Place each disk onto the parchment lined sheet pans. Cut each disk into 8 pie-shaped wedges, without cutting through the parchment paper. Separate each wedge slightly apart to allow the scones room to expand and puff up.
Bake the scones 1 sheet pan at a time for 18 minutes. Keep the waiting pan with unbaked scones cold by placing the pan into the refrigerator or freezer. Bake until the scones are lightly browned and slightly springy to the touch. Remove the pan from the oven, keeping the scones on the pan for 1 minute. Then transfer the scones to a cooling rack. Bake the second tray.
Vegetables in winter can be kind of ho-hum. I was looking at the choices in my vegetable drawer, knowing that I had rainbow carrots. I have been making my standard glazed carrots recipe, which is very good. When I spotted the leeks buried under various lettuces and such, I knew I had a chance to shake things up. The leeks added a mellow sweet onion flavor in complement to the carrots. Plus, their vibrant green color was gorgeous against the variety of rainbow carrot colors. To add balance to the dish overall, I deglazed the pan with honey and a bit of apple cider vinegar. Serving the carrots with a rich roasted meat such as a roast chicken or braised short ribs provides the perfect side dish.
Roasting a whole head of cauliflower for dinner can present a dramatic moment equal to serving a whole roasted chicken. Each are browned and gorgeous in their own way. You can even "carve' the cauliflower at the dinner table as you would the roast chicken.
The cauliflower is smeared with a mayonnaise-mustard mixture, giving it fantastic flavor, as well as yielding the beautiful bronzing. I like the contrast of textures gained by adding toasted walnuts to the browned butter, offering great crunch against the soft flesh of the vegetable. The cauliflower can be served as a side dish, or as the main dish with a side of orzo pasta or rice.
As much as I enjoyed cooking the Thanksgiving meal this year, washing up all of the pans, skillets, and baking dishes wore me out! I was looking for a break but still wanted to cook something that did not require so many pans. Just before the holiday, I had purchased a new cookbook by Melissa Clark, titled Dinner in One - Exceptional & Easy One-Pan Meals. In this new book was my answer.
Ms. Clark's latest cookbook is filled entirely with recipes for one-pan meals that I plan on fully exploring. The first one I tried was her Skillet Shrimp Scampi. Each recipe includes notes on following the exact recipe or how to make it your own with what you prefer or have available. And that is exactly what I did here. I started with the shrimp scampi orzo pasta, but added in arugula greens in two ways, first wilted into the orzo, and then a sprinkling of fresh chopped arugula to finish on top. I look forward to creating many more of the recipes in this cookbook. Below is my version of Ms. Clark's shrimp scampi recipe.