Day 2: Fettucine Alfredo

Hello! So, today was my second day home and second day of cooking, although it's my first day of blogging. I'll update later with what I made the first day...

First, I made an appetizer for my mom and me (my dad needed to work late). I decided to make something I knew my dad would hate: kale! I found a recipe that put a bit of a spin on it though, and I baked it. Recipe:

• Preheat oven to 325.
• Rip kale into smaller sections (1-3 inches in length), discarding the stem. Rip enough to fill a large bowl, or enough to lie flat onto two cookie sheets.
  
• Toss kale with olive oil and lemon juice in bowl.
• Lay kale leaves onto coated cookie sheets so that none are overlapping.
• Bake for 15 minutes, check that all the leaves are crispy. If not, bake a few minutes more.

Kale leaf on cookie sheet after baking.

It was pretty good. I put a bit too much lemon juice on it for me, but my mom liked it. The lemon did help counteract the bitterness of the leaf, which I liked. I think the amount of olive oil and lemon juice is just a trial-and-error type thing. It was super crunchy, and really satisfying in that way. It was also very pretty. Potentially good for a party...

Crunchy. Pretty. Anticarcinogenic.

Then, today's main course was fettuccine alfredo with portobello muchrooms, asparagus, and peas. Pretty easy to make. I found the original recipe here, but made a few adjustments. Obviously, I decided to add the peas and asparagus (ended up being a nice choice) and I decided to cook the mushrooms first and add them at the end. (I'm not the biggest fan of mushrooms, so I didn't want the sauce to be mushroom-flavored.) Recipe:

• Cut asparagus into 1-inch pieces, blanch (so that they're still al dente), set aside.
  
• Remove brown gills from undersides of (2 large) mushroom caps using a spoon, and discard gills.
• Slice mushrooms.
• Cook mushrooms in skillet with olive oil until browned and tender; set aside.
  
• Prepare (12-oz, whole wheat) fettuccine according to package directions; drain; stir in a little butter, to prevent clumping, then set aside in a covered pot to keep warm.
  
• Melt (1/2 cup) butter in a large saucepan over medium heat.
• Stir in (1/2 cup) cream and (1 cup) milk.
• Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat, and simmer, whisking constantly, 10 minutes.
• Stir in (1 cup) parmesean cheese, (1/2 tsp) salt, and (1/2 teaspoon) parsley; stir constantly until cheese melts and mixture thickens.
• Add mushrooms, asparagus, and (1/2 cup) peas.
  
• Serve over pasta.

Clockwise from left: cheese, parsley, salt; milk and cream; browned mushrooms, asparagus, and peas.

It was really good. Very, very rich (as you can imagine with all of the dairy that goes into it), but delicious. My dad, mom, and I all went back for seconds. Cool thing about this meal: with the combination of the dairy and the mushrooms, this meal offers a healthy dose of all of the amino acids! See: meat not necessary. :)

Tasty protein-, vitamin-, and mineral-packed meal!

After dinner, my mom and I made some ginger lemon tea with honey. Super easy to make...

• Cut about 24 slices of fresh ginger, pound, and place into pot.
• Add 6 cups of water to pot.
• Heat until boil, add juice of half a lemon, and then let simmer for 20 minutes.
• Add honey while still hot.
• Serve. Refrigerate extra for another day!

Ginger boiling.

The tea was very spicy--I had to add some more water to mine. In the future, I'll decrease the number of ginger slices... But, it was a light tea and good for drinking after the rich fettuccine. Plus, ginger is good for digestion AND the immune system! So double-bonus for my mom who has a sinus infection right now.


So. Three more successful recipes! Fettuccine was definitely my favorite. To say goodbye, I'll share with you Mr Honey Bear wearing his holiday hat: