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Lentil Soup with Italian Sausage and Red Chard

This warm and hearty soup (stew) cuts right to the bone (in the best way!) on a cold winter’s night — a one-pot complete meal with loads of legumes and vegetables packed in!  You could easily make it vegetarian by skipping the sausage and chicken broth.  And too, you could veganize it by skipping the grated cheese at the end.

Ingredients:
3-6 tablespoons of olive oil
2-4 large links (about 1 pound) of sweet or spicy Italian sausage
1 large brown onion, diced
2 celery stalks, sliced into half-moons or diced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced into half-moons or diced
4-6 cloves garlic, finely minced (reserve about half to add toward the end of the cook)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning
A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1 cup brown lentils, sorted and rinsed
2 bay leaves
1 jar of our Due Cellucci sauce.  We like Tomato Basil or Arrabbiata for this recipe
6 cups of water or low-sodium chicken broth
1 entire bunch of red or rainbow chard, ribboned or chopped (keep the ribs!)
1/4 cup or more of chopped parsley for garnish
Grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese to finish
Drizzle of fresh olive oil to finish (optional)

 

Preparation:
1. Heat some of the olive oil, enough to coat the bottom of a large pot, on medium-high heat.  When hot, add the sausage links and brown them all around.  Don’t worry about cooking them fully.  Once browned, reserve them to the side to cool.  Then slice the links into 1/2 coins or chop all into a chunky dice/crumble, depending on how you prefer them in the stew.

2. Add a little more olive oil to the pot, if needed, then the onion, celery, carrots, and about half the minced garlic.  Sauté for a couple of minutes, stirring throughout, just to lightly soften.

3. Add the rinsed and drained lentils, the bay leaves, and water or broth.  Bring to a simmer and allow to cook until the lentils are about half way done, sort of al-dente, then you can add the jar of Due Cellucci sauce, some salt and pepper and Italian seasoning.

4. When the lentils are cooked, add in the rest of the minced garlic, the chopped chard and cook until the leaves and ribs are just tender, about 3-5 minutes more. Discard the bay leaves. Taste for salt and pepper, adjust as desired.

5. To finish, divide among bowls, drizzle with a little olive oil and top with fresh Romano or Parm and chopped parsley.  Leftovers will keep for several days in the fridge.

    

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Indian Butter Chicken

Tomato sauce is a base for many cuisines around the world. Using our sauce saves time so you don’t have to spend hours simmering to build flavor. We’ve done it for you!

Ingredients for dry marinade:
2 lbs of boneless/skinless chicken breast (you can also use a 6-8 pack of boneless/skinless chicken thighs if preferred), dice chicken to bite size, approx. 2″ pieces.

1/2 tsp. ea. of salt & pepper.
1 tsp. chili powder.
1 tsp. sweet paprika.
1/2 tsp. turmeric.

Preparation for marinating:
Mix diced chicken and the above ingredients in a large bowl and set aside for 15 minutes to marinate.

Ingredients for sauce:
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter (divided into 3 chunks of 2 Tbsp. ea.)
1 1/2 cups of yellow onion, small dice.
4-6 garlic cloves, smashed and minced.
3 tsp. Garam Masala spice.
1 tsp. chili powder.
1 tsp. cumin.
1 tsp. cayenne.
1 Tbsp. freshly grated ginger.
1 cinnamon stick, about 3″
1 jar of Due Cellucci Tomato Basil Sauce (for additional heat, use a jar of Due Cellucci Arrabbiata Sauce instead.)
1/2 cup of water (can also use low sodium chicken stock if desired.)
1 cup of heavy cream.
Chopped cilantro for garnish.
Option:  you can also mix in 1 1/2 cups of defrosted peas at the end of final simmer.
Cooked rice, to serve.

Preparation:
1. In a large sauté pan with about 2-3 inches of height, medium heat, brown the diced chicken in two (2) Tbsps. of butter, remove and set aside.
2. Melt another two (2) Tbsps. of butter, medium heat.
3. Add onions, garlic, garam masala, grated ginger, chili powder, cumin, cayenne, cinnamon stick, salt & pepper, and cook until fragrant – about 3-4 minutes.
4. Add Due Cellucci Sauce of choice and bring to simmer.
5. Add the water and cream, and return the chicken and any juices to pan.  Bring back up to a simmer, cover.
6. Simmer for 15-20 minutes on low.  Stirring occasionally.
7. Stir in the remaining two (2) Tbsps. of butter, and additional salt & pepper to taste.

Serve garnished with chopped cilantro on top of rice.  Enjoy!

 

 

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Oven “Fried” Broccoli served with Traditional Sauce

This is an Italian spin on the traditional Mexican dish “Chile Rellenos” which is pan “fried” in an airy, cloud-like egg batter and then finished in the oven.  Served dipped in or smothered with tomato sauce, this is an incredibly flavorful way to eat broccoli.  A favorite among kids and adults! Thank you @bestgirlfridaynyc for introducing our family to this delicious dish from your childhood.

Paloma Broccoli FinishedPaloma Broccoli Cooking7Ingredients:

3 heads of broccoli, cut to just florets with partial stems.
3 eggs, separate whites and yolks
1/2 large onion, diced
4-6 tbsp olive oil
5-7 cloves of garlic, smashed
2 cups Due Cellucci Traditional or Tomato Basil Sauce

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 325oF.

  1.  In large sauté pan, heat the other 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil, lightly brown the other 1/2 of the onion to a golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and reserve for later.
  2. In the same pan, lightly brown the smashed cloves of garlic (should only be golden brown, no more). Remove with a slotted spoon and put aside with onions.
  3. In large bowl, beat 3 egg whites with a hand mixer to stiff peaks.  (don’t skip this step–this is where the magic happens!).
  4. Gently fold back in the three egg yolks to the beaten egg whites, add broccoli florets into the egg batter to completely coat. (have the broccoli prepped and ready…you don’t want the eggs sitting around loosing their fluff)
  5. In the same pan, add 3-4 more tablespoons of olive oil to pan, turn heat to med/low.
  6. Place freshly battered broccoli into the hot oil keep turning broccoli until all sides are golden brown. (you may have to do in batches depending on how big your pan is)
  7. Arrange the pan-browned broccoli in a large rectangular casserole dish, sprinkle the browned onion and garlic on top, salt & pepper to taste.
  8. Bake until further golden brown and broccoli has become soft (about 20min – if you want to cook faster raise the temp to 350 and just keep an eye on it)

Plate the broccoli on a serving dish and top with hot Traditional or Tomato Basil sauce (or leave sauce on the side for dipping)

Serves 6

Sautee Garlic Paloma Broccoli Cooking2 Paloma Broccoli Cooking5