{"id":4942,"date":"2012-07-18T07:55:19","date_gmt":"2012-07-18T13:55:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/?p=4942"},"modified":"2012-07-19T13:04:54","modified_gmt":"2012-07-19T19:04:54","slug":"a-busy-life-and-lots-of-farmhouse-recipes-spinach-basil-pesto-quinoa-mac-and-cheese-casserole-mediterranean-eggplant-and-quinoa-salad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/2012\/07\/18\/a-busy-life-and-lots-of-farmhouse-recipes-spinach-basil-pesto-quinoa-mac-and-cheese-casserole-mediterranean-eggplant-and-quinoa-salad\/","title":{"rendered":"A Busy Life and Lots of Farmhouse Recipes: Spinach Basil Pesto, Quinoa Mac and Cheese Casserole, Mediterranean Eggplant and Quinoa Salad"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The last month has been a crazy one, and the next two aren&#8217;t going to be any different. \u00a0We are moving from our sweet little rent house into a lovely suburban home with 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a nice big kitchen with garbage disposal, and enough counter space not to have to balance pans on top of the coffee maker. \u00a0Yes. \u00a0I have done this. \u00a0Life will be so good. \u00a0And about 5 weeks after we move in we will have a new baby on our hands, and so life will be a totally different kind of crazy. \u00a0Can that be an acceptable excuse for why I haven&#8217;t blogged in a month?<\/p>\n<p>I have been cooking, but haven&#8217;t been taking pictures of any of it or recording it anywhere. \u00a0This is a big time bummer. \u00a0One of my favorite things about having this blog is being able to search for a recipe I&#8217;ve made in the past and be reminded of what I did to change it that made it better, or the things I didn&#8217;t like that I&#8217;d change the next time around. \u00a0When I don&#8217;t update the blog, I don&#8217;t have those recipes&#8230;unless I managed to write notes on them and put them somewhere safe&#8230;which is a rare event. \u00a0So today I am playing catch-up.<\/p>\n<p>One of the things I&#8217;ve had the luxury of participating in this summer is the <a href=\"http:\/\/houston.farmhousedelivery.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Farmhouse Delivery<\/a> here in Houston. \u00a0When the bushel of local fruits and veg arrive on my doorstep carried by a shaggy headed hipster jamming out to whatever cool music is playing through his earbuds, I get positively giddy. Some of the items we receive are no-brainers. \u00a0Peaches and blackberries are perfect in my morning yogurt and granola. \u00a0Cucumbers, sweet peppers and the sweetest cherry tomatoes known to man get sliced and tossed into salads. \u00a0Potatoes, onions, corn and slicing tomatoes have also been part of our meals. \u00a0But then we get stuff like patty pan squash and eggplant. \u00a0What am I going to do with this? \u00a0I haven&#8217;t figured out the patty pan yet, but did find a use for the eggplant. \u00a0So Farmhouse Delivery, thank you for helping me to explore more in my kitchen. \u00a0And thanks, Sarah, for the recipe! \u00a0I feel more of an obligation to use the produce fully since, well, we paid for it, AND it&#8217;s fresh and local and delicious. \u00a0If I forget about a grocery store peach in the back corner of the fridge drawer I toss it out. \u00a0If I were to forget a farmhouse peach I would probably cry a few tears and have a little memorial service for the sweet and forgotten little guy. On to the recipes&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/pestopizza.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-4943\" title=\"pestopizza\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/pestopizza.jpg?resize=550%2C531\" alt=\"\" width=\"550\" height=\"531\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/pestopizza.jpg?w=550 550w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/pestopizza.jpg?resize=300%2C289 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/pestopizza.jpg?resize=150%2C144 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/pestopizza.jpg?resize=400%2C386 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 550px) 100vw, 550px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>Spinach, Basil &amp; Walnut Pesto<\/h3>\n<p>A big bag of fresh basil came one weekend, and so I made 2 batches of this pesto. \u00a0We ate it on pizza with mozzarella and farmhouse tomatoes. \u00a0Another night I mixed it in with penne pasta and chopped cherry tomatoes topped with grated Parmesan. \u00a0The leftovers from that meal got mixed with lots of mozzarella cheese, more pesto, more tomatoes and then baked in a casserole topped with Parmesan bread crumbs. \u00a0So many easy and delicious dinners out of one batch of pesto.<\/p>\n<p><em>Ingredients<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>4 cups baby spinach<\/li>\n<li>2 cups basil<\/li>\n<li>1\/2 cup toasted walnuts<\/li>\n<li>1\/4 to 1\/2 cup olive oil<\/li>\n<li>1\/4 cup grated Parmesan<\/li>\n<li>1\/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em>Directions<\/em><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Rinse and pat dry spinach and basil.<\/li>\n<li>Put greens in the bowl of a food processor, pour walnuts over, sprinkle with salt and begin to pulse. \u00a0While pulsing, add olive oil in a stream until desired consistency is reached. \u00a0Taste and add more salt if needed.<\/li>\n<li>Transfer to a lidded container and store covered in the fridge or freeze for later use.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3>Quinoa Mac and Cheese Casserole<\/h3>\n<p>I&#8217;ve made this twice now. \u00a0It is sure to become a regular on our dinner menu. \u00a0The great thing is that you can change the vegetables, spices and cheese to make it fit your tastes or what you have available. \u00a0I used an onion from Farmhouse in this recipe, but other than that it&#8217;s a grocery store produce meal. \u00a0Don&#8217;t worry, I&#8217;m not getting all snooty about my produce&#8230;at least not forever.<\/p>\n<p>Adapted from <a href=\"http:\/\/www.eatliverun.com\/spinach-and-cheese-quinoa-casserole\/\" target=\"_blank\">Eat, Live, Run<\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>Ingredients<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>1 1\/2 cups dry quinoa<\/li>\n<li>3 cups chicken or vegetable broth<\/li>\n<li>1\/2 onion, chopped<\/li>\n<li>1 red bell pepper, chopped<\/li>\n<li>1 green bell pepper, chopped<\/li>\n<li>3 green onions, chopped<\/li>\n<li>2 cloves minced garlic<\/li>\n<li>6 ounce bag fresh spinach<\/li>\n<li>8 ounces mushrooms, chopped<\/li>\n<li>1 cup milk<\/li>\n<li>2 cups grated white cheddar cheese<\/li>\n<li>1 cup Panko breadcrumbs<\/li>\n<li>1 tsp salt<\/li>\n<li>1\/2 tsp dry mustard<\/li>\n<li>1\/2 tsp black pepper<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em>Directions<\/em><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Preheat oven to 350\u00b0F.<\/li>\n<li>Heat a drizzle of oil over medium heat in a large, deep saucepan. \u00a0Add the onion, bell peppers, scallions and saute for about four minutes, just until bell pepper has started to soften. \u00a0 Add the mushrooms and spinach and cook until spinach is wilted. \u00a0Add the garlic and continue sauteing for another 30 seconds.<\/li>\n<li>Add quinoa to the pot, followed by the chicken broth, salt, dry mustard and pepper. \u00a0Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes until all liquid has been absorbed, stirring just a couple times.<\/li>\n<li>Add 1 1\/2 cups of the grated cheese and milk. \u00a0Stir to combine then pour into a greased 9 x 13\u2033 casserole dish.<\/li>\n<li>In a small bowl, combine the Panko and the remaining cheese. \u00a0Sprinkle on top of casserole and bake for about 30 minutes until golden.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/mediterraneansalad.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-4944\" title=\"mediterraneansalad\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/mediterraneansalad.jpg?resize=600%2C426\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"426\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/mediterraneansalad.jpg?w=600 600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/mediterraneansalad.jpg?resize=300%2C213 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/mediterraneansalad.jpg?resize=150%2C106 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/mediterraneansalad.jpg?resize=400%2C284 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><\/a><\/h3>\n<h3>Mediterranean Eggplant and Quinoa Salad<\/h3>\n<p>Eggplant, onion, zucchini and tomatoes from Farmhouse and then a great punch from the lemon dressing and an herby freshness from the parsley and mint make this my kind of summer meal. \u00a0My sweet sister helped me find a recipe to use up my eggplant without feeling like I was eating eggplant. \u00a0I used her suggestions of using quinoa instead of barley, and adding in a can of chickpeas and crumbled feta. \u00a0This has made a terrific lunch the past couple days.<\/p>\n<p>From Sarah, Adapted from <a href=\"http:\/\/smittenkitchen.com\/2007\/03\/recipe-liberation-day\/\" target=\"_blank\">Smitten Kitchen<\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>Ingredients<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>2 small to medium eggplants, peeled and cut into 1\/2 inch cubes<\/li>\n<li>2-3 zucchini, cut into 1\/2-inch cubes<\/li>\n<li>1\/2 onion, halved then sliced<\/li>\n<li>10 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil<\/li>\n<li>1 teaspoon salt<\/li>\n<li>1 teaspoon black pepper<\/li>\n<li>1 cup chopped scallion (from 1 bunch)<\/li>\n<li>1 1\/2 teaspoons ground cumin<\/li>\n<li>1\/2 teaspoon ground coriander<\/li>\n<li>1 1\/2 cups quinoa<\/li>\n<li>1 garlic clove, minced<\/li>\n<li>3 cups reduced sodium chicken or vegetable broth<\/li>\n<li>2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice<\/li>\n<li>1\/4 teaspoon sugar<\/li>\n<li>1\/2 lb cherry tomatoes, quartered<\/li>\n<li>1 can chick peas, drained and rinsed<\/li>\n<li>1\/3 cup Kalamata or other brine-cured black olives, pitted and halved<\/li>\n<li>1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley<\/li>\n<li>1\/2 cup chopped fresh mint<\/li>\n<li>4-6 ounces crumbled feta<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em>Directions<\/em><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Roast eggplant and zucchini: Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 425\u00b0F. \u00a0Toss eggplant and zucchini and onion with 5 tablespoons oil, 3\/4 teaspoon salt, and 3\/4 teaspoon pepper in a bowl, then spread in 2 oiled large shallow (1-inch-deep) baking pans. Roast vegetables in oven, stirring occasionally and switching position of pans halfway through baking, until vegetables are golden brown and tender, 20 to 25 minutes total. Combine vegetables in 1 pan and cool.<\/li>\n<li>Cook Quinoa: Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 3- to 4-quart heavy pot over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then cook scallion, cumin and coriander, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. \u00a0Add quinoa and cook, stirring until well coated with oil, 2 minutes more. \u00a0Add broth and bring to a boil. \u00a0Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until all of liquid is absorbed and barley is tender, 20-25 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 5 minutes. Transfer to reserved shallow baking pan and spread to quickly cool, uncovered, to room temperature, about 20 minutes.<\/li>\n<li>Make dressing and assemble salad: Whisk together lemon juice, sugar, and remaining 1\/4 teaspoon salt, 1\/4 teaspoon pepper, and 2-3 tablespoons oil in a large bowl. \u00a0Add quinoa, roasted vegetables, and remaining ingredients to bowl with dressing and toss until combined well.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<div id=\"wp_fb_like_button\" style=\"margin:5px 0;float:none;height:70px;\"><script src=\"http:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/all.js#xfbml=1\"><\/script><fb:like href=\"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/2012\/07\/18\/a-busy-life-and-lots-of-farmhouse-recipes-spinach-basil-pesto-quinoa-mac-and-cheese-casserole-mediterranean-eggplant-and-quinoa-salad\/\" send=\"false\" layout=\"standard\" width=\"400\" show_faces=\"true\" font=\"arial\" action=\"like\" colorscheme=\"light\"><\/fb:like><\/div><!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on the_content -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The last month has been a crazy one, and the next two aren&#8217;t going to be any different. \u00a0We are moving from our sweet little rent house into a lovely suburban home with 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a nice big kitchen with garbage disposal, and enough counter space not to have to balance pans on [&hellip;]<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[23,4,85,522,26],"tags":[344,595,312,379,594,377,58,266,370,909],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p51jE-1hI","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4942"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4942"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4942\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4945,"href":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4942\/revisions\/4945"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4942"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4942"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4942"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}