Recipes!!!
since moving out for college i've been getting more into cooking, so here are some of my favorite recipes :-) if there's a recipe you wanna see, let me know! i'm trying to get better at improv cooking, so it would be good practice to try and come up with a recipe from scratch.
Mushroom-Parmesean Ravioli
Ingredients:
- ravioli (any kind is fine, but the trader joe's ones are my favorite. if you don't have a trader joe's nearby, any frozen storebought will do. I recommend ones with spinach in the filling. also don't buy publix ravioli it's so fucking bad.)
- handful of mushrooms (shiitake, white button, wine cap, etc any will do)
- some kind of nut (i prefer walnuts or pecans)
- grated parmesean
- butter
- cayenne
- parsley (basil would probably also taste good)
- black pepper
- salt
- a little spring onion or shallot
- optional but recommended: if you can get your hands on it, the trader joe's mushroom umami seasoning is so good and it works rlly good for this recipe
- GARLIC!!!!
Steps:
- BEFORE you do anything. take like a handful of the nuts you got, chop them then toast them in your pot that you're gonna boil the ravioli in. they're done when they smell nice. this saves you from having to wash another pan after you're done.
- cook whatever ravioli you got according to the steps on the packidge, then strain and rinse with cold water.
- while the ravioli is cooking, cube your mushrooms, dice your garlic, and slice your onion.
- after the ravioli is done, wipe down your pot and put it back on the stove. add about a tablespoon or two of butter and brown it slightly (melt it and let it simmer until it turns light brown and smells nutty, should take ~2 mins)
- toss in mushrooms, shallot (if using spring onion, reserve that for now), and garlic to sautee. add in pepper, cayenne, salt, parsley, and whatever other seasonings you want to taste.
- when the mushrooms are done sauteeing, add the nuts and ravioli to the pot and toss to coat. if things start sticking, add more butter. once ravioli is warmed through, put into a bowl and top with spring onion (if using) and LOTS of parmesean. enjoy!!
CHICKEN POT PIE
your tits clean off. she was born and raised in the south and so was
i so you can trust this is authentic southeastern U.S. chicken pot
pie. this shit will feed you for like a week if you're the only one
eating it.
Ingredients:
- 1 (one) rotisserie chicken, torn to shreds (we will be making so much pot pie)
- 2-3 medium-size carrots
- 1-2 large potatoes
- 1/2-1 onion (white, red, or shallot. if you have a shallot i reccommend using it to suppliment white onion)
- mushrooms (i recommend shiitake)
- peas (frozen)
- corn (fresh is ideal)
- 2-3 cloves of garlic (or more. follow your heart)
- cayenne, onion powder, black pepper, mustard seed, crushed red pepper, and salt
- parsley, rosemary and thyme
- butter
- a teeny bit of heavy cream or whole milk (or regular milk + a little extra butter)
- 1 can of cream of celery or cream of mushroom soup
- chicken broth (buillion cubes are cheapest so use that)
- pie dough
- 1 egg
- 1 big cast iron skillet OR 5-6 disposable 2 cup foil baking tins, for individual servings that you can freeze and reheat
Steps:
- tear your rotisserie chicken to bite-sized shreds
- cut your carrots into chips, slice your mushrooms, onion, and celery, peel + cube your potatoes, dice your garlic.
- ok here is the trick that makes this thing so slappin right here: boil your potatoes in the chicken broth. once they are both soft (check with a fork) drain off the chicken broth and SAVE IT. put the potatoes in a dish to the side.
- after that, get out a big pot, a dutch oven or the big cast iron skillet if you're using that (i prefer dutch oven bc it makes me feel like a wizard making potion) and melt some butter (or use olive oil) in it.
- toss in mushrooms, onions, carrots, and corn to sautee. once those are close to done, toss in your garlic.
- add in your chicken and potatoes
- add in the can of cream of celery/mushroom, some chicken broth (start with about 1/2-3/4 cup and then add to taste), and a little bit of heavy cream. the goal with the heavy cream is to get the filling to thicken, so if it's still too soupy after cooking it down a little bit, add in some more heavy cream.
- add in your seasonings (cayenne, onion powder, black pepper, red pepper, mustard seed, salt, parsley, rosemary, thyme, and anything else you want in it)
- now is the time to taste test. things that are good to tweak at this step are the amount of chicken broth, butter, and different seasonings. after that just let it cook down to the right thickness and your filling is done!
- if you're using a skillet, leave the filling in there to cool a little bit and just put the pie crust on top. if you used a pot or dutch open, transfer to your pie tin or to your disposable tins, then put pie crust on top. (its ok if you wanna have pie crust on bottom too, just get one of those readymade tins with the crust already in it to save time)
- seal edges with a fork and cut some ventilation holes with a paring knife. i did some hearts last time and my mom thought that was very cool :-)
- make an egg wash (egg yolk + water) and brush the top, and (IF YOU HAVE IT) add some flake salt to the top of the egg wash. this shit is expensive and unnecessary so don't go out of your way for it but it's so good if you already have it. if you're doing the disposable tins skip this step and just go ahead and wrap them in plastic wrap and tin foil then chuck those bad boys in the fridge.
- THEN chuck that thing in the oven as per the baking instructions on the pie crust. if there aren't any just do like 375F for 30 mins and keep an eye on it. if you froze the disposable tins and are ready to eat one now, put the frozen tin in the oven at 400F for 40 minutes. it will be nuclear hot and your cat WILL want it so be sure to be careful with it.
- enjoy and give yourself a pat on the back bc that's a big recipe. finished pot pie that has already been cooked can also be frozen and reheated similarly and it will taste basically just as good as fresh.
Shrimp Scampi
i wouldn't super recommend this for beginners just because i can't give exact measurements. so you'll have to eyeball it.
Ingredients:
- shrimp (shelled + deveined)
- any kind of long thin egg noodle
- onion/shallot
- mushrooms
- garlic
- butter
- olive oil
- cherry tomatoes (KEY INGREDIENT DO NOT LEAVE THIS OUT!!!)
- nuts (optional)
- feta (KEY INGREDIENT ALSO IT'S SO IMPORTANT!! if you don't have any substitue with extra lemon juice)
- pesto (or basil and pine nuts)
- wine vinegar
- lemon juice
- crushed red pepper
- old bay, salt + pepper, whatever other seasonings you want
Steps:
- the important part of this recipe is balancing the fat (olive oil, butter) with the acid (vinegar, feta, lemon). if you don't have some ingredients it's ok to leave them out, but MAKE SURE you have a fat and an acid. or else it will just be so heavy and gross -_-
- boil your noodles and take your shrimp out to thaw. start by cutting up your onion, mushroom, and mincing your garlic.
- toast your pine nuts/whatever nuts you're using (if you're using them).
- sautee mushrooms in olive oil until golden brown. they will absorb whatever flavor you give them, so if you want to add lemon (or frufru fancy ass infused olive oil) this is a good time. add black pepper.
- add lots of butter, your shrimp, tomatoes, and garlic. do NOT let the tomatoes cook until the point of popping, you want to get almost there but not yet. season with whatever spices you picked + crushed red pepper.
- AT THE SAME TIME, add a splash of wine vinegar/lemon juice and let it cook down a bit (work fast so the shrimp don't overcook). add pesto/basil + pine nuts.
- when shrimp are done and the sauce has cooked down, add noodles and toss to coat. plate scampi with parsley, fresh basil, etc. and add your FETA CHEESE ON TOP THIS IS SO IMPORTANT I PROMISE. add lemon or parmesean as desired.
- enjoy ! yumyum i love this recipe :0)
Brioche Pastries
Ingredients:
- brioche buns (from the store)
- some kind of filling
Steps:
- cut a circle in the top of the brioche bun, but not all the way through. press down to make a well, then pull off the crust from the bottom of the well.
- fill it :0)
yeah that's kind of it lmao. the only filling i've done so far is tiramisu filling (5 eggs + 1 1/2 lbs marscapone + vanilla + 3/4 cup (before whipping) cream) bc i had some extra left over, but i brushed the bottom with strong dark coffee and topped it with grated chocolate and it was pretty damn good. here are some filling ideas i have yet to try:
- custard + jelly
- cream cheese danish filling
- omlette (??? unsure how to make this work)
- cooked bananas + cinnamon + some kind of custard (french toast)
- bonus: brushing the bottom with strong tea, lemon juice, etc.
- double bonus: topping with zest, grated things, parmesean, honey, strudel, crushed cereal (cinnamon toast crunch comes to mind), oreos etc.
- hand pie/cobbler ??
i like the concept a lot bcus u can make things that would be breakfast (savory or sweet) or dessert with it and its pretty quick depending on what you put in it. if i make any breakthroughs i'll update this "recipe".
