a little of each

A family's cookbook

Pesto Lasagna March 29, 2013

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 2:03 pm
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From http://www.allrecipes.com

I served this when I hosted the Chocolate Lover’s Book Club meeting in March 2006. We read Three Junes by Julia Glass, and enjoyed this lasagna, the sun-dried tomato Caesar salad, and Nana Hazel’s Bittersweet Chocolate Sauce over ice cream. Yum!

Ingredients

1 (16 oz) package lasagna noodles

2 Tbl olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 (16 oz) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed

7 oz basil pesto

30 oz ricotta cheese

1 egg

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp black pepper

¼ tsp nutmeg

2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded

¾ cup Alfredo-style pasta sauce

¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Directions

In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté the onion and garlic in the olive oil until tender. Add the spinach and Stir. Remove from the heat and stir in the pesto. In a large bowl, mix together the ricotta, mozzarella, egg, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Spread a small amount of olive oil on the bottom of a large baking dish, then layer the noodles, then the spinach mixture and then the ricotta. Repeat the layers ending with noodles on top. Spread the Alfredo sauce on top and sprinkle with the Parmesan. Cover with foil and bake for 45 to 55 minutes at 350 degrees.

 

Chicken Lasagna

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 2:02 pm
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Ingredients

10 uncooked lasagna noodles

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 (14 ½ oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained

1 (12 oz) can tomato paste

1 ½ cups sliced fresh mushrooms

¼ cup chopped onion

1 Tbl dried basil

1 ¾ tsp salt, divided

1/8 tsp garlic powder

3 cups 2 % small curd cottage cheese

½ cup egg substitute

½ cup grated Parmesan

1/3 cup minced fresh parsley

½ tsp pepper

2 cups (8 oz) shredded part-skim mozzarella

 

Directions

Cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile broil chicken six inches from heat until juices run clear; let stand 15 minutes to cool. Shred chicken with two forks. Drain noodles; set aside. In a large skillet, combine the shredded chicken and the next seven ingredients (through garlic powder, but only using ¾ tsp salt). Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 25 to 35 minutes. In a bowl, combine the cottage cheese, egg substitute, Parmesan, parsley and remaining salt and pepper. In a 13 x 9 baking dish sprayed with nonstick cooking spray, place half the noodles, overlapping them. Layer with half the cheese mixture, half the chicken mixture and half the mozzarella. Repeat layers. Cover and bake at 375 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until bubbly. Uncover and bake five minutes longer. Let stand 15 minutes before cutting.

 

Orzo Risotto with Buttery Shrimp

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 1:59 pm
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From http://www.cookingforengineers.com. Makes four servings.

 

Ingredients

½ lb asparagus spears

½ lb shrimp, shelled and deveined

6 Tbl butter

12 oz orzo

1 cup chicken broth

½ cup parmesan, freshly grated

2 Tbl parsley

Salt and pepper

 

Directions

Cook asparagus spears in boiling water for 4 minutes. Remove the asparagus from the water and add the orzo to the same water.  Boil the orzo until al dente and drain if necessary. While the orzo is cooking, cut the asparagus into 1-inch pieces and cook the shrimp. In a skillet, melt the butter and add the shrimp, cooking for 1 minute on each side. Season with salt and pepper. Remove the shrimp and deglaze the skillet with the chicken stock. Scrap up any brown bits and when the broth starts to bubble, add it to the orzo pot. Stir the orzo and broth over medium heat until it thickens and looks a little creamy. Mix the shrimp and asparagus into the orzo. Remove from the heat and stir in the parmesan cheese and parsley.

 

Chicken Piccata Pasta Toss

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 1:57 pm
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From a Rachael Ray recipe. Serves four.

 

Depending on your tastes, extra lemon juice or even some zest is recommended.

 

Ingredients

2 Tbl extra virgin olive oil

1 1/3 lbs chicken breast tenders, cut into one-inch pieces

salt and pepper

1 ½ Tbl butter

4 cloves garlic, chopped

2 shallots, chopped

2 Tbl all-purpose flour

½ cup white wine

1 large lemon, juiced

1 cup chicken broth or stock

3 Tbl capers, drained

½ cup flat leaf parsley, chopped

1 lb rigatoni, cooked al dente

fresh chives, snipped

 

Directions

Heat a deep nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add 1 Tbl extra-virgin olive oil and chicken to pan. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Brown chicken until lightly golden all over, about 5 to 6 minutes. Remove chicken from pan and return skillet to heat. Reduce heat to medium. Add another tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter, garlic and shallots to skillet. Sauté garlic and shallots 3 minutes. Add flour and cook 2 minutes. Whisk in wine and reduce liquid 1 minute. Whisk in lemon juice and broth into sauce. Stir in capers and parsley. When liquid comes to a bubble, add remaining ½ Tbl of butter to sauce to give it a little shine. Add chicken back to pan and heat through, 1 to 2 minutes. Toss hot pasta with chicken and sauce and serve. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Top with fresh snipped chives.

 

Nutty Shrimp or Chicken Pasta

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 1:56 pm
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From “A Taste of Thai” packet label. Serves four.

 

Ingredients

1 lb prepared pasta of your choice (spaghetti or linguine work well)

1 packet A Taste of Thai Peanut Sauce Mix

1 can low-fat coconut milk

1 lb medium shrimp, cleaned, or bite-size chicken

1 cup bean sprouts

¼ cup unsalted peanuts, chopped

½ cup scallions, chopped

¼ cup cilantro, chopped

Lime wedges

 

Directions

In a saucepan, bring coconut milk to a boil and stir in peanut sauce mix packet. Add meat. Cook until done. Remove from heat and add bean sprouts and pasta, stirring together well. Top with peanuts, lime wedges and herbs.

 

Angel Hair Fresca

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 1:54 pm
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From Publix’s Apron Meals. Serves four

Ingredients

8 oz angel hair pasta

2 cups fresh broccoli florets

1 Tbl butter

½ cup sun-dried tomato pesto
Directions

Stir pasta into large pot of boiling water. Boil for 1 minute. Stir in broccoli and boil 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain. Add butter to saucepan, using residual heat to melt butter. Stir in tomato pesto, pasta and broccoli; toss to mix and serve.

 

The Famous and Much-Coveted Spaghetti Sauce

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 1:49 pm
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This is the Holy Grail of our family’s cooking traditions. The recipe makes a large pot of sauce which can be divided. While some is served immediately, the rest is frozen for future meals.

 

NB's spaghetti sauce

 

Ingredients

1 (12 oz) can tomato paste

1 (28 oz) can tomato puree

1 (15 oz) can chicken broth

2 lbs sweet and mild Italian sausage

1 bone-in pork chop

1 cup dry red wine

3 large cloves fresh garlic, finely chopped

1 Tbl oregano

1 Tbl basil

1 Tbl sugar

½ tsp red pepper flakes

salt, to taste

Grated cheese

Directions

Brown the sausage and pork in a small amount of olive oil. Add the garlic and cook until it is light brown. Add the tomato paste and tomato puree. Add two cups of water, the chicken broth and the red wine. Add the herbs. Add up to one cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Simmer on the stovetop for two hours. Taste every time you walk by. Go, “Mmmmmmmm.”  Tweak seasonings to your taste.

 

Mama Jean’s Pierogis

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 1:48 pm
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A Yellen Christmas Eve tradition.

 

Ingredients

3 cups flour

½ cup water

2 eggs

1 Tbl Crisco

 

Directions

Cut eggs into flour, add water. Knead until firm but not sticky. Roll out on floured surface and cut out circles with biscuit cutter dipped in flour. Place one tablespoon of filling in the center of each circle. Bring edges together and seal edges by pinching with fingers. Drop six to seven pierogis gently into a large pot of boiling water. When they rise to the top boil gently for eight to 10 minutes. Remove to a buttered pan after rinsing in cold water. Serve pierogis with sour cream, crumbled bacon, and sautéed onion.

 

For the filling, mix together:

1 pound cheddar cheese

3 to 4 hot cooked, mashed potatoes seasoned with salt and pepper.

 

Orzo with Everything

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 1:44 pm
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We made this at Jennifer’s house in Rio Rancho. Sadly, we went through a couple of batches of pine nuts when we didn’t supervise the toasting carefully enough. They toast very quickly! From Margaret Ann’s cooking class.

 

3 cups uncooked orzo

2/3 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped

10 Tbl olive oil

½ cup balsamic vinegar

½ cup black olives, chopped

2 cups radicchio, finely chopped

1 cup pine nuts, toasted

1 cup fresh basil, chopped

1 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated

4 large cloves garlic, minced

 

Cook orzo as directed on package. Drain well. Add tomatoes, olive oil, vinegar and olives. Toss. Let stand until cool. Mix the remaining ingredients into pasta just before serving. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

 

Tuna Macaroni Salad

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 1:42 pm
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I made this  frequently in college. All of my roommates liked it, too, so we’d all eat off it, for lunch and dinner, until it ran out. This recipe is also great with imitation crabmeat.  Simply add about ¾ lb. chopped crabmeat instead of the tuna, and use mayonnaise instead of the Miracle Whip.

 

Ingredients

1 lb box of pasta (shells, spirals, or bowties)

2 cans albacore tuna, drained

2 hardboiled eggs, chopped

½ cucumber, peeled and diced

1 packet Good Seasons Italian dressing, dry

1 tsp dill

1 cup Miracle Whip, give or take

 

Directions

Cook pasta according to package directions. Rinse with cold water, drain and place in a large mixing bowl. Add the remaining ingredients, mixing well. Refrigerate before serving.