July 3
· Filed under Recipes · Tagged one-bowl, pasta, shrimp
The combination of shrimp and pasta with the fresh fruits and veggies makes this dish perfect for a summer evening. The spice might surprise you at first, but it pairs well with the citrus flavor.
The original recipe claims to serve four, but we ended up with enough for six decent-sized dinners. (How often does a recipe make more servings than it says it will?)
12 ounces medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
8 ounces (4 cups) dried penne pasta
1 tsp finely shredded orange peel
2 oranges
orange juice
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp instant chicken bouillon granules
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground red pepper
1 red or green sweet pepper, cut into 3/4-inch squares
1 Tbsp oil
1 1/2 cups fresh pea pods, trimmed and halved diagonally
Thaw shrimp, if frozen. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and keep warm.
Meanwhile, peel the two oranges. Section them over a bowl, catching the juice; set oranges aside. Add enough orange juice to the bowl to total 1/2 cup. Add orange peel, 1/2 cup water, cornstarch, bouillon, sesame oil, salt, and ground red pepper; set aside.
In a large skillet, cook sweet pepper in hot oil over medium-high heat for 1 to 2 minutes or until crisp-tender. Remove sweet pepper from skillet. Add shrimp to skillet; cook and stir about 2 minutes or until shrimp turn opaque. Remove shrimp from skillet.
Stir orange juice mixture; add to skillet. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Return shrimp and pepper to skillet; stir in pea pods. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Gently stir in orange sections. Gently toss shrimp mixture with pasta and serve.
My only recommendation for altering the recipe is to cut the oranges smaller. It makes it easier to eat and spreads the flavor around a bit more. (Careful, though, or they may fall apart as you stir them into the pasta.)
Recipe courtesy Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book
June 29
· Filed under Recipes · Tagged FAVORITE, one-bowl, pasta
An amazing dish I had at a local restaurant inspired me to try making gnocchi for the first time. I’d seen it in the store and heard it talked about on The Food Network, but this was my first shot at making it.
Turns out that potato gnocchi (pronounced nyō’kē) is not only SO GOOD, it’s also super quick and easy to make. This recipe* is a great way to get started making (or in our case, eating!) gnocchi.
1 18-ounce package potato gnocchi
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup diced zucchini
1/2 cup chopped sweet yellow pepper
1/4 cup prepared pesto
1 cup chopped tomatoes
Cook gnocchi according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, saute the zucchini and yellow pepper in oil until crisp-tender. Drain gnocchi; add gnocchi and pesto to skillet. Gently stir until well coated. Stir in tomatoes. Sprinkle with pine nuts if desired.
*posted by the Taste of Home Test Kitchen on Allrecipes.com
June 25
· Filed under Recipes · Tagged asian, chicken
Mandarin Chicken was actually my first exposure to orange marmalade, but WOW… what a great way to try it!
This recipe is from Food That Says Welcome by Barbara Smith (mother of artist Michael W. Smith). I love the idea behind the book: “Simple recipes to spark the spirit of hospitality.” I would certainly make this dish for company.
The picture doesn’t really do it justice, but the Mandarin Chicken was wonderful. Just the right amount of sweetness and a bit of crunch from the almonds. Great tasting, and pretty good for ya, too!
1 1/2 lbs chicken tenders
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp butter
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup orange marmalade
2 tsp cornstarch
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp dry mustard
1 11-oz can mandarin oranges
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted
rice
Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Heat butter and oil in a large skillet. Add chicken and cook 4 minutes on each side until lightly browned. Remove from skillet and set aside.
Combine marmalade, cornstarch, lemon juice, and mustard in a small bowl, stirring mixture well with a whisk. Gently stir in oranges. Add mixture to skillet. Cover and cook 6 minutes on medium heat or until sauce slightly thickens. Spoon over chicken and sprinkle with almonds. Serve with rice.
June 19
· Filed under Recipes · Tagged bread
What makes this bread recipe so great is not what it is… I mean, anyone can make banana bread!
I kindof stumbled into this by accident. I ran out of bananas mid-recipe one day and had to improvise. What resulted was a bread SO moist and tasty that I love to share it with everyone.
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas
1 cup applesauce
1/2 cup chopped nuts (if desired)
In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs, bananas, applesauce, and nuts until well blended. Add banana mixture to flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into creased 9×5 loaf pan.
Bake at 350° for 1 hour, or until a tootpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Led bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
June 14
· Filed under Recipes · Tagged asian, chicken, grilling
It’s grilling season. Hooray!
Grilling season can be a bit hard to navigate for the diet-conscious, with all the burgers and brats. This recipe, though, is both tasty AND good for your body. A mix of chicken, veggies, and pineapple, these kabobs are bursting with flavor, due in large part to… you guessed it… the delicious five spice.
Note: We found that these cooked way more evenly on our indoor grill, so you might try that. (And, hey! That way, you can make them all year ’round!)
1/4 cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
2 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp five spice powder
dash ground ginger
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast halves or thighs
1 cup (8-oz can) fresh pineapple chunks
1 medium green sweet pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium red sweet pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 cups hot cooked rice
For glaze, in small bowl combine orange juice concentrate, honey, soy sauce, five spice powder, and ginger. Set aside.
Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces. On 6 long metal skewers, alternately thread chicken, pineapple, green sweet pepper, and red sweet pepper, leaving a 1/4-inch space between pieces.
Charcoal grill: Grill kabobs on rack directly over medium coals, uncovered for 12 to 14 minutes or until no long pink, turning and brushing with glaze up to the last 5 minutes of grilling.
Gas Grill: Preheat grill; reduce heat to medium. Place kabobs on rack over heat. Cover and grill as above.
Serve with hot cooked rice.
Recipe courtesy Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book
June 11
· Filed under Recipes · Tagged pasta
So… can you figure out what’s in this recipe? Ha!
The Lemon Cream-Sauced pasta, et al. is from my beloved red-checkered cookbook (a.k.a Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book). This dish is light and fresh enough to be eaten on a summer evening, yet still has the creamy buttery taste we all crave.
I’m posting the recipe as written in the cookbook, but I substituted a yellow summer squash (cut into about twelve pieces) for the baby squash.
8 ounces dry mafalda or rotini
2 cups asparagus, cut into 2-inch pieces
8 baby sunburst squash and/or patty pan squash, halved (4 oz)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp butter or margarine
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 tsp finely shredded lemon peel
Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain; keep warm.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook asparagus, sqash, and garlic in hot butter for 2 to 3 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender, stirring frequently. Remove vegetables from skillet with a slotted spoon. Add to pasta.
Combine whipping cream and lemon peel in skillet; bring to boiling. Boil for 2 to 3 minutes or until reduced to 1/3 cup. To serve, pour cream mixture over pasta mixture; stir gently to coat.
April 10
· Filed under Recipes · Tagged FAVORITE, italian
That sounds pretty cocky, huh?
Don’t blame me — I didn’t come up with it! The recipe is named as such on allrecipes.com by user Johnchandler. So what makes this lasagna the best in the world? Well, it tastes amazing, for starters. And who am I to argue with the 2,500 people who have given this recipe an average of 5 out of 5 stars?!
The husband and I made this for Valentine’s Day. It was a little time consuming, but fun to make (a little work-together time, you know?) and totally worth the wait.
The lasagna is really thick and hearty, so a 9×13 pan of it easily serves 12.
1 pound sweet Italian sausage
3/4 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup minced onion
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
2 6-oz cans tomato paste
2 6.5-oz cans canned tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
2 Tablespoons white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 Tablespoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
12 lasagna noodles
16 ounces ricotta cheese
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 pound mozzarella cheese, sliced
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
In a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well-browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles, and rinse with cold water. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
Preheat oven to 375º.
To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9×13 inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.
Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.
April 3
· Filed under Recipes · Tagged drinks, mexican/spanish, party food
This recipe came from “Lisa” on allrecipes.com. It was super easy to make (even as a first-time sangria maker) and very tasty.
You probably won’t need ALL this fruit (see photo, ha ha), so use what’s left to garnish your glasses.
1 lemon
1 lime
1 orange
1 1/2 cups rum
1/2 cup sugar
1 750-mL bottle dry red wine
1 cup orange juice
Have the indgredients well-chilled. Slice the fruit into rounds and place in pitcher. Pour in rum and sugar and chill in refrigerator for two hours to develop the flavors.
When ready to serve, crush the fruit slightly with a spoon and stir in the wine and orange juice. Adjust sweetness to taste.
We made this in February, but I totally recommend it for a summer evening.
February 11
· Filed under Recipes · Tagged quick & easy, vegetarian
I found this recipe on one of my favorite cooking blogs, Cooking With Court.
My favorite thing about this recipe is that it’s so easy to make, yet it comes out delicious. You could seriously make these little guys in 20 minutes, including time to preheat the oven! It was perfect for a quick dinner after a long day of work.
2 10-inch flour tortillas OR already made pizza crust
Olive oil
5 oz Monterey Jack cheese
5 oz cheddar cheese
2 cups cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/2 cup fresh chopped basil
1/4 cup sliced green onions
1/4 cup ripe sliced olives
Black pepper to taste
Heat the oven to 400°. Lightly brush the tortillas with olive oil. Place on baking sheet and bake for five minutes on each side or until crisp and golden brown. Remove from oven and reduce heat to 350°. Top each tortilla with half of the ingredients. Bake for five minutes or until cheese melts.
A couple of quick notes based on our experience:
- If you’re using a dark baking sheet, reduce the tortilla cook time to three or four minutes on each side to avoid burning. We ended up having to do one tortilla over again. (Oops!)
- Make sure to pop any bubbles that form in the tortilla during the baking process, before they become crisp. Oddly shaped tortillas are very hard to put toppings on.
- We used mozzarella rather than MJ, because that’s what was in our fridge. Still tasted amazing.
- Next time I think I’ll use 8-inch tortillas, just so I can fit more than one on a baking sheet. Using a whole sheet per pizza would be totally impractical if you’re cooking for more than two people.
January 23
· Filed under Recipes · Tagged FAVORITE, pasta, vegetarian
I was drawn to this recipe in Good Housekeeping because of its label, healthy in a hurry. I’m pretty sure it’s called “festive” because it has red and green in it and was in the December issue of the magazine.
Whatever its name, I call it wonderful!
12 oz rotini*
12 oz broccoli
1 pint grape tomatoes
1/4 tsp salt
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 c Romano cheese
Heat oven to 450º. Cook pasta according to package directions, adding broccoli during last three minutes. Toss tomatoes, garlic, oil, and salt in bowl. Spread tomato mixure in 9 x 13 pan and roast 15 minutes or until tomatoes wrinkle and begin to burst, stirring halfway through cook time.
Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water. Drain pasta. Add pasta water to pan, stirring to scrape up any browned bits. Return all ingredients to pot and stir in cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste.
*Make the smart choice. Use whole-grain pasta.
