From start to finish I had dinner on the table in less than 20 minutes with this really flavorful dish.

For each packet:

1 tilapia filet (about 4-6 ounces)

2 arugula leaves, center rib removed

2 tablespoons diced tomato (canned or fresh) mixed with a pinch of sugar

1/4 teaspoon capers

1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning

salt and pepper to taste

1/3 teaspoon olive oil

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Place the arugula on the parchment and set the fish on top of it. Cover the fish with the other ingredients. Fold the parchment (see Technique page) and bake at 400 for 12 minutes.  Serve with some warm Italian bread and some carrots cooked with dill and you have a complete meal.

From start to finish I had dinner on the table in less than 20 minutes with this really flavorful dish. For each packet: 1 tilapia filet (about 4-6 ounces) 2 arugula leaves, center rib removed 2 tablespoons diced tomato (canned or fresh) mixed with a pinch of sugar 1/4 teaspoon capers 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning … Read more →

We’re hot and heavy into local corn season here in Western NY. I’ll hate to see it end because then it will really be fall. Until then though, I keep coming home with bagfuls of corn and then must think of ways to use them! I love corn on the cob, but sometimes I am so over boiling that big ole pot of water to cook it. Corn cooks beautifully in parchment, so that’s my go-to.

Today’s recipe includes a fun little ingredient I’ve fallen in love with called Chutter. I bought it in the cheese section of my grocery store and it says it is Herkimer Chutter and is a cross between cheese and butter. To me it takes like a smooth, mild cheese spread. I’m putting it on everything, so of course I had to try it on corn. Enjoy!

2 ears of corn on the cob

3.5 ounces Chutter

1/8 cup fresh chives

1/4 teaspoon salt

pepper to taste

1 tablespoon melted butter

10 cherry tomatoes, halved

Place chutter, chives, salt, pepper, and butter in a food processor and pulse until smooth and the chives are chopped. Place corn on parchment and smear with chutter mixture. Drop tomatoes over and around it. Fold parchment (see Technique page) and bake at 400 for 22 minutes, flipping the package over halfway through.

The corn is rich and delicious with this spread on it and the tomatoes not only add some color but are a yummy accompaniment.

We’re hot and heavy into local corn season here in Western NY. I’ll hate to see it end because then it will really be fall. Until then though, I keep coming home with bagfuls of corn and then must think of ways to use them! I love corn on the cob, but sometimes I am … Read more →

It was one of those dinners where there wasn’t much to choose from, so I sort of chose everything. And the results were pretty amazing.

2 salmon fillets

1 cup snap peas

1/4 cup light sour cream

1 tbsp honey mustard

1 tbsp lime juice

4 baby carrots, minced

salt and pepper

1/4 tsp dill

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place the salmon on the parchment and place the peas on top and around it. Mix the other ingredients in a bowl then pour over the top. Fold the parchment and bake for 20 minutes.

It has a very interesting sweet/sour taste and is loaded with veggies so you can have a nice portion and know you’re getting lots of the good stuff.

It was one of those dinners where there wasn’t much to choose from, so I sort of chose everything. And the results were pretty amazing. 2 salmon fillets 1 cup snap peas 1/4 cup light sour cream 1 tbsp honey mustard 1 tbsp lime juice 4 baby carrots, minced salt and pepper 1/4 tsp dill … Read more →

As you may have noticed, I’ve been doing a lot of grilling lately. It gets so hot in my kitchen, and if I turn on the ceiling fan, it affects the gas burners on my stove, making things cook slower. Turning the oven on is just not appealing in this weather, so the grill is my pal. My latest experiment was to see if I could cook gnocchi on the grill. Guess what? It worked! It has this great smoky flavor and a terrific crunchiness. Everyone loved it!

1 lb bag of gnocchi, defrosted

2 green onions, ends cut off

olive oil

Parmesan cheese

Turn the grill onto high. Place a disposable metal pan (like a pie pan) on half and fill with 2 cups water. Let that get hot. Spray a grill tray or grill basket with cooking spray. Toss the gnocchi with olive oil (a couple tablespoons) and place it on the tray in on layer. Place that on the other half of the grill. Rub the green onions with olive oil and lay on the grill. Turn the gnocchi side down to medium high. Close the grill. Check it about every 4-5 minutes, turning the gnocchi over and turning the onions. It takes about 10-12 minutes total, until some of the gnocchi is browned and the green onions are slightly charred. Place the gnocchi in a bowl. Cut up the green onions into small pieces. Drizzle olive oil over the gnocchi, add onions, season with salt and pepper and add about 1/2 cup (or more, to your taste) grated Parmesan cheese. Toss and serve.

As you may have noticed, I’ve been doing a lot of grilling lately. It gets so hot in my kitchen, and if I turn on the ceiling fan, it affects the gas burners on my stove, making things cook slower. Turning the oven on is just not appealing in this weather, so the grill is … Read more →

I had a lovely bag of multicolored fingerling potatoes and needed a way to cook them. I also had some vinaigrette leftover. Why not use them together? This one was a big winner in my house, with people fighting over the cheese!

1 lb fingerling potatoes, pricked with a fork

Make this vinaigrette:
4 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp cider vinegar

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp Italian herb mix

1/8 tsp garlic powder

salt and pepper

1/4 tsp Worchestershire

Shake this up in a jar and let it sit for about 10 minutes so the herbs soften.

Place the potatoes on the parchment. Pour half the vinaigrette over them (save the rest for a salad the next night). Fold the parchment and bake at 400 for 1 hour. About halfway through, take it out of the oven, grab the bag with potholders and give it a shake to distribute the oil. Put it back in for the rest of the hour. After one hour, remove from the oven, open the parchment and shave several tablespoons of Parmesan cheese over it (don’t grate it, use a cheese slicer to shave it). Leave the packet open and return to the oven until the cheese melts.

OMG. It was soooo good.

I had a lovely bag of multicolored fingerling potatoes and needed a way to cook them. I also had some vinaigrette leftover. Why not use them together? This one was a big winner in my house, with people fighting over the cheese! 1 lb fingerling potatoes, pricked with a fork Make this vinaigrette: 4 tbsp … Read more →

I can’t often get fresh grouper here in Buffalo, so when I spot it, I jump on it! We got to Florida every spring and I make it when we’re there and also order it in restaurants (fried grouper sandwiches…yum). I happened upon some grouper recently and snapped it up. I decided to make a simple preparation with brown butter, macadamias and a few cracker crumbs and cream. It was so delicious.

1 grouper filet

salt and pepper

1/4 tsp dried dill

2 tbsp butter

1/3 tsp lemon juice

2 tbsp chopped macadamias

6 wheat thins or similar crackers (I used an all bran version)

1 tbsp cream

parsley

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the grouper in the center of the parchment and season with salt and pepper and dill. Place the butter in a covered bowl in the microwave and cook until brown. Stir in lemon juice and chopped macadamias. Pour over the fish. Fold the parchment (see Technique page) and bake for 10 minutes. Open the packet and sprinkle the cracker crumbs on top and drizzle with the cream. Spray the top lightly with cooking spray. Return to the oven, with the packet open for 3 minutes. Garnish with chopped parsley.

I can’t often get fresh grouper here in Buffalo, so when I spot it, I jump on it! We got to Florida every spring and I make it when we’re there and also order it in restaurants (fried grouper sandwiches…yum). I happened upon some grouper recently and snapped it up. I decided to make a … Read more →

It’s that time of year, when turning on the oven seems like a bad, bad idea and cooking on the grill sounds great. There are still no pots involved, so here’s what I made for dinner last night:

Grilled Cod and Green Beans with Cilantro Sauce

1 piece of cod (about 1/2 lb)

2 cups green beans

1/4 cup cilantro leaves

1 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper

1/8 of a sweet onion

juice of 1/2 a lime

1/2 tsp honey

2 tbsp nonfat plain yogurt

Season the cod and beans with salt and pepper then grill them (use a grill tray for the beans to keep them from falling through the grates. The beans take about 12 minutes, depending on the heat of your grill (you want them to look slightly soft and browned). The cod will cook in about 10 minutes, if it is about an inch thick. Look for it to become opaque. Add all other ingredients to a mini food processor and chop. Remove food from grill and use the sauce on top.

It’s that time of year, when turning on the oven seems like a bad, bad idea and cooking on the grill sounds great. There are still no pots involved, so here’s what I made for dinner last night: Grilled Cod and Green Beans with Cilantro Sauce 1 piece of cod (about 1/2 lb) 2 cups … Read more →

Here in my hometown of Buffalo, in addition to being known for chicken wings, we have a local sandwich that is important, called beef on weck. It’s thin sliced roast beef that is cooked in au jus and then put on a special hard roll called a kimmelweck (the roll has caraway seeds and rock salt on top of it). The sandwich is usually topped with ketchup and horseradish. I like the flavors of the sandwich, but I find the roll almost unmanageable. It’s too big and bulky to bite into and there’s just too much of it for my tastes. So, I came up with a parchment paper solution that has all the flavors of beef on weck with none of the things I don’t like.

1 tortilla

1 tbsp ketchup

1/2 tsp horseradish

3 slices deli roast beef

1/4 tsp caraway seeds plus a pinch

1/4 tsp sea salt, plus a pinch

Preheat the oven to 400. Spread ketchup and horseradish on the tortilla, to about an inch of the edge. Place the roast beef on the tortilla and sprinkle with 1/4 tsp of salt and caraway seeds. Roll up and place seam side down on the parchment. Spray the top with cooking spray and sprinkle the remaining pinches of salt and caraway on top. Fold the parchment and bake for 12 minutes. You can also add cheese to this if you like.

Here in my hometown of Buffalo, in addition to being known for chicken wings, we have a local sandwich that is important, called beef on weck. It’s thin sliced roast beef that is cooked in au jus and then put on a special hard roll called a kimmelweck (the roll has caraway seeds and rock … Read more →

Artichoke and cheese go wonderfully well together in this fun and quick dish.

For each packet:

1 boneless skinless chicken breast

4-5 artichoke quarters (from a frozen bag, defrosted)

1 tbsp chive and cream cheese cream cheese

1 tbsp grated fontina cheese

salt and pepper

1/4 tsp Italian seasoning

1/2 tbsp seasoned breadcrumbs

1/8 tsp garlic powder

Lay the chicken breast on the parchment. Place your hand on top of it. With a knife parallel to your hand, make a slit in one of the long sides of the breast, being careful not to cut through. Make it as deep and as long as possible. In a small food processor, chop the remaining ingredients. Fill the pocket with the mixture and place any that remains on top of the chicken. Season the outside of the chicken with salt and pepper. Fold the packet and bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

*Reader favorite: This recipe appears in The Parchment Paper Cookbook

Artichoke and cheese go wonderfully well together in this fun and quick dish. For each packet: 1 boneless skinless chicken breast 4-5 artichoke quarters (from a frozen bag, defrosted) 1 tbsp chive and cream cheese cream cheese 1 tbsp grated fontina cheese salt and pepper 1/4 tsp Italian seasoning 1/2 tbsp seasoned breadcrumbs 1/8 tsp … Read more →

We eat a lot of asparagus here since my dad has an asparagus bed. Soon there will bags of it being sent over here. While I love it, I’m always looking for new ways to make it. This recipe is so easy and really tasty:

1 bunch asparagus, trimmed

1/4 cup light bleu cheese dressing

salt and pepper

That’s it. Place the asparagus on the parchment, drizzle the dressing over it and season it with salt and pepper. Fold up the parchment and bake for 20 minutes at 400.

We eat a lot of asparagus here since my dad has an asparagus bed. Soon there will bags of it being sent over here. While I love it, I’m always looking for new ways to make it. This recipe is so easy and really tasty: 1 bunch asparagus, trimmed 1/4 cup light bleu cheese dressing … Read more →