Country Pasta

I don't know about you, but I really hate standing in a hot kitchen cooking dinner during the Summer months. When we are not outside grilling, I like to make quick, simple, easy dishes that require little use of the oven or stove. This recipe is prefect for a Summer dinner! I also love that it's not a heavy pasta dish and would be great served hot or cold!

Country Pasta with Mozzarella

From allrecpies.com

8 oz. rigatoni pasta (I used Rotini)

8 slices bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces

2 cups broccoli florets, frozen

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/8 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Cook pasta according to package directions and drain. In a skillet cook the bacon over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is browned. Add the broccoli and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the broccoli is slightly tender (about 4-5 minutes). Stir in the cooked pasta, mozzarella, Parmesan and cayenne pepper. Cook until the cheese is melted. Sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley and serve with crusty bread.

Tortellini Spinach Bake in Cream Sauce

I found this recipe on Our Best Bites and knew it was something my family would love-pasta, bacon, cream sauce! I did leave out the lemon in the recipe because no matter how many times I try it, I'm just not a fan of lemon in food! And the dried tortellini pasta that this recipe called for is amazing! It's dry so you don't have to keep in the fridge, it can sit in your pantry! I need to stock up on it!

Tortellini Spinach Bake in Creamy Lemon Sauce
Recipe by Our Best Bites

12 oz bag Barilla Cheese & Spinach Tortelini (find them in the dry pasta aisle)
4 oz bacon or pancetta, (about 4 strips bacon)*
3 cloves garlic, pressed in garlic press or finely minced
2 Tbs flour
2 C milk
¾ tsp kosher salt
⅛ tsp black pepper
1 1/2 tsp dry basil
¼ tsp red pepper flakes (1/2 tsp or more if you like spicy)
1 medium lemon
2 C loosely packed fresh spinach, roughly chopped
¾ C grated mozzarella cheese, divided
¾ C grated Parmesan cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Fill a large stock pot with water and bring to a boil. Add tortellini and cook according to package instructions.

Place bacon in a medium sized skillet on the stove-top at medium-high heat. Cook until crisp. Remove bacon from pan with slotted spoon and set on paper towels to drain. Reserve two tablespoons bacon drippings in pan and discard the rest. Add garlic to pan and cook until fragrant and tender, about 1 minute. Add flour to pan and stir with a whisk for about 1 minute. Slowly add milk and continue to stir with whisk until smooth. Add salt, pepper, basil, and red pepper flakes and bring sauce to a simmer.

While sauce is heating, use a micro plane grater or a fine-holed cheese grater to zest lemon. Then cut lemon in half and remove juice. Add 2 teaspoons zest and 1 tablespoon lemon juice to sauce. Continue to stir until thickened, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat.

Drain tortellini and place back in stock pot. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the cooked bacon and add the rest to the pasta mixture. Add spinach, 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Add sauce and gently stir to combine. Place pasta mixture in an 8×8 or 9×9 baking dish and top with remaining 1/4 cup mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmesan and also crumbled bacon.

Cover pan with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, until cheese on top is melted and pasta is bubbly throughout. Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes before serving.

* For a vegetarian meal, omit bacon.

Serves 4-6

Tuscan Garlic Chicken

I think that I could say that Olive Garden is one of my Top 5 Favorite restaurants! I love Italian food and pasta and carbs and cream sauce and this dish has all of that in it! This is a copy cat recipe for Olive Gardens Tuscan Garlic Chicken, which I have never tried (I usually order spaghetti and meatballs). But this pasta was great! I would double the sauce or triple it if you like it really saucy. I made the recipe as is and had to make more sauce for us!

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon finely minced garlic (about 4-5 cloves)
1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips or chopped
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
6 ounces fresh spinach
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 cup lowfat milk
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 pound fettuccine

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a shallow pie plate or similar dish, combine the flour, salt, pepper, basil and oregano. Dip each chicken piece in the flour mixture until both sides are well coated.

In a large 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium heat until the oil is hot and shimmering. Carefully place the chicken breasts in the pan, cooking them for 2-3 minutes on each side, until they are golden and browned but not cooked all the way through (they’ll finish up in the oven). Don’t scoot the chicken around once you lay it in the hot oil! Let the oil work it’s magic to sear the crust on the chicken. If you get all antsy and try flipping too early and/or moving the chicken around the pan, the breading is lightly to fall off. Gently remove the chicken to a foil-lined, lightly greased baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Set aside and tent with foil until ready to use.

While the chicken is cooking, heat a large pot of water to a boil and add the noodles, cooking until al dente. Also, wipe out the skillet with a couple paper towels and return it to medium heat, adding the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the garlic and bell pepper, sauteing for 2-3 minutes.

Stir in one tablespoon flour and stir constantly while cooking for another minute. Add the chicken broth to the skillet and bring the mixture to a low simmer, whisking constantly, until slightly thickened, about 3-4 minutes. In a small liquid measure, whisk together the cornstarch and cream. Add the spinach, milk and cream mixture to the skillet. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the spinach is wilted and sauce is slightly thickened, about 2-4 minutes. Stir in the Parmesan cheese.

When the pasta has finished cooking, drain and return it to the pot. Toss the pasta with half of the cheese sauce. Place some of the coated pasta on each plate. Top with a breaded chicken breast and spoon some of the sauce over the top of the chicken and pasta. Serve immediately.

Creamy Carbonara

I have been trying to write this post and can't really think of anything to write about this pasta except that it's dam good and you should make it! So there you have it!

CREAMY BACON CARBONARA

2 eggs

1/4 cup Cream

1/3 cup Parmesan

Fresh diced Parsley or dried flakes

1/4 tsp. Salt

1/2 tsp Red Pepper flakes

*(I doubled the Sauce recipe, and it was perfect)

1/2 lb. bacon

1 small onion, chopped (opt)

3 mushrooms sliced (opt)

1/2 lb. Pasta

DIRECTIONS:

Beat the eggs, cream, Parmesan, parsley, salt and the red pepper together in a bowl. I just used a fork. Fry the bacon until crisp, then crumble and set aside. With 1 -2 Tbsp. bacon grease, saute the onion and the mushrooms until the onions are translucent and golden. Drain the pasta and while still warm, add to the onions and mushrooms. Pour cream mixture into the pasta, and stir over low heat for one to two minutes.

Spaghetti Pie

When I got married my ward threw me a kitchen shower and everyone was to bring a recipe to give to me. This is one of the recipes that I received and I have used it often! This recipe is great because it's simple, you probably have all of the ingredients on hand, it's comfort food and it makes 2 pies, so you can keep one and give one away!

Spaghetti Pie

1 pound al dente cooked spaghetti (it truly does need to be al dente because it will continue to cook in the oven)

1 pound ground beef cooked and drained

2 eggs

1/3 cup Parmesan cheese

1 cup sour cream

1 cup cottage cheese

3 cups meat sauce

8 oz. mozzarella cheese

Combine spaghetti and ground beef. In a separate bowl combine eggs, Parmesan cheese, sour cream and cottage cheese. Then add to the spaghetti and ground beef mixture and stir until the spaghetti is coated. Butter 2 pie plates (or 1 9X13 inch pan if your not sharing). Then take about 1/2 cup of the sauce and coat the bottom of the pans , this helps the pasta to not stick to the bottom of the pan. Divide the mixture between the 2 pans and pat down. Top the spaghetti with meat sauce and mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. If the cheese starts to get too brown, cover with foil. Cut, serve and enjoy with some hot garlic bread!

** You don't have to add the ground beef if you don't want to, but we like too! And if you don't like cottage cheese like we do, just leave it out and it will taste just fine!

Giada's Pasta

Giada is my favorite chef on Food Network! I love almost everything she makes and would love to be as hot as she is! And in case you haven't heard, Giada has a new line of food and cookware at Target.

I wanted to try her pasta and sauce and expected it to be expensive but it wasn't! Her pasta and sauces are under $3 each which makes for a cheap meal. My husband is really picky about pasta sauce and hates jarred sauces, but loved Giadas. We tried her tomato basil sauce and it had actual basil in it and amazing flavor! So if you have been wanting to try it, do it! You won't regret it!

Pasta With Sausage

1 Box of Giada's Farfalle Pasta

1 Jar of Giada's Tomato Basil Sauce

1 lb. ground sausage

Cook the pasta according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, cook the ground sausage. Combine the pasta, sausage and sauce. Cook until sauce is heated through. Top with shredded mozzarella cheese if desired!

Easy Stuffed Shells

So I posted that I would be making Stuffed Shells and using a recipe by Kneaders Bakery to make them. I decided to tweak a few things in the recipe to make it work for my family. I actually made the shells for some friends and they loved it. They were surprised at how I made the sauce and said it tasted home made! This is the only way that I make spaghetti sauce because it is the way my hubby likes it. This recipe makes a 9X13 pan which fed 4 adults and 2 kids and we had some leftover.

Ingredients:

• 1 package of large pasta shells
• 2 c. Ricotta Cheese
• 3 c. Mozzarella Cheese (plus extra for sprinkling on top)
  
• ½ c. grated Parmesan Cheese (plus extra for sprinkling on top)
• 2 eggs
• 2 T. dried Parsley
  
• 1 tsp. Salt
• ¼ tsp. Pepper

• 1 lb. Ground beef
• 1 package McCormick Italian Spaghetti sauce (you will need 1 can of tomato paste to make this sauce)

Method:

1-Cook ground beef and drain the grease. Make the spaghetti sauce according to package. Follow the directions for the meat sauce.

2-In a separate pot bring water to a boil. Add shells and cook according to package directions.

3-In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, eggs, parsley salt and pepper.

To Assemble:

1-In the bottom of a baking dish (9 by 13) put ¼ cup of the meat sauce mixture.

2-Stuff shells full of cheese mixture and place in the baking dish.

3-Pour the rest of the meat sauce on top of the shells.

4- Sprinkle the extra cheeses on top.

5-Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until cheese is melted on top.

Rain, Dogs and Lasagna

When your top soil turns to mud because of the rain...

And your dogs get covered in mud...

You need lasagna!

I love lasagna!! It is my most favorite food in the whole world and I could eat it everyday. Although nothing can beat Stouffers, this homemade lasagna is worth the effort. Is is wrong that I love a frozen lasagna over homemade? Oh well. This recipe is from Kraftfoods. What I have learned about Kraftfoods recipes is that you need to double some things to make it extra good! This is the original recipe so make sure to double the filling and sauce.

1 lb. ground beef

1 egg, beaten

2-1/2 cups KRAFT Shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese, divided

1 container (15 oz.) POLLY-O Natural Part Skim Ricotta Cheese

1/2 cup KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese, divided

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 jar (26 oz.) spaghetti sauce

1 cup water

12 lasagna noodles, uncooked

Heat oven to 350°F. Brown meat in large skillet on medium-high heat. Meanwhile, mix egg, 1-1/4 cups mozzarella cheese, the ricotta cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese and the parsley until well blended; set aside.
DRAIN meat; return to skillet. Stir in spaghetti sauce. Add water to empty sauce jar; cover with lid and shake well. Add to meat mixture; stir until well blended. Spread 1 cup of the sauce onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish; top with layers of 3 lasagna noodles, 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture and 1 cup sauce. Repeat layers twice. Top with remaining 3 noodles and the remaining meat sauce. Sprinkle with remaining 1-1/4 cups mozzarella cheese and remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Cover with greased foil.
BAKE 45 min. Remove foil; bake an additional 15 min. or until heated through. Let stand 15 min. before cutting to serve.