Category Archives: Everybody Ate It

Orechiette with Sausage, Beans and Mascarpone

If your family INSISTS on having red sauce on their pasta (like mine does) then this may not be the dish for you. However, I will say that having served them a couple of pasta dishes lately without red sauce, they are s-l-o-w-l-y coming around to the idea that pasta does not have to be covered in marinara.

Ingredients:
1 pound orechiette pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 pound turkey sausage, casing removed
1 small onion, chopped
1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano leaves
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.

In a large, heavy skillet warm the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and onions. Using a wooden spoon break up the sausage into bite-sized pieces as it browns.

Continue cooking until the sausage is golden and the onions are tender. Add the beans and oregano cook for 2 more minutes. Add the cup of pasta cooking liquid and stir, scrapping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the mascarpone cheese and stir until it dissolved into a light sauce. Add the salt, pepper, and hot pasta. Stir until coated and serve.

Did I change anything? I didn’t use as much pasta as the recipe called for. I used probably closer to 3/4 lb.

What did the family think? After they got over the fact that it didn’t have red sauce in it, they liked it.

from Food Network

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Filed under Everybody Ate It, Italian

Crock Pot Enchiladas

A very basic recipe that with a little tweaking can turn into something yummy…

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pound ground beef, turkey or chicken
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
6 corn tortillas
1 can (19 oz) enchilada sauce
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Garnish: lettuce, tomatoes, olives, sour cream, fresh cilantro and crushed tortilla chips

Instructions:
Brown ground beef and drain. Add onion and garlic; cook over medium heat until tender and transparent. Add salt and pepper.

Place 2 tortillas in bottom of crockpot. Place a third of the following in layers over the tortillas: meat, corn, sauce, cheese, and beans. Repeat tortillas and other layers two times. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours.

Serve with sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, olives, cilantro and crushed tortilla chips.

Did I change anything? The only thing I changed is that the original recipe called for corn. Hubby doesn’t like corn in his enchiladas, so I left them out. I left out of the olives too. What I wish I would have done is add some black beans and then garnish it with some fresh cilantro and and crushed tortilla chips to add something to the texture of the dish.

What did the family think? I am giving you the new and improved recipe…what I wish I would have made. The version I made was SO basic. It was good, but not the best. Everyone ate it though. I think you will enjoy this version much more.

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Filed under Everybody Ate It, Make Ahead of Time, Mexican

Sunshine Eggs

I saw this recently in a magazine…Parents or Family Fun maybe…anyways it brought a smile to the boys’ faces this morning when they sat down for breakfast. 🙂

Ingredients:
Scrambled Eggs
Toast

Instructions:
Scramble the eggs and place in the center of a plate in a circle.

Toast some bread and use a knife or a pizza cutter to make triangles. Place the triangles around the eggs to look like the sun’s rays.

What did the family think? They thought it was great…smiles all around. 🙂

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Filed under Breakfast, Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

Albondigas (Mexican Meatball Soup)

It has meatballs in it so I knew the family would like it. 😉

Ingredients:
1 large onions, diced
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 (16-ounce) can tomatoes
1 (4-ounce) can diced green chilies
1 cup diced potatoes
3 (14-ounce) can chicken or beef broth
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 pound lean ground beef, turkey or chicken
1 cup crushed corn chips
1 large egg
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons water
Parmesan, garnish

Instructions:
In a Dutch oven saute onions in olive oil until soft but not browned.

Add tomatoes, chiles, potatoes, broth, coriander and cumin; bring to boil and reduce to simmer.

Mix ground beef with crushed chips, egg, garlic, cumin and water.

Shape into marble size balls and drop in broth mixture. Simmer on medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes or until meatballs are cooked throughout.

Ladle into bowls. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Serve.

Did I change anything? I have seen some other versions of this recipe that call for rice. I think rice might be a nice addition. A few chopped up carrots would make a good addition as well. I also think that some fresh cilantro sprinkled on top would give it some extra zip.

What did the family think? It was a nice warm meal on a chilly night and it had meatballs in it…all of my boys are suckers for anything that’s in the shape of a meatball.

from cooksrecipes.com

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Filed under Everybody Ate It, Mexican, Stew/Soup

Pumpkin Nutella Bread

Yes, it’s as good as it sounds AND it makes two loaves…one for now and one for later. 🙂

Thank you to Erin for pointing me in the direction of this recipe.

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 tablespoon cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons nutmeg
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
1/3 cup water
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon hazelnut extract
8 tablespoons Nutella (4 tablespoons per loaf)

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray 2 loaf pans with cooking spray. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, water, pumpkin, eggs, and extracts. Whisk until smooth and combined.

Slowly stir in the flour mixture. Mix until ingredients are combined.

Pour the batter into the loaf pans, making sure batter is evenly divided. Drop 4 heaping tablespoons of Nutella onto each loaf pan. Swirl the Nutella into the pumpkin batter with a knife. Place the loaf pans onto a baking sheet and place in the oven. Bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Place the loaf pans on a wire rack. Cool for 15 minutes in the pan and then carefully remove the loaves. Cool completely before slicing.

Did I change anything? I didn’t have any hazelnut extract so I left that out.

What did the family think? They haven’t had any yet because they are all at work and school. I did have some though and it is YUMMY!

from twopeasandtheirpod.com

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Filed under After School Snacks, Definitely Making it Again, Desserts, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Vegetarian

Chicken Parmesan

My family loves pasta and anything covered in pasta sauce, so I had a pretty good feeling they would like this.

Ingredients:
1/3 cup fine dry Italian-seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 large eggs, beaten
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 (9-ounce) package pasta
1 jar pasta sauce
4 fresh basil sprigs (optional)

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375°F.

Lightly grease baking dish that is big enough for all of the chicken breasts.

Combine bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese in shallow dish.

Dip chicken in eggs, then cover with bread crumb mixture.

Arrange chicken is prepared baking dish. Drizzle with oil.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until chicken is tender and no longer pink in center.

Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Bake for an additional 2 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Prepare pasta according to package directions; drain. Toss pasta with sauce; divide among plates.

Top with chicken. Garnish with basil.

What did the family think? Four thumbs up! 🙂

from cooksrecipes.com

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

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

I got this great recipe from my friend and former neighborhood pal, Valerie.

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 16 oz can of pumpkin
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups chocolate chips (or chunks – my kids love when I have those)

Instructions:
In small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, all spices, and salt; set aside.

In large mixer bowl, beat butter and sugar till creamy. Add pumpkin and eggs and vanilla.
Gradually add flour mixture.
Stir in chocolate chips.

Drop by spoonfuls on greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 for 15-18 minutes until edges are lightly browned.

Let sit 5 minutes – if you can!

Enjoy!

recipe from Valerie

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Filed under After School Snacks, Definitely Making it Again, Desserts, Everybody Ate It, Vegetarian

Zucchini Noodles

I have wanted to try this recipe since May when I read A Homemade Life. The only problem was I needed a mandoline to slice the noodles/zucchini the right way and I didn’t have one. My dear sweet generous MIL bought me one a week or so ago just for the heck of it.

Ingredients:
2 medium zucchini, trimmed
3 T olive oil
3/4 lb. dry spaghetti
Spaghetti sauce

Instructions:
Put a large pot of water over high heat and cook the pasta per the directions on the box. DO NOT DRAIN.

While the water heats, prepare the zucchini. Using a mandoline slicer fitted with the julienne blade, carefully slice the zucchini into long, skinny noodles, each about the width of a strand of spaghetti.

Warm the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the zucchini “noodles” and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender but not mushy.

When the pasta is done, use tongs to transfer the pasta to a large bowl. Add zucchini to bowl and toss to mix.

Serve with spaghetti sauce and parmesan.

We had this with some meatballs (which I had made ahead of time…I just put them in the pot of spaghetti sauce and while the spaghetti sauce warmed up on the stove, the meatballs warmed up, too) and some grapes.

Did I change anything? I made this pretty much the way the recipe calls for. You can, however, completely leave out the pasta, and just serve the zucchini noodles. My favorite Italian restaurant has this on their menu and I order it almost every time.

What did the family think? You won’t even know there is zucchini in there. It is SO good and such a neat way to get some extra veggies in there as well.

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Everybody Ate It, Italian, Lent, Six Ingredients or Less, Vegetarian

Taco Quiche

This takes a little while to bake, so make sure you have enough time. We had dinner a little late last night because I started making this before I realized how long it had to cook.

Ingredients:
3 large soft flour tortillas
1 lb ground beef or 1 lb ground turkey
1 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 can chopped green chilies
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon cumin
2 cups shredded monterey jack cheese or 2 cups monterey jack pepper cheese
8 eggs, beaten
2 1/2 cups sour cream
Garnish: chopped tomatoes, shredded lettuce, sliced black olive, salsa

Instructions:
Line a greased 13x9x2 baking dish with the tortillas, tearing to fit if necessary.

Cook the meat and onion in a skillet. Drain off excess fat.

Add garlic, chilies, and seasonings.

Spoon the mixture onto the tortillas. Sprinkle with the cheese.

Beat eggs well and then blend in the sour cream. Pour this mixture on top of the meat and cheese.

Bake in a preheated oven set at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes.

Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Garnish and enjoy.

Did I change anything? I didn’t, but if I was doing to make this again I think I would make it with chorizo instead of hamburger, but maybe not as much chorizo so it’s not too spicy.

What did the family think? Everyone ate it! I was kind of surprised, but everyone liked it. Sean and I spiced ours up a bit with some salsa and the boys ate theirs plain.

from food.com

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

Zucchini Bread

Our oldest has been asking me for quite some time to make some zucchini bread, so I figured I had put it off long enough.

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil OR 1 cup applesauce (for lower fat content)
2 1/4 cups white sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup chopped walnuts

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans.

Mix flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.

Beat eggs, oil/applesauce, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well.

Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool.

Did I change anything? I didn’t add the nuts because I know our family likes it better without. Also, I used the applesauce instead of the oil, but I think the texture of the bread is better when you use the oil.

What did the family think? They love zucchini bread and it’s great for breakfast, snacks and dessert. Also, since this makes two loaves…this bread freezes really well.

from allrecipes.com

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Filed under After School Snacks, Bread, Breakfast, Definitely Making it Again, Desserts, Everybody Ate It, Vegetarian