Fried Smashed Red Potatoes with Lemon Herb Dressing

Any time I watch the lovely Giada De Laurentiis' cooking show, Cooking at Home, I immediately want to make whatever beautiful dish she is featuring. I love just watching her cook and listening to her describe the flavors. Her food is accessible but elegant. I will readily admit I have a ginormous cooking crush on her! :)


The other day she did a show on lemons and these Fried Smashed Potatoes with Lemon Dressing looked so delicious, I made them a few days later. I love how cute the potatoes are after you smash them. The herbs, lemon, and garlic make these potatoes burst with flavor.  Even though we're in the dead of winter, this recipe will make you think spring has arrived. I served them with scrambled eggs for breakfast but Giada served them with Roasted Branzino.


Fried Smashed Red Potatoes with Lemon Herb Dressing
From Giada De Laurentiis on Food Network.com
Printable Version

Ingredients
2 pounds red potatoes (fingerling will work as well)
1/4 cup olive oil, plus extra if needed
3 garlic cloves
3 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons fresh parsley leaves, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
2 lemons, zested
Kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper


Directions
Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Boil on medium heat for 20 - 25 minutes, until potatoes are fork tender. Drain and cool. Use the palm of your hand to gently press the potatoes until they are smashed.

In a large nonstick skillet heat the 1/4 cup olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant and light brown. Remove the garlic and discard.  Add the potatoes in batches and cook without stirring until golden brown, about 5 to 8 minutes. Use a spatula to turn and cook until golden brown on the other side, adding more olive oil if needed, about 5 to 8 minutes again.

In a small bowl whisk the 3 tablespoons olive oil, lemon juice, parsley, thyme and lemon zest. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Spoon the dressing over the potatoes. Toss to coat and sprinkle salt and pepper on top. Transfer to a platter and serve.

Spaghetti with Beef, Smoked Almonds, and Basil

This summer I bought a really expensive package of spaghetti imported from Italy on suggestion of my friend, fellow foodie, and super Mom, Anne. I kept waiting to use it because Anne said that the pasta was the best she'd ever had.

I decided to go with Giada De Laurentiis' Spaghetti with Beef, Smoked Almonds, and Basil. The combination of beef, almonds, and fresh basil was intriguing to me and I knew my hubby would be happy that this recipe calls for two fresh steaks. I had never bought Herbes de Provence before and although it's expensive, it's lovely! It brings in flavors of Southern France - rosemary, lavender, marjoram, thyme. If you use Herbes de Provence, please share with me your favorite recipe!


My hubby raved about this pasta. He liked the sauce and of course the steak.  I wasn't so in love with it. Although I really like fresh basil, I felt like that overpowered the other ingredients. I could barely taste the smoked almonds. This was not my most favorite Giada recipe - I'd take her Mushroom Ragu, Balsamic Brown Butter Ravioli, or Pasta with Basil Pesto over this one any day of the week. 

Spaghetti with Beef, Smoked Almonds, and Basil
From Giada De Laurentiis


Printable Version


Ingredients
1 pound (1 inch thick) beef tenderloin steaks
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons Herbes de Provence
Extra-virgin olive oil for drizzling, plus 1/4 cup
1 pound spaghetti pasta
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 packed cups fresh basil leaves
1 clove garlic, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
3/4 cup chopped smoked almonds
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves


Directions
Place an oven rack in the upper 1/3 of the oven. Preheat the oven to 450. Place the steaks on a baking sheet and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the Herbes de Provence on both sides of the steak and drizzle with olive oil. Roast for 10 to 12 minutes for medium-well. Let the steaks rest for 10 minutes.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain and reserve about 1 cup of the pasta water.

In a food processor, combine the diced tomatoes, basil, garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, and 1/4 cup olive oil. Process until the mixture is coarsely chopped.

Place the cooked pasta, tomato mixture and smoked almonds in a large serving bowl. Toss well and thin out the sauce with a little pasta water if needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with Parmesan cheese and chopped basil. Slice the steaks into 1/4 inch slices and serve alongside the pasta. 

**Note: The steaks can also be grilled over medium-high heat on a preheated grill pan or gas or charcoal grill for about 5 minutes on each side.

30 Things to Make Before I Turn 30: Giada De Laurentiis' Basil Pesto

This was probably one of the easiest recipes on my list of 30 Things to Make Before 30. All that I had to do in order to create this delectable, homemade sauce was to throw a few ingredients in the food processor and hit pulse. The result is a beautiful green fragrant sauce in less time than it takes to boil the pasta. Next time I am going to try one Giada's pesto variations, either sun dried or mushroom pesto. 

Basil Pesto Sauce

From Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients

2 cups fresh basil leaves

1/4 cup toasted pine nuts (bake on a cookie sheet at 400 degrees for 5 - 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Be sure to keep an eye on them so they don't burn!)

1 garlic clove

1/2 teaspoon salt, more to taste

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste

2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

In a blender pulse the basil, pine nuts, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper until finely chopped. With the blender still running, gradually add in enough oil to form a smooth and thick consistency. Transfer the pesto to a medium bowl and stir in the cheese. Season the pesto with more salt and pepper to taste.

PS Have you bought this cookbook yet?? If you are Italian food lover and you don't have Giada's Everyday Italian, all I have to say is, "Shame."

Balsamic Brown Butter Ravioli

This is one of those recipes that are super simple, very easy, and great for those nights when you don't have a lot of time to cook. It literally takes about 15 minutes from start to finish and it's so good - how can it not be with 6 tablespoons of butter?

It's one of my favorite recipes from Giada De Laurentiis, but I honestly love just about anything of hers. The sauce is tangy and velvety from the balsamic vinegar and the crunch of the toasted walnuts is a great combination with ravioli of your choice. I also added in wild mushrooms that we got from our local Farmer's Market that I sauteed in butter. 

Balsamic Brown Butter Ravioli

Modified from Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients:

18 to 20 ounces of store-bought ravioli (cheese, mushroom, or squash) *I used chicken and proscuitto 

6 tablespoons of unsalted butter

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup toasted, chopped walnuts (Bake at 350 for about 5 minutes, shake around, taste a couple and bake about 2 more minutes)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Bring a lot pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the ravioli and cook 4 to 5 minutes, until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally. Drain ravioli onto a large serving platter. 

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan cook the butter over medium heat, stirring occasionally. When the foam subsides and the butter begins to turn to a golden brown, about 3 minutes, turn off the heat. Let cool for about 1 minute. Stir in the balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper.

This is also when I sauteed the mushrooms in butter over medium heat. 

Transfer the ravioli to the saucepan with the balsamic brown butter. Sprinkle walnuts and Parmesan over the top. Serve immediately. 

Mushroom Ragu

When I traveled to Italy in 2005, I fell head over heels for all things Italian. The language, the landscape, the history, the architecture, the vino, the people and their passion for life, but above all, the cuisine! Italian food just does me in. There is nothing more pleasurable than a big bowl of pasta - real pasta. No store bought stuff. I don't care how good you say your store bought pasta sauce is - I guarantee you, it's not good! Especially once you've had authentic Italian pasta.

I will now step down from my pasta pedestal. Believe me, once you try this ragu, you will start to see what I am talking about. This ragu hails from one of my all time favorite celebrity chefs, Giada De Laurentiis. Giada is not only beautiful, charming, and witty, but she makes Italian food accessible. I got this recipe from her cookbook, Everyday Italian. Run, don't walk, to the store and get yourself a copy if you like Italian food. Every recipe I've tried of hers is amazing!

This mushroom ragu is for you mushroom lovers out there. The earthy taste of the mushrooms shine though, but the onions and fresh parsley and basil really take this sauce to a higher level. I served it over whole wheat angel hair pasta, but Giada writes that you can also use it over meats (chicken or beef would be excellent with this) or her favorite, polenta. She also recommends using wild varieties of mushrooms like cremini, oyster, and shiitake, but all I could find was baby portobellos and it still turned out fantastic!

Giada's Mushroom Ragu

Ingredients

1/2 cup olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 pound mixed wild mushrooms

1/2 teaspoon salt (more to taste)

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup Marsala

2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth

2/3 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese

5 fresh basil leaves

1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions:

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. When almost smoking, add the onion and garlic and saute until the onion is tender, about 8 minutes. Add the mushrooms, salt and pepper. Increase the heat to high and saute until the mushrooms are tender and all the liquid has evaporated, about 8 minutes. Remove the pan from the head and add the Marsala. Return the pan to the heat and simmer until the Marsala evaporates, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth and simmer until the sauce has reduced by half, about 30 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cheese, basil, and parsley. Season the ragu with more salt and pepper to taste.

**This sauce can be made up to 2 days ahead. Cool, cover, then refrigerate. Re-warm before using.