O'Connor Stoup

 O'Connor Stoup

     O'Connor Stoup, what is this? Well, O'Connor is my Irish sides surname, (along with a few others), and Stoup is just a new name for a dish that falls in-between and soup and a stew. This "Stoup" is packed full of traditional Irish flavors and ingredients with the addition of an amazing Irish cheddar cheese I picked up at my local grocery. O'Connor Stoup.

Ingredients:

• 2 tbs butter
• 1/2 white onion diced
• 1 stalk celery diced
• 1-2 carrot sliced
• 2 cups small yellow potatoes cut in half
• 1 cup shredded cabbage
• 2 cups ham chunks
• 1 box chicken stock, additional water if needed based on size of potatoes and space.
• Diced fresh parsley
• 1 large Bay leaf
• 1 cup Irish Cheddar chunks
• 1/2 cup cream
• Salt/pepper

1. In a large stock pot over medium high heat melt the butter and sauté the onion, celery, and carrot until tender.

2. Toss in shredded cabbage and begin to wilt it. 

3. Pour in stock and bring to simmer.

4. Toss in potatoes and ham chunks. Mix in parsley and Bay leaf and continue to simmer until potatoes are fork tender.

5. Stir in the cream and Irish cheddar. Continue to stir until cheese has melted and you have a thick creamy base.

6. Remove Bay leaf, salt and pepper to taste and serve. 

     This "Stoup" was extremely delicious, full of flavor, hearty and with the perfect amount of cheesy goodness. Enjoy!

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Serves: 4+ 

BEANS and Cornbread: A Country Staple

 

 

 

     I have published the cornbread recipe on here before and briefly explained how to make the soup beans.  Since I was craving this dish again this winter I decided to give you one of the ways to make the beans for this dish.  Whether using a stockpot or crockpot, this dish cannot be any easier. Soup Beans

 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups Northern White Beans
• 1/4 white onion diced
• 1/2 green bell pepper diced
• Some ham or hamhock
• 1 tsp thyme
• Salt/pepper

 

1. Place beans in the crockpot and soak in water overnight.

2. Rinse and remove water from night before.

3. Dice up the onion, pepper, and ham and throw in the crockpot.

4. Cover with enough water to be about an inch above the bean mixture.

5. Turn on to low and let cook for up to 8 hours.

I like to once the mixture is done, take a masher and mash up some of the beans in order to make a thicker souper mixture.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Inactive Time: 6-8 hours

Cook Time: 7-8 hours

Serves: 4+

This is one of those simple, yet delicious country staples for any family. You will love it.

 

 

You can find the cornbread recipe here: http://recipesiliveby.blogspot.com/search/label/Cornbread

 



Split Pea Soup

     So I received a fantastic Irish Pub cookbook for Christmas and decided to try my hand at a simple yet delicious soup. Split Pea soup is so simple but yet full of flavor. I had never had it before, not even on my trip to Ireland, or from my families recipes, but thought I should give it a try. I took the original recipe and cut it into half afraid I may not like it. So here goes; Split Pea Soup.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup split peas
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1/4 white onion diced
• 1 small carrot chopped
• 1/2 celery stalk
• 2 cup chicken stock
• 1 3/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup cubed ham
• Pinch thyme
• Pinch marjoram
• 1 small bay leaf
• Salt/pepper to taste

1. Rinse the peas under cold running water. Place in medium saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil for 3 minutes skimming off foam on the surface. Drain.

2. In same sauce pan drizzle olive oil and saute the onion until tender.

3. Add in carrot and celery and continue to cook.

4. Add back in the peas, chicken stock, and water.

5. Bring to a boil, add in ham, thyme, marjoram, and bay leaf. Lower heat and simmer for 1 hour.

     This soup was so full of flavor. Wasn't just like eating a plate of peas. The ham, the herbs, and the heartiness of it all was fantastic. Served with a fresh slice of warm soda bread and butter and this meal was fulfilling.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Serves: 3-4



Summertime Napoleon

Summertime Napoleon

 

 

This is the perfect Summertime meal. Perfect for even vegetarians, (minus the meat). I made a fresh batch of homemade pesto sauce for sale and had some leftover. I was craving something other than pasta so came up with this great idea to grill some of the local produce I had come across and make a stack sort of veggie dish perfect for those hot summer evenings. I had just ran out to the store and picked up some great sliced prosciutto to add that little something extra to this dish. It was great. Quick, simple, and full of flavor. I felt healthier just eating it. Summertime Napoleon.

 

 

Ingredients:

• 1 large eggplant
• 1 large zucchini
• I large tomato
• Sliced Prosciutto
• Sliced fresh mozzarella
• Pesto
• Olive oil
• Salt/pepper

 

1. Slice the eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, and mozzarella. Drizzle and rub some olive oil over the sliced eggplant and zucchini.

 

2. Over a hot grill pan, or grill itself, grill the eggplant and zucchini in batches until grill marks appear on each side and the meat is tender.

 

3. Now for the easy part. Layer a slice of eggplant, then prosciutto, mozzarella, zucchini, then tomato. Continue until you have a nicely layered stack or fanned out veggie plate. Salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle some pesto and viola!

 

This dish with very little meat in it will easily become one of your favorite meals of the summer. So full of flavor and just that perfect fill up when you don't feel like really cooking.

 

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Serves: 3+

Muffuletta

 


Muffuletta

     It is that time of year again. When the good ole Christians celebrate by partying it up to no ends right before giving up everything sinful in hopes of being accepted into the pearly gates of heaven. (Haha). As a good Catholic myself, (wink, wink, wink), I too, even though I rarely go to church with exception of Easter and Christmas, give up something for the Lent season. This post is more than about the traditions of the Christian church and its families, and more about a certain delicious dish that is traditional in the heart of America's celebrated Christian tradition of Mardi Gras.

     Mardi Gras as we all know is celebrated the weekend prior to and leading up to the beginning of the Lent Season. Celebrated as part of the Catholic Carnival tradition in many countries, here in the USA it is prominent in New Orleans, Louisiana. The term "Mardi Gras" actual means in French, Fat Tuesday. The traditional day prior to Ash Wednesday when you consume fatty foods, drink, and all else before fasting until the day of the risen king Jesus. In New Orleans and popular item considered one of the true NOLA dishes along with other French, Cajun, Creole inspired dishes is the Muffuletta.

     The Muffuletta however has no origins in French, Cajun, or Creole cultures, but with Sicilian culture. Sicilian immigrants that came to the USA and planted in the New Orleans area brought with them a traditional bread called, you guessed it, Muffuletta. A round sesame crusted bread similar to Focaccia. Once they began stuffing the bread with different meats and cheeses and a marinated olive combination, the sandwich was born and continued to be called after the bread on which it is served, Muffuletta.

Ingredients:

• 1 round Sicilian Sesame loaf or Focaccia
• 4 oz mortadella or bologna
• 4 oz salami
• 4 oz ham
• 8 oz provolone
• 8 oz mozzarella
• 1 10 oz jar Artisan Blend Olives

1. Take artisan blend olives, (I used a store bought jar of mixed olives with peppers and garlic in oil), and chop up in food process. *** (Do not forget to check and remove pits within the olives)

2. Cut the loaf of bread into half and gut out the center. Reserve for something at a later date.

3. Start to layer mortadella, then salami, then ham, then provolone, the mozzarella. Repeat.

4. On top layer of bread spread the olive mixture and then flip and top off the loaf.

5. Place in 250 degree oven for about 10 minutes until the cheese has melted and the bread has gotten even crunchier on outside.

     I couldn't find sesame loaf so I substituted focaccia bread. Oh and please remember to pit the olives. I have to admit, that I went ahead and chopped them whole in my food processor and kept wondering why it was sputtering. Later to find out when I took my first bite, there were still pits in there. LOL. Lesson learned.

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Serves: 4-5

Katia's Parmigiana

Katia's Parmigiana

      I already have another recipe on here for Eggplant Parmesan but after traveling to Italy and seeing family and trying my cousins own version of Parmigiana di Melanzane, I was hooked. This dish was so delicious and unusual that I fell madly in love with it. She utilized something’s as simple as hardboiled eggs, prosciutto, and a quick tomato mixture that it was amazing how delicious and simple this dish was. It does take some time preparing but once it is out of the oven and ready to be served you will be so thankful you took the extra steps to build this dish. Grazie cugina per la ricetta!!! Please enjoy Katia's Parmigiana

Ingredients:

• 1 lg eggplant
• 8 slices prosciutto cooked
• 6 hardboiled eggs sliced
• 2 12 oz cans diced tomatoes
• Olive oil
• Small handful fresh basil
• 1 clove garlic
• Parmesan cheese
• Mozzarella cheese
• Flour
• Salt/pepper

     Now I prepped the eggs, prosciutto, and the tomato mixture the night before but it can all be done the day of. Start out by boiling the six eggs. Cover once the water boils, turn off the heat, and let sit for about 15 minutes. Remove, rinse under cold water, peel, and slice. Now for the prosciutto, quickly and easily pan fry the slices just until they turn a bit brown. Next in a sauce pan take some olive oil and sauté the garlic until fragrant. Toss in the diced tomatoes and fresh diced basil. Smash up some of the tomatoes until practically a nice smooth mixture. Bring to a simmer and cook for roughly 15 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

     Remove the peel from the eggplant. Slice and dredge each piece in a little flour. One large eggplant cuts into roughly 8 slices. Fry each slice in a little olive oil until browned.

     Now for the fun part, spread a little of the tomato mixture into the bottom of a 9 x 9 glass pan. Layer a few of the slices of the eggplant. Top with a few slices of prosciutto and then the sliced eggs.

 

     Top with a bit more tomato mixture and then spread some parmesan and mozzarella cheese. Start over with the layering process in the same manner until you fill the dish. Place some more mozzarella and parmesan on the very top. Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Let cool until you slice and serve it up.

Serves 4-5
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook time: 30-35 minutes

Katia far right

Creamy Tortellini

Creamy Tortellini with Ham and Peas

 

 

     I have seen many versions of a similar pasta dish.  The combination of these three ingredients just goes well together.  This meal is quick and easy but full of flavor.  The perfect combination for a weeknight meal or rainy weekend evening when you feel like whipping something up. Not sure if I can consider this Italian as I don't know if they actually eat something like this in Italy.  All I know is that I'm part Italian and anything pasta shortly becomes a favorite.  So here goes, my combination of ham, peas, and cheesy tortellini all rolled into a great dish.   Creamy Tortellini with Ham and Peas.

Ingredients:

• 1 bag frozen cheese tortellini
• 1 cup chopped ham
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1 lg shallot diced
• 1 cup cream
• 1 tbs butter
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 1/2 tbs ricotta
• 1/2 cup white wine
• Small handful basil

     In a large pot boil some water and cook tortellini as directed.  In a medium sauté pan melt butter over medium high heat.  Sauté diced shallots until softened.  Toss in garlic and sauté.  Pour in wine and reduce.  Mix in ham and peas and heat.  Next add in cream, the ricotta, and basil leaves.  Lower heat and let simmer.  Toss in drained tortellini and incorporate till mixed through.  A wonderful version of Creamy Tortellini with Ham and Peas. Serves 2-4.