easy baked ziti

 

This recipe is so easy you hardly need a recipe.  So easy and good. 

easy baked ziti (slightly adapted from love and lemons)

4 cups (32 ounes) marinara sauce

2 cups (16 ounces) ricotta chees

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon oregano

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

3/4 teaspoon sea salt, more for the pasta water

freshly ground black pepper

1 pound ziti pasta

extra virgin olive oil for drizzling

1 pound fresh spinach (I omitted it so my son would eat it!)

1 1/2 cups smoked mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

chopped fresh parsley and/or torn basil leaves for garnish

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Spread 1/2 cup marinara in the bottom of a 9x13 baking sheet.

In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes, 1/2 teaspoon salt and several grinds of black pepper.

In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente.  Drain.

Return the pot back to the stove.  Over low heat, drizzle the bottom of the pot with a little oliveoil and add the spinach.  Toss and saute 1-2 minutes until just wilted, working in batches if necessary.  Turn off the heat, remove the spinach from the pot and gently squeeze out some of the excess water.  Coarsely chop it and set it aside.

Add the pasta back to the pot along with the remaining marinara, most of the chopped spinach, 1/4 teaspoon sea salt and more fresh pepper and toss until combined.

Add half the pasta to the baking dish, top with dollops of the ricotta, the remaining spinach, and scoop the remaining pasta on top.  Top with the mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.  Drizzle with olive oil and bake until the cheese is browned, 16-22 minutes.  Garnish with fresh basil or parsley and serve hot.

herbed chicken or turkey parmesan sliders

 

These were a great and my kids especially loved them.  Super easy and you MUST have fresh basil.  It's the best.

Note:  I used plant based baked "chicken patties" for my vegetarians

herbed chicken (or turkey) parmesan sliders (adapted from BH&G magazine, Jan/Feb 2022)

1 pound ground turkey

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil plus leaves to top

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1 clove garlic, minced

4 slices Provolone cheese, cut in half

4 ciabatta rolls, split and grilled or toasted

pizza sauce, warmed

In a medium bowl combine chicken or turkey, basil, parsley, Parmesan, garlic, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.  Use your hands to mix evenly.  Form into 4 patties.

On a grill or greased grill pan cook patties over medium heat 5-6 minutes per side until cooked through.  Top each patty with two pieces of provolone; cover and grill and cook 1 minute more or until cheese melts.

Transfer sliders to rolls.  Top each with 1-2 tablespoons marinara sauce, basil leaves and additional Parmesan cheese.  Makes 4 sliders.

cuban style black beans

 

These were a huge hit with my family so I will be making them frequently.  They are so flavorful! I served them with some green chile and cheese tamales from Costco and everyone was full and happy.

cuban style black beans (adapted from skinnytaste)

2 teaspoons olive oil

1/2 onion, finely diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 scallions, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons red bell pepper, finely diced

3 tablespoons cilantro

2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, do not drain

1 cup water

1 bay leaf

several pinches of cumin

couple pinches or oregano

2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

Add oil to a medium-sized pot on medium heat.  Add vegetables and saute until soft, about 3 minutes.  Add beans, water, bay leaf, cumin, oregano, red wine vinegar, salt and black pepper and bring to a boil. 

Lower heat and cover, simmer about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Taste for salt and serve.

Serve over rice.

delicious dinner rolls

 

Delicious rolls!  I thought my family would appreciate some comfort food since we have Covid in the house. I pulled out my Kitchen Aid mixer for this recipe and decided it's not so bad to use a mixer instead of kneading by hand although I do prefer the old fashioned way.   These rolls are easy to make and worth it.

delicious dinner rolls (allrecipes.com)

2 1/2 cups warm milk

4 teaspoons active dry yeast

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 teaspoons salt

7 cups all-purpose flour (I needed 8-9 cups)

melted butter for tops

Pour milk into the large mixing bowl and sprinkle yeast over the surface.  Allow to rest for 5 minutes.  Beat in the sugar, eggs, 1/2 cup butter and salt; blend thoroughly.  Gradually stir in the flour to make a soft dough.  Cover bowl, and set in a warm place until dough doubles in size, about 1 hour.  Punch down the dough, cover the bowl and allow to rise again.  Repeat this step two more times.

Break off 2 to 3 inch pieces of dough, roll lightly into a round shape and place in prepared baking dish, edges touching.  Repeat to make 36 balls (I actually made 24).  Cover and let rise until doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Bake rolls in preheated oven until tops are golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes.  When rolls are finished baking, drizzle melted butter over the top and serve warm.

creamy curry cauliflower soup

 

My friend Dee-Anna in Oregon told me she was making this soup.  I just so happen to love creamy cauliflower soup but hadn't made it with curry.  I had everything I needed to make it right away so I did.  I love this soup!  It's super creamy and flavorful.

creamy curry cauliflower soup (adapted from my friend Dee-Anna)

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 cup onions, diced

1/2 cup carrots, diced

2 large cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon salt

1 head cauliflower, broken up into small pieces

1 tablespoon curry powder

1 teaspoon turmeric

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

3 cups vegetable broth

Prepare vegetables.  Add oil to a large pot and heat on medium heat.

Add onions, garlic and carrots and salt to the pot.  Saute for about 7 minutes.

Add cauliflower, spices and vegetable broth to the pot.  Stir and increase temperature to a boil.

Reduce heat to simmer.  Cover and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Blend soup until desired consistency.  Sprinkle with black pepper.

best cranberry orange chocolate muffins

 

These muffins got great reviews from my family.  They started out as "best cranberry orange muffins" until I added chocolate chips and piped some chocolate icing on top.  I knew I couldn't go wrong there...and I was right.

best cranberry orange chocolate muffins (adapted from little sweet baker)

2 1/2 cups flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup milk

zest of one orange, about 1 tablespoon

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries (I used frozen)

3/4 cup mini chocolate chips

1 cup chocolate icing for piping on top of the muffins, optional

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Line muffin tins with paper liners (I needed 16).

In a large bowl, toss together the flour, baking powder and salt.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, sugar, eggs, milk, orange juice, vanilla and orange zest.  Slowly add to the dry ingredients.  Mix until just combined, then fold in the cranberries.  Divide the batter into the muffin cups.

Bake at 425 degrees for 5 minutes then reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees and bake for another 13-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

creamy zucchini spinach soup with basil (dairy free!)

 

This soup is DELICIOUS!  The author of the blog I found it on said it's "shockingly delicious" and it is.  You can go to Mel's Kitchen Cafe to read her description because it's better than mine.  I love veggies swimming through my veins!  

creamy zucchini soup with spinach and basil (Mel's Kitchen Cafe)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

1-2 medium leeks, well chopped (I used 3 green onions)

2 medium zucchini, chopped (4 cups)

1 teaspoon salt (careful with the salt!)

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 cups vegetable stock

2 tablespoons fresh basil (I used 1 teaspoon dry but fresh would be amazing!)

2-3 cups fresh spinach, coarsely chopped

In a saucepan, heat olive oil and add garlic, leeks and zucchini.  Stir in salt and pepper.  Cook 3-4 minutes until leeks soften.  Add 1 cup broth, cover and cook for 8-10 minutes.  Transfer to a blender and add basil.  Process until smooth.  Pour back into the saucepan.  Stir in remaining 1 cup broth.  Stir in chopped spinach and cook 4-5 minutes.