Meatless Monday: Zucchini Parmesan

The Wisconsin Test Kitchen is full of Italian food lovers. We love homemade pasta, sausage and peppers and a thick, ten pound lasagna. A few nights ago, we were craving eggplant parmesan. We were out of eggplant, but had 4 beautiful, fresh zucchini instead. So, we tried zucchini parmesan instead.
This is a recipe to hold onto for a Friday or Saturday night when you have time (and a bottle of wine!) to kill. It's a little time consuming, you need to flour and fry the zucchini in batches... which is kind of a pain. But, that's the most labor intensive part of the recipe. Once you're done pan frying the zucchini, all you need to do is layer the rest of the ingredients and bake until golden brown. And then enjoy, with a little Frank Sinatra or Dean Martin in the background. Instant date night!

Zucchini Parmesan
Recipe courtesy of: http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/zucchini-parmesan/#_a5y_p=2086411


INGREDIENTS:

2-3 zucchini, ends trimmed, sliced into 1/3" discs
coarse salt and freshly-cracked black pepper
1 cup all-purpose flour
vegetable or canola oil
2/3 cup of your favorite tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1 large ball or block fresh mozzarella (about 4 1/2 ounces), torn into small pieces
small handful of basil leaves, roughly torn
2/3 cup freshly-grated Parmesan (about 3 ounces)

DIRECTIONS:

Sprinkle slices of zucchini with a small pinch of coarse salt and freshly-cracked black pepper on each side.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

In a large bowl, lightly dredge the zucchini slices in the flour, tapping them on the side of the bowl to shake off excess flour.

Heat 1/4 cup oil in a large skillet over high heat. When a pinch of flour sizzles on contact, add the zucchini slices in a single layer, turn the heat to medium-high and cook for about one and a half minutes on each side or until dark golden brown. Transfer the zucchini to paper towels to drain. Repeat in batches until all of your zucchini it is cooked, adding more oil as necessary.

In a 13 x 9-inch baking dish (or oven-proof skillet), arrange as many slices of zucchini as can fit snugly in a single layer. Top each slice with a small spoonful of tomato sauce, a few crushed red pepper flakes (if desired), and mozzarella.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the cheese has melted and begun to turn a golden color. Add parmesan and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Remove from oven, and garnish with torn basil. Serve immediately.

Like we mentioned, this is kind of a putzy recipe, but it's well worth the effort. We loved the crisp texture of the zucchini and the fresh mozarella really elevated the dish (way better than the shredded store-bought stuff). Give it a try next time you're craving some Italian comfort food!

Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew

Meatless Monday: Pasta Primavera

The Wisconsin Test Kitchen was at a party a few weeks ago, and we mentioned to someone that we eat a lot of pizza, because it's an easy way to clean out the fridge.

"What?" Someone asked us with a really confused look.

"It's an easy way to get rid of a lot of vegetables," Kevin explained. "You can use fresh tomatoes, some mushrooms... pretty much whatever you have in the fridge. You throw it on a pizza crust and call it dinner."

We can't be the only ones out there that do this. Someone help and throw us a lifeline, here. 

We embraced this philosophy hard core a few weeks ago when we had a pasta primavera dish, which we ended up dubbing 'dump pasta': as in, you dump everything in the fridge into the pasta. 

This is a really forgiving recipe. For example, we were out of broccoli, so we used mushrooms instead. We also added a dish of black olives we had left over from pizza night, as well as some extra tomatoes. Like we said... forgiving. 

Pasta Primavera

Recipe inspired by:  http://wholeandheavenlyoven.com/2015/04/02/springtime-veggie-pasta-primavera/

Ingredients
1 lb bowtie pasta (or pasta cut of your choice)
2 cups fresh broccoli florets
2 cups asparagus spears, trimmed and cut into 2-in pieces
1 large sweet pepper, diced
1 medium onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup fresh spinach, roughly chopped
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons minced fresh basil
Salt and pepper to taste
Grated Parmesan cheese for topping

Instructions
Cook pasta according to package instructions, reserving 1/2 cup pasta cooking water. Set aside.
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, saute broccoli, asparagus, pepper, onion, and garlic in olive oil until veggies are just tender, about 7-10 minutes. 

Stir in spinach, peas, and cherries tomatoes and continue cooking an additional 5 minutes.

Remove cooked veggies from heat and stir in cooked pasta, 1/2 cup reserved pasta cooking water, lemon juice, and basil. 

Season with salt and pepper to taste and top pasta primavera with grated Parmesan cheese. Serve warm.

This is a great summertime dinner, it's full of bright, clean flavors; and it's an easy way to sneak lots of veggies into your weekly meals. The yield on this is so big, it was dinner, and lunch the next day. Bonus vegetables!!

Give this a try on your next meatless Monday; you'll be glad you did!

Stay Cool,

The Cool Dads Crew

Friday Fun: The BEST potato salad

Do you ever find yourself losing hours of your life on Pinterest, only to find your house is a disaster, your kids are hungry and your laundry hamper is overflowing?

No? 

Just us? 

Damn. 

Oh well. On one of our recent Pinterest binges, we found a recipe that advertised itself as "the best potato salad ever". We were immediately skeptical. We've eaten gallons of potato salad in our day... some great, some not so much. So we were ready to give it a try over Memorial Day weekend. 

The recipe was pretty basic. We weren't impressed. So, we did what every great test kitchen does... we made the recipe our own. The end result really was something special. 

Cool Dads Potato Salad

Ingredients
6 medium sized yellow potatoes
6 hard-boiled eggs, diced
4 radishes, sliced thinly
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon yellow mustard

Franks Red Hot Sauce- or any other hot sauce you prefer. Franks works for us

Directions

Boil the potatoes until they are just soft – you don’t want them to be too mushy. It should take approximately 30-45 minutes.

Let them cool, then peel them and cut them into bite-sized pieces. Combine with the eggs, radishes, salt and pepper. 

Mix together the mayonnaise, yellow mustard and a few shakes of hot sauce, and fold into the potatoes. Let chill for at least 30 minutes before serving. The longer it sits, the better this potato salad tastes.

Is it the Best Potato Salad ever? We think it's pretty darn close! We served it at Sunday lunch last week, and it received rave reviews. One guest even commented that she never thought of putting radishes in her potato salad before; and now that's how she plans on preparing it! You don't get a much better compliment than that. Give it a try, and let us know your opinion.

Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew

Kids in the Kitchen Wednesday: S'more Dip

This blog is proudly sponsored by The Sandlot. Not sure about you, but that movie screams "SUMMERTIME!!!!" The Wisconsin Test Kitchen shared it with SB a few weeks ago, and she loved it. It's a happy little piece of nostalgia for kids that grew up in the 90's. 

We were craving s'mores the other night, but the weather wasn't cooperating. It was cold, damp and 50 degrees. Not ideal campfire weather. So, we went with plan B, and tried making s'more dip. 

S'more Dip

Recipe courtesy of: http://www.dessertfortwo.com/2013/12/indoor-smores/

Ingredients
1 cup chocolate chips
8 large marshmallows
graham crackers for dipping

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 450.
In a cast iron skillet, add the chocolate chips (we used Hershey bars, since we were out of chocolate chips. And we wanted it to be as authentic as possible).

Snip the large marshmallows in half and top the chocolate chips with them. (You could also use a scoop of mini marshmallows alternatively.)

Once the oven is up to temperature, add the skillet to the oven. Bake for 7-9 minutes, or until the marshmallows turn golden brown.

Serve with graham crackers for scooping.

So, what was the verdict? I think the empty skillet speaks for itself. We thought it was actually better than actual s'mores, because the chocolate was meltier. But it was the perfect substitute for the real thing. Excuse us while we go watch The Sandlot for the 800th time. 

Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew

Meatless Monday: Creamy Spinach Tomato Tortellini

"I don't like tortellini!" The youngest member of the Wisconsin Test Kitchen, SB, announced to us last week.

Seriously, kid? 

Tortellini is pasta and cheese... two foods you eat consistently. Except, it's combined together for your eating convenience.

"Nope, I don't like it." She told us.

We feel the need to mention, SB has never even tried a tortellini. Her mother's Italian heart was breaking into multiple pieces. But we were undeterred. We were having creamy tomato and spinach tortellini for dinner, and she was going to not only eat it, but enjoy it, damn it! 

Ready for the big reveal? She loved it. Almost as much as we did. This is the perfect weeknight dinner to throw together- it's a hearty dish that's full of vegetables, and extremely satisfying.

Creamy Spinach Tomato Tortellini
Recipe courtesy of: http://www.cookingclassy.com/2014/06/creamy-spinach-tomato-tortellini/

Ingredients
1 (20 oz) pkg three cheese tortellini (preferably the refrigerated kind)
2 Tbsp butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp onion powder
1 1/4 cups milk (I used 2%, anything but skim works fine)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes (undrained) *We used fresh tomatoes because we had a ton of them in the fridge*
1 1/2 cups (packed) chopped fresh spinach
3 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
2 tsp chopped fresh oregano (or 1/2 tsp dry)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 Tbsp finely shredded parmesan, plus more for serving
Red pepper flakes, for serving (optional)

Directions
Cook tortellini according to directions listed on package.
Meanwhile, in a large and deep skillet or saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add garlic and saute 30 seconds, then add flour and onion powder and cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. 

While whisking, slowly pour in milk and cream, then whisk until smooth. 

Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture begins to simmer, then add tomatoes, spinach, basil and oregano. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook several minutes longer until sauce has thickened and spinach has wilted. Add parmesan cheese and stir until melted. Remove from heat.

Toss prepared and drained tortellini into sauce mixture (note that as the pasta rests, the sauce will seem thicker and it will sort of soak into the noodles. 

So, if you won't be serving it for 10 minutes or so you can stir in some pasta water, milk or cream to thin it out if desired). Serve warm sprinkled with additional parmesan cheese if desired and optional red pepper flakes.

Be like SB, and try something different for dinner tonight. You might even like it!

Stay Cool,

The Cool Dads Crew

Friday Fun: Beer Can Burgers

Have you seen the tasty images of the Beer Can Burgers all over Facebook? You know what we're talking about; the big juicy patties hollowed out in the middle (with the help of a beer can!), and filled with all kinds of vegetables, and then wrapped in bacon? Yep, wipe the drool off your screen- we're right there with you. The Arkansas Test Kitchen breaks these tasty bites of heaven down for you.

Beer Can Burgers

3 lbs. ground beef (we used 80/20)
Salt (to taste)
Pepper (to taste)
Onion power (to taste)
Bacon (because bacon makes everything taste better)
Sautéed onion (one medium sized onion)
Sautéed bell pepper (one medium sized pepper)
Shredded cheese

1. Preheat grill

2. Season your ground beef with the salt, pepper and onion powder

3. Use ½ lb of ground beef and mold around a cold beer can (make sure the can is cold, so the meat doesn't stick to it).

4. Before removing the can from the beef, wrap the ground beef with bacon

5. Remove the can and fill the hole with cheese, sautéed onion and peppers, and top with additional cheese

6. Place on a pre-oiled grill (we recommend having a cool spot on the grill- with the bacon and hamburger grease, there is a chance of flare ups).

7. Cook burgers until they reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees

Now that grilling season has officially kicked off, you have a great excuse to try these thick, indulgent, juicy burgers. 

Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew