basil – Loving Food, Fashion, & Life

Scrambled Eggs With Tomato Bruschetta

Posted on April 8, 2014 by LFFL

Made with Italian bread, extra-virgin olive oil, salt & pepper, tomatoes, fresh basil, butter, eggs, and Pecorino cheese.

This was my first time making my own bruschetta and I absolutely LOVED it! This recipe also gave me a reason to bust out my grill pan as I hardly ever use it.

I had a good time making the grill marks on the bread. Then I got to spread all that tomato goodness across the top of it and finally feel all that love inside my mouth as I took my first bite. Crunch.

And to smell the fresh basil………..ahhhhhhh.

Char bread on a grill pan.

Tomato basil mixture.

Recipe for—Scrambled Eggs with Tomato Bruschetta

So, if you have nothing else to do today, try making your own bruschetta while having fun making grill marks along the bread.

Take-Away Life Lesson: Sometimes a grill pan can be more fun than you expect it to be.

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Italian Turkey Meatballs

Posted on February 28, 2014 by LFFL

Made with breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, fresh basil, fresh parsley, milk, ketchup, tomato paste, salt & pepper, eggs, minced garlic cloves, onion, ground dark turkey meat, Italian turkey sausage, and extra-virgin olive oil.

Sauce made with extra-virgin olive oil, smashed garlic cloves, onion, salt & pepper, fresh basil, ground fennel seeds, dried oregano, and crushed tomatoes.

It was a meatball dinner night! And, ohhhhh, how I could taste the fennel and oregano in the sauce mixture. So spot on.

Chop some fresh basil.

Sautee the onions & garlic with ground fennel & oregano.

Throw in crushed tomatoes.

Roll the meatballs.

I believe a good-sized meatball should be no smaller than the size of a baseball—but if you must go smaller, no smaller than a golf ball.

I imagine these meatballs would be good loaded on top of some spaghetti just the same as straight for dinner by themselves. The recipe did not call for making a pasta dish, so straight down my pipe they went as is.

Recipe for—Italian Turkey Meatballs

So, if you have nothing else to do today, make some good time meatballs for dinner anyway you like them.

Take-Away Life Lesson: No need to make tiny-sized meatballs when you can make them the size of a bowling ball from the onset.

Pirate Pasta

Posted on August 23, 2013 by LFFL

Made with penne rigate pasta, olive oil, fresh cremini mushrooms, garlic cloves, tuna, capers, olives, chicken broth, tomato paste, red pepper flakes, fresh basil, Pecorino Romano cheese, and salt & pepper.

This was a good tuna pasta, but I have no idea why it’s called Pirate Pasta. I can only assume it’s something pirates might eat, but what do I know? It’s been a while since I’ve been pirating on the high seas.

Recipe for—Pirate Pasta

So, if you have nothing else to do today, make this lovely pasta dish and share it with the pirates you know in your area.

Take-Away Life Lesson: If you don’t want the tuna to get lost amongst all the pasta and other ingredients, add yourself an extra can or two for your liking so you can really get down with that tuna flavor.

Mascarpone & Lemon Gnocchi

Posted on August 17, 2013 by LFFL

Made with mascarpone cheese, eggs, lemon zest, Parmesan cheese, flour, nutmeg, and salt; cooked in olive oil, salt, and fresh chopped basil; topped with Parmesan cheese.

The only thing I can say about this dish is NO HOW, NO WAY! I was thoroughly disappointed.

Even though I followed the directions to the letter, this tasted AWFUL! I ate half of one of these and threw the rest in the trash.

You’re more than welcome to try making this yourself—maybe you’ll actually like it. But I, personally, threw the recipe away never to be made again.

Recipe for—Mascarpone & Lemon Gnocchi

So, if you have nothing else to do today, make a GREAT effort NOT to make this recipe. Just save yourself already. Find something else to make, for Pete’s sake.

Take-Away Life Lesson: It’s always fun experimenting with different recipes, but some things are just not made to have a permanent home in your recipe book.

Tomato-Basil Bread Pudding

Posted on August 2, 2013 by LFFL

I’m prepping the ingredients here to add to the baking dish for this delightful Tomato-Basil Bread Pudding. Look at that mound of fresh cheese! I always throw in more cheese than what any recipe would call for. Who are we kidding?

Made with multi-grain bread, shallots, chopped garlic cloves, cherry tomatoes, fresh basil, parmesan cheese, eggs, milk, salt & pepper.

This turned out to be a pretty good dish.

Recipe for—Tomato-Basil Bread Pudding

So, if you have nothing else to do today, try making this dish just because it’s so easy to do.

Take-Away Life Lesson: Always throw in extra cheese than what any recipe says to do. You can never go wrong.

Baked Panzanella Caprese

Posted on July 28, 2013 by LFFL

Made with tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, mozzarella cheese, fresh chopped garlic, fresh basil, salt & pepper, ciabatta bread, and drizzled with extra-virgin olive oil.

I absolutely LOVE this baked panzanella caprese. I just love the combination of tomatoes, mozzarella, basil, and a good vinegar. Oh, dear, just look at the CHEESE!

Anything with cheese is fine by me. I love buying a big fat mozzarella ball and cutting it into big chunks as I eat it along the way.

I used ciabatta bread for this recipe and sliced it to fit. This is SO simple to make and I make it every chance I get. It’s such a good snack food. I can eat at least half this pan straight up—which leaves little left for guests.

Recipe for—Baked Panzanella Caprese

So, if you have nothing else to do today, you should definitely make this panzanella caprese and maybe find only one other person to share it with.

Take-Away Life Lesson: This is best eaten straight from the oven while it’s good, hot, and crispy. You could microwave leftovers the next day, but it’s just not the same.

Garlic & Basil Happiness

Posted on July 21, 2013 by LFFL

So my day starts off with me consuming 74 grams of sugar all at once within two small bags of Boston Baked Beans. Who knew? I read the ingredients on the bag AFTER I ate the first bag and ONLY out of sheer boredom.

But I clearly didn’t care, as I consumed the second bag right after I read this. But that’s neither here nor there. Only informational for you readers as I’m not sure how this post will end up sounding with that much sugar in me.

Well, I love cooking with basil, garlic, and olive oil—and I’ve been on a fresh basil kick lately. I bought a bag at the grocery store and 3 different bunches at the city farmer’s market. It smells divine and there’s always something you can throw a basil leaf into.

I also love when the garlic farmer comes to market with his super large humongous garlic bulbs. I love fresh garlic from the market more so than the grocery store. I buy lots of it and put it into everything. As great as garlic tastes in cooking, I hate the after effects it leaves on yourself for the next 3 days. It can be offensive to say the least.

So, if you have nothing else to do today, discover different olive oils, fresh garlic, and basil (preferably at your farmers’ market) and find ways to incorporate these into your cooking.

Take-Away Life Lesson: It’s probably not a great idea to consume 74 grams of sugar within 5 minutes time. It gives you sugarhead.