a little of each

A family's cookbook

Pizza Di Spaghetti March 29, 2013

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 2:08 pm
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From “Everyday Italian.” Serves four.

 

Ingredients

1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

½ cup whole milk

2 large eggs

½ tsp sea salt

½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 cups leftover cooked and sauced pasta, such as spaghetti with tomato sauce

½ cup olive oil

 

Directions

In a large bowl, beat the Parmesan cheese, milk, eggs, sea salt and pepper together. Add the leftover pasta and toss to coat. In a 10-inch diameter nonstick sauté pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the pasta mixture to the pan, spreading evenly. Cook until golden brown on the bottom, about 8 minutes. Carefully invert the pasta mixture onto a plate, then slide it back into the pan. Continue cooking until the bottom is golden brown and the mixture is heated through, about 6 minutes. Transfer the pasta mixture to a serving platter and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Cut into wedges and serve warm.

 

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.

 

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.

 

Spiced Rice Almondine

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 11:53 am
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Ingredients

1 box wild rice

1 lb bulk sausage

½ cup green pepper, chopped

½ cup onion, chopped

½ cup celery, chopped

¼ cup almonds, slivered

1 can cream of chicken soup, condensed

 

Directions

Cook rice according to the package. Crumble sausage meat in a skillet and brown. Add pepper, onion and celery. Cook over low heat for 10 minutes. Blend in rice, almonds and soup. Put in casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes.

 

Orange Rice

Filed under: Pasta and Grains — alittlemoreofeach @ 11:52 am
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Ingredients

1 ½ cup short-grain brown rice

½ tsp salt

2 oranges

1 small red onion

1 Tbl olive oil

2 Tbl basil

 

Directions

Combine rice, salt and two cups of water in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Grate one Tbl zest from one orange; peel and section both oranges. When rice is tender, fold in zest, oranges, basil and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

 

Green Chile Corn Muffins

Filed under: Breads — alittlemoreofeach @ 10:56 am
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These muffins accompanied the Grilled Pork Tenderloin at Nana Betty’s birthday celebration in October 2005. Serve them with honey butter for some extra sweetness.

From “Paula Deen & Friends Cookbook,” makes 48 miniature muffins.

 

Ingredients

1 ¼ cups stone-ground cornmeal

½ tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder

1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

8 oz cream-style corn

1 cup sour cream

4 oz green chiles, chopped

½ cup canola oil

2 eggs, lightly beaten

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray miniature muffin tins with vegetable oil cooking spray. In a small mixing bowl, combine the cornmeal, salt, and baking powder. Add the cheese, corn, sour cream, and chiles. Stir until lightly combined. Add the oil and eggs and stir until everything is just combined; do not overmix. The batter will be very stiff. Place about ½ Tbl of batter into each muffin cup. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes.

 

Poopoo on Toast March 28, 2013

Filed under: Sandwiches — alittlemoreofeach @ 9:28 pm
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Don’t judge.  This is really and truly what we called this broiled ground sirloin sandwich when we were growing up.  And we loved it.

 

Spread some fresh ground sirloin on a slice of wheat bread. Sprinkle garlic salt on top of the meat. Place under the broiler for a few minutes, until meat is brown.

 

 

Tomato Salad #1

Filed under: Soups and Salads — alittlemoreofeach @ 9:10 pm
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Ingredients

5 medium tomatoes, sliced

4 oz crumbled feta or blue cheese

½ cup olive oil

1/3 cup wine vinegar

2 Tbl finely chopped fresh basil

1 clove garlic, minced

1/8 tsp coarsely ground pepper

 

Directions

Arrange tomatoes and cheese in a 13×9 dish. Combine remaining ingredients in a jar. Cover tightly, and shake vigorously. Pour dressing over tomato mixture. Cover and chill at least four hours.