Tag: white wine

Categories
Main Dish

This flavorful vegetable pasta doesn’t ‘shrimp’ on flavor

Tuscan shrimp linguine is fairly quick to make but packs a lot of flavor from fresh vegetables. It would be a great summer dish, when gardens are in full swing.
Tuscan shrimp linguine is fairly quick to make but packs a lot of flavor from fresh vegetables. It would be a great summer dish, when gardens are in full swing.

Some wonderful friends of ours hosted Joey and me this past weekend while we were on a trip to speak to some college students.

We were treated to a great time, fabulous food and amazing company, getting to break bread with a lot of their friends while we were there.

Of course, we had to return to reality, and once we were back home late on Monday, work loomed, and our fridge was empty. Not feeling particularly sure I wanted to indulge in a peanut butter and jelly sandwich after the culinary weekend we experienced, I went to my Pinterest board to see what I could make for a quick dinner with only a dash into the grocery store.

The recipe I decided on comes from the blog “Sweet C’s” by Courtney Odell. You can find the original post at https://sweetcsdesigns.com/tuscan-shrimp-linguine/. I added seasoning in my version and subbed in asparagus instead of broccolini.

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Tuscan Shrimp Linguine

Tuscan shrimp linguine is fairly quick to make but packs a lot of flavor from fresh vegetables. It would be a great summer dish, when gardens are in full swing.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian, Tuscan
Keyword 30-minute meal, asparagus, basil, broccolini, cherry tomatoes, fresh spinach, garlic, grape tomatoes, linguine, shrimp, spinach, vegetable stock, white wine, yellow onion

Ingredients

  • 1 pound linguine pasta
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons butter divided
  • 1 small onion diced
  • 1/2 pound fresh asparagus cut into half-inch pieces
  • 10 ounces grape or cherry tomatoes
  • 1 cup vegetable stock or dry white wine
  • 8 cloves garlic diced
  • 1 pound uncooked shrimp peeled and deveined
  • 2 teaspoons dried basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 cups loosely packed fresh spinach cut into ribbons

Instructions

  • Start boiling your linguine according to package directions to cook it al dente.
  • While the pasta cooks, in a very large skillet, heat the olive oil and one tablespoon butter over medium heat. When the pan is hot, add the onion and asparagus, and saute until they are both almost cooked through.
  • Add in the tomatoes, continuing to stir until their outsides start to wrinkle a bit, and they begin to burst (you can help them out at this point by gently squishing them with your spatula).
  • Add in the stock, garlic and the other tablespoon of butter, stirring to combine.
  • Once the butter is melted and the stock is at a low simmer, stir in the shrimp, basil, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper, continuing to stir regularly until the shrimp is cooked completely (it should be a light pink and starting to curl on itself a bit).
  • Stir in the cooked linguine, coating it with the sauce. Once everything is well-combined, stir in the fresh spinach, letting it wilt, and then serve immediately.

This was really tasty, and I couldn’t help but think it would be even better for those of you who will have gardens bursting with fresh veggies this summer. It was a simple, but filling, pasta that wasn’t overly seasoned, so the taste of the tomatoes and asparagus came through well.

If you’re not a shrimp person, you could easily use some pre-cooked chicken instead or just double the vegetables.

Even though I still need to do a proper grocery store trip, the bags are unpacked, the laundry is done, and the we’re back to another week of putting out the paper. But I do feel a bit lighter after this weekend.

There are few things as good for the soul as a great meal and even greater people to share it with.

This piece first appeared in print on March 7, 2024.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Main Dish

Chop, chop! It’s time for a fabulous pork dinner

Pork chops in creamy wine sauce looks, tastes and sounds fancy, but it’s actually very simple to make and is a decently quick dinner, too. It’s really good along side mashed potatoes.
Pork chops in creamy wine sauce looks, tastes and sounds fancy, but it’s actually very simple to make and is a decently quick dinner, too. It’s really good along side mashed potatoes.

I was listening to a podcast this week about a scammer who managed to get millions of dollars out of his marks by pretending to be a Saudi Arabian prince.

In one case, he was found out because he ordered a dish with pancetta in it at a restaurant, and since his dining companion knew a devout Muslim would never eat pork, he started becoming suspicious.

I get it. There are certain dishes I think I would mindlessly order, too, even if I were trying to trick someone with a secret identity—especially if it had to do with chocolate. The temptation is real.

I was thinking about that story while I made this week’s recipe, and I can tell you this should be on your “must try” list, as long as you are able to eat pork products, because it was amazing and super easy to make.

This comes from the blog, “What’s In The Pan?” You can find the original post at https://whatsinthepan.com/pork-chops-in-creamy-white-wine-sauce/. I added a bunch of seasonings and extra garlic to my version.

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Pork Chops in Creamy Wine Sauce

Pork chops in creamy wine sauce looks, tastes and sounds fancy, but it’s actually very simple to make and is a decently quick dinner, too. It’s really good along side mashed potatoes.
Course Main Course
Keyword 30-minute meal, basil, boneless pork chops, chicken broth, chicken stock, garlic powder, heavy cream, lemon juice, minced garlic, onion powder, oregano, parsley, pork chops, thyme, white wine

Ingredients

Pork Chop Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 1 teaspoon basil
  • 1 teaspoon parsley
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 4 boneless pork chops
  • 2 tablespoons butter

Sauce Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 6 to 8 cloves garlic minced
  • leftover flour mixture from pork chops
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine I used pinot grigio
  • 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1/2 to 1 cup chicken stock or broth
  • 1/2 heavy cream
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 1 teaspoon basil
  • 1 teaspoon parsley
  • 1 teaspoon thyme
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  • On a plate or in a bowl large enough to fit a pork chop, combine the flour, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, basil, parsley, salt and pepper.
  • Dredge each pork chop in the flour mixture, making sure to get a solid coating on both sides and the edges. (Don’t toss the flour. You’re going to use it for the sauce.)
  • Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Once it’s hot, add the pork chops. Cook them on each side for about three or four minutes until they’re nicely browned and the internal temperature reaches at least 145 degrees. Transfer the pork chops to a plate and cover them to keep them warm while you make the sauce.
  • For the sauce, melt butter over medium heat and add the garlic. Saute until it’s lightly browned and fragrant and stir in about one tablespoon of the flour mixture from the pork chops, or enough to soak up all the butter. Saute for one to two minutes to cook the flour, and then slowly whisk in the wine, 1/2 cup chicken stock and heavy cream, along with the lemon juice and seasonings. Continue whisking until the sauce thickens to your liking. If it gets too thick, loosen it up with a little more stock.
  • When the sauce is how you want it, reduce the heat to low and add the pork chops and any accumulated juices back to the pan, dousing them with the sauce. Once the pork chops are heated back through, serve immediately.

We enjoyed our pork chops along with mashed potatoes, and the wine sauce was amazing poured over the whole dish. I also added fresh basil to my sauce, because I happened to have some on hand, so if you want to kick yours up a notch, I highly recommend that, too.

The sauce was creamy and really flavorful, and I will absolutely make this again—hopefully soon. It’s one of those dinners that feels like it was a lot more effort than it really was. In all, I probably had dinner on the table in 30 to 40 minutes.

If you’re in the mood for something that looks fancy without being a pain to cook, make sure you keep this recipe on hand. Just remember not to make it in the case of certain scams you may be pulling; you don’t want to end up the subject of a podcast.

This piece first appeared in print on Feb. 8, 2024.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Main Dish Side Dish

Onion soup-inspired baked potatoes will have you crying with joy

French onion baked potatoes combines the rich flavors of French onion soup with the heartiness of a twice-baked potato to create a magnificent meal or side.
French onion baked potatoes combines the rich flavors of French onion soup with the heartiness of a twice-baked potato to create a magnificent meal or side.

There’s that famous quote from Ecclesiastes that “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”

That phrase is especially applicable when it comes to recipes, it seems. Any time I wonder if anyone has actually accomplished some weird idea, a simple Google search tends to find me a recipe to try.

With that said, I’m still regularly surprised with the recipes I find and the ideas people have when it comes to combining ingredients.

The recipe I found this week for French-onion-soup-inspired baked potatoes was one of those. They sounded delicious, and I knew I just had to try it.

This recipe actually ended up being an amalgamation of three different ones as I searched for the flavor profile I was after. First from the blog “12 Tomatoes” by Kristy Norrell at https://12tomatoes.com/french-onion-stuffed-potatoes. Second, from the blog “Simply Recipes” by Elise Bauer at https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/french_onion_soup/. And finally, from the blog “The Cookie Rookie” by Becky Hardin at https://www.thecookierookie.com/cook-perfect-baked-potatoes/.

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French Onion Baked Potatoes

French onion baked potatoes combines the rich flavors of French onion soup with the heartiness of a twice-baked potato to create a magnificent meal or side.
Course Main Course, Side Dish
Keyword baked potatoes, bay leaves, beef stock, French onion soup, garlic, gruyere, pinot grigio, Russet potato, thyme, white wine, yellow onion

Ingredients

  • 4 large Russet potatoes
  • Olive oil to coat potatoes
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 4 medium yellow onions thinly sliced
  • 8 cloves garlic minced
  • pinch of sugar
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine I used pinot grigio
  • 1 cup beef stock
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon thyme
  • 10 to 12 ounces gruyere shredded
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
  • While it preheats, wash your potatoes and prick them all over with a fork. Fill a large bowl with warm water and dump in a healthy amount of salt. Place your potatoes in the bowl to soak.
  • Prepare a rimmed baking sheet by lining it with foil and placing a baking rack on top.
  • Once the oven is preheated, remove the potatoes from the water and place them with space between them on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 45 minutes.
  • Remove the sheet from the oven and carefully brush the potatoes with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
  • Place them back in the oven for another 10 minutes.
  • When your potatoes are about 20 minutes from being done, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced onions and let them saute, stirring regularly, until they are a deep, golden brown. (This will likely take at least 20 minutes. Be patient.) When the onions are nearly done, add in the garlic, sprinkle in the pinch of sugar and add salt and pepper to taste. Saute for a couple more minutes and then add in the white wine, making sure to scrape the bottom of the pan to get up any stuck-on bits.
  • Add in the beef stock, bay leaves and thyme, and let the mixture come to a very low boil, stirring regularly.
  • Once the liquid is completely reduced, remove the skillet from the heat and discard the bay leaves.
  • Cut about one-half inch off the tops of your baked potatoes and scoop out the insides into a mixing bowl, being careful to leave just a bit of the potato attached to the skin so it will hold up to being stuffed.
  • Smash the potato you scooped into the bowl a bit and then add in a handful of the shredded cheese and all but about 1/2 cup of the onion mixture. Stir it well.
  • Scoop the mixture back into the potato shells, and place the filled potatoes on the prepared baking rack from before. Evenly distribute the rest of the onions on the top of the filled potatoes and top with as much cheese as you can balance on top of that. (I highly recommend putting some cheese on the potato tops you cut off earlier and putting those on the sheet, too.)
  • Turn the broiler on low and place the potatoes back in the oven, keeping an eye on them. When the cheese is melted, turn the broiler up to high, and once the cheese is browned to your liking, remove the potatoes from the oven and serve.

These were fabulous and filling. You could eat these as a side dish, but I found large enough potatoes that we made a meal out of them. The caramelized onion flavor along with the cheese and potato was a fantastic combination. And even though these take a bit of a time commitment to create, I would say it’s worth it.

I have to admit that combining French onion soup with a twice-baked potato is a new one for me, so maybe there are a few exceptions to that phrase from Ecclesiastes. Of course, I doubt that the biblical author was considering spuds when creating that line.

This piece first appeared in print on Jan. 5, 2023.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

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