Zesty Penne with Sausage and Peppers

Zesty Penne with Sausage and Peppers has become our family favorite, go-to recipe lately. It's got a little zip since we use our favorite hot sausage. It's creamy thanks to the cream cheese. And best of all, it's quick and easy to make. And since it's something that everyone in the family likes, I always have the ingredients on hand to whip up a satisfying dinner in no time at all!

I did make a few changes to this recipe. I leave out the green peppers because we don't care for them. I use red peppers instead. I also usually don't add any milk because  forgot to the first time I made it and we all liked it that way. As any mom of four will tell you, when you find something that all six people in the family will eat, you don't change a thing!

Zesty Penne with Sausage and Peppers is my contribution to The Weekend Blog Showcase. The original recipe came from a great blog, The Fairhope Foodie. Unfortunately Alaina is taking a blog hiatus at the moment but all over her amazing recipes are still available. Her recipe for Chicken Tortilla Skillet is definitely on my To Do list. Hopefully she'll be back to blogging soon but meanwhile, stop by and check out her blog.

This week's Weekend Blog Showcase is hosted by Lori at All That Splatters. Stop by and check out everyone's contribution. I've already changed my menu plan to include Cathy's Ribollita with Parmesan Toasts because it just looks too good to wait!

Zesty Penne with Sausage and Peppers
Recipe from The Fairhope Foodie

1 box Penne Noodles (I used Ronzoni Smart Taste)
1 lb. Italian Sausage
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 jar (26 oz.) spaghetti sauce
8 oz. cream cheese (I used reduced-fat)
1/4 cup milk (add more as needed for desired consistency)

Cook pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, brown sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Break up large chunks with a wooden spoon. Drain off excess fat. Return to skillet and add peppers. Cook 5-10 minutes or until softened. Stir in spaghetti sauce and cook until heated through, about 5 minutes. Add cream cheese, cook another 5 minutes or until melted, stirring frequently.

Drain pasta and return to pot. Add sausage mixture, mixing thoroughly. Add enough milk to thin out the consistency (I didn't measure, so I'm not sure how much I added. I'm guessing between 1/4 and 1/2 cup. It will resemble an alfredo sauce). Top with Parmesan. Serve with a small salad.

Pasta with Bacon and Mushrooms

Need a good recipe? Head over to The Pioneer Woman's blog. Every single recipe I've tried from Ree's blog or her cookbook has been wonderful. I'm not one to buy cookbooks anymore. I have more recipes bookmarked on my computer than I could ever make in my lifetime. But when I saw that The Pioneer Woman had a cookbook, I ran right out to Books-a-Million and picked it up. For full price. (If you know me, that's a big deal. I never pay full price for anything!) It was sooo worth it. Beautiful pictures. Step-by-step instructions. Delicious food. What more do you want?

This recipe for Pasta with Bacon and Mushrooms was easy to throw together. In fact, it uses ingredients I keep on hand all the time. I didn't have a chance to stop at the store to pick up ingredients for my planned meal so I fixed this instead. Pasta in a creamy sauce with mushrooms (I used Baby Bellas) and bacon. Bacon makes everything taste better! Even the picky girls liked it. This is definitely my new go-to recipes.

I found this recipe through Joy in Cooking. Lisa tweaked the recipe a bit by adding some chicken cubes and spinach. (Love that idea!) I was feeding the picky girls so I didn't add the spinach (but I definitely will next time. Just didn't want tit to look to scary the first time. LOL!) I did add the chicken and it added a little heft to the meal. The girls got a little extra protein and dh was satisfied as well. Win-win.

Pasta with Mushrooms and Bacon
Recipe courtesy of The Pioneer Woman

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
3 slices Thin Bacon, Cut Into 1/2-inch Pieces
3 cloves Garlic, Minced
1 package (10 Ounce) White Button Mushrooms, Sliced Thin
1 cup Low Sodium Chicken Broth (OR Dry White Wine)
1 cup Half-and-half
¼ cups Heavy Whipping Cream
3 whole Green Onions, White And Light Green Parts Sliced
¼ cups Flat-leaf Parsley, Minced
½ cups Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
Salt To Taste
Freshly Ground Black Pepper, To Taste
1 pound Thin Spaghetti Or Angel Hair Pasta
Extra Parmesan, For Sprinkling

Preparation Instructions

Cook pasta according to package directions.
In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add bacon pieces and cook until light brown but not crisp. Remove bacon from pan and set aside. Do not clean pan.
Add mushrooms and garlic to pan. Toss/stir around and cook over medium-high heat for 5 minutes; increase heat to high if needed to help mushrooms begin to turn golden brown.
Pour in chicken broth. Stir, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen any bits. Cook over medium-high heat for several minutes, or until the liquid is reduced by half.
Reduce heat and pour in half and half and cream. Stir and allow to bubble and thicken for a couple of minutes. Add sliced green onions and parsley, then cook for one more minute. Finally, add Parmesan and stir, allowing cheese to melt and incorporate into the sauce. Turn off heat.
Add cooked pasta to a large bowl. Add half the sauce from the pan. Toss with tongs. ***Add 1/2 cup hot pasta water at this point if the pasta mixture is too thick and gunky. Toss and add more water until it reaches the consistency you need.***
Serve pasta in individual bowls, topping each helping with the rest of the sauce. Sprinkle with extra parsley and extra Parmesan.
Enjoy!

Quick Macaroni and Cheese

Here's a great Quick Macaroni and Cheese recipe for those times when you are in a hurry, yet not desperate enough to go for the blue box. Elise over at Simply Recipes never seems to disappoint and even though my husband was a little concerned about adding lemon juice to the dish, in the end he thought it was delicious.

Quick Macaroni and Cheese
Recipe courtesy of Simply Recipes

2 quarts water
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 lb cheddar cheese, grated (about 2 cups, packed)
1 teaspoon corn starch
1/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 cup ham, chopped into 1/4 inch cubes
Freshly grated black pepper

In a medium sized bowl, mix corn starch into the grated cheese, so that the cheese is coated, set aside. This will help the cheese from getting too stringy.

Bring 2 quarts of water with the teaspoon of salt to a boil in thick-bottomed saucepan. Add the elbow macaroni and follow the cooking time instructions on the package, minus about 2 minutes. (If your macaroni doesn't come with instructions, start checking at 7 minutes). Cook until al dente - cooked through, but still slightly firm. Drain the water from the cooking pan (if you use a colander, return the macaroni to the pan). Lower the heat to low/warm.

Add the butter. Stir in to coat the macaroni. When the butter is about half melted, you can stir in the cheese. Add the milk. Add lemon juice. Stir in until all the butter and cheese is just melted and blended well with the milk. Do not over-stir. Add the chopped ham and a few twists of freshly grated black pepper.

Serve immediately. Serves 3-4 adults or 4-6 kids.

Rachael Ray Baked Shell Casserole

Just happened to walk through the room while Rachael Ray's talk show was on and caught her making Baked Shells Casserole. Since I'm always in a rush these days (and ok, since I'm a little lazy too) I never make things like Stuffed Shells anymore. Since hubby is a lasagna fan (and I never do that either!) I thought I'd try this one. You make a quick and yummy tomato sauce and use it to top pasta coated in spinach and cheese-y goodness. Pop it in the oven and dinner is done. I didn't have ricotta so I used mozzarella instead and it was delicious. The sauce was so-so. (Feel free to substitute your favorite.) But the cheesy pasta was delicious. I ate a whole bowl full while the casserole was in the oven. You know. Too much pasta. Wouldn't fit in the casserole dish.

Had to do something with it. :-)

Rachael Ray Baked Shell Casserole
Recipe courtesy of Rachael Ray

5 tablespoons EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped, divided
1 large or 2 small to medium onions, finely chopped, divided
1 small carrot, finely chopped or grated
Salt and pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons oregano or marjoram, half a palmful
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, 1/3 palmful
1 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed by pressing under flat of your knife
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme, 5 to 6 sprigs
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1/2 cup dry white or red wine
2 cups chicken stock
2 28-ounce cans Italian crushed tomatoes
1 pound medium or large shell pasta (not extra-large stuffing shells)
2 boxes frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and wrung dry in clean towel
Freshly grated nutmeg, about 1/4 teaspoon
2 cups fresh ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus some to pass at table
2 large egg yolks, lightly beaten

In a large pot, heat 3 tablespoons EVOO, 3 turns of the pan, over medium heat. Add 4 cloves of chopped garlic, 3/4 of finely chopped onion and the carrot. Season with salt, pepper, oregano or marjoram, red pepper flakes, fennel seeds and thyme, and gently sauté 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add in parsley, stir, then add wine and reduce a minute. Add stock and tomatoes, bring sauce up to a bubble and reduce heat to simmer. Simmer sauce 45 minutes.

After sauce has been simmering for 30 minutes, preheat oven to 375˚F.

Bring a pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Salt water and cook pasta 5 minutes.

While pasta water comes to a boil, heat remaining 2 tablespoons EVOO in a small skillet over medium heat. Add remaining garlic and onion and sauté to soften, 5 minutes. Add spinach, pulling it apart and separating it as you add it to pan. Stir to combine well and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Turn off heat.

Drain undercooked pasta and return it to the hot pot. Add spinach mixture to pot along with ricotta and grated Parm. Stir to combine, adjust salt and pepper then add eggs and stir.

Pour a thin layer of marinara sauce into the bottom of a casserole dish. Fill dish with pasta then top with another thin layer of red sauce. Save remaining sauce to pass at table. Bake 30 minutes until bubbly.

Serve casserole directly from casserole dish, passing extra sauce and cheese at the table.

Pasta with Hot Sausage Sauce

I needed a quick, kid-friendly dinner idea the other day so I grabbed one of the cookbooks that I'd checked out from the library. "Faster! I'm Starving! 100 Dishes in 25 Minutes or Less" by Kevin Mills and Nancy Mills. Their recipe for Pasta with Hot Sausage Sauce was a hit. It was tasty. Quick to make and offered plenty of flavor. The book was filled with lots of quick and easy recipes.

Sadly I forgot to write the recipe down before I returned the book. Hopefully I will be about to check it out again soon.

If you ever run across this cookbook, be sure to check out page 88 for this awesome recipe. :-)

Pasta Non-Carbonara

Things have been crazy around here lately and cooking has taken the back burner. Instead of trying new recipes I've been pulling out old family favorites. The Linguine Non-Carbonara recipe, originally from Blue Kitchen made a quick meal on a hot evening and used up some of that locally-grown produce I picked up at the Farmer's Market.

Linguine Non Carbonara
Recipe from Terry at Blue Kitchen

1 pound bacon
4 small zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch coins
2 red bell peppers, cut into little strips
3 shallots, chopped fine
6 green onions, trimmed, then sliced crosswise (6 to 7)
olive oil
2 eggs
Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
Optional: coarsely chopped garlic and chopped tomato
1 pound linguine

In a big, deep skillet, saute the bacon until the fat has mostly been rendered out. For this recipe, the bacon is best on the crisp side. Set it aside on paper towels to drain.

Pour most of the bacon fat off.

Meanwhile, start a pot of water. When the water comes to a rolling boil, add the linguine, stir to make sure it is all submerged and separated, and cook to al dente.

Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to the pan. Heat it, to moderate, then add in all the bell pepper slices, toss to coat with the cooking fat, and sauté until the pepper begins to brown slightly. Remove the peppers from the pan.

Lay the zucchini coins in the pan and sauté gently, turning them as they brown on one side, to brown both sides. When they are cooked, remove them from the pan.

When the pasta has cooked to al dente, drain it and rinse it thoroughly with hot water. Let it stand in the colander, draining, as you finish the ingredients.

Next, toss the chopped shallots into the moderately hot oil. Cook, stirring, for about 90 seconds. If you want to include garlic, cook it along with the shallots.

Now comes the grand assembly. Return the peppers and zucchini coins to the pan and let them heat through. Add the bacon back to the pan and, if you want to use chopped fresh tomato, add it now. Heat everything through.

Then, working quickly, add in the cooked pasta all at once. Toss the pasta and vegetables thoroughly, so that the pasta is well coated. When the pasta is gently heated through, pour the beaten egg over it and quickly, gently incorporate it throughout the pasta, stirring and lifting. The idea is not to create scrambled egg lumps but to let the egg and oil emulsify together.

Scatter most of the scallion slices over everything and toss lightly.

Working quickly, grate a cloud of Parmesan over everything—you want to add at least a half cup of Parmesan—and then add a good grinding of black pepper. Toss one more time to incorporate them throughout.

Serve immediately.

Cajun Mac 'n' Cheese

How can you improve on good, old Mac 'n' Cheese? Throw in some zesty Cajun seasonings for a can't-miss side dish you will be making again and again. When I saw the recipe for Cajun Mac 'n' Cheese over at Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice I knew it would be a family favorite and I was right.


Cajun Mac 'n' Cheese
Recipe from Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice

8 ounces elbow macaroni
1 tablespoon Paprika
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Garlic powder
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 and ½ teaspoon onion powder
1 and ½ teaspoon cayenne or 1 teaspoon peperoncino
1 and ½ teaspoon oregano
1 and ½ teaspoon thyme
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoon flour
2 cups half 'n' half or whole milk
8 ounces shredded or diced Extra Sharp Cheddar cheese
8 ounces shredded or diced Colby Jack cheese
Italian Bread Crumbs for topping
1 tablespoon Butter for topping


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook macaroni to al dente.

Into a small bowl measure out the seasonings and combine. Set aside.

While the macaroni is cooking in a large, heavy bottomed sauce pan melt the butter on
low-medium heat, whisk in the flour and cook for 2-3 minutes continuously whisking. Add the spice mixture and whisk into the flour mixture. Slowly add half 'n' half, continuously whisking. Bring to a slow simmer and continue to whisk for another 2-3 minutes, the milk should begin to thicken up. At this point add in the cheeses and whisk until melted. Remove from heat.

Spray a 2 quart casserole with baking spray; add macaroni. Pour béchamel over the macaroni.

Top with bread crumbs and dot with butter.

Bake at 350 for about 25-30 minutes until bubbly and top is golden.

Cajun Chicken Pasta

When I saw the recipe for Cajun Chicken and Shrimp Pasta over at My Kitchen Snippets, it spoke to me. Actually it yelled at me. "Make me right away!" I put it on the menu for the week but couldn't wait until Friday to make it so I moved up to Monday. It was so good, I might even make it again on Friday!

While the original recipe sounded wonderful, due to my inability to follow any recipe, I made a few changes. First I used already cooked chicken that I had on hand. That cut down the prep time and coating the chicken in Cajun seasoning and giving it a quick saute before adding it, also added some zing. I used a can of fire-roasted diced tomatoes which added more depth to the flavor (and saved even more time!) I also added some more veggies that I had on hand -- red bell peppers, cremini mushrooms -- along with the onion and garlic.

Delicious and quick this was definitely a crowd pleaser.

Cajun Chicken Pasta
Recipe inspired by My Kitchen Snippets

1 box pasta of your choice
olive oil
2 boneless chicken breasts, cooked and diced
1 small onion, diced
Several fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 red bell pepper
1 can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon of flour
1 1/2 cup half and half or heavy cream
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoons of pepper flakes
some chopped parsley
2 teaspoons of Cajun seasoning, plus extra for seasoning if desired
salt and pepper to taste

Cook the pasta until al-dente and set it aside.

Place diced, already cooked chicken in a bowl and toss with Cajun seasoning to cover. Saute in a non-stick pan with a drizzle of olive oil until heated through. Set aside.

In the same skillet heat a bit of olive oil, add the onions, bell peppers and mushrooms. When vegetables are softened, add garlic and cook for another minute or two. Add the flour and stir it for a minute or two, to cook off rawness of the flour.

Add the half and half, Parmesan cheese and stir until thick. Add the chicken and tomatoes into the skillet to cook through.
4. Season to taste with salt and pepper, pepper flakes and more Cajun seasoning, to taste.

Toss pasta with sauce.

Garnish with some chopped parsley and grated Parmesan cheese.

The Lady and Sons Lasagna

I never thought of myself as a fan of Paul Deen. I almost never watch her show and I'm not really sure why I don't. After trying this recipe for The Lady and Sons Lasagna, I'll definitely be trying more of her recipes (and trying to get a reservation at her restaurant next time we go to Savannah!)

I did change up the recipe a tiny bit. Since I'm not a big fan of ground beef, I used half Italian sausage and half ground beef and loved the way it turned out. Even my niece who doesn't like lasagna loved this recipe. Though it's a little time consuming to make, and what lasagna isn't, this one is definitely worth it.


The Lady and Sons Lasagna
Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

2 cups canned, diced tomatoes
2 cups tomato sauce
1 cup water
1/2 cup onions, diced
1/2 cup green bell peppers, diced
2 cloves garlic, diced
1/4 cup chopped, fresh parsley leaves
11/2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
11/2 teaspoons The Lady's House Seasoning, recipe follows
1 1/2 teaspoons seasoning salt
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
6 to 9 Long strips lasagna noodles
12 ounces cottage cheese, mixed with 1 beaten egg and 1/2 cup Parmesan
1 cup Gruyere cheese, grated
1 cup Swiss cheese, grated
2 cups cheddar, grated
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
1 cup mozzarella, grated

To make the sauce, in a stockpot, combine the tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, onions, peppers, garlic, parsley, seasoning mixtures, sugar and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour. Crumble the ground beef in a saucepan. Cook until no pink remains, then drain off the fat. Add the ground beef to the stockpot. Simmer for another 20 minutes. While the sauce simmers, cook the pasta according to the package directions (if sauce is too thin, for your taste, you can thicken it up at this time by mixing 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and a 1/4 of a cup of cold water. Bring sauce back to a boil. Stir in cornstarch mixture, stirring constantly). Remove bay leaves.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

To assemble lasagna, place a thin layer of sauce in the bottom of a 9 by 13 by 2-inch pan. Layer 1/3 of each, noodles, cottage cheese mixture, Gruyere, Swiss and cheddar cheeses. Pinch off small pieces of cream cheese and dot over other cheeses. Add another layer of sauce. Repeat layering 2 to 3 times ending with sauce. This may be covered and refrigerated at this point. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and top with mozzarella and continue to bake for another 10 to 15 minutes. Note: If lasagna has been refrigerated, bake for 40 minutes total.

House Seasoning:

1 cup salt
1/4 cup black pepper
1/4 cup garlic powder

Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

Yield: 1 1/2 cups

Yakitori Noodle Bowl

I didn't need to go into town today so no trip to the grocery store. While I was trying to figure out something to make for dinner using what I had on hand, I caught the end of Rachael Ray's show. The Yakitori Noodle Bowls looked interesting so I logged on and found the recipe. Perfect. I had everything I needed. Even better. The sauce took less time to make than the noodles did. I had dinner on the table in less than ten minutes. The best part? Not one noodle left. This one was delicious and I will definitely be making it again soon.

Yakitori Noodle Bowls
Recipe Courtesy of Rachael Ray

Salt
1 pound soba noodles
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts or tenders, cut into bite-size pieces
2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated or finely minced
Freshly ground black pepper
2 bunches scallions, trimmed of roots and cut into 2-inch pieces on an angle
1/3 cup dry sherry (eyeball it)
1/3 cup tamari (eyeball it)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
Toasted sesame seeds, for garnish

Place a large pot of water over high heat for the noodles. Once boiling, add some salt and the noodles and cook according to package directions. Drain thoroughly.

While the water is coming up to a boil, place a large skillet over medium-high heat with 2 turns of the pan of vegetable oil, about 2 tablespoons. Toss the chicken with the grated ginger and season with some pepper. Add the chicken to the hot skillet, spread it out in an even layer and let it brown up a couple of minutes.

Shake and stir the skillet to turn the chicken pieces then add the scallions, sherry, tamari, sugar and sesame oil, bring up to a bubble and simmer one minute.

Add the drained noodles to the skillet and toss to combine. To serve, transfer to serving bowls and sprinkle with some of the toasted sesame seeds.

Three Cheese Chicken Penne Pasta Bake

It's funny. I got the Winter issue of the Kraft Food & Family Magazine. I have even made a few recipes out of it already. But I never noticed the recipe for Three Cheese Chicken Penne Pasta Bake hiding there on page 22. I so much did not see it that when Joe over at Culinary in the Desert blogged about it, I thought he must be mistaken. But nope. There it is. Right there on page 22.

I'm glad that I finally noticed this recipe. It was simple to throw together. And adding seasonings as well as a can of fire-roasted diced tomatoes to the jarred marinara sauce gave it a depth of flavor that tasted as if it took longer than 30 minutes to make. I especially enjoyed the addition of fresh spinach and apparently my picky eaters did too, because they were all surprised to hear that it had had spinach in it! LOL!

We'll definitely be making this dish again.


Three Cheese Chicken Penne Pasta Bake
Recipe from Kraft Food & Family Magazine

1-1/2 cups multigrain penne pasta, uncooked

1 pkg. (9 oz.) fresh spinach leaves

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces

1 tsp. dried basil leaves

1 jar (14-1/2 oz.) spaghetti sauce

1 can (14-1/2 oz.) diced tomatoes, drained

2 oz. (1/4 of 8-oz. pkg.) PHILADELPHIA Neufchatel Cheese, cubed

1 cup KRAFT 2% Milk Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, divided

2 Tbsp. KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese

HEAT oven to 375ºF. Cook pasta as directed on package, adding spinach to the boiling water for the last 1 min.
COOK and stir chicken and basil in large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat 3 min. Add spaghetti sauce and tomatoes; bring to boil. Simmer 3 min. or until chicken is done. Stir in Neufchatel cheese.
DRAIN pasta mixture; return to pan. Stir in chicken mixture and 1/2 cup mozzarella. Spoon into 2-qt. or 8-inch square baking dish.
BAKE 20 min. Sprinkle with remaining cheeses. Bake 3 min.

Taste and Create: Skillet Lasagna

One of the first blog events I ever participated in was Taste and Create, hosted by Nicole over at For The Love of Food. I still remember the delicious Apple-Banana Bread I picked from my partner, A Whisk and a Spoon's blog. Delicious ... and something I never would have chosen to make on my own. I don't like to bake so I rarely do it. I find that I skip over those sorts of recipes and usually don't even think about making them. That's the great thing about the Taste and Create event; it can push you outside of you comfort zone a little and let you try something different. Usually with great results.

This month I was paired with one of my favorite bloggers: Bellini Valli of More Than Burnt Toast. I had big plans because looking at her blog, I couldn't decide on just one recipe. I mean with recipes like Greek-Inspired Chicken Burgers or Greek Salad with Oregano Marinated Chicken, or Bourbon and Brown Sugar Flank Steak with Garlic-Chive Mashed Potatoes, I could plan the whole menu for next month just from this blog! (Can you hear my family in the background saying "Please do!!" LOL!) Reality intervened and before you know it, it was time to post my Taste and Create Dish. I looked around to find a recipe that I already had the ingredients for and came up with Skillet Lasagna. I figured it would be good. It's pasta. It has cheese. Gotta be good, right?

Nope.

It's not good.

Skillet. Lasagna. Is. Awesome!

We all loved it, and that doesn't happen all that often around here. All three kids ate it and commented how good it was. Picky ds even asked why I hadn't made this when his friends spent the night last weekend! Woohoo! Definitely a keeper. :-) (Shhh! Don't tell them it had spinach in it! Somehow they didn't notice.) I did make a slight change. I used Italian sausage instead of ground beef. And I added some sauteed onions and garlic as well. Quick easy and delicious. And all the kids liked it. My idea of a perfect recipe!

This month's event is being hosted by Min from The Bad Girls Kitchen. Be sure to check out this month's Taste and Create event!



Skillet Lasagna
Recipe from More Than Burnt Toast

8 oven-ready lasagne noodles (in this case Mafaldine)
1 pkg chopped spinach
1 lb lean ground beef
3 cups pasta sauce (your choice or homemade)
1 cup partly-skimmed ricotta cheese
1 cup (4 oz) pizza shreds ( a blend of mozzarella, provolone, Parmesan and Romano cheeses) or other shredded cheese blend of your choice

Place skillet over high heat. Add beef and cook breaking up clumps with a wooden spoon,
about 3 minutes until no longer pink. Add pasta sauce and ½ cup water and bring to a
simmer.

Add noodles and spinach to pan. Cover and simmer 5 minutes (10 minutes if using Mafaldine), stirring.

Dot with spoonfuls of ricotta cheese, then sprinkle with cheese shreds. Cover, reduce heat to
low and cook 3 minutes until cheese melts.

Remove from heat; serve from skillet.
Serves 6

Baked Rigatoni Pasta with Homemade Garlic and Basil Marinara Sauce

The first night of the Pantry Challenge went well. With this luscious baked pasta, Caesar Salad and warm bread sticks, no one felt like they were being deprived. Hopefully they will still be happy by the end of the week!

I found this recipe for Baked Rigatoni Pasta with Garlic and Basil Marinara Sauce from Fun and Food the other day and I knew it was a perfect Pantry recipe, made from things I always keep on hand. It was easy to make and quite tasty. Next time I'll add a bit more water to the sauce. It ended up a bit thick. I would also mix the sauce with the pasta before baking to spread the sauce throughout the dish. There was quite a bit of pasta in the bottom with no hint of sauce. (Which did work out okay since picky dd won't eat sauce! LOL!)


Baked Rigatoni Pasta with Homemade Garlic and Basil Marinara Sauce
Recipe from Fun and Food

For the Marinara Sauce
2 cans tomato puree
1 can diced roma tomatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
3-4 large cloves of garlic - minced
2 tbsp dried basil leaves
2 tsp dried oregano leaves
1/2 small onion - finely chopped
2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
lemon juice - add to taste if necessary
water - add to adjust consistency

Pasta Ingredients
10 oz Rigatoni pasta
1/2 capsicum - finely diced
1 cup mozarella cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
2 tsp dried thyme leaves

Method

Pasta Sauce
Place the olive oil in a small frying pan and warm to medium heat. Add the garlic and onions, and cook until onions are slightly tender.

Now add the tomato puree and the diced tomatoes, add 1/2 cup water and allow to cook. for 5 minutes so the tomato pieces get almost mashed and tender. Then add the dried basil and oregano leaves, salt, sugar and more water if needed, then cover and let it simmer on medium-flame till all flavors are mixed well.

Once cooked, remove from flame and allow to cool a little. If you like a smoother texture, you can blend this mixture after it has cooled down to form a puree. I like a chunky texture, so I left it as it is.

Baked Rigatoni
Take the Rigatoni and cook it according to package instructions.

Take 1 tbsp olive oil and heat it. Add the chopped capsicum to it and cook until slightly tender.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a square or rectangular glass baking dish or spray with non-stick cooking spray. Layer the cooked pasta in the dish, top it with the sauted capsicum, then gently pour the marinara sauce over it. Add the parmesan and mozzarella cheese to it. Sprinkle some more dried basil and thyme leaves on the top if you like.

now bake at 375 degrees for about 20-25 minutes, until the pasta and sauce is cooked well and the cheese begins to melt. Change the setting to Broil and cook for another 2 mins, just so the cheese on the top gets a little golden in color.

Remove from oven and allow to cool a little. Serve the hot Baked Rigatoni Pasta with Homemade Garlic and Basil Marinara Sauce with a side salad or garlic bread for a delicious Italian Meal!

Roasted Tomatoes with Shrimp, Goat Cheese and Farfalle

The kids were busy. Dh was gone. I was starving and the time seemed perfect to try the recipe for Roasted Tomatoes with Shrimp, Goat Cheese and Farfalle that I saw over at Dinners for a Year and Beyond the other day. The kids aren't big goat cheese fans and dh doesn't care for shrimp so I'd filed it away and had almost forgotten about it. I'm glad I remembered! Quite tasty. The sauce is rich and creamy. The roasted tomatoes, delicious. Definitely one I'll keep in mind for the next time I find myself alone at dinnertime.

Roasted Tomatoes with Shrimp, Goat Cheese and Farfalle
Recipe from Dinners for a Year and Beyond

1 pound farfalle, cooked and drained
4 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
6 garlic cloves, chopped
½ large Vidalia onion, diced
olive oil
salt
pepper
½ cup white wine
1 ¾ cups chicken stock
1 ½ pounds large shrimp, peeled
¼ pound goat cheese, crumbled
about 15 basil leaves, chopped
Parmesan cheese, freshly grated

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. On a large baking sheet toss tomatoes, garlic, and onions with about ¼ cup olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Roast for 40 minutes, stirring after 20 minutes.

Heat a large sauté pan to medium high and add the roasted tomato mixture. Add the wine and bring to a boil. Cook for about 3 – 4 minutes. Add the chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Add shrimp and cook for 2 – 3 minutes until just cooked through. Stir in the crumbled goat cheese until it is melted.

In a large serving dish, combine the shrimp and tomato mixture with the farfalle. Toss with some of the basil, reserving a couple tablespoons for garnish. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.

Barefoot Bloggers: Grown Up Mac and Cheese

I have to say that I don't watch Ina Garten on TV. I don't know why. It's not that I don't like her show or her food. Her show just must not be on when I usually watch TV, I guess, so I wasn't really familiar with her food. Lately I'd been noticing more of the Barefoot Bloggers posts. You know, the group that picks a couple of Ina's recipes to blog about each month. Well I started to notice that a lot of the recipes I was bookmarking happened to be Barefoot Bloggers posts. So I decided to jump in and join them and this was a great recipe to start with. Nothing too intimidating about mac and cheese. (Well, there is the blue cheese aspect ...) So I sent off an email asking to join the group and optimistically headed off to the grocery store to gather the ingredients I needed to make Ina Garten's Grown Up Mac and Cheese.

I was a little leery of her combination of Gruyere, cheddar and blue cheese. We really aren't big blue cheese fans around here but I figured "in for a penny, in for a pound!" and bought all three.Unfortunately, dh was home for lunch that day and in my excitement, I had the great idea to fix BLT's using some of those great home-grown tomatoes. They were delicious, btw. So much so we ate all the bacon without giving it a second thought. So my Grown Up Mac and Cheese ended up bacon-less. It was still pretty tasty though.

The blue cheese was much less noticeable than I'd feared and while dh wasn't that impressed upon the first bite, (he's not a big fan of change), he did clean his plate and say that it really was better tasting than he'd originally thought. For myself, while I doubt that I'll make this exact recipe as written again, I did have two helpings. ;-) Though it wasn't overpowering, next time I think I'd leave out the blue cheese. I'm just not a blue cheese fan, I guess. I think it would be awesome without it. (I can just imagine how awesome it would be with bacon. Yum! Note to self: Next time DO NOT eat all of the bacon beforehand!)

My main disappointment was in the breadcrumb topping. Normally I hate it when people use breadcrumb topping because they almost always use those dry, tasteless, pre-packaged bread crumbs. Blech! These were made from fresh bread (but white bread? Really? Wouldn't a nice wheat work too?) The taste and texture were perfect (even with the white bread. LOL!) and they browned to a beautiful color and consistency. But by adding the fresh basil and baking it for 40 minutes, the fresh basil turned an unappealing black color. I picked up a bottle of freeze-dried basil at the store the other day. I wonder if that might hold up a bit better in the oven? I may try that sometime.

All in all, it was an easy recipe and pretty tasty too. I made a second batch, using only cheddar cheese for the girls and they are still raving about it. That's really saying something since their favorite mac and cheese usually comes in a blue box. Thanks to Heather of Randomosity and the Girl for picking this weeks recipe. You can find the original recipe here. And you can check out the Barefoot Bloggers Blogroll to find out what everyone else thought about this grown up version of an old favorite recipe.


Grown Up Mac and Cheese
Recipe courtesy of Ina Garten

4 ounces thick-sliced bacon
Vegetable oil
Kosher salt
2 cups elbow macaroni or cavatappi
1 1/2 cups milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated
3 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, grated
2 ounces blue cheese, such as Roquefort, crumbled
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Pinch nutmeg
2 slices white sandwich bread, crusts removed
2 tablespoons freshly chopped basil leaves

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Place a baking rack on a sheet pan and arrange the bacon in 1 layer on the baking rack. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the bacon is crisp. Remove the pan carefully from the oven - there will be hot grease in the pan! Transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels and crumble when it is cool enough to handle.

Drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling salted water. Add the macaroni and cook according to the directions on the package, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well.

Meanwhile, heat the milk in a small saucepan, but don't boil it. Melt the butter in a medium pot and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. While whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or 2 more, until thickened and smooth. Off the heat, add the Gruyere, Cheddar, blue cheese, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and crumbled bacon and stir well. Pour into 2 individual size gratin dishes.

Place the bread slices in a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until you have coarse crumbs. Add the basil and pulse to combine. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the top of the pasta. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top.

Zucchini Pasta

To celebrate school starting, the girls and I spent the day at the swimming pool in a nearby state park. The weather was beautiful. The water wasn't too cold. And the pool wasn't very crowded. The girls were able to go down the water slide as many times as they wanted and my niece finally got comfortable putting her face under water! A great day for everyone.

Great until I got home with a car load of tired and hungry kids with no idea what to fix for dinner. Around here pasta is usually a good idea so I started the water boiling and looked around for something to add to it. I had plenty of zucchini from the garden and a package of baby bellas from the store. Unfortunately, when I opened them, they were a tad bit past their prime. (Blech!) Since the zucchini seemed a little lonely I threw in a can of sliced mushrooms and what little bit of red onion I had left. I topped the pasta with a creamy sauce made from the remnants of a couple of packages of cream cheese that have been floating around in the fridge for too long. (Why is it that my kids can't finish one box before they open the new one? Can someone explain that? ::sigh::) I thinned the cream cheese with a little milk and stirred in a handful of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Quick. Easy. Delicious. Just the way I like it!


Zucchini Pasta

1 box Mini Farfalle
olive oil
1-2 zucchini, 1/4 inch dice
1/2 red onion, 1/4 inch dice
1 small can sliced mushrooms
1 block cream cheese
1/4-1/2 cup milk, as needed to thin the sauce
freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Parsley, for garnish

Prepare pasta as directed on the box.

To a large skillet, add olive oil. When heated, add the red onion, mushrooms and zucchini cubes. Saute until softened, several minutes. Add cream cheese and milk and stir until cheese is melted and the sauce thickens. Add pasta and Parmesan and toss until pasta is coated with sauce. Garnish with parsley if desired.

Greek Night: The Rachael Ray Way

We had a Greek-themed dinner last night. We started out with Eggplant Roll-Ups, a Rachael Ray recipe from her 30 Minute Meals TV show. They were pretty good: grilled eggplant slices rolled around creamy garlicky cheeses and sun-dried tomatoes. I made it using a Slow Roasted Tomato recipe I found over at Smitten Kitchen. Mmmmm! Rachael Ray seems to add grill seasoning to almost everything but this was one recipe where I didn't care for it. Maybe I used to much but it seemed to overpower the other flavors of the dish. Next time I'll just use salt and pepper.

I also made the other recipe from the show: Spanikopita Chicken Meatballs with SpicyCucumber and Yogurt Sauce. I really thought I'd like it. I love pretty much every single ingredient. But somehow, I just didn't care for it. The meatballs were just sort of bland and the dip was lackluster as well. Very disappointing. I like the idea of this though and I think I'll play around with the recipe a bit and see what I can do.


Lulu over at Mama's Taverna definitely provided the star of the show: Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce and Myzithra Cheese. Unfortunately out here in the middle of nowhere, Parmesan was as close as I could come to Myzithra, but the dish was a hit anyway. The kids were originally a bit frightened of the whole peppercorns they saw in the sauce and convinced it had to be a bug but after being reassured it was only pepper, they dived right in. Dh requested that I make it again (but next time maybe I could add some meat? ...) Check out Lulu's recipe here.

Eggplant Roll-Ups
Recipe courtesy of Rachael Ray

1 large, firm eggplant
Salt and pepper
Grill seasoning blend (recommended: McCormick Montreal Seasoning)
1 cup semi-soft garlic and herb cheese (recommended: Alouette or Boursin)
1 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano, a couple of handfuls
A few grinds black pepper
6 to 8 soft sun-dried tomatoes, chopped (tender sun-dried tomatoes are available in small pouches in produce department)
2 cups arugula leaves, chopped
1 cup basil leaves, chopped

Heat a grill pan over high heat. Thinly slice the eggplant, a minimum of 18 slices. Season with salt, pepper and grill seasoning blend. Grill the thin slices to tenderize the eggplant, 2 to 3 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Combine the cheeses, black pepper and sun-dried tomatoes. Top each slice of cooked eggplant with a dab of cheese and some arugula and basil then roll up. The eggplant roll ups should have a few greens sticking out of both ends.


Spanikopita Chicken Meatballs with Spicy Cucumber andYogurt Sauce
Recipe courtesy of Rachael Ray

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus some for liberal drizzling
1 small onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped, divided
2 boxes frozen chopped spinach, defrosted.
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 pound ground chicken
1 tablespoons grill seasoning (recommended: McCormick Montreal Seasoning)
1 1/2 cups Greek style plain yogurt
1/3 seedless cucumber, peeled and chopped
3 tablespoons fresh dill
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 1/2 teaspoons, 1/2 a palm full, cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons, 1/2 a palm full, coriander
Salt

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a bowl combine onion and 3 cloves of garlic. Squeeze the water out of the spinach until completely dry. Separate the spinach as you add it to garlic and onion. Add feta, chicken and grill seasoning to the bowl and a liberal drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil. Mix the meat with veggies and feta and form 18 (1 1/2-inch) meatballs. Place the meatballs on a nonstick cookie sheet and bake 10 to 12 minutes until they are golden and juices run clear.

Place yogurt, garlic, cucumber, dill, lemon juice, cumin, coriander and a little salt in food processor and process until smooth. Adjust seasonings and transfer to a serving bowl. Serve meatballs alongside sauce with toothpicks.

Pasta with Fresh Mozzarella and Basil

It's been pretty hot around here lately. This was my solution for a quick dinner when it's too hot to cook: Pasta with Fresh Mozzarella and Basil. In a large serving bowl I threw together a little basil from the garden and diced fresh mozzarella, added a can of roasted diced tomatoes, a little olive oil and some minced garlic and topped it with some hot fettuccine. A green salad on the side along with some artisan bread I picked up at my favorite bakery and I had dinner on the table without heating up the kitchen!

Cajun Chicken Alfredo

Why is it when it's hot out I just can't seem to motivate myself to cook? This was another night when I waited too late to start dinner, had no clear plan and no time to run to the grocery store. And unexpectedly I also had an extra mouth to feed. A quick look in my pantry made pasta the obvious choice. (I seem to have a pasta addiction and I can't seem to stop myself from buying any different pasta shape I come across.) I picked fettuccine and after a quick scan of the fridge, I decided on a sort of Cajun-ish Chicken Alfredo. I blackened the chicken in a spice mix I mixed up from a recipe I found over at Robbie's Recipes. To give the sauce a little zing and a bit of color, I added some Sun-dried Tomato Pesto that I've had around here forever. I know Alfredo is never the *healthy* choice, but I used a bit less than 1 cup of heavy cream and a can of evaporated milk for 10+ servings, which cut the fat content considerably without affecting the taste.

Dinner made it onto the table on time and there was plenty for everyone. The biggest surprise of all was that *both* girls *loved* it. Even ds and his girlfriend enjoyed it, though the laughed about the fact that they'd ordered the Cajun Chicken Pasta the night before at Red Lobster but both agreed that mine was better. (Have mentioned lately how much I really like ds's girlfriend? LOL!)


Cajun-ish Chicken Alfredo

1 box fettucine
4 boneless chicken breasts
Cajun blackening seasoning from Robbie's Recipes, or use your favorite
olive oil
Sun-dried Tomato Pesto
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 cup white wine
1 can evaporated milk
1 cup heavy cream
Parmesan cheese
salt and freshly ground pepper
scallions, for garnish

Prepare pasta following package directions.

Pound chicken breasts thinly and coat in the blackening seasoning mix. In a skillet over medium-high heat, add olive oil and saute chicken breasts until done all the way through. Set aside.

Saute garlic. After garlic starts to caramelize, add sun-dried tomato pesto. Slice chicken into stips and add to the pan. Add wine to deglaze the pan. Simmer to reduce a few minutes. Add the evaporated milk and simmer until sauce is reduced. Add cream and reduce to desired consistency. Add Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with scallions.

Linguine Non Carbonara

I'd bookmarked this recipe for Linguine Non Carbonara awhile ago but had never gotten around to trying it. Suddenly last night I had a couple of extra guests for dinner and was scrambling around for something quick to serve 8 people for dinner. This recipe seemed perfect ... and it was. This pasta dish was delicious. It has lots of bacon in it. Dh is always happy to try anything that has bacon in it. And on the plus side, it has lots of seasonal, fresh veggies in it so to my way of thinking, it's a lot healthier than traditional carbonara. Granted there are eggs and cheese (well, yeah, and bacon too) but I used less than one pound of bacon because that's what I had on hand and there are only 2 eggs and half a cup of cheese in the dish. Divide that by 8+ servings and I don't think that's too bad. (BTW, the recipe says it serves 4 but with some crusty Italian Bread and a salad, we had plenty for 8.)

I'm already trying to figure out when I can make this one again!


Linguine Non Carbonara
Recipe from Terry at Blue Kitchen

1 pound bacon
4 small zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch coins
2 red bell peppers, cut into little strips
3 shallots, chopped fine
6 green onions, trimmed, then sliced crosswise (6 to 7)
olive oil
2 eggs
Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
Optional: coarsely chopped garlic and chopped tomato
1 pound linguine

In a big, deep skillet, sauté the bacon until the fat has mostly been rendered out. For this recipe, the bacon is best on the crisp side. Set it aside on paper towels to drain.

Pour most of the bacon fat off. [Okay, I talk big about the evils of this recipe, but we do hedge our bets a bit.] I don’t save bacon fat, so I pour it into a can and toss that out. You just want enough left in the pan to form a slick.

Meanwhile, start a pot of water. When the water comes to a rolling boil, add the linguine, stir to make sure it is all submerged and separated, and cook to al dente.

Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to the pan. Heat it, to moderate, then add in all the bell pepper slices, toss to coat with the cooking fat, and sauté until the pepper begins to brown slightly. Remove the peppers from the pan [I try to let the liquids drain from the peppers back into the pan as I transfer them back to their bowl].

Lay the zucchini coins in the pan and sauté gently, turning them as they brown on one side, to brown both sides. When they are cooked, remove them from the pan.

When the pasta has cooked to al dente, drain it and rinse it thoroughly with hot water. Let it stand in the colander, draining, as you finish the ingredients.

Next, toss the chopped shallots into the moderately hot oil. Cook, stirring, for about 90 seconds. If you want to include garlic, cook it along with the shallots.

Now comes the grand assembly. Return the peppers and zucchini coins to the pan and let them heat through. Add the bacon back to the pan and, if you want to use chopped fresh tomato, add it now. Heat everything through.

Then, working quickly, add in the cooked pasta all at once. Toss the pasta and vegetables thoroughly, so that the pasta is well coated. When the pasta is gently heated through, pour the beaten egg over it and quickly, gently incorporate it throughout the pasta, stirring and lifting. The idea is not to create scrambled egg lumps but to let the egg and oil emulsify together.

Scatter most of the scallion slices over everything and toss lightly.

Working quickly, grate a cloud of parmesan over everything—you want to add at least a half cup of parmesan—and then add a good grinding of black pepper. Toss one more time to incorporate them throughout.

Serve immediately.