Recipes for Love

Mom's Meatballs

I debated about featuring a romantic recipe perfect for that special dinner or dessert, but I elected instead for something simple, delicious, and familiar.  My mom’s meatballs are the ultimate comfort food, and what better way to spend Valentine’s Day than with a no-fuss, yummy meal, cozied up with your loved ones?  Enjoy!

Mom's Meatballs

1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 egg
1 box beef rice-a-roni

Mix meat, egg, and rice-a-roni (but not the flavor packet) together, then roll into 2-2 1/2 inch meatballs.  Heat a skillet over medium-high heat, and add the meat balls.  Brown evenly on all sides, taking care not to crowd.  Remove from pan and drain on paper towels, drain fat out of pan.  Mix Rice-a-roni flavor packet with 2 cups of water.  Add to pan, and add meatballs back to pan.  Simmer until meatballs are cooked through.  Yum!

Optional - we like to make a gravy with the leftover simmered sauce.  Add a little cold water to the pan to cool the drippings down a bit.  Add a little water to some flour (maybe 2-3 tsp, depends on how thick you like your gravy - remember it thickens as it cools down), then stir into pan.  Bring to a boil, whisking constantly, and cook until it thickens, which will take just a few minutes.  If necessary, add a little beef flavoring for extra flavor.

Serve with mashed or baked potatoes, and your favorite veggie!  Enjoy!

I debated about featuring a romantic recipe perfect for that special dinner or dessert, but I elected instead for something simple, delicious, and familiar.  My mom’s meatballs are the ultimate comfort food, and what better way to spend Valentine’s Day than with a no-fuss, yummy meal, cozied up with your loved ones?  Enjoy!

Mom's Meatballs

1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 egg
1 box beef rice-a-roni

Mix meat, egg, and rice-a-roni (but not the flavor packet) together, then roll into 2-2 1/2 inch meatballs.  Heat a skillet over medium-high heat, and add the meat balls.  Brown evenly on all sides, taking care not to crowd.  Remove from pan and drain on paper towels, drain fat out of pan.  Mix Rice-a-roni flavor packet with 2 cups of water.  Add to pan, and add meatballs back to pan.  Simmer until meatballs are cooked through.  Yum!

Optional - we like to make a gravy with the leftover simmered sauce.  Add a little cold water to the pan to cool the drippings down a bit.  Add a little water to some flour (maybe 2-3 tsp, depends on how thick you like your gravy - remember it thickens as it cools down), then stir into pan.  Bring to a boil, whisking constantly, and cook until it thickens, which will take just a few minutes.  If necessary, add a little beef flavoring for extra flavor.

Serve with mashed or baked potatoes, and your favorite veggie!  Enjoy!

Summer Vegetable Pasta

This is a versatile recipe that makes the most of summer's bounty!  Use any fresh, favorite vegetable or herb that is in season.  The closer to your home it is grown, the more tasty and nutritious it will be.  Mess around with this all you want, just adjust the cooking times as necessary.

Summer Vegetable Pasta

10oz Whole wheat or spinach spaghetti or linguine
Cooking spray (or olive oil)
½ Sweet Onion (such as Walla Walla), chopped
1 small Zucchini, quartered lengthwise and chopped ¼”
½ Red Bell Pepper, chopped
½ Orange or Yellow Bell Pepper, chopped
¼ cup Sun-dried Tomatoes, packed in oil, drained and chopped
2 cups Grape tomatoes, halved
1 cup leftover cooked Chicken, shredded or chopped
¼ cup Kalamata Olives, chopped (optional)
½ cup Cream
2 Garlic Cloves, finely chopped
2 T Fresh Basil, minced
¼ - ½ cup shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parmigiano_Reggiano)
Salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain, reserving ½ cup of the cooking liquid, set aside. Return pasta to pot and set aside.

2. Coat medium sized stir fry pan with cooking spray (can use olive oil instead, if you like), and heat over medium high heat. Add onion, cook until it begins to soften, stirring occasionally (about 5 minutes).

3. Add zucchini, peppers, and dried tomatoes; stir fry until crisp tender, about 5 more minutes. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

4. Add cooked chicken, grape tomatoes, and olives if using. Cook until heated through, about another minute. Add to pasta in pot.

5. Add garlic to stir fry pan (add more spray or oil as needed), cook, stirring, until fragrant, being careful not to brown. Add reserved cooking liquid, cream, basil, and salt & pepper to taste. Simmer until reduced by about half. Add cheese to taste, stir until it melts.

6. Return pasta and veggie mixture to stir fry pan, and toss until pasta is coated with sauce. Top each serving with additional cheese.

Variations:

• Use any combination of fresh summer veggies you like: mushrooms, eggplant, different types of squashes, etc. The closer to your home that it is grown, the better it will be! Also, any fresh herb is good – consider fresh thyme, or rosemary.
• Omit chicken for a vegetarian meal. Or, replace chicken with frozen cooked shrimp, thawed according to package directions.

Feeds 4 or so.  Email or comment if you have any questions.  Enjoy!

Grilled Chicken Pasta with Garlic Cream

 

This recipe is why I like to keep a little carton of cream on hand in the fridge.  This recipe comes together quite quickly.  You may used canned or dried mushrooms, and frozen spinach rather than fresh would also work fine - just be sure to adjust the amounts, because fresh spinach cooks down to a smaller amount.

Leave a comment if you have any questions, or share if you made this!

Grilled Chicken Pasta with Garlic Cream

2 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp Garlic-herb seasoning blend, such as Mrs. Dash brand
8 oz Bowtie pasta, uncooked
2 cups Fresh spinach, torn
1/2 cup Cream
1 4oz can sliced shiitake mushrooms
1/4 tsp Dried thyme
1/4 tsp Kosher salt
1/8 tsp Freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup + 2T Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

1.  Open can of mushrooms, rinse and drain, squeeze with paper towels to extract as much liquid as possible.  Rinse spinach, tear off tough ends. Tear leaves into slightly smaller pieces.

2.  Prepare grill, to medium-high heat.  Sprinkle chicken evenly with salt, freshly ground pepper, and garlic-herb seasoning (on both sides).  Grill chicken until cooked through, turning once halfway through (about 20 minutes).

3.  Meanwhile, prepare noodles according to package directions in a medium sized saucepan.  During the last 1 minute of cooking time, add the spinach.  Drain noodles and spinach in colander, reserving 1/4 cup of cooking liquid.  Rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process, and set aside.

4.  Add cream and mushrooms to empty pasta pot, bring to a simmer.  Add salt, pepper, garlic, thyme, and reserved cooking liquid.  Simmer until starting to thicken, about 5 minutes.  Add 1/4 cup cheese.

5.  Add pasta and spinach back to the pot, tossing to coat.  Slice chicken accross the grain; Serve atop pasta in individual pasta bowls, garnished with 1-2 additional teaspoons cheese.

Yield:  4 servings (unless you're pigs like us, then it is about 3 servings)

Orecchiette with Chicken Sausage and Feta

We just made this for dinner tonight, and it was so good we ate the entire recipe between the two of us!  It is a modified recipe that I found in Cooking Light magazine - cooks up quickly and easily!  Orecchiette is also known as "little ear" pasta, and can be found boxed in the grocery store pasta aisle.  Feel free to use whatever sausage is your favorite - we especially like the selections at Costco.

Ingredients:
8 oz Orcchiette Pasta, uncooked
1 tsp Olive Oil
2 cups Red Bell Pepper, sliced into 1/4" strips, then halved crosswise
1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
8 oz Chicken or Turkey Sausage, cut in half lengthwise then sliced
1/2 (16oz) can diced Tomatoes (preferably fire roasted), undrained
1/4 cup chopped fresh Basil
1/4 tsp dried Oregano
2 Garlic Cloves, crushed
4 oz Feta Cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup sliced Kalamata Olives
1/4 tsp freshly ground Black Pepper

1.  Cook the pasta according to package directions.  Drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid.
2.  Heat olive oil over medium-high heat, add bell pepper and 1/4 tsp salt, and saute 2 minutes.  Add sausage, tomatoes, basil, oregano, the remaining 1/4 tsp salt, and garlic; saute 5 minutes or until sausage is cooked through.
3.  Add cooked pasta, reserved cooking liquid, feta, olives, and pepper; saute 2 minutes until heated through.

Serve with crusty bread to sop up the juices.  Serves 4 (serving size 1 1/2 cup).

We just made this for dinner tonight, and it was so good we ate the entire recipe between the two of us!  It is a modified recipe that I found in Cooking Light magazine - cooks up quickly and easily!  Orecchiette is also known as "little ear" pasta, and can be found boxed in the grocery store pasta aisle.  Feel free to use whatever sausage is your favorite - we especially like the selections at Costco.

Ingredients:
8 oz Orcchiette Pasta, uncooked
1 tsp Olive Oil
2 cups Red Bell Pepper, sliced into 1/4" strips, then halved crosswise
1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
8 oz Chicken or Turkey Sausage, cut in half lengthwise then sliced
1/2 (16oz) can diced Tomatoes (preferably fire roasted), undrained
1/4 cup chopped fresh Basil
1/4 tsp dried Oregano
2 Garlic Cloves, crushed
4 oz Feta Cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup sliced Kalamata Olives
1/4 tsp freshly ground Black Pepper

1.  Cook the pasta according to package directions.  Drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid.
2.  Heat olive oil over medium-high heat, add bell pepper and 1/4 tsp salt, and saute 2 minutes.  Add sausage, tomatoes, basil, oregano, the remaining 1/4 tsp salt, and garlic; saute 5 minutes or until sausage is cooked through.
3.  Add cooked pasta, reserved cooking liquid, feta, olives, and pepper; saute 2 minutes until heated through.

Serve with crusty bread to sop up the juices.  Serves 4 (serving size 1 1/2 cup).

Easy Chicken Curry

Enough about new store products, let's eat something!  Here's a recipe for an easy chicken curry that I made the other day.  If you think you don't like curry, give this a try - Chris doesn't particularly care for Indian dishes, yet he did really like this.  Its not too overpowering, and is very tasty!  It's made in a slow cooker, so there is very little prep - you just chop a few things up, throw them in the pot, then eat in about 4 hours!

Easy Chicken Curry

Ingredients:
1 lb Boneless, skinless chicken breast (uncooked), cut into 1" pieces
1 lg Yellow or orange bell pepper, cut into 1" pieces
1 lg Sweet Onion (such as Walla Walla or Vidalia) sliced into 1/4" thick rings
1 14.5 oz can Italian Stewed Tomatoes
1/2 cup pineapple salsa
1/3 cup water
2 Tb cornstarch
2 tsp Curry powder
1/2 tsp ground Cumin
1/4 - 1/2 tsp hot sauce, such as Sriracha
1/2 tsp Garlic powder
Salt & fresh ground pepper to taste
3/4 cup Cashews, divided
Cooked white or basmati rice (to swerve chicken over)

Instructions:

1.  Put chicken, peppers, and onions together in the slow cooker; pour tomatoes over top.

2.  Mix together remaining ingredients and pour over chicken mixture.

3.  Cover and cook on low for 4 hours or until done.  Stir only once or twice.

Serve over rice; top each serving with 1-2 Tb cashews.  Yield:  6 servings, with about 1 1/2 cups per serving.

Enjoy!

Enough about new store products, let's eat something!  Here's a recipe for an easy chicken curry that I made the other day.  If you think you don't like curry, give this a try - Chris doesn't particularly care for Indian dishes, yet he did really like this.  Its not too overpowering, and is very tasty!  It's made in a slow cooker, so there is very little prep - you just chop a few things up, throw them in the pot, then eat in about 4 hours!

Easy Chicken Curry

Ingredients:
1 lb Boneless, skinless chicken breast (uncooked), cut into 1" pieces
1 lg Yellow or orange bell pepper, cut into 1" pieces
1 lg Sweet Onion (such as Walla Walla or Vidalia) sliced into 1/4" thick rings
1 14.5 oz can Italian Stewed Tomatoes
1/2 cup pineapple salsa
1/3 cup water
2 Tb cornstarch
2 tsp Curry powder
1/2 tsp ground Cumin
1/4 - 1/2 tsp hot sauce, such as Sriracha
1/2 tsp Garlic powder
Salt & fresh ground pepper to taste
3/4 cup Cashews, divided
Cooked white or basmati rice (to swerve chicken over)

Instructions:

1.  Put chicken, peppers, and onions together in the slow cooker; pour tomatoes over top.

2.  Mix together remaining ingredients and pour over chicken mixture.

3.  Cover and cook on low for 4 hours or until done.  Stir only once or twice.

Serve over rice; top each serving with 1-2 Tb cashews.  Yield:  6 servings, with about 1 1/2 cups per serving.

Enjoy!