Category Archives: Easy

February 10, 2011 · 11:51 am

Spaghetti Frittata

My kids like spaghetti and they like eggs, so I thought I would give this a try.

Ingredients:
1 tbsp butter or olive oil
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 lb. ground Italian sausage (optional)
1 14-ounce can Italian-style diced tomatoes, lightly drained
Smidge of crushed red pepper
Salt and pepper to taste (I used sea salt)
6 eggs, beaten
Leftover pasta–about 6 ounces worth (I didn’t have any leftover so I just made some.)
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh basil, if you have it
Parmesan

Instructions:
Preheat broiler and make sure you are using an oven-proof skillet.

Heat butter or oil in a large skillet. Add garlic and sauté about 30 seconds (never brown garlic). Add the Italian sausage and cook until done.

Add tomatoes with about half their juice, season with salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper. Simmer for about 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes have broken down some and juice is reduced.

Add pasta and stir to coat. Give it a minute or two to heat through, then reduce heat to low and pour beaten eggs over. Quickly stir things around so you have a somewhat even distribution of egg and pasta.

Sprinkle with parmesan and chopped basil, then just let it heat slowly so the eggs can cook without scorching.

When the eggs have mostly set, stick the whole thing under the broiler to finish cooking.

Cut into wedges and serve!

We had this with a salad.

Did I change anything? The recipe called for just regular diced tomatoes, but I used the Italian-style ones for more zip. I also added the Italian sausage.

What did the family think? Thumbs up from everyone! I love it when that happens. 🙂

from halfassedkitchen.com

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Italian, Lent, Uncategorized, Vegetarian

February 7, 2011 · 7:37 pm

Gnocchi with Sausage, Sundried Tomatoes and Basil

Heavens to Betsy this is SOOOO good, so simple and SOOOO easy!

Ingredients:
5 italian sausages
1 lb. gnocchi (found in the pasta aisle of most grocery stores)
Several large spoonfuls sundried tomatoes packed in oil, chopped
6 leaves fresh basil, chopped
Olive oil
Salt, a pinch or two
Pepper, a pinch or two
2 T Parmesan

Instructions:
Cook sausages in olive oil over medium heat until done (or purchase the pre-cooked variety and brown them in a skillet.)

Meanwhile, heat a pan of water to boiling, add gnocchi and let simmer for five minutes. Drain. Set aside.

Slice sausages and add to gnocchi. Add sundried tomatoes, then drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper, basil and parmesan.

Did I change anything? The only thing I did differently is that I served this with pasta sauce for certain members of my family that refuse to eat pasta without it. I ate it as written.

What did the family think? Love, love and more love! This is so good and everyone really liked it.

from half-assed kitchen

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Italian

· 9:20 am

Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Chili

It’s definitely still the time of year for warm and cozy comfort foods…

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 1/2 cups prepared enchilada sauce
2 chopped celery stalks
2 (14.5 oz) cans olive oil and garlic diced tomatoes (or some other “flavor” if you can’t find those)
2 (15 oz) cans pinto or kidney beans, undrained
1 onion, diced (or 1 tablespoon dried, minced onion flakes)
1-2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
Sour cream and shredded cheddar cheese for garnish

Instructions:
Pour enchilada sauce and canned tomatoes into the bottom of a 6 quart slow cooker. Add beans, celery, onion and spices. Stir to combine. Place chicken on top.

Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours, or until flavors have combined. Shred chicken and stir back into slow cooker.

Serve with shredded cheddar cheese and a dollop of sour cream, if desired.

Did I change anything? I didn’t use as much onion, maybe half as much as the recipe called for and I left out the celery.

What did the family think? Hubby and I LOVED this! The boys aren’t huge enchilada fans, but they will pick out the chicken and eat that.

from A Year of Slow Cooking

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Filed under Chicken, Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Make Ahead of Time, Mexican, Spicy, Stew/Soup, Super Easy to Make

February 3, 2011 · 8:01 pm

Jessica Seinfeld’s Meatloaf

This was really very easy. The only hard part is waiting for it to cook.

Ingredients:
Nonstick cooking spray
2 pounds lean ground turkey
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon salt
11/3 cup whole-wheat breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
3 large egg whites
1/2 cup carrot puree (I used baby food)
1/2 cup cauliflower puree
Jarred tomato sauce (optional)

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Coat a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray. Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl and stir to combine.

Press the mixture into the loaf pan. Bake until golden brown and no longer pink in the center, 50 to 55 minutes. Cut into slices and serve.

Serve with tomato sauce, if you wish.

We had this with buttered corn, baked beans and bread with butter.

Did I change anything? I didn’t have any breadcrumbs, so I used old-fashioned oats instead. Also, I didn’t use any cauliflower puree, I just doubled up on the pureed carrots.

What did the family think? Everyone really liked it except our oldest. He ate it, he just wasn’t super excited about eating it.

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Filed under Easy, Everybody Ate It

February 1, 2011 · 8:51 am

Jessica Seinfeld’s Chicken Enchiladas

I have to admit, I wasn’t sure if these were going to have any flavor at all. I was pleasantly surprised when they turned out to be super tasty, but not so spicy that the boys wouldn’t eat them.

Ingredients:
Nonstick cooking spray
1 tablespoons olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed (about 3/4 pound)
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon pepper
2 cups sweet potato or carrot puree (I use baby food)
4 cup fat-free sour cream
1 cup shredded, reduced-fat (2%) cheddar cheese or part-skim mozzarella, divided
6 (9-inch) whole-grain or whole-wheat flour tortillas
2 cups mild tomato salsa

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Coat a 9 x 12-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Warm the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the chicken with garlic powder and pepper. Cook the chicken 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it is cooked through and no longer pink in the center.

Off the heat, mix the sweet potato or carrot puree, sour cream, and half the cheese into the skillet.

Fill each tortilla with the chicken mixture and roll up. Place seam-side down in the prepared baking dish. Spoon the salsa over the enchiladas and sprinkle with the remaining cheese.

Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake until the cheese melts and the filling is hot, 35 to 40 minutes.

Did I change anything? The original recipes calls for adding a dollop of spinach puree to the top of each enchilada. I don’t have any spinach puree and I am not going to go through all the work of making it for a couple of dollops. The original recipes also calls for A LOT more pepper. I only used 1 tsp.

What did the family think? Hubby and I really liked them….hubby even had seconds. Our oldest liked his. Our youngest was just so-so about them.

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Filed under Chicken, Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Mexican

January 31, 2011 · 2:14 pm

Salmon Salad

I bought about twice as much salmon as I actually needed to make dinner last night, so we had some leftovers. Turns out leftover salmon makes a pretty good lunch when it’s transformed into a little salad.

Ingredients:
(All ingredient measurements are approximations)
1 cup cold salmon, flaked
1/2 tsp. dried dill
1/4 tsp. celery salt
1 1/2 T mayo
Juice from 1/4 lemon

Instructions:
Mix first four ingredients, sprinkle with lemon juice and enjoy! I had mine on crackers.

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Filed under After School Snacks, Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Fish, Lent, Salad, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make

January 30, 2011 · 6:59 pm

Lemon Thyme Salmon

Super easy and tasty, too…

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs. salmon fillet, cut into 4 pieces, skin removed
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 lemons
24 sprigs fresh thyme

Instructions:
Heat the broiler. Adjust oven rack to the second position from the top.

Rub the salmon with oil (1/2 tsp. per piece) and season with salt and pepper (1/8 tsp. salt & 3 turns on pepper mill per piece). Slice 2 of the lemons into 12 slices total.

On a sheet pan, arrange the lemon slices into 4 rows of 3. Top each row with 6 sprigs of thyme then with the salmon pieces. Broil until the salmon flakes easily, 8 to 10 minutes (depending on thickness).

Serve with the extra lemon, quartered, for squeezing.

We had this with French green beans with butter and lemon juice and a baguette.

Did I change anything? I think the cooking time on this is really going to vary depending on how thick your fish is, so just watch it to make sure it doesn’t get cooked for too long.

What did the family think? Hubby and I really liked this…so simple and perfect. The kids had fish sticks. Fish is something they really struggle with, but we are getting to the point where we need to just make them eat it. Fish is the only time I ever make them something besides what the hubby and I are eating.

from doitdelicious.com

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Fish, Lent, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make

January 29, 2011 · 9:54 am

Italian Sloppy Joes

Hubby said this tasted like pizza on a bun.

Ingredients:
1/2 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 lb. ground Italian sausage
1 jar spaghetti sauce
Hamburgers buns

Instructions:
Add onions, green pepper and Italian sausage to a skillet and cook over medium-high heat until sausage is cooked through. Add spaghetti sauce and cook until heated through.

Serve in hamburger buns.

We had this with carrot sticks and fruit salad.

What did the family think? I was surprised the kiddos didn’t like it more since it did taste like pizza on a bun and they like pizza. I think it was the green peppers that put them off. Oh well, hubby and I liked it.

from Food Network

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Filed under Easy, Italian, Sandwich, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make

January 27, 2011 · 10:31 pm

Lazy Lasagna

You’re not lazy, just resourceful. 🙂

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 cup minced onion
2 carrots, grated
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon dried basil (optional)
1 teaspoon dried oregano (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 (14-ounce) package frozen cheese ravioli, unthawed
1 (14-ounce) jar marinara sauce
1/2 pound sliced provolone
1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Heat the oil in an ovenproof 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat, then sauté the onion, carrots, garlic, and herbs until the onion is translucent, about 3 minutes. Transfer the onion mix to a bowl.

Arrange the still-frozen ravioli (breaking them apart if they’re clumped) in one layer in the skillet and sprinkle with the onion mix. Ladle the marinara sauce evenly over the ravioli. Over medium heat, without stirring, cook everything until the ravioli are heated through and beginning to brown on the bottom (gently lift one with a fork to check), about 10 minutes.

Remove the skillet from the heat, then arrange the provolone slices over the sauce and sprinkle the whole thing with Parmesan. Bake the lasagna in the middle of the oven until the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes.

Did I change anything? No, but I won’t add the onions next time. I don’t think I have ever said this before, but I think it had too much cheese. I know. “Too much” and “cheese” just don’t go together normally, but I think next time I will used shredded provolone or shredded mozzarella instead.

What did the family think? The boys loved it. Hubby and I could have used less cheese.

from DisneyFamily

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Filed under Easy, Everybody Ate It, Italian, Lent, Vegetarian

January 25, 2011 · 9:45 pm

CrockPot BBQ Brisket Sandwiches

Your house will smell SO good all day long while this is cooking!

Ingredients:
5 tablespoons dark brown sugar, divided
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 lb. brisket
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup tomato paste
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons molasses
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
10 (2 1/2-ounce) submarine rolls, halved
Red onion slices (optional)
Dill pickle slices (optional)

Instructions:
Combine 1 tablespoon brown sugar and pepper; rub over both sides of brisket.

Combine 1/4 cup brown sugar, onion, and next 9 ingredients (onion through salt) in an electric slow cooker. Add brisket; turn to coat.

Cover with lid; cook on high-heat setting for 1 hour. Reduce heat setting to low; cook for 7 hours.

Remove brisket; reserve sauce. Shred brisket with 2 forks. Return shredded brisket to cooker; stir into sauce. Spoon 1/2 cup brisket mixture onto bottom half of each roll; top with onion and pickles, if desired. Cover with tops of rolls.

We had this with cole slaw and dill pickles on the side.

Did I change anything? I only used 1/2 the onion.

What did the family think? After the children realized that they weren’t going to die from eating BBQ they ate it and I think it would be safe to say that they liked it. Hubby and I thought it was scrumptious.

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Make Ahead of Time, Sandwich