Balsamic Baked Beans

Did you ever get tired of eating the same thing over and over again? That’s how I felt recently about baked beans. I was tired of the canned baked beans which always contain overcooked beans and a lack of flavor. To kick it up a notch, I used cannellini beans which are firm but creamy inside, salty pancetta, and I cooked the beans in some balsamic vinegar. What came out of this was a pot of baked beans that had a rich and complex flavor that contrasted between the sweetness of the brown sugar and the tartness of the balsamic vinegar with highlights from the salty pancetta. This is a great dish for a barbecue or just freeze it in smaller containers and serve with hamburgers for dinner.

Makes 16 large servings

1 lb Dry Cannellini Beans (soaked overnight & drained) *

1 TBS Olive Oil

1 Yellow Onion (finely minced)

4 Cloves Garlic (finely minced)

5 ½ C Water

½ C Balsamic Vinegar

1 lb Pancetta (diced) *

1 C Ketchup

½ C Packed Brown Sugar

¼ C Spicy Brown Mustard

Soak beans overnight in a large pot filled with water.

Heat oven to 350°F.

Drain the beans in a colander. Heat the one teaspoon of olive oil in a Dutch oven or large heavy-bottom oven-proof pot over medium high heat. Sauté the onions until the onion is soft and transparent, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the minced garlic and cook for an additional 30 seconds. Add the water, balsamic vinegar, diced pancetta, and the drained beans and bring to a simmer. Cover the pot and place it in the preheated oven. Continue cooking until they just start to soften, about 1 hour.

Add the ketchup, brown sugar and mustard and bake uncovered until the beans are soft and tender, 2-3 hours. Cook until the beans are completely cooked and the liquid has reduced (see photo below).  

* PRONTO SUBSTITUTES

Cannellini Beans – Substitute pink beans.

Pancetta – Substitute thick cut bacon.

To print this recipe, go to Balsamic Baked Beans.

Fig & Chocolate Grilled Sandwich

I’m not sure how to characterize this bipolar sandwich that is crispy on the outside and ooey gooey inside. It is filled with chocolate hazelnut spread and sweet fig jam that tastes like the center of a fig cookie and is coated with sweet almond flavored amoretti cookies that give the outside a crunch. On one hand it’s an overindulgent lunch sandwich, on the other hand it’s a decadent dessert. I’ll leave the choice up to you. The only choice you will not have to make is how wonderful this tastes and why someone didn't think of this before.

Servings: 1 Sandwich

2 Slices Round Italian Bread *

1 ½ TBS Fig Jam *

1 ½ TBS Nutella^® Brand Chocolate Hazelnut Spread

1 TBS Unsalted Butter (room temperature)

1/4 C Amoretti Cookies (crushed)

Place ¼ C of amoretti cookies in a food processor and pulse until they form a fine crumb. Place the crumbs on a flat plate.

Spread 1 ½ TBS of Nutella^® on one slice of Good Quality White Bread and 1 ½ TBS of fig jam on the other. Place the slices together.

Spread the top of the sandwich with ½ tablespoon of room temperature butter and press it into the Amoretti crumbs. Repeat with the other side. Heat a griddle or large frying pan over medium heat until hot. Place the sandwich on the hot frying pan and cook until the bread turns golden brown. Cut and serve warm.

* PRONTO SUBSTITUTE

Round Italian Bread – You can substitute sturdy white bread with this sandwich but always use the best quality bread you can find. A fresh baked loaf that is hand sliced thick is best but I’ve also used Pepperidge Farm Country White.

Fig Jam – You can use any flavor of jam. Raspberry marries particularly well with chocolate.

Fig Jam – You can substitute ginger snaps for a ginger twist to this sandwich.

To print this recipe, go to Fig & Chocolate Grilled Sandwich

Antipasto Tuna Salad

Are you tire of eating the same thing for lunch each day? The origin of this tuna salad came from the intersection of boredom (I was tired of the same old tuna salad) and a filling I created for an appetizer. What I came up with was a cross between traditional tuna salad and an antipasto. It’s loaded with roasted red peppers, prosciutto, mozzarella, olive oil and fresh parsley. This salad can be served on Italian bread for a sandwich, used as a topping for bruschetta, or put on top of arugula for a salad.

Makes 6-8 servings

Ingredients

½ C Roasted Red Peppers (drained and diced)
4 oz. thinly sliced Prosciutto (diced) *
6 oz. Fine Shredded Part Skim Mozzarella
2 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 TBS Fresh Parsley (chopped)

¼ C Greek Yogurt*
2 5oz Can Bumble Bee Tonno in Olive Oil (drained) *

Fresh Ground Pepper to Taste

Mix all ingredients in a medium bowl. Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days in a closed container.

Serving Suggestions

• Salad - Serve on a bed of arugula or any other salad greens
• Sandwich – Serve on fresh sliced Italian round loaf or on rolls with some arugula.
• Bruschetta – Place on slices of toasted Italian bread, top with additional mozzarella and place under the broiler until the cheese has melted.

* Pronto Substitutes

Tonno – Tonno is the Italian name for tuna. Substitute any solid white albacore tuna, however packed in olive oil is best.

Prosciutto – You can substitute 4 oz of thin sliced deli ham.

Greek Yogurt – You can substitute plain yogurt.

To print a copy of this recipe go to Antipasto Tuna Salad.

Almond Chocolate Whoopie Pies

Makes 32 Whoopie Pies

The origin of the whoopie pie is as varied and controversial as the hamburger. Berwick Cake Company claims to have developed it to compete with Devil Dogs in 1927. Pennsylvania Dutch mothers would put it in their kid’s lunch and they would shout “Whoopie!” when they would open their lunch boxes.  The third claim comes from a frugal cook in Bangor Maine who didn’t want to waste some left over cake batter. No matter who invented Whoopie Pies, what’s better than two circles of cake sandwiching a sweet filling.

My version of this dessert is an inside out version the classic Whoopie pie with an Italian flavor. The cake is almond flavored (not chocolate) and the inside is filled with chocolate-hazelnut spread and sweetened mascarpone cream. This is now an adult dessert that is suitable for a dinner party, a pot luck supper or just a way to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Cake Ingredients

1 C Granulated Sugar

½ C Vegetable Shortening

2 Large Eggs, room temperature

½ C Buttermilk *

½ C Water

1 tsp Almond Extract *

2 ¾ C All Purpose Flour

1 ½ tsp Cream of Tartar

½ tsp Baking Soda

¼ tsp Table Salt

Filling Ingredients

8 oz Mascarpone Cheese *

1 tsp Almond Extract

¼ C Confectionary Sugar

1 C Nutella Chocolate Hazelnut Spread

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment, or lightly spray with cooking spray.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the sugar and shortening until light and fluffy. To the creamed mixture, add the buttermilk and water, mix well. Add the eggs and vanilla. The mixture will look lumpy and curdled, but will come together when the dry ingredients are incorporated.

 In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Add to the wet ingredients and beat for one minute. Do not over mix, or the cake will be tough.

Using a tablespoon sized cookie scoop, place scoops of batter approximately 2 inches apart on the cookie sheets. You can bake right away for higher domed cakes, or let sit 5 minutes for wider cakes. Bake the cakes for 12-14 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean and the cakes are springy to the touch.

In a large clean bowl, mix the 8 oz of mascarpone, 1 tsp almond extract and ¼ C of powered sugar on low just until incorporated.

 To assemble, spread 1 tsp of mascarpone filling on half of the cooled cakes, and 1 teaspoons of Nutella Chocolate Hazelnut Spread on the other half. Place the halves together and press gently to spread filling to edges. Store in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.

Non Refrigerated Alternative

If you want a whoopie pie that does not need to be refrigerated skip the mascarpone filling and spread Nutella on both cake halves.

* PRONTO SUBSTITUTES

Buttermilk – If you don’t have buttermilk, mix ½ C milk with ½ teaspoon of white vinegar.

Almond Extract – For a milder flavor substitute vanilla extract.

Mascarpone Cheese – Cream cheese can be substituted but it will give you a sweeter filling. If you are not a fan of mascarpone or cream cheese you can use vanilla frosting or a marshmallow filling.

To print this recipe, go to Almond Chocolate Whoopie Pies