CHICKEN BROCOLLI & ZITI

From a tiny BEACH kitchen:

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You can have a great dinner on the table any night in just 20 minutes.   Use whole wheat pasta if you prefer.  The broccoli is sautéed – so it has a slight crunch.   A hint of  lemon adds terrific flavor to the sauce.  And the leftovers are perfect to bring to work the next day.       ~Sheryl

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb chicken, cubed
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 lemon slices
• 1 cup broccoli (use fresh or frozen), or more!
• 1 1/2 cups half and half cream
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 lb ziti pasta, cooked
• 2 TBSP olive oil or butter

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Cook pasta according to package directions.

1. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in large heavy bottom skillet.
   Add chicken cook over medium heat until browned on all sides.
   Add broccoli, sauté  for about 3 minutes.
   Add lemon slices, sauté for 2 minutes.
   Add garlic, cook until fragrant (about  a minute).
   Add chicken broth.  Scrape bits off bottom of pan.
   Add in cream.  Cook until pan boils.
   Lower heat and reduce to thicken sauce a little bit.
   Off heat.  Stir in cooked pasta.
   Serve on a decorated platter.
   Grate Parmesan Reggiano cheese on top.  (Yes, it is expensive, but worth EVERY penny.  A little goes a long way.)

White Beans w/ Garlic & Organic Baby Kale

From Rita:

Here I am with another tasty, meatless meal that I concocted as a result of wanting to eat more healthy greens with pasta or assorted veggies.  I thought….how can I make them as a complete meal?  Protein of some kind was needed and what better source to use but beans. They are full of fiber which helps sustain us from meal to meal.  I have loved white beans since I was a kid and decided that the combination would  be perfect.  It was!  You can put this over pasta, or a combo of steamed veggies like zucchini, summer squash,and chopped tomatoes to keep it lean and the white carbs at bay.

Be sure to have the fresh parmesan close by as it is what will make this dish complete.  Please know that cheeses you buy already grated, though easier to use, have lost much of their flavor.   A tip for having cheese at hand at all times is to buy it by the block.  Simply wrap tightly with plastic wrap and store it in a large zip lock with a  hand held grater in the bag.  When you are ready to use it,  load the grater with a small piece and grate away.  I actually put the grater on the dinner table on a lovely plate so my guests can use as much as they wish.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 Tbls. olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic finely minced
• 2 cans cannellini beans rinsed and drained well
• 1 can chicken broth
• 4-6 cups organic baby kale greens

Place a large non-stick fry pan over medium-high heat.   Add the oil and garlic and saute’ 1-2 minutes until you begin to smell the aroma of the garlic.  Add the beans and the broth.  Simmer a few minutes until it is heated through.  5  minutes.

Add the kale and move it around with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula to get it moistened with the beans and broth.

Because it is a baby kale it will cook rather quickly….2-3 minutes, much like spinach.

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BROCCOLI with Parmigiano Reggiano

From a tiny BEACH kitchen:

Who doesn’t love cheesy broccoli?  This recipe does not drip with processed cheese but instead teases you with crisp bites of Parmigiano Reggiano roasted right onto the broccoli.  Just a hint of crushed red pepper flakes and garlic are used to round out the flavors.  Always a favorite dish my house, this recipe served 8 people at our Beachpeach Celebration Dinner.   ~ Sheryl

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 heads fresh broccoli. cut the broccoli off the stems and cut each floret in half
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/3 to 1/2 cup Parmigiano Reggiano shavings (use a peeler and shave it off the wedge)
• 3 TBSP Extra virgin olive oil
• Pinch of sea salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 

Spray a 13 x 9 baking dish with olive oil.  

Steam broccoli until bright green, just cooked but still crunchy.  You do not want “mushy” broccoli.  About 4 minutes. 

Put broccoli in baking dish.  Add all other ingredients to baking dish and stir well to coat evenly. 

Bake 8 minutes to melt cheese.  Keep warm until ready to serve.

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CLAMS CASINO RECIPE

From a tiny BEACH kitchen:

Clams casino became a favorite of mine when my brother Billy would dig clams on Martha’s Vineyard.  Billy would come back to the house with a pail full of cherrystones.  We would spend “some time” at the kitchen counter shucking these open.   I always passed the hardest ones over to Billy to open. Sometimes you just have to let the calms “rest” and forget you are nearby.

Note to Non-Shuckers:  Read below to find out the easiest way to open the clams without worrying about cutting your hand off during the process.

Once you get the hang of opening the clams, it becomes a competitive part of making the dish, and making some fun memories too.  ~Sheryl

INGREDIENTS:

• 18 Medium sized cherrystone or littleneck clams
• 2 TBSP unlsalted butter
• 3 Strips center-cut bacon, each sliced into 6 pieces (18 total)
• 3 TBSP finely diced red pepper
• 3 garlic cloves, finely minced
• 1/3 cup plain breadcrumbs
• 1 TBSP finely grated Parmesan
• pinch of salt
• freshly ground pepper
• 2 TBSP chopped fresh parsley
• lemon wedges
• Rock salt (or Kosher salt)

Heat butter in a skillet over medium heat.  Add bacon and saute until cooked but not quite crisp.  Transfer bacon pieces to paper towel.  Reserve butter in pan and add red pepper and saute 2 minutes.  Add garlic and saute 1 minute more.

Turn off heat and stir in breadcrumbs, Parmesan, pinch of salt and pepper.   Reserve until needed.

For those of you who do not know how to “shuck” a clam, I will give you the easy way out :

Add about 2 inches of water to a pot.  Bring to rapid boil.  Add clams and cover.  Cook for 2 minutes.  Pull out open clams.  Cover and cook another minute.  Pull out open clams.  Repeat until all clams are opened.  It’s CRITICAL to remove the clams as soon as they open.  Allow clams to cool until they can be handled.  Twist and pull the clamshells apart and remove the clam.  Place the clam back into the deeper of the two shell halves.

Spread the rock salt in a baking dish.  Set the clams on top of the salt and press down slightly.  This will keep the clams from moving and spilling out their contents.

Spoon the breadcrumb mixture evenly over the top of each clamshell.

Top with a piece of bacon.

Broil on high until tops are crisp and brown ( 4- 6 minutes).

Sprinkle on fresh parsley and serve while hot with lemon wedges.

CHAR GRILLED VEAL CHOPS featuring Richard Gauger

From a tiny BEACH kitchen:

By now you know us Beachpeach gals love to cook and share food with friends and family as often as we can.  Krisann and I were invited to a dinner party last weekend and were thrilled when our friend, Richard Gauger, (and his beautiful wife, Jill) prepared a wonderful meal to share with us! 

Richard is one of the last, die-hard, charcoal grillers out there.  In fact, look outside his kitchen door and you will see not one, but TWO, Weber grills in the sand!   In honor of Richard’s 50th birthday, he is featured as our first Guest Blogger. 

The pictures below are all mine.  However, the ingredients, prep work and charcoal grilling is all Richard.   

Happy Birthday to our friend and thanks to you and Jill for a memorable evening complete with an incredible lineup of live entertainment after dinner. (You know who you are!)

Enjoy great food with those you love.  We do. ~ Sheryl

INGREDIENTS:

• Veal chops (bone- in)
• Fresh rosemary
• Fresh sage
• Fresh garlic, chopped
• Extra virgin olive oil, 1 cup

Heat the charcoals until they are white hot.  Meanwhile, salt and pepper veal chops. 

 Then, in a small bowl,  crush sprigs of fresh rosemary together with fresh sage leaves and chunks of fresh garlic with olive oil to form a marinade. 

See the “fresh herb” theme going on here?  Yes. It does make all the difference. 

Baste the veal chops and let the flavors hang out together while the coals are getting white hot. 

Figure heating the coals takes about the same amount of time as it does to have a glass of wine.    

Make a second small batch of the same ingredients to baste chops when they come off the grille.    

Cook to desired doneness, similar to steak. 

Allow chops to rest for 5 minutes.

YOU CAN DO THIS: MAPLE GLAZED SALMON RECIPE

From a tiny BEACH kitchen…..

Having friends over for dinner is one of our favorite things to do.  We love to simply sit on the porch with a glass of wine and watch the waves (or the surfers!) crash while something simmers on the stove, or cooks itself in the oven.   This dinner is perfect for doing just that.   Enjoy your friends enjoying healthy food.

The salmon is done in 13 minutes with minimal prep time.   Add some steamed veggies, (gotta love those microwave bags!) and rice.  Or not.  Just prep a salad and some crusty bread.  This dish is unbelievably tasty and simple.  

I’d bet you probably already have everything you need to make this recipe in your pantry…. well, except for the fresh salmon.   I made 2 pounds for four people and we had plenty left over for lunches the next day. 

Note:  Please, please, please use “real” maple syrup in the glaze.  It is a natural sugar.  You do not need alot and it does make a difference.  Less IS more.  The taste is subtle.  Be certain it is pure maple syrup and none of that corn-syrupy fake stuff.  If the bottle looks like a lady in an apron, throw it out. 

(And of course, please use a real lemon for heaven’s sake.  If your “lemon” comes from a squeezable plastic container, throw that out too!)

Ingredients:

           …see my notes for the glaze pictured below ~ per one pound of salmon.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Salt and pepper salmon.  Place skin side down in baking dish.  Cook salmon 8 minutes.  Remove salmon from oven.  Brush salmon with marinade.  Return salmon to oven 4-5 minutes.  Done!

Let me know how you liked this recipe! 

~ SHERYL