Category: Pasta

Mexican Stuffed Shells

Serve this delicious pasta dish with a good green salad and crusty bread and butter. And it really comes together quicker than one might think, plus, your family will love it! This recipe comes from Julie Wise of Ohio and I found it in a Gooseberry Patch cookbook called, In the Kitchen with Family and Friends.

12 oz. jar picante sauce, I used a mild Herdez brand
15 oz. can tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
1 pound ground beef, browned
4 oz. chopped green chilies
2 cups Cheddar or Colby Jack cheese, shredded and divided
2.8 oz. can French-fried onions, divided
12 lg. pasta shells, cooked and drained

In a small bowl, mix picante sauce, tomato sauce and water. Stir half of the sauce into the ground beef. Add chilies, one cup cheese, and half of the onions; mix well. Spread half of the remaining sauce on the bottom of a 9 by 13 baking dish. Stuff cooked shells with meat mixture. Arrange shells in pan and top with sauce. Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Top with remaining onions and cheese. Bake uncovered 5 minutes.

COOKING THE BOOKS, YA’LL!

Spinach and Tortellini Soup

This quick and healthy recipe, adapted from Debbie Wilson in North Carolina, is a great one to have for a speedy supper or a light lunch! Fallon and I love it and Creed eats the pasta, so we are all happy with this one. 😉 This can easily be made vegetarian by using vegetable broth instead of the chicken broth.

1 tsp. olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (14.5 oz) can Italian style diced tomatoes
3 (14.5 oz) cans chicken broth
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 pkg. (9 oz.) refrigerated cheese tortellini
4 cups fresh baby spinach
Shredded Parmesan cheese and freshly ground pepper

In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add garlic; cook and stir for 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes, broth and Italian seasoning; bring to a boil. Add the tortellini; bring to a gentle boil. Add a little salt and cook, uncovered, 7-9 minutes or just until the pasta is tender.

Stir in the spinach and adjust seasonings. Sprinkle servings with cheese and pepper.

*I always think, I might course chop the spinach before throwing it in, but for time’s sake usually don’t. But if you want smaller bites of the spinach, that might be a good idea! And the addition of cooked Italian sausage would be delicious too, I think!
Makes 4-6 servings

COOKING THE BOOKS, YA’LL!

Pasta with Tomato Cream Sauce

This is Pioneer Woman’s recipe that I found on Food Network’s website, but I have added an extra step that you should know about, called the lounging by the pool method, that is helpful for whatever pasta sauce you might be making! Shhhh….it’s super important that you keep this a secret! The tip comes from an owner of an Italian restaurant in Dallas, that I had the pleasure of visiting with about food, at a hotel I was staying at, and he told me this while I was sunburning by the pool…..early in the day, chop your onion and garlic and cover it in olive oil. Let the mixture sit all day. In the evening, make your pasta sauce with the onion and garlic mixture, and it will have a wonderful flavor like you’ve simmered your sauce all day! And it is so true! I love this little trick and I really like to use it when I’m making this recipe. And this is truly one of my family’s favorite ways to eat spaghetti! Thanks PW! Thanks owner of the Dallas Italian restaurant! Thank you Aloe Vera, that I lived to share this recipe tip!

2 T. butter
2 T. olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, finely diced
2 (15 oz.) cans tomato sauce or marinara sauce (I like to use the marinara.)
Dash of sugar (or more to taste)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 pounds fettuccine (Spaghetti is my preference.)
1 C. heavy cream
Grated Parmesan or Romano, as needed
Chopped fresh basil, for serving (Green onions or flat leaf parsley work too.)

Heat the butter and oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and onions and cook for a minute or so. Pour in the tomato sauce or marinara, add sugar, salt and pepper to taste and stir. Cook over low heat for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. (*Lounging by the pool method – chop your onion and garlic early in the day and cover with the 2 T. olive oil. I actually use a little extra oil and sprinkle it with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper and let it marinate all day, preferably while lounging by a pool, LOL, then start from the beginning according to the directions with this recipe.)

Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water. (I feel when making pasta, it is always a good rule of thumb to save some pasta water. The salty, starchy water will always be a flavorful way to keep your pasta from being too dry if you don’t have enough sauce or if your sauce needs a little extra “sauce” if you know what I mean.)

Remove the sauce from he heat and stir in the cream. Add cheese to taste (a couple of good handfuls), then check the seasoning. Stir in the pasta and thin with a little pasta water if needed. Add the chopped basil and serve immediately.

This is great with a green salad, homemade ranch dressing, and PW’s cheesy olive bread. Yum!!

One-Pot Spaghetti

One of my very favorite things to do is to go camping. We have a 5th wheel travel trailer and take it to Colorado mostly, and besides decorating my camper, cooking in my camper is the highlight of the trip for me! Others are dreaming of fly fishing, hiking, and white water rafting, while I’m deciding what flowers for the picnic table and what’s for supper! I always seem to be on the opposite end of the spectrum as compared to most. Ha! This One-Pot Spaghetti is sure to please the fishermen in your life, when they come home to gather round the picnic table! It is super easy and only requires one pot! Can’t beat that while you’re out in the wilderness and needing to just poke the fire instead of wash dishes! I bet, even if you are not a camper type person, this meal will come in handy on busy days. It is delicious!

1 lb. ground beef
1 onion, diced
2 (14 oz.) cans chicken broth
6 oz. can tomato paste
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
8 oz. spaghetti, uncooked (Yay!)
Garnish: grated Parmesan cheese
Recommended side idea: Italian Garlic Salad, below

Brown ground beef and onion in a large skillet over medium heat. (I like to season my meat with olive oil, kosher salt, and Montreal Steak Seasoning as it browns. To me, this is the best time to get flavor into your meat no matter what you are cooking.) Drain on a paper plate lined with several paper towels. Return meat and onions to the skillet.

Stir in broth, tomato paste and seasonings; bring to a boil. Break spaghetti into short lengths and add to skillet.

Reduce heat and simmer, stirring often, for 15 minutes, adding more broth or water as necessary, or until spaghetti is tender. (If you are cooking in higher altitudes, you may need to add more liquid as it cooks, because more than likely, it will take longer than 15 minutes to cook your noodles.)

Sprinkle with cheese. Serve this with Italian Garlic Salad and crusty bread.
Makes 4 servings.

ITALIAN GARLIC SALAD
Tear ice berg lettuce into pieces and mix with shredded mozzarella. Dress with olive oil that has been seasoned with garlic powder, seasoned salt, and fresh pepper.

COOKING THE BOOKS, YA’LL!

Laurel’s Chicken Spaghetti

This is one of my favorite chicken spaghetti recipes! It is a real crowd pleaser!….and Creed, yes, I know that you’re glad, that you are at baseball practice right now, because of the black olives. I really do hope that we can come to some sort of agreement on this. Like, if you would just eat them, you would love them!…. What’s that??…. we all have our own taste buds??…..head shaking from the mother. Smiles and big hits from the son.

1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can of regular Rotel tomatoes
1 (12oz.) canned chicken, drained
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped – if it is small, use it all
1 small can chopped ripe black olives
1 pkg. sliced fresh mushrooms
1 (8 oz.) Velveeta, cubed
1 1/2 pkg. Pizza cheese or half shredded provolone and half shredded cheddar cheese
1 (12 oz.) pkg. noodles
Salt and pepper to taste

Saute onions, bell pepper, and mushrooms together in a small amount of butter. (I’m thinking half a stick here. Yaasss!)

Prepare noodles.

Add soup, Rotel, chicken, olives, and Velveeta to onions, peppers, and mushrooms. Cook until melted and bubbly. Drain noodles and place in bottom of a 9 by 13 cooking dish. Add chicken mixture and sprinkle pizza cheese on top. Cook at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted.
This is so yummy! Eat the olives!

Sausage Primavera

My sister-in-law, Laurel, brought this delicious dish over when Creed was born. We enjoyed it so much and she was so sweet to share her recipe! It has also turned into a meal that I love to prepare on Christmas Eve with the pretty red and green peppers. It is quick and comforting and just what we always need to start the holiday off right!

8 ounces thin spaghetti
1 T. olive oil
1 green bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 1/2 pounds smoked sausage, sliced (I love Hillshire Farms Polska Kielbasa for this.)
1 T. parsley flakes
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. garlic powder or 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
Dash of cayenne pepper
4 to 5 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated
Garnish: fresh basil

Cook the spaghetti according to the package directions. Drain and keep warm.

Heat the olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the peppers, onions, and garlic, if using fresh. Stir-fry until vegetables are crisp tender. Add the smoked sausage and heat a few minutes longer. When vegetables are cooked as you like, add the parsley and other seasonings and continue to cook just a bit longer. After the mixture is combined well, toss with the spaghetti. Pour into a large bowl and add the Parmesan cheese tossing to coat.

I enjoy this with a chiffonade (a french slicing technique of stacking the leaves, rolling them up, and then slicing thinly) of fresh basil as a garnish too! Delicious! And fancy too, huh?

Linguine with Shrimp Scampi

This recipe is a super simple, crave-worthy shrimp pasta! Comforting pasta and the bright fresh flavors of lemon and shrimp are a classic. This is a simple meal to entertain with or enjoy it on a much needed “eat at home, but it needs to be easy” kind of night. That checks off two awesome boxes in my book! Ina Garten wrote this recipe and it is from her Barefoot Contessa Family Style cookbook.

Vegetable oil
Kosher salt
1 1/2 pounds linguine
6 T. (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
5 T. good olive oil such as Olio Santo
3 T. minced garlic (9 cloves)
2 pounds large shrimp (about 32), peeled and deveined
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Grated zest of 1 lemon
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (4 lemons)
1/2 lemon, thinly sliced in half-rounds
1/4 tsp. hot red pepper flakes

Drizzle some vegetable oil in a large pot of boiling salted water, add 1 T. of salt and the linguine, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, or according to the directions on the package.

Since this involves delicate shrimp that cooks in a hurry, I recommend having your ingredients prepped and ready to go before starting.

In a large (12 – inch) skillet, melt the butter and olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic. Saute for 1 minute, being careful not to burn the garlic. It will turn bitter tasting if it burns! Eeep! Next, add the shrimp, 1 T. kosher salt, the pepper and saute until the shrimp have just turned pink, about 5 minutes, stirring often. Remove from the heat, add the parsley, lemon zest, lemon juice, lemon slices, and red pepper flakes. Toss to combine.

When the pasta is done, drain the cooked linguine and then put it back in the pot. Immediately add the shrimp and sauce, toss well, and serve with crusty garlic bread and good salted butter. Delish!

COOKING THE BOOKS, YA’LL!

Spaghetti alla Ceci

I absolutely adore this recipe because it reminds me that the simplest and most humble of ingredients can make for the best dish. The smell of the garlic cooking in the olive oil is amazing. Pour yourself a glass of wine or a big glass of sweet tea, relax and cook on a Sunday night. This is a definite go-to Sunday night dish. Or any weeknight, for that matter! By the way, ceci are chickpeas in Italian. Rachael Ray is one of my favorite chefs and has taught me so much about food and cooking. This is her recipe.

Salt
1 pound spaghetti
3 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
3-4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 (14 oz.) can chickpeas, drained
1/2 tsp.dried thyme
Black pepper
1/2 cup dry white wine or chicken stock
1 (14 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
A handful of flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, to pass at the table

Bring a big pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Salt it and cook the spaghetti to al dente.

While the spaghetti cooks, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil, red pepper flakes, and garlic. Place the chickpeas in a food processor and pulse to a fine chop. Add the chickpeas to the skillet with the garlic and season them with the thyme, salt, and pepper. Saute them for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the wine or stock and cook down for 30 seconds or so, then stir in the tomatoes and adjust the seasoning. Drain the pasta and toss with the sauce. Top the pasta with the parsley and grated cheese.

COOKING THE BOOKS, YA’LL!