Mushroom Gruyere Pasta

You will need: 

• 1 pound uncooked Farfalle
• 2 tablespoons butter, divided
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 16 ounces Cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• 1 tablespoon garlic
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 3/4 cup whipping cream
• 1 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
• Freshly grated nutmeg to taste
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Prep:

Heat butter and olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  
Add chopped onions to pan and season with a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Cook onions until golden and caramelized.  Remove onions from pan and set aside.  
Melt remaining tablespoon of butter in empty pan.  Add mushrooms, thyme, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt and pepper.  Cook mushrooms until liquid evaporates and mushrooms are tender, about 12 minutes.  
Add chicken broth; cook 2 minutes or until liquid evaporates, stirring occasionally.  To the mushroom mixture,  add the cooked pasta, whipping cream, Gruyere cheese, caramelized onions, nutmeg and parsley.  Toss gently to coat, allowing enough time for the cheese to melt.  
Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.  

Cook pasta according to package directions.  Drain.

Cilantro Lime Shrimp Kabobs

You will need:

• 20 de-veined large shrimp (no tails)
• Juice of 3-4 limes 
• 3 large garlic cloves
• About 1/8 cup Cilantro 
• 8 kabob sticks

Prep:

Add diced garlic and cilantro to lime juice and let the shrimp marinate for about 10 -15 minutes. Don't leave them in there for too long. The lime juice will start cooking the shrimp.

Directions:

You can cook the shrimp on the BBQ or in a pan on the stove.  Each side will only need about 3 minutes.  Do not over cook., shrimp will be rubbery. 

You can also brush excess marinade on the shrimp as they are cooking to keep them from drying out!

Hibachi Steak and Veggies with Fried Rice

You will need:

• 2 steaks of your choice (New York Strip in picture)
• 2 Zucchinis
• 1 large White onion
• Cal Rose White rice 1 1/2 cups
• 2 eggs
• 1 Carrot
• Green onion
• 1 Cup butter
• 1 tube Chunky Garlic, or any minced garlic
• Sesame oil
• 1 chicken breast
• Soy sauce
• Sesame seeds

For steaks:
Bring steaks to room temp and season with salt and pepper, or your favorite grilling seasoning, and set           aside for later.

For grilled Veggies: 

1. Cut Zucchinis into long strips (skin on) about 1/4 inch thick each, this should give you about 4-5 strips depending on thickness of the zucchini.
2. Cut White Onion into 4-5 1/4 inch thick slices as well. 

For Rice:

1. Prepare 1 1/2 cups Cal Rose rice and set aside to cool.
2. Melt a whole stick of butter about half way, and add about 1/4 - 1/2 tube of the chunky garlic depending on how much garlic taste you want. Mix with the butter and put in fridge to cool.
3. Cut chicken breast into bite size pieces 
4. Scramble 2 eggs
5. Dice white onion, carrot, and green onion for the veggie mix. You can also add frozen green peas to the mix if you desire. 

Directions: (using a pan or wok on the stove since not everyone has a flat top grill....)

For rice: Throw the chicken and diced veggie mix (onion, carrot and green onion) into a pan or wok with a tiny splash of sesame oil. Cook until chicken is done. Push the veggies and chicken to the side of the pan and cook your scrambled eggs (should only take 1 minute) now add about a handful of the rice and a little butter at a time until all the rice and butter is gone. The rice will be stuck together in clumps. The butter should help lubricate the rice to break it up with the help of a spoon and constant stirring and poking. (you don't have to use all the butter if you don't want to) Once everything is mixed together, while the rice is getting hot, add about a 1/3 cup of soy sauce over the top and mix into rice. You can add more soy sauce if desired. (A little at a time though. A little soy sauce goes a long way!) Once the rice is hot, it's ready to serve! But don't forget to sprinkle some sesame seeds in before you do!!

For grilled veggies: Grill zucchini and whole onion rounds in a separate pan or on a griddle with some sesame oil or garlic butter if you have any left over until golden brown around the edges or just until soft depending on your preference. Slice onion rounds into quarters, and zucchini into bite size pieces to serve with your rice and steak.

For steaks: Grill outside on the BBQ or on the stove in some butter and or sesame oil. I prefer BBQ. 

Southwest Chicken Soup

You will need:

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can petite diced tomatoes, drained

1 can sweet corn, drained

1 can black beans, rinsed

1 can pinto beans, rinsed

1 can green enchilada sauce

1 can chicken broth

1 can chunked chicken (I use rotisserie chicken or boil and shred my own chicken)
1 package taco seasoning
Crushed red pepper/cayenne pepper optional

Directions: 
Add all ingredients to a large pot and heat until warm. Stir often.

Serve with tortilla chips, sour cream, cheese, onions, cilantro

Asparagus Risotto

You will need:

• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup chopped shallots
• 1 cup arborio rice
• 1/4 cup dry white wine (or 1tbsp lemon juice and 3 tbsp water)
• about 4 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 lb asparagus, trimmed, tips cut off, tough skins of the spears peeled, and the speers cut into thin disks.
• 1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
• Salt and pepper

In a 3 or 4 quart sauce pan, heat 1 tablespoon butter on medium heat. Add the shallots and cook for a minute or two, until translucent. Add the rice and cook for 2 minutes more, stirring until nicely coated. While the shallots are cooking, bring the stock to a simmer in a separate pot.

Add the wine. Slowly stir, allowing the rice to absorb the wine. Once the wine is almost completely absorbed, add 1/2 cup of hot stock to the rice. Continue to stir until the liquid is almost completely absorbed, adding more stock in 1/2 cup increments. Stir often to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Continue cooking and stirring the rice, adding a little bit of broth at a time, cooking and stirring until all the stock is gone. The rice should be tender, but still firm to the bite. With the last ladle of stock, add the asparagus.  Turn off the heat.

Gently stir in the parmesan cheese and the remaining 1 tablespoon butter. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately!

* Chunks of Salmon or Shrimp would be a nice addition if serving as a main dish.

Rosemary and Garlic Pork Tenderloin with Red Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans

You will need:

• Pork tenderloin (plain, no pre seasoning)
• Garlic
• Rosemary (dry is fine, but fresh is better!)
• Red Potatoes
• Sour Cream
• Green Onion
• Salt 
• Pepper
• 1 whole stick of Butter
• Milk
• Fresh string beans (green beans)

Pork Tenderloin:

Place tenderloin fat side down in a shallow baking dish.  With a small knife, puncture the tenderloin until the knife is touching the bottom of the pan. Twist the knife about 5 times all the way around forming a hole . Do this about 6 times through the tenderloin, but spaced evenly throughout. After filling the holes, bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. After 45 minutes, take out of oven and cover with tinfoil until ready to serve. 

Rosemary Garlic filling: Crush 6 medium -large size garlic cloves. I find it easiest to dice the garlic, then smash it against the cutting board with the side of my knife, making a paste.  In a small bowl, add dry rosemary until the mixture looks like equal parts.  Fill the 6 holes with the garlic and rosemary mixture. *If using fresh rosemary, just fill 3/4 of hole with garlic, and stuff a fresh sprig of rosemary on top.  * Also, save a small amount of garlic paste (*without the rosemary/about a quarter size) for the Green beans.

Red Mashed Potatoes:

Cut potatoes into approx.  1 inch by 1 inch pieces for faster cooking. Boil until potatoes are tender. Drain all water and transfer to a pan that you can use a hand mixer with. (Don't use your non stick coated pans!)  Throw in the whole stick of butter except one tablespoon. (Keep that for a little later) Add 1/4 cup milk, pepper and salt to taste. Mix with a hand mixer until potatoes are smooth. Skins will not break down all the way, that is ok. Add a couple heaping spoons full of sour cream and as much green onion as you like. Give it one more quick mix, and serve while its still hot!

Green Beans:

Remove the stem end of each bean and put into a deep frying pan. Cover beans with water and lightly boil for approx 15 minutes until beans are tender. Drain all water and add 1 tablespoon butter and garlic paste to the pan. Bring the heat up to melt the butter and toss the beans.   

Beef Tacos

You will need:

• 1 lb hamburger
• Taco seasoning
• White or yellow corn tortillas
• Oil
• Parmesan cheese
• Lettuce
• Red Onion
• Tomato
• Jalapeño
• Cilantro
• Cheese
• Sour cream

Prep:

1. Brown hamburger and season according to packet instructions.
2. Fry taco shells in oil and dust with Parmesan cheese right out of the pan so Parmesan sticks to the shell.
3. Prepare pico de gallo (tomatoes, cilantro, onion and jalapeño) by dicing all ingredients and mixing together. Amount of each ingredient is up to you! Add a touch of salt and cumin to finish.
4. Shred lettuce and cheese (if not pre shredded)

Assemble deliciousness!!