Lets Eat Wursts

For our initial try of the sausages from The Wurst Kitchen, we opted for the first one I came to in the freezer - Chicken Cordon Bleu - which we just grilled and served with some parboiled then grilled sweet potatoes.

A Visit With Eric And Family – Sunday

We had originally planned to stay another day but since Eric had to work, Ann was leaving town and the weather was nasty, we decided to drive home Monday and make this our final day, so we marked the last two things off of our list.  We began with all six of us making a mid-morning drive west into Aurora – the adjoining town and 2^nd largest city in IL. 

Our destination was The Wurst Kitchen, which has been making sausages since 1895 and sits on the corner in a residential neighborhood.

A Visit With Eric And Family – Friday Night & Saturday

Friday night, we went to Lou Manalti’s Pizzeria in Naperville where we had “The Lou” deep dish and a pepperoni for the kids.  We ordered ahead so we had less of a wait in the balmy 75F sunshine.

A Visit With Eric And Family – The Area

Eric and Ann moved to Naperville, IL (southwest of Chicago) a couple of years ago and we had yet to make it up for a visit but things finally fell into place and we recently drove up for a long weekend.  In addition to seeing them and the grand kids and seeing their home and Naperville, we wanted to do some food things – eat a deep dish pizza, eat a Chicago hot dog, eat some ethnic food, and visit a sausage maker.

They live in a nice neighborhood which is now seeing its second generation of young owners and is typical of homes built around the early 60’s.  They have a shaded lot backed up to a golf course and a split level home that has a very similar floor plan to the one I spent my late teens living in – a plus for me was the need to negotiate stairs (good knee exercise) many times a day.  Here is a shot from Google Earth – no tree leaves when we visited.

Greek Pasta Bake (Toss)

I had been craving something with Greek flavors and especially a pasta dish and we had some tomatoes we needed to use so I looked through my saved recipes (I have about three lifetimes worth) to discover one from Taste Of Home which sounded almost perfect but I adapted it a little to suit our taste and ingredients – we prefer tossed vs. baked for most pasta dishes.

Greek Pasta Bake Toss – Adapted From “Taste Of Home”

Ingredients:

1 package penne pasta

3-4 cups cubed cooked chicken breast (we grilled ours)

29 ounce can tomato sauce

1 cup fresh tomatoes, diced and squeezed a little

1 cup cherry tomatoes, whole or halved depending on size

2 packages fresh spinach, chopped and sautéed (or 10 oz frozen)

½ cup each sliced ripe and kalamata olives, sliced

1/3 cup chopped onion

2 tablespoons chopped yellow pepper

1 tsp minced garlic

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup crumbled feta cheese, plus more for garnish

Directions:

1. In a 12” sauté pan, with some olive oil, cook the onion and green pepper until soft, then add the garlic and cook until fragrant.

2. Add the spinach and sauté until well wilted and most of the liquid is gone.

3. Stir in the tomato sauce, diced & grape tomatoes, chicken, herbs, olives, and S&P to taste and simmer about 20 minutes.

4. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and return to cooking pan

5. Add the sauce to the pasta cooking pan along with the cheeses and toss until well combined.

6. Plate and top with a little more feta.

We served it with a Caesar salad for a delicious meal – this was definitely a keeper pasta dish.

Photos can be enlarged by clicking on them.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by Almost Heaven South.

Larry

3/21/17 Meal Date

Wine Club BBQ

Over the past year or so, our wine club seems to have morphed into a supper club with wine playing a very diminished role and the entrée, provided by the hosts, becoming the star of the evening.  Since I haven’t cooked BBQ in a while, we decided it would make a good entrée and theme, but it is beyond hard to come up with your wine pairing for the BBQ.

We provided ABT’s (stuffed jalapenos) as an appetizer, slaw as a side, and pulled pork, ribs, and brisket as the entrée.

Good Eats and Cars vs. Concrete

My last post was for a Beef Oscar dish and we had some leftovers that just screamed to be made into breakfast.  So I added a little butter to a skillet and tossed in some of the chopped asparagus and crab meat, shortly followed by a nice scoop of the Bearnaise.  When the sauce began to melt, I added a couple of well beaten eggs and scrambled into soft curds.  It wasn't an inspiring photo, but sided with a slice of buttered toast, it made for an excellent breakfast.