Orecchiette with Roasted Broccoli and Walnuts

I didn’t think this recipe would be that tasty, but boy was it! And it was sooo easy. I couldn’t find orechhiette pasta, so I substituted shells. They worked just fine. I think I could have added more broccoli, but Toby said it was fine the way it was. And that broccoli…I think I’ve found a new way to cook broccoli! This dish came together so fast and was delish. It’s a keeper. With this we had a salad and some garlic bread.

rating: 9

Orecchiette with Roasted Broccoli and Walnuts
(from the Feb. 2009 issue of Real Simple magazine)

12 ounces orecchiette or some other short pasta (3 cups)- I used shells
1 bunch broccoli (1.5 pounds), cut into small florets
1/2 cup walnuts, roughly chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
kosher salt and black pepper
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 cup grated Parmesan (1 ounce)

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Reserve 3/4 cup of the cooking water, drain the pasta, and return it to the pot.

Meanwhile, on a rimmed baking sheet, toss the broccoli, walnuts, oil, garlic, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper. Roast, turning once, until the broccoli is tender, 18-20 minutes.

Toss the pasta with the broccoli mixture, butter, and 1/2 cup of the reserved pasta water. Add more water if the pasta seems dry. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese before serving.

Cream of Tomato Soup

It snowed here yesterday, so…..dinner was Cream of Tomato Soup with grilled cheese sandwiches! What is so special about this soup, however is…it’s made from a jar of pasta sauce!! I didn’t tell Toby this on purpose, and waited to hear his reaction. He took one taste and said “wow, this is really good!” This recipe comes from an article in the Feb./March issue of Food Network Magazine titled “50 Things to Make with a jar of Pasta Sauce.” This was the very first recipe! I just used a jar of basil marinara sauce. With this we also had my fave pesto-grilled cheeses. Mmmmm. This soup is great when you have just a few minutes to throw together a dinner.

rating: 8.5

Cream of Tomato Soup
(from the Feb./March 2009 issue of Food Network Magazine)

fresh herbs
butter
1 jar pasta sauce
2 cups water
1/2 cup heavy cream
pinch of nutmeg

Saute chopped fresh herbs in butter; add 1 jar pasta sauce, water, heavy cream, and a pinch of nutmeg. Simmer for 5 minutes.

Buttermilk Potato Cakes

I came across this recipe in a magazine (it’s in an ad for Ore-Ida), and decided to try it. This is the second time I have used these potatoes, and these potato cakes turned out well. The recipe says that it makes 8 potato cakes, but I only made 7 (I think mine were a little too big). I had to buy some buttermilk (will have to look for other recipes that use buttermilk!), but everything else I had on hand (except for the Ore-Ida potatoes!). I will make these again. Oh, and I had to use a little more oil than this calls for. With these we enjoyed some Quorn Gruyere Cutlets and some roasted asparagus.

rating: 8

Buttermilk Potato Cakes
(from an ad in a magazine)

1 bag Ore-Ida Steam n’ Mash Cut Russet Potatoes
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 tbsp butter
1/4 cup chopped parsley (I used dried)
1 tsp McCormick mustard powder
1/2 tsp McCormick garlic powder
flour as needed
2 tbsp olive oil
kosher salt

Prepare Steam n’ Mash Cut Russet Potatoes according to the package directions.

In medium bowl, mash cooked potatoes, buttermilk, and butter. Stir in parsley, mustard, and garlic powder until well combines then shape into 8 patties. Dip patties in flour; pat off excess. In large non-stick skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat until hot. Place 4 patties in pan and dry for 3 minutes without turning, or until nicely browned. Gently turn cakes over and cook 3 minutes more. Drain on a paper towel, season with salt, and repeat with remaining 4 patties.

Corn Cakes

One of my favorite shows is “Diners, Drive-In’s, and Dives”, which comes on the Food Network, I believe. There usually isn’t a whole lot of vegetarian food on there, but it’s still fun to watch. A couple of weeks ago we were watching it, and they briefly showed a plate of corn cakes, topped with black beans and sour cream. I thought that looked so yummy, so I decided to try and make it. I googled corn cakes and came up with alot of variations. The recipe I finally chose ultimately did not live up to my dream (not that I dream of corn cakes). These corn cakes were more “corn meal-y”, which is not a surprise since they are made of corn meal. I believe that the ones I saw on the show looked more “pancake-y”. These were ok, and we definitely ate them all, but I continue on my quest. I served these (savory) corn cakes topped with black beans (jazzed up with cumin, lime juice, and chili powder), sour cream, and then some cheese quesadillas on the side.

rating: 7

http://ayankeeinasouthernkitchen.com/2008/08/22/fresh-southern-corn-cakes-a-sweet-savory-version/

Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes

I can’t tell what magazine this recipe came from, but it *might* be from Southern Living. Anyway, here’s another recipe that calls for premade Alfredo sauce (love it!). This one is easy- basically you just slice your potatoes (no peeling needed), then mix all the ingredients together and bake (for a long time- almost an hour and a half!). I thought these were really good. Toby’s comment was the same comment he has for about 95% of what I make : “pretty good”. Argh! When I pressed him for more details, he said that these were good, that they were cooked properly (!), but there was nothing special about them. So that means I probably won’t go through the trouble of slicing up all those potatoes again! I served these with some Morningstar Farms Chik-n Tenders (LOVE these!), some honey-mustard dipping sauce for them, some jazzed up green beans, and a roll.

rating: 6

Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes
(not sure where this came from, maybe Southern Living magazine?)

2 pounds Yukon gold or baking potatoes
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded sharp Cheddar
1 jar (15 or 16 ounces) Alfredo sauce
1/3 cup chopped chives or scallions
1/2 cup milk (I used Silk soy milk)
1/8 tsp each cayenne and ground nutmeg

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat shallow 2-quart baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Thinly slice potatoes. Reserve 1/4 cup cheese. Mix potatoes with remaining ingredients in large bowl. Spoon into prepared baking dish. Cover with foil; bake 1 hour.
3. Remove foil from baking dish; sprinkle with reserved cheese. Bake 20-30 minutes more until potatoes are tender and mixture is bubbly. Let stand 15 minutes.

Product Review: Romano’s Macaroni Grill Restaurant Favorites Creamy Basil

Whew! What a title! I saw this on the grocery shelf, read the ingredients, and sure enough, it’s vegetarian. I used Quorn Tenders instead of real chicken, and Silk soy milk instead of the milk. The little kit comes with all you need except for the chicken, milk, and butter. You boil the included pasta, cook your chicken, then add to that some butter, milk, and then the included sauce, sun-dried tomatoes, and then sprinkle the included cheese on top once you have added your pasta. When I was making this, I thought, oh no, this is NOT going to be enough for me and Toby. But once I added the cooked pasta to the chicken mixture, somehow it made 2 large platefuls. Toby said that his was good, and that he would for sure have it again. Me, not so much. It was ok, but I think I make better pasta creations.

rating: 6

http://restaurantfavoritesathome.com/

Sweet-bean Piroshki

Toby actually found this recipe in a parenting magazine we both read, called Cookie. I was a little confused as to what you would serve WITH these little bean things. I eventually decided on mashed potatoes and a salad. These are pretty easy to make, however, I had ALOT of the actual bean mixture left over. Like, so much left over that I could have made maybe 8 more of these things! In any case, these were good! Toby of course said that they could use some zing. I personally think that his years of adding hot sauce to everything have killed some of his taste buds. I think these were good as is. I would make them again, although I am still not sure what you should serve alongside them. These would be good as appetizers, or as little bites to serve at a party.

rating: 8

Sweet-bean Piroshki
(from the Dec.08/Jan.09 issue of Cookie magazine)

1 large baking potato, peeled and cut into chucks
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
2 scallions, chopped
3 tbsp fresh chopped dill
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp white pepper (black works, too)
1 15-ounce can kidney beans, drained
2 15-ounce prepared pie crusts
1 large egg, mixed with 1 tbsp water

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a medium sauce-pan, boil the potato until tender, 15-20 minutes. Drain; set aside.
3. In the same pan, melt 1 tbsp of the butter over low heat. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.
4. Stir in the scallions and dill. Remove from heat.
5. Add the potato, salt, pepper, and the remaining butter and mash.
6. In a bowl, mash the beans. Combine them with the potato mixture.
7. Cut each pie crust into quarters. Place 2 tbsp of filling on each. Pull the edges up to meet, pinching to seal. Brush each with the egg mixture; bake for about 20 minutes.

Product Review: Quorn Turk’y Roast

I’ve actually had this several times before, but I thought that maybe some of you haven’t tried it, so here’s my review. This Quorn product really needs to thaw out in your fridge overnight before cooking. You can cook it frozen, but I think it takes alot longer. You can also cook it in a roasting bag with some olive oil and herbs, but I’ve never tried that. I just pop it in the oven for about 30 minutes. It comes sealed up in plastic, almost like a sausage casing. There are two little metal things at each end, and when it’s done, you have to cut it out of this thing. I usually just slice it up, and eat it like turkey slices. We’ve had this at several Thanksgiving gatherings, and it makes a nice meat substitute. My son likes it too, cut up into little cubes. For this meal, we had a dipping sauce of honey mustard. This is a nice basic fake turkey, so you can kind of dress it up however you like. I served this with some sauteed snow peas & red peppers, cheese pierogies, and a biscuit.

rating: 8.5

Homemade Manicotti

I saw this recipe, and I thought, what’s so different about this? But the difference is that you aren’t filling manicotti pasta shells…you are making CREPES and filling them. Mmmmm. And this was so easy! It turned out really well, and I ate leftovers for lunch for 2 days straight! Toby’s only comment was that there was “too much white stuff” (the ricotta mixture). I wasn’t sure how many crepes this would make, so maybe I stuffed them too full. I made a little comment on my copy of this recipe to not fill them as much next time. Whatever. This was really good! The jarred pasta sauce that I used is my absolute favorite right now- it’s the Giant brand (Simply something…), and it’s the Vodka sauce. Again, mmmmm. We enjoyed this with some garlic bread and a salad.

rating: 9

Homemade Manicotti
(from the magazine Everyday with Rachael Ray)

2 cups ricotta cheese
1 3/4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
3/4 cup grated romano cheese
1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tbsp milk (I used Silk soy milk)
3 large eggs
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups store-bought meat sauce (I used a vegetarian pasta sauce)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta, 1 cup mozzarella, 1/2 cup romano, the parsley and milk.
2. In a bowl, whisk the eggs with 1 cup water. Whisk in the flour.
3. Heat a greased 8″ nonstick skillet over medium heat. Ladle 3 tbsp batter into the skillet, swirling to cover the surface of the pan. Cook for 1 minute, flip and cook for 1 minute more. Repeat with the remaining batter, greasing the skillet after each crepe. Stack the crepes on a plate.
4. Spread half of the meat sauce into a 9 x 13″ baking dish. Spoon the cheese mixture down the center of each crepe. Roll closed; arrange in the baking dish. Top with the remaining meat sauce and cheese, Bake for 25 minutes.

Baked Potato Soup

I am a couple of days behind with posts…every post that I make is a dinner that we had a couple of days ago. The holiday stuff gave me some extra posts, so that’s why I am out of sync. In any case, this is what we had for dinner Monday night. I knew that Toby had a soccer game soon after dinner, so I didn’t plan a big dinner. Just this soup and some bread. This soup was good (and easy to make), but it was a little bland. I really added ALOT of my Jane’s Crazy Mixed-up Salt to this. But you know what? It tastes just like a baked potato! I think the cauliflower makes it creamy. If I did make this again (Toby didn’t LOVE it), I made a note to really liven it up some with some seasonings.

rating: 7

Baked Potato Soup
(from the magazine Everyday with Rachael Ray)

2 large baking potatoes- peeled, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise
3 cups milk (I used Silk soy milk)
salt and pepper
1/2 head cauliflower, cored and chopped
1 bunch scallions, white and green portions thinly sliced separately
4 slices bacon (I used a fake bacon “baco” type product)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (about 2 ounces)
1/4 cup sour cream

1. In a large saucepan, combine the potatoes, 2 cups milk and 1 tsp salt. Cover and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower the heat to medium-low, add the cauliflower and scallion whites, cover and simmer until tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Add the remaining 1 cup milk, then puree the soup. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Microwave the bacon at high power until crisp, 3 to 4 minutes; crumble. Divide the soup among 4 bowls and top with the shredded cheese, sour cream, crumbed bacon and scallion greens.