MAKE AHEAD HOMEMADE CRANBERRY SAUCE

This time,like everyother time, I am making only a few sides for Thanksgiving dinner since we always do a potluck. With my current situation at home,I am embracing the make ahead recipes like no other.They are my life saver now. This sauce is a breeze to put together and when you can put into Hefty slider bags,it's going to be safe and sound in the freezer. I got this recipe from Hefty's website and it's a good one!

Jobin's Mummy makes a savoury pickle using fresh cranberries and it's just awesome! That's the only time I've had it spicy. For that matter, I have had cranberries only in the sauce from otherwise. I know it's a very good ingredient to bake with but I still have not explored that side of it. These days after all the sweet stuff that we bake in school, I hardly bake anything sweet anymore at home other than the regular chocolate or marble cake. The other day,I was telling Jobin that I might just give up sugar by the time I am done with school! We bake a LOT on a daily basis and bring them all home!

Like I said earlier, this cranberry sauce is so easy to put together. Just dump all the ingredients into one pot and let the heat do it's work and before you even realize, your sauce would be ready for use! I have my sauce ready in slider bags for the main day and all I have to do is to gently reheat it up!

MAKE AHEAD HOMEMADE CRANBERRY SAUCE
Makes about 2 cups

Ingredients:
4 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon lime zest
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Method: Mix all the ingredients together in a pot and bring it to a boil on medium high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 10-12 minutes or until the sauce has thickened. Let it cool to room temperature and freeze them in Hefty slider bags.

When needed, thaw them in the fridge overnight and serve it at room temperature.

For more Thanksgiving ideas visit Hefty's website!
 

CHORIZO, MUSHROOM & ROASTED GARLIC RIGATONI

This pasta dish is a staple in our house. I've always made it with Chorizo because it's one of my favourite things to eat and cook with.When you pair it with a Ragu Pasta sauce,it's even better!I sometimes fry them and serve it alongside rice and it kind of takes the place of Beef Ulathiyathu.If you have never tried it, you should. It's a pork sausage with a lot of spice in it.It's delicious and makes everything that you make with it taste awesome!There are two kinds of Chorizo,fresh & dry. I like to use the fresh ones and you can use it just like how you would use a ground meat.

I rarely buy pasta sauces but when I do, I prefer to buy Ragu. It's such a well balanced sauce and it's not overtly tart. Some bottled sauces are so tart that you really wouldn't know how to fix the dish in the end. I used Ragu's Roasted Garlic Pasta sauce because I do have a weak point for roasted garlic,for that matter everything with garlic in it. I don't mind if the sauce is chunky or smooth. This roasted garlic sauce was made chunky.

Assunta made the voyage from Italy to America with a little something extra up her sleeve,her family's recipe for tomato sauce - a secret and sublime combination of vine-ripened tomatoes,fresh basil,fennel,garlic and ground pepper,meticulously writing down every detail and hiding it for safe passage.She must have known she was onto something when the neighbour's raved about it. Then the neighbour's neighbours. Word spread and when people in Iowa started grabbing it off the shelves,well,the legend was off and running.

It wasn't easy,Assunta grew up in a man's word during America's toughest time -the Great Depression.And in a time when people expected less,she gave them more. When people were forced to put their hoped,dreams and aspirations on the back burner, Assunta placed hers directly on the front burner.Her recipe literally became the recipe for her success...Thus, Ragu pasta sauce was born! Hundred of pasta sauces have graced the shelves over the past 80 years, but only one has become America's number one.

Ragu pasta sauces are made with farm grown ingredients and contains no artificial flavours or high fructose corn syrup.

CHORIZO,MUSHROOM & ROASTED GARLIC RIGATONI
My own recipe
Serves 4

Ingredients:
2 fresh Chorizo links,case removed
1 small box button mushrooms,cleaned and sliced
1 small onion, diced
1/2 box good quality Rotini pasta
1 1/4 cups of Ragu Pasta Sauce ( Chunky Roasted Garlic)
Fresh parsley
Salt & Pepper

Method:
In a medium sized pan,on medium high heat, saute the crumbled chorizo till it starts to release it's oil. Add the mushrooms and onions and saute till all the water from mushroom dries up. Add the pasta sauce to it and cook covered,on medium heat for 25 minutes.
Meanwhile,cook the pasta according to the instructions on the box.Do not drain the pasta.
Check the sauce for seasoning and set aside.When the pasta is done,using a slotted spoon,add the hot pasta directly into the sauce and mix well.Check for seasonings.Garnish with chopped parsley and serve hot!

If you want to thin out the sauce,you may use the pasta cooking water for the same.

This is a good one, try it someday. I am sure you will like it. If you are planning to use ground meat instead of chorizo,make sure you season them accordingly. Chorizo is very very flavourful!

There is a sweeps contest running on Food(dot)com. The contest is titled Ready. Set. Cook! and it challenges home cooks to create new and unique recipes featuring Ragu sauce plus a set list of other ingredients! Click here for more details!

ROASTED PEAR ,ONION & CASTELLO BLUE CHEESE TART

Who doesn't love a good movie night,snuggling up on the couch and nibbling on some of your favourite snacks? Now that the weather is getting cooler,a cheese board or a cheesy appetizer makes an appearance in our house every now and then. Have any of you watched the new movie Burnt starring Bradley Cooper? I have been seeing the trailers and I think I will enjoy it! I love movies that are made with food as the focus!

When I first opened the box of Castello's creatively crafted Blue Cheese, I was not really sure whether I should make a salad or a tart. I recently had an amazing salad with Blue cheese in it at our friend's house. I wanted to recreate it so instead of reaching for the greens, I reached for the puff pastry that I made a few days ago. Roasting the pears and onions brings out the sweetness making the tart extra special.

I also made a balsamic reduction to drizzle over the top. The balsamic vinegar,when tasted as is can be quite overwhelming. When it's given some TLC and reduced, it lends itself to become a sticky sweet syrup. It gives such a brightness to the tart! You can replace apples for pears if that's the fruit that you like! I thoroughly enjoyed this tart. If you think you are not sure about the balsamic dressing,you can skip it! The Castello Danish Blue Cheese is so good that you wouldn't even miss the dressing!

ROASTED PEAR,ONION & BLUE CHEESE TART
My own recipe

Ingredients:
1 large ripe pear of your choice,sliced thin
1 medium yellow onion,sliced thin
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1 sheet frozen puff pastry
Castello Danish Blue Cheese,crumbled
1 egg
Olive oil
Salt

Method: Preheat the oven to 400F.
In a large foil lined baking sheet, toss the pear and onion with some olive oil and salt.Roast them for 35 minutes or until the pears are soft and onions have turned a shade of golden.Let it cool completely.
Meanwhile, in a small saucepan,reduce the balsamic vinegar for 5-7 minutes on medium high heat. It should reduce down to a thick syrup,approximately 2 tablespoons worth.
Roll out the thawed puff pastry to an 8X8 inch square or slightly smaller than that.Prick all over the space where you would spread the filling with a fork.Spread the cooled filling over it leaving some space around the egdes.Sprinkle the crumbled Castello Blue Cheese over it. Egg wash the exposed edges and bake the tart on a parchment lined baking sheet for 25-30 minutes or until puffed and golden.
Let it cool down a bit, Drizzle the balsamic reduction over it,cut them into pieces and enjoy!

Visit the Castello & Burnt campaign page for delicious inspiration, and to enter the Unlock Your Inner Chef sweepstakes for a chance to win great prizes, including:

-  A private cooking class for two
-  A year’s worth of Castello cheese

You can also enter the Unlock Your Inner Chef Sweepstakes, which is hosted on the Castello USA Facebook page now through November 20 for the same prizes mentioned above.