Study Break

Sheeeeeeee'sssss baaaaaaackkkkkkkkk! Today, I rejoined my amazing cooker friends to tackle one of Chef Anne Burrell's recipes. If you don't know, this week has been finals week for the college students at Colorado State University, and we were in desperate need of a delicious break from studying. We chose to make Tagliatelle with bacon, sweet corn, burst cherry tomatoes, and arugula. This dish was absolutely delicious, very homey and savory, and was a big hit with the campus cooking girls. We paired it with a nice white merlot, which complimented the dish wonderfully.

Tagliatelle with Bacon, Sweet corn, burst Cherry tomatoes, and Arugula
four ears of corn, shucked ($2.65)

extra virgin olive oil (bulk item)

kosher salt (bulk item)

1/4 lb slab bacon, cut into 1/4 in pieces ($1.05)

3 cloves garlic, smashed (bulk item)

pinch of crushed red pepper (bulk item)

1 pint heirloom cherry tomatoes, assorted colors ($3.23)

1 1/2 cups chicken/veggie stock ($2.50)

1 package fettucini noodles ($1.99)

1 1/2 cups baby arugula (we used a bit more because leafy greens are good for us!) ($2.99)

big fat finishing oil (nicer oil to use at the end of the dish)

1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano ($3.19)

1. Preheat a grill or broiler.

2. Rub corn with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Broil or grill corn until charred on all sides. Cut the corn off the cob then run the knife down the cob again to get the remaining sweet bits.

3. Coat a large wide pan with olive oil. Toss in the bacon, garlic and red pepper; bring to medium high heat. When the garlic turns golden and is very aromatic, 2-3 min, remove it from the pan and ditch it. Add the cherry tomatoes to the pan and roll them around until coated. Add one cup of the stock, season with salt. Reduce the heat to medium and let the tomatoes cook until they start to burst, 8-10 min.

4. Bring a large pot of well salted water to a biol. Add the corn to the pan with the tomatoes and bacon, and stir to combine; add another 1/2 cup stock if the liquid level is very low.

5. Drop the pasta in the boiling water and cook for 2.3 min, or until tender but toothsome.

6. Drain the pasta and add it the the veggies along with about 1/2 cup reserved cooking water; toss vigorously to combine. Remove the pan from the heat, toss in the arugula, drizzle with the big fat finishing oil, and sprinkle with the parmigiano.

7. Eat up and enjoy!! Makes 4 servings ($17.60/$4.40 per serving)

The girls are back in town!

Heaven in a Cookie

This cookie is the cookie to defeat all cookies; that is, if you love cheesecake and oreos, but then again, who doesn't?  It's super simple to make and surprising uses very few ingredients.  These cookies only lasted a good three days at my house, at that was much longer than I expected.

Irresistible oreo-cheesecakey-goodness.

Oreo Cheesecake Cookies

1/2 c. unsalted butter (at room temp.)

3 oz. cream cheese (at room temp.)

1 c. granulated sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 c. flour

1/2 c. mini chocolate chips

1 c. Oreo cookie crumbs

Preheat oven to 375 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  This step is important, because for some reason the bottoms cook a lot fast than the tops.  In a mixing bowl combine butter and cream cheese until mixed well.  Add sugar and vanilla extract, mixing until combined, then add flour and mix until incorporated.  Stir in mini chocolate chips with a spatula.  

Crush the Oreo cookies, then place the crumbs in small dish/bowl.  Roll 1 1/2 inch balls of dough, then coat in crumbs and place on sheet about 2 inches apart.  I might experiment with only coating the tops and sides of the cookies to prevent the quick cooking of the bottoms, but it's up to you.  Either way, I promise, they come out delicious.  Bake for 12-15 min. or until edges are golden and the cookie has puffed up.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely then enjoy! Makes 1-1 1/2 dozen cookies.