Great Mac and Cheese

1 lb macaroni elbows

Salt

4 Tbsp butter

4 tbsp flout

2 cups hot milk

1 tsp pepper

¾ c grated fontina

¾ c grated gruyere

¾ c grated cheddar

¼ c grated parmesan

½ c bread crumbs

½ tsp cayenne pepper

Heat oven to 350

Cook pasta al dente

Beat butter, wisk in four to make a roux and cook over low hear for 5-7 min

Add hot milk a little at a time and cook low for 10 min

Add Salt/pepper, cayenne, cheese and mix well for 2 min

Drain Pasta and place in baking dish

Add cheese mixture and sprinkle with bread crumbs

Bake 15 min, rest 10 min.

Couscous with Feta and Mint

1 cup water
1 tbsp Olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup couscous
1 lemon
1/4 cup crumbled feta
3 tbsp chopped fresh mint
1 green onion sliced thin

Bring a meduim sized pot of water to boil, add oil and salt. remove from heat, stir in couscous and cover 5 minutes.

Grate Lemon peel and juice lemon.
Fluff couscous, add mint, feta, green onion, lemon peel. Pour lemon juice over top and stir.

Beef Short Ribs Braised in Red Wine

One 750-milliliet bottle dry red wine
3 to 4 cups Chicken Stock or canned reduced-sodium chicken broth
½ cup dried porcini mushrooms
6 pounds beef short ribs, cut into 5 – 6 ounce pieces
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 large onions, chopped (about 3 cups)
¼ cup minced pancetta or bacon
1 1/2 cups grated carrot
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
4 fresh or dried bay leaves
6 whole cloves
1/3 cup tomato paste
2 cups crushed canned Italian plum tomatoes and liquid


Bring the red wine to a boil in a medium saucepan. Lower the heat so the wine is boiling gently and cook until the wine is reduced to 1 cup. (about 25 min) Set aside.

Heat 1 cup of the stock and pour over the mushrooms in a small, heatproof bowl. Let stand until softened, about 20 minutes. Drain the mushrooms in a sieve lined with a double thickness cheesecloth or coffee filter; reserve the soaking liquid. Rinse the mushrooms briefly to remove any grit. Chop the mushrooms coarsely and set them aside.

So the ribs don't separate during cooking, tie each with kitchen twine. Season the ribs generously with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a wide, heavy braising pan over medium heat. Lay as many of the short rib pieces as will fit into the pan in a single layer. Cook, turning as necessary, until evenly and very well browned on all sides (about 2 min per side). Remove them to a plate and repeat with the remaining ribs. Adjust the heat as the ribs cook, so that they brown without burning.

Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of the fat from the pan. Stir in the onions and bacon and cook, stirring, until the onions are lightly browned (about 6 minutes). Stir in the chopped mushrooms and the carrot, rosemary, bay leaves, and cloves. Season lightly with salt and pepper, and cook until the carrot is wilted (about 3 minutes). Stir in the tomato paste and stir well until the vegetables are coated and the tomato paste begins to darken, 2 to 3 minutes. Pour in the reduced wine and the crushed tomatoes and tuck the short ribs into the pan. Pour enough of the remaining chicken stock to barely cover the ribs. Cover, bring to a boil, then lower the heat so the liquid is at a lively simmer. Cook, adding the remaining stock a little at a time as necessary to keep the ribs covered, until the ribs are tender and just about to fall off the bone, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Taste the cooking liquid from time to time as the ribs cook and add salt as necessary.

Pick out the ribs from the sauce, carefully so as to prevent the bone from falling out, and set them on a baking sheet. Cut string from ribs. Ladle the cooking liquid into a sieve or strainer placed over a bowl and push the liquid through with the back of the ladle. Discard the solids in the sieve and return the strained liquid to the pan. Tuck the ribs back into the sauce. You may serve the ribs at this point, or cool them in the liquid and refrigerate them for up to three days. Bring them back to a simmer and cook until heated through before serving.

Rosemary roasted loin of pork

3 lbs. loin of pork, boneless butterflied and pounded 3/4 inch thick
2 garlic cloves
4 sprigs of rosemary
1 cup fresh fennel and leaves
3 tbs. olive oil
½ cup carrot, diced
½ celery stalk, diced
½ cup onion, roughly chopped
2 ½ cups chicken stock

Finely chop garlic, leaves from 2 rosemary sprigs and fennel. Add 1 tbs. of oil, freshly ground pepper and salt to taste and make a paste in a mortar or blender.

Spread 2/3 of the mixture on the inside of the loin, roll tightly and tie with kitchen twine. Thread the 2 remaining sprigs of rosemary through the ties on either side of the roast. Salt and pepper the outside, set in a baking pan and coat with remaining olive oil. Bake at 450F for 15 minutes.

Turn down the oven to 400F, drain fat from the pan and place the vegetables around the roast. Cook for 15 minutes. Add stock and baste periodically for and additional 45 minutes or until a meat thermometer registers 155 to 160 degrees.

Remove the roast to a platter and crush all the vegetables well. Pass them through a sieve or food mill, along with the pan juices. Skim fat and cook sauce a bit longer if it is too thin. Season with salt and pepper, if needed, and serve with the sliced roast.

Lasagna (The best around)

Lasagna is a great family dish. The secret in this one is to slow cook the sauce, which can also be used on spaghetti as pasta sauce.

¼ cup olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
2-3 garlic cloves – minced
1 lb lean ground beef
¼ lb ground pork
2 Italian sausages
1/4 cup red wine
2 cans chopped plumb tomatoes
2 oz tomato paste
Salt/pepper
1 tbsp dried oregano
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp dried basil
1 large container Ricotta cheese
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
½ cup grated Romano cheese
2 packages mozzarella cheese
1 box of thin Italian sheets for noodles

Heat oil, fry onions, garlic until translucent. Add hamburger, pork and sausage and fry until brown, chopping into small bits.

Add tomatoes, paste, red wine, oregano, basil, bay leaf, salt pepper and bring to boil. Lower heat and slow boil for 2 to 2.5 hours to remove water and thicken sauce.

When sauce is nearly done, boil pasta sheets for 9-10 minutes and remove and place in ice water to cool.

In a very deep lasagna dish, layer ¼ cup sauce/noodles/ricotta/parmesan/romano/noodles/sauce/
mozza/sause/mozza and repeat as many times as you can.
Top with ¼ cup of sauce so the noodles will not dry out on top. With a small baking dish you get three layers, with a deep dish you can get about 5 layers.

Back at 350 for 40 minutes.