Basil EVOO Braised Roast

We had some of our friends over for dinner last weekend and made this roast, it was "to die for!" The children devoured it and us adults just could not get enough! You can serve this with some garlic mashed potatoes or roasted potatoes and a nice green salad with some delicious Quail and Olive lemon EVOO and fig balsamic dressing!


Basil EVOO Braised Roast

3-4 lbs chuck roast
salt and pepper
3 Tablespoon Basil EVOO
1 cup crushed tomatoes
1 cup Red Wine
2 Red onions chopped
2 garlic cloves minced
6 carrots sliced
3 celery stalks sliced
1 cup mushrooms, stems removed
5 fresh basil leaves
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 bay leaves

Season chuck roast with some Basil EVOO and salt and pepper, rub all over roast. Heat stock pot on medium high. Add Basil EVOO. Add roast and brown on all sides, you will want a nice brown crust to form on the outside. Pour the tomatoes adn red wine in. ADd the red onions, garlic, carrots, celery, mushrooms, basil leaves, rosemary, and bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper adn drizzle with  a little more Basil EVOO over mixture. Cover pot and reduce heat to low. You will need to baste every 30 minutes with the pan juices for 3 hours until roast is done and beef is tender. Cut roast and serve with vegetables and pan juices.

If you roast your potatoes, make sure you use some Garlic EVOO, it is so good!

Quail and Olive Basil EVOO, Olio Nuovo, and Pacific Spice Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup

I was trying to find a recipe to use without adding any condensed soups or other fatty substitutes. I found one that added Greek yogurt to the soup instead of a cream of mushroom, so I thought I would give it a try and of course add a few of my own additions as well. I am very happy to announce was a hit at home and definitely will go into our family cookbook for future recipes!



Wild Rice and Mushroom soup with Basil EVOO, Olio Nuovo, and Pacific Spice


1 Tablespoon Basil EVOO plus 2 teaspoons
1 Tablespoon Olio Nuovo
1 red onion chopped
1 clove garlic minced
3 celery ribs chopped
2 carrots chopped
20 oz mushrooms ( I used cremini mushrooms)
1 teaspoon fresh basil
3 Tablespoons Pacific Spice
1/4 cup flour
1 cup white wine
salt and pepper
3 bay leaves
8 cups chicken stock
12 oz Greek yogurt
1 1/2 cups cooked wild rice
3 tablespoons fresh parsley and more to garnish dish


Heat Basil EVOO and Olio Nuovo over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, celery, carrots, and salt. Cook 5 minutes until fragrant. Add 2 teaspoons more of the basil EVOO and add mushrooms and stir. Cook until mushrooms are caramelized about 20 minutes, do not rush this step.
Add basil and stir for another 30 seconds. Sprinkle flour and stir until all vegetables have been coated. Add wine and Pacific Spice Vinegar. Allow mixture to simmer until thickened. Add bay leaves and broth. Bring to boil and reduce for 20 minutes. Add Greek yogurt, parsley and cooked rice. Allow soup to simmer another 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!

Chicken Curry with Pacific Spice

This turned out to be another great family meal, so easy to prepare and so healthy! The Quail and Olive Pacific Spice Vinegar adds so much to this meal, it was wonderful. Enjoy this with a side of brown rice served with chopped fresh cilantro and basil and a squeeze of fresh lime!

Chicken Curry

6 chicken tenderloins ( thighs or breast work too :) )

14 oz light coconut milk ( you can find this at trader joe's)

1 Tablespoon brown sugar

1 Tablespoon Pacific Spice

1 medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves minced

1 inch knob of ginger peeled and grated

Yellow bell pepper seeded and chopped

Green bell pepper seeded and chopped

1 zucchini chopped

3 yellow potatoes chopped

1 tablespoon curry powder

Combine all ingredients in crockpot. Cook low for 6-8hours. Serve over rice with chopped cilantro, basil, scallions, and limes cut into wedges. 

When you prepare the rice, you can add a few splashes of plum basil vinegar to the water or chicken stock, it really adds to the flavor of the rice. Enjoy!

Fish Casserole with Bacon EVOO and Pacific Spice Vinegar

So here is another good meal for lent on Fridays, this dish is so yummy and sure to be a crowd pleaser!

Fish Casserole with Vegan Bacon EVOO and Pacific Spice vinegar

1-2 Tablespoons Vegan Bacon EVOO

1 onion, peeled and chopped

Baby spinach, about 1 1/2 cups chopped

1 teaspoon Italian seasonings, or tarragon works fine too

imitation crab

1/4 cup white wine

breadcrumbs

1 1/2 lbs white fillet of fish

1/2 lb of shrimp ( peeled and devined)

Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375*

In saute pan, add Bacon EVOO( pour twice around pan)

Add chopped onion, saute on medium heat for 15 mins until onion has caramelized. Add a few splashes of Pacific Spice Vinegar to pan. Add chopped spinach and Italian seasonings. Add chopped imitation crab and stir to combine. Add white wine and a bit of the bread crumbs to thicken mixture. 

 Place fillet of fish in casserole dish. Squeeze lemon over fish and salt and pepper. Sprinkle 1/2 lb of shrimp over fish. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over shrimp and top with crab meat mixture. Bake at 375* for 30 mins. Enjoy!

Quail and Olive Lemon EVOO, Vegan Bacon EVOO, and Winter Ambrosia Broccoli Medly

I cannot believe Lent starts this Wednesday! It feels like we just celebrated Christmas, I do not know where time has gone. I have a great little recipe for those of you who will not be able to eat meat on Fridays! And those who do not follow this rule you can have this with some bacon! Yum!

Quail and Olive Lime EVOO, Vegan Bacon EVOO, and Winter Ambrosia Broccoli Medley

1-2 Bunches of Broccoli ( cut into florets)

1 pear peeled and diced

4 strips of turkey bacon chopped ( omit on Fridays :) ) or tofu chunks.

Quail and Olive Lemon EVOO

Quail and Olive Vegan Bacon EVOO

Quail and Olive Winter Ambrosia

salt and pepper to taste. 

Steam broccoli for about 6-7 minutes, make sure it still has a bit of a crunch to it. In saute pan,  add a tablespoon of Lemon EVOO and a tablespoon of Vegan Bacon EVOO. Add bacon to pan or tofu.  Cook bacon or tofu about 5 minutes. Add diced pear. Add Winter Ambrosia to pan ( about 2 tablespoons ) this will deglaze your pan and add more flavor to your foods. Add salt and pepper to taste. When broccoli has finished steaming add to pan. Stir so all the juices and bits are incorporated. Add more Winter Ambrosia if desired. Cook for an additional 5 minutes. Enjoy!

Quail and Olive Basil EVOO, Winter Ambrosia Mashed Potatoes

So I have another scrumptious recipe for you! We had a pork dinner last night and I wanted to make some mashed potatoes. I had found a recipe similar to this one online which was titled Herb Mashed potatoes, however the amount of fat was absurd! So, I figured I would substitute the butter for olive oil and make my own version of herbed mashed potatoes. So here it is!

Quail and Olive Basil EVOO and Winter Ambrosia Mashed Potatoes


5-6 baking potatoes ( peeled and diced)
2 Cloves of Garlic minced
1/4 cup light sour cream
Italian seasoning
Quail and Olive Winter Ambrosia
Quail and Olive Basil EVOO


Preheat oven to 375*

In large stock pot, boil water and cook potatoes until softened, usually about 1/2 hour. Drain potatoes and place in large bowl. Mash potatoes and add garlic and about 1-2tablespoons Italian seasonings. Add salt and pepper to tasted. Mix 1/4 cup sour cream, 3 tablespoons Winter Ambrosia, and 4-5 tablespoons Basil EVOO. Place mashed potatoes in oven safe casserole dish. Bake for 20-30 minutes until mashed potatoes have browned on top. Enjoy!

Quail and Olive Plum Basil, Lime EVOO, Pacific Spice Wonton Soup

Well hello bloggers! I am so sorry it has been so long since I have posted some recipes! My family has been suffering from this latest flu bug! With that said, I have some great soup recipes for you! I was trying to think of a way to get some healthy vegetables into my 12 month old and her big sisters, so I came up with this yummy recipe for Wonton Soup. Quail and Olive made our night!

Quail and Olive Plum Basil, Lime EVOO, and Pacific Spice Wonton Soup!

Ingredients:

2-3 carrots peeled and diced
bunch of celery chopped
onion chopped
bok choy or any leafy vegetable
10oz container of mushrooms
2 cartons of Chicken Broth
Package of pre-made Gyoza
Quail and Olive Plum Basil
Quail and Olive Lime EVOO
Quail and olive Pacific Spice
Fresh Lime
salt and pepper to taste






In a stock pot, pour Quail and Olive Lime EVOO enough to coat pan ( about 2 tablespoons). Add carrots, celery, onion, bok choy (or spinach, kale, anything green), and mushrooms. Sautee until vegetables have softened. Add about a tablespoon of Pacific spice and a tablespoon of Plum basil. Season with salt and pepper. Half a lime and squeeze fresh lime juice over mixture. Add the chicken broth and Gyoza to soup. I usually get the Gyoza ( pot stickers) in the freezer aisle at Trader Joe's. Adjust seasoning to taste. You can also try adding some chopped green onions over soup before serving. This soup was a hit in our home. My whole family devoured the whole soup, which made me very happy knowing they ate all their veggies! Enjoy!