Rosemary Potatoes

Every Saturday and Sunday morning, okay, around noon, we have brunch (we try to get up earlier but let's be honest, it never happens).  And brunch ALWAYS means potatoes!  Sliced, diced, or shredded, we're done em all.  Here is one of our favorites. 

Ingredients
6-8 small potatoes
olive oil
1-2 tsp salt
1-2 tbsp rosemary

Directions
Preheat the oven to 425.

Slice potatoes so they are about 1/4 inch thick.  If you slice them too thin, they'll burn and then I'm forced to eat them because I like burned things.  Anyway.

Put potatoes on an olive oil sprayed cookie sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil.  Sprinkle with rosemary and salt.

Bake for about 30 minutes, take them out and flip them over, then cook for about 15 minutes more.

Batman Sandwiches

Say what???  Since we've been snowed in Brad's apartment for the last 40ish hours (thank you Snowstorm Nemo), it was time to go out on a snowy adventure.  After playing in the snow, we ventured over to Whole Foods to see if it was open, and it was!  What should we make!  We decided earlier that we should bring $20 with us, just in case it was open and we needed to buy something.

Well, pre-made pesto is pretty pricey (especially at Whole Foods), so we decided to make our own from scratch. 

What is a Batman Sandwich you ask?  This is a Stamm Family tradition.  Baguette, pesto, (optional tomato), and fresh mozzarella slices.  Stack, eat, repeat.

Ingredients
Pesto:
1 large package fresh basil (stems removed)
2 cloves garlic
3/4 cup grated parmesan
olive oil - you'll have to play with this to see how much to add
salt to taste

Directions
Add basil, chopped garlic, parmesan, and salt together.  Drizzle a little olive oil in and use the immersion blender to "immershe" it.  Slowly add more olive oil until it is the proper consistency.  Leave it a little chunky, you don't want it super smooth.  You will probably need 3/4 of a cup or so in total...but it's always easier to add than take away.

Pizza - Goat Cheese, Broccoli Rabe, and Lemon Zest

Yum!  That's all I have to say.  No picture of this one but next time we make it I'll add a picture.

Ingredients
refrigerated pizza dough from Trader Joe's
1 cup broccoli rabe
4 oz. goat cheese in slices or chunks (very cold - try putting it in the freezer 10 minutes before you use it)
2 cloves of garlic very thinly sliced
2 tbsp lemon zest
1 tbsp lemon juice

Directions
Preheat the oven to 450.

Roll out pizza dough on a floured surface into a surfboard shape (we used an empty wine bottle since I don't have a rolling pin).

You need to cook the dough first.  Place dough on an olive oil sprayed cookie sheet.  Bake for about 2-3 minutes, take out, flip, and cook the other side for another 2-3 minutes. 

Chop the broccoli rabe into 1 inch long pieces.  Lightly sautee in a pan with olive oil and lemon juice. 

Now let's add the ingredients to the crust.  Spread the broccoli rabe, slices of goat cheese, garlic, and lemon zest over the entire pizza. 

Bake for about 6 more minutes, until the goat cheese gets a little bit melty and the crust begins to brown.  Keep an eye on it, it cooks quickly!

Mushroom Barley Stew

I'll be honest, I didn't think Brad would like this.  But it turns out he loved it!  It's really filling and tastes hearty enough to not need any meat.  And best of all, you can make it in a crock pot!  So toss everything in before you go to bed and in the morning, voila!  Stew! 

You can play around with the ingredients, but this is what we did:

Ingredients

1 cup pearl barley

1½ cups lentils

6 cups water (you’ll probably need to add more)

2 cups white or portabella mushrooms sliced (use the whole container)

1 cup shitake mushrooms in chunks (use the whole container)

1 cup chopped carrots

1 chopped onion (instead of 1 tbsp of onion powder)

¼ cup olive oil

1 tbsp garlic powder (or use fresh garlic)

3 bay leaves

Salt and pepper to taste – not very much

½ tsp dried thyme

1-2 tbsp "beef" broth powder (veggie beef broth)

Directions

Add all ingredients to a crock pot.  Stir occasionally, add water as needed.  Cook for at least 4 hours on low.  Remove bay leaves when it's done.  Enjoy!