Creamy Clam Linguine

Tags

clams, cream, pasta, seafood, wine

Everyone has their go-to meals. Fortunately for me, I found this wonderful recipe and it quickly became a regular on our menu. While having fresh clams with linguine is always wonderful, we don’t always have that luxury due to prices and availability. That’s where canned clams come in. They’re great since I can always have them on-hand, allowing for a quick meal without having to run to the grocery store. Always a plus! It’s warm and comforting during the winter, while being a lighter pasta dish that would be wonderful in the summer months.Creamy Clam Linguine

16 ounces linguine pasta
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
3 (6.5 oz) cans minced clams, juices from 2 cans reserved
½ cup dry white wine
½ cup whipping cream or half-and-half
Salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese, grated or shredded for serving
Parsley, fresh or dried, for garnish

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook pasta according to the package directions until al dente; drain well.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil and butter until the butter is completely melted. Add the garlic to the pan and sauté until golden and fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the reserved clam juice and wine to the pan, bring to a simmer, and reduce by about half. Reduce heat to medium-low and stir in the clams and cream. Season the sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Add prepared pasta to the pan and toss to coat. Serve immediately, topped with Parmesan cheese.

Source: Adapted from Annie’s Eats

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Parmesan Scalloped Potatoes

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cream, Parmesan, potato, thyme

I believe I’ve mentioned before that I used to not be a big fan of potatoes. This made my boyfriend in college very sad since potatoes were one of his favorite foods, and most of the meals he ate were what I made. If only he could see me now! I now love potatoes, and this is one of my favorite recipes. I’ve been tweaking it since I first tried it, trying to make it easier and better. I really do love easy recipes… And creamy cheesy goodness? Who can say no! Perfect for a holiday dinner or a simple steak and potato dinner.Parmesan Scalloped Potatoes

2½ pounds potatoes, peeled
2 cups whipping cream
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 sprigs of thyme
Dash of nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground pepper
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease a 13 x 9-inch baking dish; set aside.

In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, combine cream, garlic, thyme, nutmeg, salt, and pepper; heat thoroughly. Remove the sprig of thyme.

Meanwhile, thinly slice potatoes to about ?-inch thickness. Spread a layer of potatoes on the bottom of the baking dish, slightly overlapping the slices. Pour a little of the warmed cream over the potatoes, then sprinkle ¼ cup of Parmesan cheese on top. Place another layer of potatoes, topping with cream and ¼ cup cheese. Layer the last of the potatoes; pour the remaining cream over the potatoes and top with ½ cup Parmesan cheese. Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes or until the potatoes are tender, golden brown, and bubbly.

Source: Adapted from Southern Living

Pumpkin Pie

Tags

Christmas, cinnamon, cream, evaporated milk, pie, Pumpkin, sweetened condensed milk, Thanksgiving

I had a very fun and successful day of holiday baking with my mom yesterday! We made our traditional array of cookies and goodies, including some new ones that we added this year. We made sugar cookies, cinnamon swirls, chocolate cherry thumbprints, melting moments, and pumpkin oatmeal cookies with cranberries and white chocolate. I have a list of cookies and candies I want to try this year, and hopefully they’ll be good enough to make the list for next year!

In the meantime, I wanted to share my favorite pumpkin pie recipe. I don’t know about the rest of you, but my family has pumpkin pie for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. I’m not a big pumpkin pie fan, unless it’s this pie. I discovered this recipe a few years ago, and have been making it ever since. It’s pumpkin-y, lightly spiced, and creamy, all of which makes for a delicious and perfect pie! The random amount of sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk are kind of inconvenient, but just save the leftovers for fudge or another pumpkin pie!Pumpkin Pie

1½ cups pumpkin puree
½ cup brown sugar
⅔ cup heavy cream
7 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
6½ tablespoons evaporated milk
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
1½ teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Pinch ground clove
Pinch salt
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
Pastry for 1 pie dough, or 1 prebaked pie crust

To prepare pie crust: Place rolled out pie crust in pie dish, leaving at least 1-inch overhang on each side. Ease dough into the plate by gently lifting the edge of the dough with one hand while pressing into the plate bottom with the other hand, making sure to not stretch the dough. Trim overhang to ½-inch beyond the plate rim. Fold overhang under itself onto the flat rim of the plate, and use a thumb and two index fingers to flute the crust. Refrigerate for 15 to 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Remove pie pan from the refrigerator and prick with a fork. Line the crust with 2 pieces of foil, and fill with pie weights, dried beans or uncooked rice. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and weights and bake for 5 to 10 minutes until crust is golden brown and crisp.

To make the filling: Lower the oven to 325 degrees F.

In a medium saucepan, combine the pumpkin and sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the majority of the water has evaporated and the mixture has thickened, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the cream, milks, vanilla, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, and salt. Add eggs and yolk, and whisk until thoroughly combined. Pour the filling into the pie shell and bake until set, about 45 to 55 minutes. Cool and serve.

Source: Adapted from Food Network

Pumpkin-Apple Soup

Tags

apple, cream, nutmeg, Pumpkin, sage, thyme

November is at an end… it went by so fast! I suppose I should be stopping with the pumpkin recipes, since now is the time for red and green, peppermint and eggnog. But one more pumpkin recipe before it’s too late! Besides, soup is perfect for winter! This soup is complete comfort food, warming you from the inside out.

I’ve never tried pumpkin soup before, and while it always sounded good, I never saw a recipe that really jumped out at me. Now this recipe, it looked exceptional. I think it was the apple. It sounded like such a wonderful addition, especially when added with the savory herbs where a lot of recipes stick to cinnamon. The apple lends a unique flavor… mildly sweet and mildly tart but still a mild taste of apple among the pumpkin and cream. When it starts getting cold and you feel like something comforting, grab a bowl of this delicious soup!Pumpkin-Apple Soup
Yield: 6 to 8 servings

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and diced (about 2 cups)
½ teaspoon kosher salt
6 cups vegetable stock
⅔ cups natural applesauce
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon ground sage
½ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
30 ounces pumpkin puree
¼ cup brown sugar
½ cup cream

In a large soup pot over medium heat, add the olive oil and heat until it shimmers. Add the onion, apples, and salt. Sauté until onions are translucent, about 7 minutes. Add the vegetable stock, applesauce, pepper, sage, thyme and nutmeg. Bring to a boil and cook until apples are very tender, about 5 minutes.

Add the pumpkin and brown sugar and cook for 10 to 15 minutes over medium heat. Remove from heat and use an immersion blender to blend soup until smooth. Alternately, use a blender to blend the soup in batches. Add the cream and mix thoroughly. Warm over very low heat, and add more cream or water to thin out more, if desired. Remove from heat and serve.

Source: Slightly adapted from Brown Eyed Baker

Cookie Dough Cream Pie

Tags

chocolate, cookie dough, cream, oreo

A few days ago it was one of my coworker/friend’s birhdays. I like to make them little treats for their birthday, because everyone loves some pie or cupcakes for their birthday! And I love an excuse to make something special. This pie… special indeed! I came across it during my random blog browsing and knew I would have to try this. With my friend’s birthday coming up, I knew I would have a chance to make it. She loves cookie dough more than I do, and that’s saying something! With this delicious pie, there is an Oreo crust layered with eggless cookie dough. There will be extra dough, but it’s eggless so feel free to snack! Or make them into little balls and dip them in chocolate, and you have cookie dough truffles. 🙂 Next we have a brown sugar custard, kind of like cookie dough but in custard form! It’s all topped off with light and fluffy whipped cream and extra cookies just for fun. Now, just pretend this next picture actually came out well… I took the picture at work with my cell phone, and I apparently don’t know how to take up close pictures with my phone. So please, pretend it’s not all blurry! I just wanted to share all the pretty layers! 🙂In conclusion, if you love cookie dough, you’ll love this pie! It’s so unique and so fun, so give it a try next time you want a tasty treat!

Cookie Dough Cream Pie

Pie Crust:
21 Oreo cookies crumbs, crumbled
5 tablespoons butter, melted

Cookie Dough:
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
6 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
2-3 tablespoons milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

Filling:
¾ cups light brown sugar, packed
¼ cup cornstarch
¼ teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
3 egg yolks
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Whipped Cream:
1 cup whipping cream
3 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla

To make the crust: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F with the rack in center position.

Place the crumbled cookies in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal  blade. Pulse until the cookies are finely ground. Drizzle the butter over the crumbs and pulse until the butter is evenly distributed and the crumbs are coated. Pour the crumbs into a 9-inch pie pan. Press the crumbs evenly along the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove pie pan and cool on a wire rack; crust will firm up as it cools.

To make the filling: In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, combine the milk, sugar, and salt. Heat until sugar is melted and milk barely simmers. In the meantime, whisk together the egg yolks and cornstarch. Gradually whisk the heated milk mixture into the egg yolk mixture. Transfer the mixture back into the saucepan and set it over medium heat. Whisk constantly, scraping the bottom and sides to prevent burning, until the mixture thickens and is the consistency of pudding. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla and butter. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

To make the cookie dough: While the filling is cooling, prepare the cookie dough. Combine the butter and sugars in a mixing bowl and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the milk and vanilla; slowly beat in the flour and baking soda until fully combined and smooth. Stir in the chocolate chips.

To assemble: Break off pieces of cookie dough and press them into the cooled pie crust until the dough layer is about ½-inch thick (there will be dough left over). Pour filling on top of dough layer, leveling the top with a rubber spatula. Refrigerate until completely cooled.

To make the whipped cream: Right before serving, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the cream until soft peaks form. Add sugar and vanilla and beat until the cream holds stiff peaks. Spread the whipped cream on top of the filling, reserving about ⅓ cup to decorate. Pipe or dollop the whipped cream evenly around the pie, and garnish with mini chocolate chip cookies, if desired.

Source: Adapted from Love & Olive Oil