Pasta Under Pressure

Submitted by Chelsey
Recipes by Chef Brad
These are simple pressure cooker recipes using the electric pressure cooker. It works well because of the not stick qualities and the controlled heating. It cuts the time way down when cooking pastas. No need to precook the pasta, just throw it in and cook for 6 minutes and it is done.

*To start I always turn on the pressure cooker to sauté. This is 2 recipes. To make the chicken one do the "or" to do the sausage one do everything in the left. Two meals completely different taste.

Prep Time: 5 min.
Cook Time: 10 min
Total Completion Time: 15 min
Yield: enough for the family

Ingredients:
Amazing meals can be made in the electric pressure cooker.

2 large Italian sausages or 2 chopped boneless breast of chicken (used ground turkey)

½ cup chopped onion, celery, and carrots

1/3 cup uncooked quinoa or 1 cup cooked kamut (used Quinoa)

3 garlic cloves minced

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar or 1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar

2 teaspoons good quality Italian seasoning or 2 teaspoons fresh minced rosemary

1 large bottle spaghetti sauce or one very large can cream of chicken soup

Water

1 noodles, ziti is great for sausage, flat noodles for chicken

1-2 cups cheese, mozzarella for sausage, Fontina for chicken


Directions:
In your pressure cooker turned on to sauté, add Italian sausages.. Using a potato smasher, break up sausage. Cook until almost done and add onion, celery, carrots, and garlic with olive oil. Sauté for 3 minutes. Add sauce and fill empty sauce bottle half way with water and add that with pasta, grains, seasoning, and vinegar. Change setting to pressure high and place lid on and cook for 6 minutes. Let pressure down naturally and then stir and tip with cheese.



Chef Brad Tip: This is a formula for you. Now you can create your own creations with dried pasta in the pressure cooker. Just make sure the sauce is not dry, it is better to have to much liquid than to little.

Strawberry Asparagus Salad

Submitted by Chelsey
Recipe Chef Brad

Me and my mom took a cooking class last night from Chef Brad! He is awesome so I thought I would share the recipes! The food was amazing and we both learned a lot!!
Simple ingredients, but oh so good.



Ingredients:
For the salad
Fresh strawberries

Fresh Asparagus

Fresh Leafy lettuce

Feta Cheese

Pine nuts, roasted or almond

Cooked Kamut

Fresh mushrooms, sliced

Roasted red peppers



For the Dressing

1/4 cup Xagave

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup flax oil

1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar

3/4 cup fresh strawberries

dash salt


Directions:
Chop lettuce and place on serving dish. Cut ends off asparagus and saute in olive oil, xagave, and splash of balsamic vinegar. Do not over cook the asparagus. Lighty toast pinenuts in a saute pan over medium heat. Slice strawberries, mushrooms, and red peppers. Place over lettuce with cooked kamut, about 1/2 cup. Place cooked asparagus around edges and garnish with nuts and feta cheese. Mix dressing ingredients in blender and drizzle over the top of the salad.

Feta buckwheat bread

Feta Sourdough Flat Bread

Submitted by Chelsey
Recipe by Chef Brad
The buckwheat makes this a wonderful rustic bread.

Ingredients:

1 cup sourdough

1 cup feta cheese

1 jar chopped pitted kalamata olives

2 cups hot water

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon salt

2 cups Fresh ground buckwheat flour

1/4 cup Saf instant yeast

4 to 6 cups natural white flour

Directions:
Place all ingredients, except olives and feta, in mixer with half the flour and yeast going in last placing the yeast on top. Turn on mixer and add remaining flour until dough cleans sides of bowl. Knead for 5 minutes and than add the olives and feta, knead for one more minute and then remove and seperate dough into 2 pieces, roll out dough and let rise. Using fingers, make indents in top of dough and brush with oil and sprinkle with kosher salt and rosemary or herbs. Bake in hot 500 degree oven on preheated pizza stone until golden brown.

Wonder Flour Blondies

Submitted by Chelsey
Recipe from a cooking class taught by Chef Brad
The most amazing Blondie and almost good for you. With this basic recipe you can make an endless variety of them.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Completion Time: 40 minutes


Ingredients:
12 oz. package of chocolate chips, white chocolate for blonde dark or milk if you want a change
3 cubes of butter
3 cups brown sugar
6 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 teaspoon salt
3.5 cups fresh ground Wonder flour (equal parts of spelt, brown rice, & pearled barley)
Nuts (optional) I used whole walnuts
Coconut (optional)
Heath bar pieces(optional) Didn't put this in

Directions:
In the Microwave melt chocolate with butter, set aside. In large bowl or mixer mix eggs, sugar, vanilla, and salt. Add melted butter mixture and beat well. Add flour and any additional ingredients you desire. Pour into a half sheet pan or large jelly roll pan. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven or about 25 to 30 minutes or until done. Remove and let cool.

Rhubarb Streusel Cake with Warm Vanilla Sauce

Cake:
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups chopped fresh or frozen rhubarb

Streusel Topping:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
4 tablespoons butter, melted

Vanilla Sauce:
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9-inch square baking dish and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar for the cake. Beat in the egg. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed butter/sugar mixture alternately with the buttermilk, beating just until moistened. Fold in the chopped rhubarb. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the batter to the edges.

In a medium bowl, combine the streusel topping ingredients, mixing them together until the mixture is coarse and combined. Sprinkle the streusel evenly over the batter. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean and the top of the cake is lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.

For the sauce, melt butter in a medium saucepan. Add the sugar and milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2-3 minutes or until slightly thickened (it will thicken more as it cools slightly). Remove from the heat; stir in the vanilla. Serve warm with the cake.

Blackberry Lime Fool

Blackberry Lime Fool
1 pint blackberries
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup sugar, divided
Juice of 1 lime

To reduce the sugar, I added the juice of one lime. Hazaah! Its healthier!

I also added 5 or so strawberries. It was very tasty!

Puree blackberries (and strawberries) in a blender or food processor.
Add the lime juice and 1/2 of the sugar.

Whip the whipping cream until it starts to form peaks. Add the remaining sugar and continue to whip until stiff. Fold in the blackberry puree. If you want a rustic look leave it more streaked.

Place in serving dishes and refrigerate.

'Julie and Julia' Bruschetta

So have you seen the 'Julie and Julia 'movie? It is a must see movie for anyone who loves to cook and blog! The movie is really fun, but may leave you with certain cravings! There was a scene in the movie where Julie was making bruschetta for dinner for herself and her hubby. She toasted the bread in a pan of butter until it was crispy and then loaded on the tomato mixture. Her husband devoured it and kept oohing and aughing over it.
I can't believe we have not posted this recipe, as Chels, Mal and I have all made and love this.

Julie and Julia Bruschetta

For the tomato topping:

Red and orange juicy fresh garden tomatoes,

Chopped Fresh basil (a couple leaves)

Fresh garlic, minced (a couple)

Kosher salt to taste

Extra Virgin Olive oil (1-2 tsp)

Let this sit while you prepare the toast:

Heat a skillet on the stove top on medium high. Butter both sides of a slice of french bread, or toast in pan of melted butter. When the toast is done, top with the tomato topping and ENJOY!!