Category Archives: Sauces

Cilantro Spinach Lime Pesto.

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Since I have received my Magimix by Robot-Coupe 3200 XL Food Processor, I knew I wanted to whip up some pesto in it.  It’s a favorite!  I chose the larger of the 3 bowls to prepare it because the cilantro is a bit of a wild herb.  Everything tucked in nicely and I have to admit, with only a few pulses it does the job.  See the pics below.  Drizzling the olive oil through the large spout also allows me to gauge the consistency of the pesto quite easily v. my old processor.  The machine is powerful yet very quiet.  Cleans up perfectly and I love that the larger bowl comes with a larger blade making my job much easier.

We adore pesto but it doesn’t always have to be the classic basil version.  I made a similar pesto for a pizza sauce and my kids went wild over it.  I mixed it up and thought I would serve this over grilled chicken and whole wheat pasta tonight for dinner.  Would be great over pasta or mixed with grilled fish or chicken.

Ingredients:

1 cup of fresh cilantro
1/2 cup of baby spinach leaves
3/4 cup of raw almonds (pistachios would work well too)
1/4 cup of grated parmesan cheese
4 garlic cloves
1/4 cup of fresh lime juice
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper

Optional:  Jalapeño

Directions:

In my new Magimix Food Processor, I added the cilantro, spinach, almonds and garlic to and pulse until it looks like this:

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Then add some salt and pepper.   Parmesan cheese then place the lid back on and drizzle olive oil through the spout with the machine running until it resembles this:

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Give it a taste and adjust the salt and pepper as necessary.  Put in a tupperware container until needed.  If using over pasta, reserve a bit of the pasta water off to the side.  Add the cooked pasta back to the pan with a small bit of the reserved water along with a few tablespoons of the pesto.  Add additional pesto until you achieve the amount you wish to have in the dish.  Refrigerate or freeze the pesto until needed again.  A little goes a long way!

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Sea Salt Caramel Sauce.

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Okay I don’t know about you, but one of my hand’s down weaknesses… sea salt caramel. I could eat my body weight in it if I had to.  In fact when I made this, I knew it was nuclear hot and I still put a spoon in my mouth to try it!  Ha ha!  Lunatic, yes, I know!

Ingredients:

1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of water
6 tablespoons of butter
1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream
Sea Salt

Directions:

Okay, first step first.  Collect all of your ingredients and place them right next to your stove.

In a heavy stock pot (3 quarts or so), add your water and sugar over a medium-high flame.  More so to the higher side of the flame.  Whisk until the sugar melts and the mixture starts to boil. This takes a few minutes due to the water having to evaporate.  Once it boils, stop whisking and literally stand there and watch it.  The sugar mixture will turn amber – once a medium golden amber color, add the butter (it will bubble up so be mindful) and whisk until it melts.  Once the butter has melted, remove from the flame.  Add the cream and again, be mindful this mixture will foam up again.  Whisk until the caramel looks smooth and creamy – 30 seconds or so.  Let the sauce settle for 2 minutes.  Sprinkle with sea salt and then pour into a glass jar that you can seal with a lid once the mixture has cooled.  Avoid dipping a spoon into this molten lava mixture or you may fry your tongue!  I speak from which I know.  Ha ha.

 

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Kale & Basil Pesto.

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I found this recipe in my Vitamix cookbook.  I was a bit suspect because I was worried that my girls would not like the flavor combination but I was totally wrong.  Vitamin-packed and rich in beta carotene, vitamin K and C, lutein and rich in calcium.  Still paired up with the traditional basil and I used walnuts instead of pine nuts.  The taste is unbelievably good and low in fat thanks to the broth.  Pair this up with whole wheat pasta or top chicken or fish and you are all set!

I prepared this in my Vitamix but a food processor works just as well.  I adapted this recipe from the original Vitamix recipe.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup of olive oil
1/4 cup of chicken broth
1/2 cup of light and fluffy grated parmesan (not packed)
5 garlic cloves, peeled
2 cups of basil leaves
2 cups of kale, spine removed
3 tablespoons of walnuts
1/2 teaspoon salt
Black pepper
Lemon juice

Directions:

Place all of the ingredients in the order as listed into your blender, Vitamix or food processor.  Blend until creamy and smooth.   Toss with fresh pasta or store in a tupperware container in the fridge.

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Vodka cream sauce.

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Spent the entire afternoon at the pool catching up with an old friend.  The kids hung out with friends.  It was the perfect summer day.  Then I had to snap back to reality when I got home & make dinner.  Following the meatless Monday protocol, we had whole wheat pasta with a vodka cream sauce.  It was heavenly.

Ingredients:

1 yellow onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
Red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon Italian Seasonings
Salt and pepper
28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes (I used Cento)
1/2 cup of vodka
1/4 cup of heavy cream
Basil

Directions:

In a large skillet over medium heat, add a splash of olive oil and your onions.  Cook until translucent.  Add the garlic, red pepper flakes, Italian seasonings and salt/pepper.  Cook for 30 seconds.  Then add the crushed tomatoes and simmer for 20 minutes.  Taste and adjust the seasonings.  Then add the vodka and let that cook for 5 minutes.  Finally, add the heavy cream and stir.  Cook that for an additional 5 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Add some fresh basil.  Serve over your favorite pasta.

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Grilled chicken topped with a lemon balsamic sauce.

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LEMON addict warning!  I have a problem.  I grilled some chicken and thought a nice light, bright lemony sauce would be lovely paired with my pistachio-mint tabbouleh salad.  Summer bright flavors!

I grilled some breasts of chicken (seasoned only with salt and pepper). Grilled until thoroughly cooked.  Set aside to rest for 6-8 minutes.  Then get started on the super easy sauce.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice (fresh is best)
1 tablespoon of a better quality balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon of a good dijon mustard (I used Maille)
Zest of half lemon
Pinch salt

Directions:

Whisk all of the ingredients together.  Top your chicken, vegetables, fish or whatever you like and enjoy!!

 

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Raspberry Balsamic Coulis.

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Today I purchased a large container of fresh raspberries and I instantly thought of making this to top pancakes, yogurt or ice cream.  I adore the bright, vibrant red color with the complexity of the spices that I added.  This makes eating the rainbow even more fun for kids & adults alike.  So easy to make, stores beautifully in the refrigerator.  Definitely a recipe to try.

Ingredients:

3.5 c of fresh raspberries
2.5 tbl of raw honey but you can use regular honey as well
1 tbl of a good quality, aged balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp of nutmeg

Directions:

Add all of the ingredients to your food processor and combine.  This should take about 1 minute.  Then with a fine mesh strainer over top of a mixing bowl, pour the mixture into the strainer.  Take the back of a spoon and start pressing the mixture through the strainer.  You will need to keep stirring the seeds to allow the liquid to pass through.  What remains is a gorgeous ruby-colored sauce that you can top anything from your favorite pancakes/waffles, chicken, pork, yogurt to pretty much any dessert.  Very versatile sauce :)  I hope you enjoy this as much as we do.

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Roasted tomato sauce.

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I had several tomatoes that I needed to use that were leftover from our party this weekend.  This recipe is so easy, smells incredible and tastes even better.  Once you make your own sauce, you’ll never look back.  Plus you can control the salt and seasonings, which is so important.  You’ll love this recipe in the summer when the flavorful tomatoes are abundant :)

Ingredients:

4 lbs of tomatoes, washed and quartered
Olive oil for drizzling
1 tablespoon of salt (or less)
8-12 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
3 small peppers
1 onion, chopped into larger pieces
2 teaspoons of Italian seasonings
Freshly ground pepper
15 fresh basil leaves
1/3 cup of good red wine that you would drink :)

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 275 degrees.  Spray the bottom of a roasting pan with olive oil.  Then add your tomatoes to the pan.  Season with salt, pepper and Italian seasonings.  Add the garlic cloves & onions.  Drizzle the olive oil over top and toss with your hands.  Make sure everything is coated well.  Place in the oven and roast the tomatoes for 3-4 hours.  Then remove and add them, along with the pan drippings, to a Dutch oven along with your basil leaves.

Puree with your hand immersion blender.  Add the wine and additional seasonings as needed.  Top your favorite pasta and enjoy.  Bon Appetit!

 

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Turkey Italian Sausage Meatballs with a Chobani Wasabi dip.

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Easy dinner tonight.  I had to use my Italian hot turkey sausage I purchased at the farmer’s market on Tuesday.  I was in a mood for something spicy and thought of wasabi!  Easy, fast and yummy dinner.

Meatball Ingredients:

1-2 lbs of lean, turkey sausage
1 tbl of olive oil
1 tsp of fennel seeds

Directions:

In a fry pan over medium heat, add the olive oil.  You then need to remove the casing on the sausage.  Lay the link or links out on a cutting board and using a filet knife, make an incision down the entire link.  Remove the turkey mixture carefully.  Cut that into chunks and roll into balls.  Then add to the fry or sauté pan and cook until no longer pink.  Toss in the fennel seeds in the last few minutes of cooking.

Wasabi sauce:

3/4 c of non fat plain Chobani
3 tbl Wasabi paste

Directions:

Mix well and refrigerate for about 1 hour or more.  Remove prior to serving.

Fast & easy dinner :)  Enjoy!

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Cilantro Lime Jalapeño Vinaigrette.

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This dressing recipe is my absolute favorite… hands down!  It has just a bit of a kick for impact.  Refreshing, zesty… LOVE LOVE LOVE it!

Ingredients:

3 tbl of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 tbl of red wine vinegar
2 tbl of freshly squeezed lime juice
1/2 jalapeño, diced up with seeds
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 tsp of a good Dijon mustard
1/8 tsp of honey
Fresh ground pepper
Pinch of salt
1/2 tsp of ground cumin
1 handful of cilantro leaves, washed with stems removed

If you have a hand immersion blender, add everything except for the cilantro leaves and blend until creamy.  Then add the cilantro.  Blend until combined.  Serve with your favorite fish, salad, chicken or pork.

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Spinach Basil Pesto.

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Happy National Spinach Day!  Who would’ve known?  Ha!  I love spinach and try to eat it as much as I can.  The color, the vitamins… so good for you!  So I thought on this Meatless Monday that I should do a mainly spinach (with a tiny bit of basil) pesto.  My oldest can’t get enough and has been asking me for it daily.  I indulged.

Ingredients:

4 cloves of garlic, peeled
2 c of baby spinach leaves (regular are fine)
1/2 c of fresh basil leaves
1/4 c of olive oil
Palmful of walnuts
1 tbl of grated parmesan
1 tbl of lemon juice
1 tsp of salt

Directions:

This recipe is so easy!!!  In your food processor, pulse up the garlic cloves.  When finely minced add spinach and basil.  Let the machine run.  When everything is chopped up drizzle into the pour spout, the olive oil.  Only use what you need to make the mixture into a creamy consistency.  Then add your walnuts, parm, salt and lemon juice.  Pulse to mix.

Boil  your pasta according to package directions.  Then toss with the pesto.  Coat to cover.  Garnish with either walnuts, pine nuts or some extra parmesan.  Whatever you like!  Enjoy! If you have extra, freeze it and use it later :)  Makes a great dip, topping for chicken etc.

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