Chili & Cheese Macaroni Comfort food is always welcome on the table. In our house, we love macaroni and cheese along with the different variations. To prove it, I shared 12 mac & cheese recipes along with a version using buttermilk not too long ago. So here's another version to add to our growing list of mac & cheese variations. This time, I incorporated some favorite hot dog toppings, chili and cheese. This Chili & Cheese Macaroni brings together all the spice of chili and the creamy goodness of melted cheese. Chili & Cheese Macaroni recipe slightly adapted from Cook's Illustrated table salt 1/2 pound elbow macaroni (about 2 cups uncooked pasta) 3 tablespoons vegetable oil 1 1/2 pounds ground beef (85% lean) 2 medium onions, chopped 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped 6 garlic cloves, minced 1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder 1 tablespoon ground cumin 1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes 1 tablespoon light brown sugar 12 oz Colby Jack cheese, shredded (about 2 1/2 cups)
Pasta Milano If there's a dish that recently surprised me, it's this one! For my recent Pasta Party dinner, I wanted to include a pasta dish that had a cream sauce other than alfredo. When looking through some restaurant menus for inspiration, I remembered trying Macaroni Grill's Pasta Milano dish awhile ago. Pasta Milanoinspired by Macaroni Grill, adapted from Recipezaar 3 slices bacon, diced2 chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces 4 cloves roasted garlic, mashed 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped1 cup white mushrooms, sliced 1 cup chicken broth, divided 1 cup heavy cream (or half & half for a lower fat version) salt and pepper to taste 8 ounces dry farfalle (bowtie) pastawater for boiling pasta1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil In a large skillet over high heat, brown the diced bacon. Add the roasted garlic, sundried tomatoes and chicken broth to the hot skillet. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 350 degrees and bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil.
Creamy Caprese Pasta Sigh. It’s Monday. I know. You probably don’t have a smile on your face. Maybe you woke up 35 minutes late and couldn’t wash your hair. Dumped hot coffee on your new white shirt? That only means one thing. Mondays are for grown ups. But I have some good news! Monday just got a whole lot more tolerable. Shucks… I sort of like Monday now. So – the pasta! Am I gonna give it up or what? Creamy Caprese Pasta serves 4-6 1 pound whole wheat pasta (noodles such as penne work best) 1 cup of your favorite pasta/tomato sauce 1/3 cup heavy cream or half and half 1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese + more for garnish 4 ounces fresh mozzarella, cut into cubes 1 pint of grape tomatoes (I cut some in half and left some whole) 1 bunch of fresh basil leaves Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. While pasta is cooking, heat tomato sauce over low heat in a large saucepan. Top with additional fresh basil and grated cheese. Take that Monday.
Lasagna Stuffed Shells Recipe | Poormet Whenever I go to an Italian restaurant I order one of two things, lasagna or some sort of alfredo. It is something I could eat everyday but am too lazy to make it at home… ever… it just takes too damn long. So, in an attempt to decrease the time it takes to make lasagna (and because I stumbled across a post somewhere) I was going to do some sort of lasagna spin-off. Well, I couldn’t find what I was looking for in the store, and these giant shells were on sale so I decided to stuff them with everything that is in lasagna. This did not save me anytime at all. I can’t really call a post mine without there being some disgusting looking mixture of ingredients. The meat mix was half ground beef half sweet sausage. Next up, I got the sauce rolling and started cooking the shells according to their box. The sauce was stole from “The Worlds Best Lasagna” on allrecipes: onions, garlic, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and sugar. Bored of regular lasagna? Ingredients 1/2 pound Ground Beef
Baked Penne with Sausage & Creamy Ricotta Now that the crisp and cool temps are here, the idea of comfort foods are what I crave. A popular comfort food to many is pasta and rightfully so. Pasta is one of those dishes that seems to hit the spot, leaving you with a satisfying carb coma. This Baked Penne with Sausage & Creamy Ricotta did exactly that. It was deliciously filling with pockets of creamy ricotta cheese, bites of Italian sausage, all blended with penne in a homemade tomato sauce. The best part of the dish is the ricotta and sausage. Baked Penne with Sausage & Creamy Ricotta recipe adapted from Food & Wine Preheat the oven to 400°. In a large saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Meanwhile, cook the penne in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Reserve 1 1/2 cups of the meat sauce. Spoon the pasta into a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Bake the pasta in the preheated oven for about 45 minutes, or until bubbling and golden on top.
Broccoli Cheddar Soup Comfort in a bowl. That is what this soup should be called. As Sugarcrafter, where I got the recipe, stated, I love the broccoli cheedar soup at Panera Bread. Not surprisingly, this soup was even better! Since I was craving this soup, I made it as soon as I saw it in a bread bowl. There was one missing step in the recipe on her site (adding in the garlic), so I added it in the recipe below. *Update* I made a bread bowl today for the leftovers of this delicious soup. Broccoli Cheddar Soupadapted from Sugarcrafter 1/4 cup butter 1/2 chopped onion 1 clove garlic 1/4 cup flour 1 cup half-and-half 1 cup milk 2 cups chicken stock (I used bouillon cubes + boiling water) 1/2 lb fresh broccoli, chopped 1 cup carrot, shredded and chopped 1/4 tsp nutmeg 1/4 tsp cardamom 8 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese 4 ounces grated Colby jack cheese (I used Velveeta) Salt and pepper to taste Hot Sauce (optional) Sauté the onion (and garlic) in the butter over medium heat.
Stuffed Shells with Sausage and Spinach Recipe After taking the photo for our sausage stuffed shells recipe, I scrambled into the kitchen to grab plates, knifes, forks and napkins — you know, like any normal person would do before sitting down to have a nice meal with their husband. Just as I was leaving the kitchen, I realized something. I left the shells with Adam. How he did it, I’m not sure, but in the time it took me to go to the kitchen, grab our supplies and get back to him, he had finished at least half of the shells. So, there you go. How to make Our Sausage Stuffed Shells Recipe with Spinach Our stuffed shells recipe is pretty simple. Now, on to the filling. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add a tablespoon of minced garlic and cook for about 30 seconds. Pour in a can of diced tomatoes, juice and all. Now defrost some frozen spinach in the microwave (this takes 1-2 minutes), once defrosted, squeeze the spinach over a bowl. Add the spinach to the pan and stir. Sausage Stuffed Shells Recipe with Spinach Yield: 4 Directions
Pizza Stuffed Pretzels As a stay at home mom, I tend to eat whatever I can find for lunch. The only exception is when I have friends over for lunch dates. Normally, I'll have lunch already prepared before my friends arrived but that wasn't the case the other day. My friend Suzanne came over recently and I had nothing really ready. After a peek in my fridge and pantry, I whipped up these Pizza Stuffed Pretzels while Suzanne and I chatted away in the kitchen. They came out great and perfect for lunch!... I've always been a fan of stuffed pretzels - both sweet and savory. Pizza Stuffed Pretzels recipe adapted from Rachel Ray Pizza Dough: 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1 package quick-rising yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons) 3/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon sugar 1/2-2/3 cup hot water (120-130°F) 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil Combine flour, yeast, salt and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer to mix fitted with a dough hook. Combine hot water and oil in a measuring cup. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl.
Linguine with Garlicky Bread Crumbs With My Husband away on a business trip for a few days this week, I kept the cooking simple. Often letting the boys choose their dinner, thankfully, a vegetable was always chosen as part of the meal since they both have been learning about eating healthy foods. I don't always indulge my little men, but with Daddy away I thought I'd be extra nice to them - and, it doesn't hurt that their desires are simpler than what I normally make. I must admit that I am a pasta lover. I have managed to acquire a taste for whole wheat pastas, even though my family has not fully taken to them. So, what did I make you might be asking? My Oldest didn't care for it, but the garlic flavor was perhaps a bit much for his taste. Now, if you are in the mood for some pasta creations, you may want to check out these ideas: Good Things Catered made a Spicy Garlic Herbed Pasta that is a simple side dish for any night of the week.
Baked Cheesy Chicken Bake Today’s recipe is a cheesy baked pasta that I found over at Our Best Bites . Sara based the recipe on a Martha Stewart recipe. This yummy dish consists of a cheesy pasta blended with chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, and mushrooms. Another great thing about this recipe is it makes two – 2 quart dishes. When I made this recipe I also decided to try it with some pasta samples that I had received from Ronzoni . Finally, the winner of the “Nourish Your Inner Goddess” giveaway from Yoplait and MyBlogSpark is: Kate who said: I always love any kind of berry yogurt. Congrats Kate! Baked Cheesy Chicken Penne Freezer instructions: To freeze, prepare through step 4 and then let pasta cool. Be Sociable, Share!
Three Cheese Garlic Bread What's a pasta meal without some good garlic bread to sop up extra pasta sauce? For the recent pasta party dinner I hosted, I knew garlic bread would make it to the table. However, rather than the usual garlic butter slathered bread most are familiar with, I added a trio of cheeses on top for good measure and good eats! My Three Cheese Garlic Bread didn't last long and it's no surprise why... I'm sure many people have their own special way of making garlic bread. Three Cheese Garlic Bread original Joelen recipe 1 large French bread or Pane Italiano bread loaf, halved crosswise1 stick unsalted butter1/2 teaspoon garlic powder1-2 roasted garlic cloves, smashedpinch of salt1 tablespoon fresh parsley leaves, finely minced1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese1/2 cup shredded asiago cheese1/2 cup shredded provolone cheese Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a bowl, combine the butter, garlic powder, roasted garlic, salt and parsley to create a compound butter.
Spinach Pesto Grilled Cheese Sandwich Earlier on in the week, when I made the spinach, or spanakopita pesto pasta I made sure to keep some of the pesto left over for something new. I had come across the idea of using a pesto in a grilled cheese sandwich and it was the perfect time to try one. I have been experimenting with grilled cheese sandwiches for a while now. It all started when I first tried adding some jam to one then I moved on to chutneys and now it was time to try a pesto grilled cheese sandwich. Get ALL 8 Closet Cooking eCookbooks in a bundle for 40% off! Spinach Pesto Grilled Cheese Sandwich Prep Time: 5 minutes Cook Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 15 minutes Servings: 1 A tasty spinach pesto smothered in ooey gooey melted cheese and wrapped in buttery golden brown grilled bread. ingredients 1 tablespoon butter2 slices bread1/2 cup graviera or gruyere, grated1-3 tablespoons spinach (aka spanakopita) pesto directions
mushroom marsala pasta with artichokes People, I’m about at the end of my ordered-in dinner rope. It’s not that — as the front page of this site might suggest — I haven’t cooked anything since the baby arrived, it’s just that I’ve largely cooked things that could be assembled during naptimes, and most of Alex and my conversations about meals go, “What should we do for dinner?” “I made mushroom toasts and a bowl of butterscotch sauce today!” “Right, so what should we order?” And so on with the pho, cracker-thin pizza and hummusiot dinner deliveries. For three months. Now, I don’t expect any violins, especially from folks without the East Village’s globe of food delivery options at their fingertips, but I am sure you all understand what it means to desperately crave a homecooked meal. One year ago: Seven-Layer Cookies and Grasshopper BrowniesTwo years ago: Peanut Butter Cookies and Austrian Raspberry ShortbreadThree years ago: Short Ribs Bourguignon and Robert Linxe’s Ganache Tart So what’s the story with this? Serves 4 to 6