Spinach Lasagna Rolls

Looking back at my "resolutions" for this year....Meatless meals.  This is one of my favorites.  I love the spinach and cheese combo and for some reason I don't think one roll has a huge number of carbs so I consider this good skinny food to eat when I'm watching my carb intake.  I didn't change anything from the recipe.  If you like diet friendly meals you should check out the Skinnytaste site. I try a ton of recipes and haven't found one I don't like yet!

Spinach Lasagna Rolls

From: Skinnytaste

Ingredients:
9 lasagna noodles, cooked
10 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed and completely drained
15 oz fat free ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg
salt and fresh pepper
32 oz tomato sauce
1 cup part skim mozzarella cheese, shredded

Directions: 
Preheat oven to 350°. Combine spinach, ricotta, Parmesan, egg, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Ladle about 1 cup sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 12 baking dish.

Place a piece of wax paper on the counter and lay out lasagna noodles. Make sure noodles are dry. Take 1/3 cup of ricotta mixture and spread evenly over noodle. Roll carefully and place seam side down onto the baking dish. Repeat with remaining noodles.

Ladle sauce over the noodles in the baking dish and top each roll with mozzarella cheese. Put foil over baking dish and bake for 40 minutes, or until cheese melts. Makes 9 rolls.

Tuna noodle casserole

Comfort and easy for a weeknight. That is the goal for cooking after a full day of work! My family loves casseroles. I definitely did not grow up eating casseroles. I grew up eating stir fry, roast duck, soy sauce chicken, um any other chinese dish you can think of. So this casserole thing is quite a novelty. However, I am not a fan of canned soup casserole. Not saying I haven't used the Campbell's shortcuts in the past- afterall my husband loves the infamous greenbean casserole. The original recipe called for mushrooms. Unfortunately, my 13 year old claims mushrooms are not her favorite. Given her love of the greenbean casserole, I substituted her favorite vegetable.

Adapted from: Gourmet


Ingredients:

1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 can french cut green beans
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/4 cup Cooking wine
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup whole milk
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (6-oz) can tuna in olive oil, drained
6 oz dried curly egg noodles (preferably Pennsylvania Dutch style; about 3 1/4 cups)
4 oz coarsely grated Cheddar (1 cup)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Directions:
1. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F. Butter a shallow 2-quart baking dish.
2. Saute onion in 1 1/2 tablespoons butter with a pinch of salt in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately low heat, covered, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes.
3. Add green beans drained, soy sauce, Sherry and boil, stirring occasionally, until the sherry is evaporated. Remove from heat.
4. Make the roux by melting the remaining 3 tablespoons butter in a 2- to 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat and whisk in flour. Add broth in a stream, whisking, and bring to a boil, whisking. Keep whisking otherwise it will clump up.
5. Whisk in milk and simmer sauce, whisking occasionally, 5 minutes. Stir in greenbean mixture, lemon juice, and salt.
6. Add flaked tuna into sauce and stir. Season sauce with salt and pepper.
7. Cook noodles in a 5- to 6-quart pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain noodles in a colander and return to pot. Add sauce and stir gently to combine. Transfer mixture to baking dish, spreading evenly.
8. Cook 20 to 30 minutes and serve.

Chicken Marsala

An Italian favorite.  My husband's step mother made us Chicken Marsala when we went to visit her this past year.  I didn't realize it really was so easy.  The hardest part for me was finding the Marsala wine!  After a visit to my local Safeway - yes you locals know this trip was useless...I visited World Market of all places.  They truly are worldly at World Market.  I did not want to drown out the flavor of the dish by serving it with too much.  I served the chicken with buttered noodles, but I think next time I might try a carbonara.  This has definitely joined the regular rotation at my house!

Recipe adapted from: BJ's Monthly magazine

Ingredients:
  
4 Chicken boneless skinless half-breasts; (pounded to even thickness)
1/3 cup Flour
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Oregano
4 tablespoon olive oil
4 tablespoon Butter
1 clove Garlic
1 cup sliced cremini/bella mushrooms (fresh, sliced)
1/2 cup Marsala wine
Italian parsley for garnish

Directions:

1.  Combine flour, salt, and oregano in a shallow bowl.
2.  Heat the oil, butter, and garlic in a skillet. Dredge the chicken in the flour mixture and place in skillet.
3.  Saute the chicken on medium heat for about 2 minutes on the first side, until lightly brown. Flip the breasts and add the mushrooms around the chicken pieces. Saute chicken until cooked completely .
Remove chicken from skillet and place on serving plate(s).
4.  Add the wine to the mushrooms and simmer until liquid is reduced by half. Season with salt and pepper.
5.  Spoon mushrooms and sauce over chicken, garnish with Italian parsley and serve.  Serve with buttered angel hair.

Seafood Pasta

I love dishes where only one pot gets dirty and it includes everything! Actually more so - my husband 
loves dishes with one pot since he does most of the dishes. I also love seafood. My husband isn't really
adventurous in the type of fish he eats. We eat alot of Tuna, Salmon and Tilapia. However, he does  
like shrimp. I have tried shrimp scampi and a slew of other dishes. This is a new twist that I was  
inspired from the Pioneer Woman. Unfortunately or fortunate for me, I don't have 12 people to serve  
dinner for. I have altered the recipe based to serve 4 healthy portions. Next time I'll try it with a mix of
shrimp and scallops. Enjoy!

One Pot Seafood Pasta

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 TBSP butter

1 pound Shrimp
5 cloves Garlic
3/4 cups Dry White Wine
14 ounces, weight Diced Tomatoes
Salt And Pepper, to taste
1/4 teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper
1/4 cup Heavy Cream, Warmed
12 whole Basil Leaves Torn
9 ounces fresh fettuccine pasta
2 heads of chopped broccoli



Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook fresh pasta for 2 mins. (It's okay if you leave it very al dente.)
2.  In a heavy skillet heat 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter  over medium-high heat. When hot, throw in shrimp and brown them, too. (Don't completely cook scallops or shrimp.) Remove to a plate.
3. Add another TBSP of oil to the pan. Cook the garlic for 30 seconds, then pour in the wine, then pour in the tomatoes (including juice.) Add salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes, then cook the sauce over medium-high heat for 10-15 minutes.
4.  Meanwhile, boil the chopped broccoli for about 3 mins so it is bright green but not too crispy.
5.  Add the shrimp, drained pasta and the boiled broccoli to the tomato mixture and toss.
6.  Cover the pan and place in the oven.  Bake for 15 minutes and then drizzle the heavy cream on the pasta.  Add the basil at the end before serving.

White Clam Sauce

White clam sauce

For the Valentine's day party I wanted to offer more than one sauce.  My personal favorite is white clam sauce.  I ordered it when I was in Italy and almost always order it at a seafood restaurant.  This recipe was a hit.  People really liked the little bit of spice each bite left them.  I did not have fresh clams on hand so I adapted the recipe.

 Adapted from: Epicurious
1 chopped onion
2 garlic cloves minced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/3 cup dry white wine
4 6.5 ounce can of chopped clams
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
1 teaspoons dried oregano

1.  In a skillet cook the onion and the garlic in the butter over moderate heat, stirring, until they are pale golden, add the cornstarch, and cook the mixture, stirring, for 1 minute.
2.  Stir in the wine, canned clams with the juice and simmer the sauce, stirring, for 5 minutes. Stir in the parsley, the oregano, and salt and pepper to taste and keep the sauce warm.
3.  Serve with linguine.

Slow Cook Bolognese

Plenty of sauce

The crock pot is something I have been trying to master.  Set it and forget it. I got the America's Test Kitchen magazine on slow cooking and had to try this recipe.  The heavy cream and bread perplexed me but I couldn't tell it was in the sauce.  The house was fragrant all day and the sauce was delicious.  It does make quite a bit of sauce.  I served it at the Valentine's day party and froze the other half of the sauce for another day. 

Adapted from: America's Test Kitchen
3 tbsp butter
1 onion minced
2 carrot peeled and minced
2 stalks of celery minced
3 lbs meatloaf mix
1/2 lb pancetta diced
1/4 cup tomato paste
3 garlic cloves minced
1 TBSP Italian seasoning (oregano, basil, garlic mix)
1/2 cup red wine
2 28ounce cans crushed tomatoes
3 slices white sandwich bread torn into quarters
1 cup heavy cream
salt and pepper

1. Melt butter in the skillet - add onion, carrot, celery, tomato paste, garlic, italian seasoning, pancetta and cook until vegetables are softened and lightly browned 8-10 minutes.  Stir in wine, scraping up any browned bits; transfer to slow cooker. Stir tomatoes into slow cooker.

2. Mash bread and heavy cream into paste in large bowl using fork.  Mix in meatloaf mix, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 tsp pepper using hands.  Stir in meatloaf mix into slow cooker, break up any large pieces.  Cover and cook until tender 9-11 hours low or 5-7 hours on high.

3. Before serving, take the top off and remove some of the fat that collected at the top.  Break up any remaining large pieces of meat with spoon.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Veal Osso Buco with Pappardelle

Fancy cooking night with friends...Seriously we cook from 4-8pm.  Each time we realize we should start earlier.  Last time we made yummy ravioli and lamb ragu pasta (sorry we were too hungry to take pictures).  This time we thought we would make it a bit easier. A dish that will cook with little intervention. WRONG.  We chopped before we braised in the oven.  Then we were so busy making pasta that there was little time to sit.  Result: Worth it!  This was so delicious that I used the left over sauce to make more pasta sauce the next day. 

Just in case you are wondering, veal shanks can be found by special order from your grocery store.  It's worth your time to call ahead to see if they have shanks in stock.  I called ahead to my local Whole Foods and they didn't call them veal shanks.  They called them Osso Buco.  Happy shopping and eating.  If this dish doesn't fill you out, check out the dessert we had ...Salted Caramel Ice Cream.


Recipe adapted from Epicurious

Veal shanks with Pasta

Ingredients:
Four 12-ounce veal shanks
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 celery ribs, diced
1 yellow onion, diced
6 garlic cloves, sliced
1 cup dry red wine
4 cups veal stock or chicken stock
3 cups chicken stock
I can whole peeled tomatoes
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 bay leaf


Directions:

1. Lay the veal shanks in a shallow baking pan and sprinkle liberally on both sides with salt. Refrigerate for 2 hours.
2. Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Rinse the veal shanks of their salt and pat dry with paper towels. Wrap each veal shank once around the circumference so that it holds the bone and meat together in the center. Tie the twine with a good knot. Season the veal shanks with pepper.
3. Heat a large dutch oven over high heat. Put the oil into the casserole and let it heat.
4. Place the flour in a bowl and dredge the shanks through it shaking off the extra flour. Brown the veal shanks in the hot oil for about 5 minutes on each side, or until browned on all sides. Remove from the pan and set aside.
5. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic to the pan and cook over medium-high heat for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the wine, bring to a boil, and cook for about 2 minutes, or until reduced by half.
6. Add the stocks, tomatoes, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaf to the pan. Return the veal shanks to the pan and bring to a boil over high heat. Once the liquid boils, cover, transfer to the oven, and cook for 2 1/2 hours, until the meat is fork tender and falling off the bones.
7. Remove the herbs from the braising liquid and discard. Let the veal shanks come to room temperature in the braising liquid. Remove the veal shanks and set aside. Strain the liquid to remove all vegetables and reserve the veggies. Bring the strained liquid to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat, and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until reduced by a quarter. Using a skimmer or large spoon, skim off any grease or foam that rises to the surface. Return the strained vegetables to the liquid and taste for seasoning.
8. To serve, remove the twine, put a single osso buco (veal shank) in a bowl, and serve with a cup of  sauce and vegetables over it.

Pappardelle

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
3 eggs
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp salt

Directions:
1. In a pile of flour make a little bowl.  Place the 3 eggs in the middle of the bowl with the oil and salt.  With a fork, slowly break the yolks and start bringing in the flour.  Start massaging the dough until it is completely mixed.  Let it sit for 15-20 mins.
2.  Divide the dough to 4 pieces.  With the first piece start flattening to the point where you can run it through the pasta machine.
3.  Fold the resulting dough into thirds.  Continue thirds and decreasing the pasta machine thickness until you get to about level 6.  Then run it through once per level to desired thickness.  Cut each pasta sheet to two inches and toss in flour so it doesn't stick.  Repeat with the remaining dough. 
4.  Cook for 3-4 minutes in salted boiling water.

Salsa Pasta Salad

Salsa Pasta Salad

What to bring to pot luck???  That is always the question I am faced with. What tastes good now and an hour from now....  Well I had to bring a pasta salad dish for the Judges to eat at my daughter's gymnastics meet.  The pasta salad was to be served with chili.  Yes this is an odd combination.  Allrecipes.com did not fail me.  This pasta salad turned out wonderfully.  The parents and the judges loved it.  The only sad thing was there wasn't any leftover to bring home.

Ingredients:
2 cups dry rainbow radiatore pasta
1 onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 (6 ounce) can sliced black olives
3 tomatoes, diced
1 (4 ounce) can diced green chiles
1/3 cup distilled white vinegar 

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic salt
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 tablespoon chili powder
 

Directions:1.     In a large pot with boiling salted water cook radiatore pasta until al dente. Drain.
2.     Meanwhile, combine chopped onion, bell pepper, olives, tomatoes, and green chilies in a large bowl.
3.     In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, cilantro, garlic salt, lemon juice, vegetable oil, sugar and chili powder.
4.     Mix cooked pasta with vegetables. Toss with cilantro dressing and serve.