Backyard Blend Shrimp Pasta!
Fast simple Shrimp pasta dish that works with any kind of pasta.
Backyard Blend Shrimp Pasta
Simple Pasta dish that works will all types of pasta
Mediterranean Fish with olives, capers, polenta, and bok choy
Here is a very flexible and easy fish entree that anyone can do. Let our spices do the work.
Backyard Blend scallops and chard tomato sauce with roasted butternut squash mash
Backyard Blend scallops and chard tomato sauce with roasted butternut squash mash
Feeds 2
Cook time about 1 hour total
6 u10ish scallops room at room temp
2 cups of grape or cherry tomatoes
1 tablespoon of Backyard Blend
¼ cup dry white wine
3 cups of cubed butternut squash
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt, pepper, sugar to taste
Pre heat oven to 425.
Place tomatoes in a small oven safe sauté pan, with a drizzle of olive oil and a fat pinch of backyard blend toss to evenly distribute oil and spices to coat tomatoes. Place pan on top rack in the oven.
Meanwhile prepare butternut squash similarly but also add a tablespoon of water and place on middle rack of the oven.
Allow these to roast for 30 minutes remove squash, add butter and cover place over lowest heat to hold until your ready to plate.
When tomatoes have a nice dark crust about 10 minutes later remove and place on a burner over medium high heat. Dust the tomatoes with a pinch of flour stir and deglaze quickly with white wine scraping any stuck bits from the pan. Bring that to a boil and reduce heat to medium low and simmer.
When wine sauce is starting to get to the right consistency (sticking to your spoon) taste and add a pinch of salt and sugar if needed. If its too tart add sugar a tiny pinch at a time tasting after each pinch. Reduce to low to hold until scallops are ready.
In a separate pan pre heat oil over high heat until just under smoking point. Add scallops and sear hard on both sides for 3 to 4 minutes on each side.
Using a rubber spatula mash squash and salt and pepper to taste then plate. Plate sauce, then scallops and serve!
Backyard Blend Bruschetta
Backyard Blend Bruschetta
Prep 5 min Cook 5-8 min
¼ French baguette crosscut into 1/2” crostini (roughly 12 pieces)
3 tablespoons high quality extra virgin olive oil
2 vine ripe tomatoes diced to ¼” (heirloom if possible) roughly 1 cup
3 cloves of garlic (2 smashed and peeled, 1 smashed and finely diced)
¼ onion finely diced
2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar (optional)
1 tablespoon of Backyard Blend
2 tablespoons of chopped basil
Salt and Pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Using the 2 smashed and peeled garlic cloves rub bread slices on all sides with garlic. Place garlic rubbed bread into a large mixing bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and a pinch of Backyard Blend to mixing bowl and toss until oil and seasoning are evenly distributed on bread. Place bread on a backing sheet and bake on middle rack for 5-8 min testing regularly until desired crunchiness. Using the same mixing bowl combine all remaining ingredients and gently mix until well-integrated and salt and pepper to taste. Place crostini on a serving platter and spoon tomato mixture onto them and serve.
Backyard Blend Chicken Thigh Parmesan (Sub Egg Plant or Zucchini for Veggie Version)
Backyard Blend Chicken Thigh Parmesan (Sub Egg Plant or Zucchini for Veggie Version)
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes (Doesn’t include sauce)
Ingredients:
1 pound of boneless skinless chicken thighs
2 eggs whisked
1 cup of Flower
2 cups of Panko (can substitute other breadcrumbs)
2 tablespoons of Backyard Blend
1 cup of Vegetable Oil
¼ cup of shredded Mozzarella
¼ cup of Parmesan
Pinch of Salt
Pre Heat Oven to 375F
Rinse and pat dry your chicken thighs being carful not to cross contaminate any other foods with possible salmonella. Organize your dredging station with flower, eggs, and panko in containers in a row with a baking sheet to store breaded chicken. Add Backyard Blend in pinches to the Panko in-between chicken thigh dredges to keep the concentration right.
In a high sided pan add vegetable oil should be about ½ to an inch of standing oil. Preheat over medium high heat until oil is dancing and about to smoke. Place chicken thighs in oil one at a time allowing the oil to stay hot, if oil isn’t hot enough remove chicken and give the oil more time. Pan fry chicken for 5 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Then place on a clean baking sheet. Sprinkle salt, mozzarella and 2 tablespoons of parmesan over chicken, place chicken in oven of top rack. Bake for 10 minutes until cheese is browning.
Serve with pasta, sauce and rest of parmesan to finish! For the sauce used Backyard Blend Marinara recipe found HERE!
Backyard Blend Classic Italian Meatballs
Backyard Blend Classic Italian Meatballs
Prep time 15 min Cook time 1 hour
Serves 6-8
- 1-pound ground veal (can substitute with ground turkey for any or all the meats if you like)
- 1-pound ground beef
- 1-pound ground pork
- 1 cup of grated pecorino cheese ¾ cup for in the meatball mixture ¼ cup for garnish (can substitute with parmesan)
- ¼ cup Backyard Blend
- 4 tbsp. olive oil
- 3 eggs
- ¼ cup of panko bread crumbs
- ¼ cup of balsamic vinegar
- 2 tbsp. salt
- 6 cups of Backyard Blend Marinara http://www.lemasterfamilykitchen.com/backyard-blend/ (can substitute your favorite tomato sauce)
Pre-heat oven to 375
In a large mixing bowl add all ingredients except for oil and Marinara then combine with hands until everything is mixed evenly. Add olive to a large high sided pan and pre-heat over medium high heat until oil starts to dance. Pull a baseball sized piece of meat and form into a ball and place in the oil until all the meatball mixture is gone or pan is full. (If your pan is too small to hold all of them use a second pan or freeze the extra meatball mixture for next time.) Allow meat balls to brown for 5 min then carefully turn and cook for 5 more minutes. Add marinara and place in the oven for 45 minutes turning the meatballs every 20 minutes. Remove pan from oven allow to cool for 5 minutes, salt and pepper to taste and serve.
Backyard Blend Marinara
Backyard Blend Marinara
Prep time 1-minute Cook time 1 hour
2 pounds of ripe tomatoes (vine ripe or plum recommended)
4 cloves of crushed garlic and pealed
2 tablespoons of Backyard Blend
2 tablespoons of olive oil
Pre-heat oven to 400.
Combine all ingredients in a pan or skillet making sure the tomatoes are packed in tightly. Place skillet into the oven and roast for one hour on medium top rack of oven. Check in on the tomatoes every 20 minutes or so, make sure there continues to be fluid in the bottom of the pan but allowing the tops of the tomatoes to get dark brown. After an hour the tomatoes should be browned on top with the juice roughly half way up. Pull the tomatoes out of the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes, then carefully add tomatoes, garlic and remaining juice to a blender or food processor and purée. Enjoy!
Backyard Blend Chip/ Vegetable Dip
Backyard Blend Chip/ Vegetable Dip!
1/3 cup Sour Cream
1 Tablespoon of Backyard Blend
Mix all ingredients in a serving bowl and serve!
Make sure you make enough! Its really good!
Backyard Blend Beer Can Bird
Serves 4-6 takes 2 hours 1:40 cook time
1 whole chicken
1 can of mild beer (tecate)
2 tablespoons of Backyard Blend
Preheat oven to 340 degrees. Prep chicken by removing gizzards and neck (set aside for stocks). Lightly coat the chicken in olive oil and rub with Backyard Blend making sure to include inside the bird. Then salt the inside of the bird as well. Place an open can of mild beer on a pan or deep baking sheet, and carefully place bird standing on the can (this may require a second set of hands). Cook the chicken on a lower rack making sure there is ample space between the top of the bird and the oven top. After a hour and a half place a thermometer into the thickest part of the breast to make sure it's well over 165 degrees, if so remove from oven. Carefully remove the can and allow to rest for 20 minutes.
Bonus Time!
For a crazy good and easy gravy that can be made while the chicken rests (should take about 15 minutes) follow this...
Place pan over medium high heat with the drippings from chicken. Add half a onion roughly chopped, 2 cloves crushed garlic, 2 stalks of celery and a large carrot roughly chopped. Saute until veggies soften about 5 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons of butter, one tablespoon of flour, and a pinch of Backyard Blend and stir until flour is well incorporated and coating the veggies. Add remaining beer from chicken to deglaze and stir to make sure no flower is sticking to the bottom of the pan. Bring this to a boil and reduce until gravy starts to thicken to coat your spoon. Strain gravy into a serving dish and salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!
Backyard Blend Burgers
Backyard Blend Burger.
Shape your patties trying to not over handle the meat. Cover each side of the patty in Backyard Blend and drizzle with balsamic vinegar. Grill on medium high heat, around 400°, for 10 minutes on each side. Allow the burgers to rest 5 minutes.
Backyard Blend Black Eyed Peas
Place either previously soaked or canned peas in a pot. Add enough vegetable stock to cover the peas with an inch of liquid over the top of the peas. Add Backyard Blend (we made a lot so we used 1 TBS for roughly 8 cups of peas). Optional: add ham or bacon. We froze our smoked ham from Christmas so took this opportunity to use it... thawed, diced, then added. Boil until liquid reduces so that only a small amount is at the bottom of the pot.
Backyard Blend Collard Greens
Devein, chop, and wash the greens. Place in a pot with vegetable stock (we used one container of stock for two bushels of greens). Add crushed cloves of garlic (we used 5) and 1TBS of Backyard Blend. Finally, add a dash of apple cider vinegar. Cover and place in the oven at 350° for about an hour. Optional: add ham or bacon. We used left over smoked then frozen ham from Christmas... thawed then diced.
Backyard Blend Pasta Salad
Enjoy all of those yummy summer flavors in one great dish! Combined your favorite veggies (peas, carrots, olives, cucumbers, tomatoes, and red peppers pictured here) with cooked tortellini pasta, olive oil, white wine vinegar, parmesan cheese, and a hefty pinch of Backyard Blend. Add chicken cooked in white wine and Backyard Blend to turn this side into a main!
Braised red cabbage with Backyard Blend
Need an easy side? Chop some red cabbage into bite sized pieces. Pace the cabbage in an oven safe pan (we used a non-stick skillet). Add a liquid such as chicken our vegetable stock or lite beer (about a cup - you want the pan to be about half full of liquid with the cabbage packed tight). Top with roughly a tablespoon of Backyard Blend and place in the oven at 400°. Toss the cabbage every 15 minutes or so until the liquid is gone (about an hour and a half). You can even let the cabbage get a little crispy :-)
Backyard Blend Root Vegetable Galette
Follow the recipe for Backyard Blend Galette previously posted but use only root vegetables for the filing. Begin by roasting sliced sweet potato (orange and purple), beets, and parsnips with a little olive oil, white wine vinegar, and 2 TBS of Backyard Blend
Once the initial veggies begin to become tender, add sliced leeks and chopped onions and return to the oven. Remove when all veggies are aldente (they will finish cooking once placed in the pie crust).
Allow the veggies to cool then arrange in your pre made pie crust with crumbled goat cheese. Finish the crust with brushed egg yolk and another tsp of Backyard Blend. Bake at 400° for 45 minutes or until crust is golden brown.
