THE FOOD DISCIPLE

Hello Everyone!

TGIF!! Been looking forward to the weekend from like Monday, this week was a hassle right from the very first day; and I could not wait for it to be over already. Today’s recipe is one of those special dishes I enjoy, but I only get to cook once in awhile or on special occasions. Osso Buco is an Italian dish made commonly with veal shank in a rich tomato based sauce. I had this dish at a restaurant downtown Toronto about a year ago, and I just had to learn how to make it. I have been preparing this in my home for a while now trying out different recipes and I have come to love this one; it hits the spot for me every time.

Osso Buco usually takes in total over 3 hours to prepare because it is cooked on low heat, so that the ingredients marry together in the tomato sauce and the veal, so you can achieve a beautiful rich flavor, and the meat cooks so soft until it literally falls off the bone. It’s a bit pricey to prepare and time consuming, that is why I do not make it often. However, it is a thousand percent worth your time, I promise you😋. This is definitely a dish you can prepare if you want to leave an impression on someone special😉 or if you want to properly dine your friends and family; give them a taste of luxury in your own home. To learn how to prepare this, continue reading.

PS: You can use Pork Shank, if you are not able to find veal or if it is too expensive for you. Pork will also do the job.

Now let’s get to it.

Enjoy!

Osso Buco (Veal)

July 23, 2017

Servings: 3

Prep: 20 min

Cook: 3 hr 10 min

Total: 3 hr 30 min

Difficulty: Medium

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By: admin

Ingredients

• 3 Veal Shanks
• 1 Medium Carrot (diced)
• 2 Stalks of Celery (diced)
• 1 Large Onion (chopped)
• 4-5 Strips of Bacon (diced)
• 1 Large Can of Whole Peeled Tomatoes
• 1 Cup of Dry White Wine
• 1 Cup of Veal/Beef Broth
• 1 tsp of Thyme
• ½ tsp of Oregano
• 1 tsp of Rosemary
• ½ tsp of dry crushed Bay Leaves
• 1 tsp of Cinnamon (recommended but optional)
• 4-5 Tbsp of Butter
• ½ Cup of Flour
• ½ tbsp of Black Pepper
• 1 Cup of Parsley
• 1 Lemon
• 3-4 Garlic (minced)
• ⅓ of a Olive Oil
• Salt
• Kitchen twine

Directions

• Step 1 Tie your veal shanks with kitchen twine to prevent it from breaking off, as the sauce will be cooking for a long time.
• Step 2 In a small bowl, add your flour and season with black pepper and salt. Before coating your veal shank, season both sides lightly with salt and black pepper. Add salt and pepper according to preference. After seasoning veal, coat both sides with your seasoned flour and set aside.
• Step 3 In your dutch pot or cast iron, add olive oil and butter on medium heat. Add veal when oil is hot and cook both sides until brown or rather caramelized. Take out your veal shanks and set aside. Add onion and let it cook down for 2-3 minutes, add bacon, stir for about 2-3 minutes until caramelized and then add your garlic. I added Bacon because of the extra flavor it brings plus bacon has a lot of fat in it which will flavor the sauce beautifully, hey everything’s better with bacon😋.
• Step 4 Add your wine to deglaze, stirring frequently for about 1-2 minutes. Now add your dry herbs, cinnamon, carrots and celery. Cover and allow to cook down for 4-5 minutes. Now add your veal shanks, broth and tomatoes. Before putting tomatoes, crush tomatoes a little bit with your fingers before adding to your pot. Stir carefully, cover and cook on low heat. Do not cover pot completely, leave the pot cover slightly open, when I say slightly, like it is almost closed but not completely. I do this so that some steam can escape while cooking.
• Step 5 Leave to simmer for about 3 hours, check within the hour and carefully stir.. Do this until sauce has completely reduced in size and you have a lovely thick tomato sauce.
• Step 6 In a blender or food processor, blend your parsley, 2-3 cloves of garlic and lemon juice to make your gremolata. Top your veal with gremolata during your last 10 mins of cooking time, cover and leave to simmer for 10 minutes.
• Step 7 Your food is ready!!!
• Step 8 Serve with Polenta, Pasta or Baguette

Hello Everyone,

I hope you are having a good day. Here is a quick recipe you can prepare and enjoy for lunch or dinner. While I was preparing the feast I and my friends enjoyed for Christmas, I was able to prepare this for lunch really quick and it did not take out time from the rest of the work I was doing at that moment. Creamy, cheesy, yummy and deliiicious! Make this a part of your meal plan and I bet you will not be disappointed. Hey Zinny Factor I know your readers will enjoy this 😉:)

Let’s get to it

Enjoy!

Sausage Balls served on Creamy Macaroni

July 22, 2017

Servings: 5

Prep: 20 min

Cook: 25 min

Total: 45 min

Difficulty: Easy

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By: admin

Ingredients

• 1 lb of Sausage meat
• 3-4 Cups of Macaroni
• 1 Large Can of Coconut Milk
• 1 Stalk of Celery (diced)
• 1 Large Carrot (diced)
• Yellow Onion ( halved and chopped)
• 1 tsp of Paprika
• 1 tsp of Cayenne pepper
• ½ tsp of Cinnamon spice
• ½ tsp of Black Pepper
• 1 tbsp of Italian Seasoning
• 4 Bay leaves
• A pinch of freshly grated Nutmeg
• 2 tbsp of Butter
• 1 Cup of Parmesan Cheese
• ¼ a cup of Flour
• 2 Seasoning Cubes
• 3 tbsp of Olive Oil
• Freshly chopped Parsley (Garnish)
• Salt

Directions

• Step 1 In a small bowl, season sausage meat with salt, 1 seasoning cube and Black Pepper.Mix properly and roll into small meatballs.
• Step 2 In a sauce pan, heat up oil on medium low heat. Once hot, lightly roll meatballs into flour and place into the pot and brown for 5-7 mins or until cooked. Remember to turn the meatballs often to make sure all sides are completely cooked.Remove from pan and set aside.
• Step 3 Add your onion, celery and carrot to the same oil used to cook the meat and cook for 2-3 mins. Add your spices ( paprika, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, bay leaves, italian seasoning, seasoning cubes and salt). Properly stir and cook for another 3-4 mins. Add coconut milk, sausage meat and reduce heat to medium low, slowly cook for another 7-10 mins. For a lil kick you can add some chilli pepper to the mix.
• Step 4 Cook Pasta in a slightly salted water until al dente. Sieve and set aside.
• Step 5 Add butter to your sauce, pasta and cheese. Properly mix together until pasta is completely coated with sauce, garnish with parsley and simmer for 1-2 mins.
• Step 6 Your food is ready!!

Hello Everyone!

Happy New Week!! Today’s lunch or dinner inspiration is my delicious creamy chicken and mushroom pasta. Yummmmm!😋 What I love about this dish is the way the shells hold on to the sauce, enjoying each other’s warm embrace ah!! just amazing. It’s super easy and it is always a hit when I prepare this for my friends, and my clients are always pleased. I used coconut milk instead of cream because of its richness and it makes everything so much better! The simplicity of this meal, makes it stand out and it is always on my menu; comfort food at it’s finest.

Now let’s get to it.

Enjoy!

Creamy Chicken and Mushroom Pasta

June 25, 2017

Servings: 4

Prep: 10 min

Cook: 30 min

Total: 40 min

Difficulty: Easy

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By: admin

Ingredients

• 1 lb of Chicken Thighs (cut in chunks)
• 3 cups of Shells Pasta
• 1 cup of Cremini Mushroom
• 2 cups of Chicken stock
• 2-3 Cups of Coconut Milk
• Parmesan Cheese (grated)
• Yellow Onion (halved and chopped)
• 2 Cloves of Garlic (minced)
• A pinch of Fresh Nutmeg (Grated)
• 1 tsp of black pepper
• ½ tsp of Ground Chili Pepper
• 1 tsp of Paprika
• 1 tbsp of Rosemary leaves
• Parsley (Finely chopped)
• 2-3 tbsp of Butter
• 2 tbsp of Olive Oil
• Salt

Directions

• Step 1 In a bowl, Season Chicken with black pepper, chili pepper, paprika and salt. Marinate for 20- 25 mins. Add salt according to preference.
• Step 2 In a sauce pan, add your olive oil and when hot, add your chicken and cook until chicken is no longer pink on the inside. Cook on medium heat.
• Step 3 Add onions,garlic, rosemary leaves and mushroom and cook until translucent. Add your chicken stock and cook for about 5-6 minutes until the stock reduces to half.
• Step 4 Bring water to a boil in a separate pot and cook pasta until Al Dente. Make sure you salt your water as salty as seawater. Sieve pasta when cooked and place back into pot. Save ¼ cup of pasta water.
• Step 5 Add your coconut milk and nutmeg  into your sauce and simmer for 4-5 minutes.
• Step 6 In your pasta pot, add butter, reserved pasta water and Parmesan Cheese into pasta and stir on medium low heat for 1-2 minutes. Add your creamy sauce into pasta, garnish with parsley and properly stir altogether.
• Step 7 Your Food is ready!!!