Heavenly Pasta

During a weekend of a nice, slow, change of pace, we actually turned on the TV and watched some Food Network.  We watched a new show with a house wife that cooks at her ranch somewhere out in the middle of gorgeousness.  

This is a rendition of what she called her favorite pasta dish ever.  

My daughter insisted that we had to make it. 

So....we did that same night.  

We agree that it is the most delicious pasta dish ever.  

There is nothing healthy about it....just plain, old, full calorie goodness! 

Ingredients: Leeks, Bacon, Pasta, White Wine, Butter, Heavy Cream, Parmesan Cheese, S&P

• Slice, soak, and clean leeks.  
• Set aside to dry.
• Chop and fry 1 lb. of uncured bacon.
• Remove from pan and set aside.
• Add 2 Tbls. of butter to the pan.
• Add in all leeks and saute until cooked through and tender.
• De-glaze the pan with about 1 C white wine (I used Chardonnay)
• Simmer and reduce down.
• Add back in bacon.
• Add in 1 C heavy cream, simmer 
• Season to taste with S&P (as needed)
• Add in cooked pasta.
• Coat all pasta with sauce.
• Add in Parmesan Cheese.

Prepare for a bowl full of heaven! 

Enjoy! 

Lite Cesar Pasta Salad

I love pasta salad in the summer.  It is a complete meal, in a pinch. 

These bow-tie, or farfalle, pasta are my new favorite.

This is so easy and versatile.  You could use any combination of veggies.

Farfalle

Green Onion

Cucumber

Cherry Tomatoes

Carrots

Lite Cesar Dressing (Kraft is my favorite)

Parmesan Cheese

Enjoy!! 

Carnitas Ole!

Steamed corn tortillas, marinated pork tenderloin and lots-o-lime! 

Delicioso!

Marinade

The Juice of 2 Limes

2 Tbls Agave Syrup

2 Garlic Cloves

 Handful of Fresh Cilantro

 A couple Green Onions

1 Tbls each of Cumin and Chili Powder

S&P

Sear on all sides in a frying pan. 

Finish cooking through in oven for about 20 min @ 350 degrees.

-Chop pork

-Steam corn tortillas

-Pile high with toppings 

(I used cheese, sour cream, lettuce, green onion, cilantro)

-Squeeze fresh lime juice

Enjoy!

Spaghetti a la Veg

Awkward vantage point.....but delicious pasta! 

As part of my week long stint as a vegetarian, I used as many veggies as possible to keep it interesting.  This dish was a simple, quick, light week night meal.  

Saute in olive oil:

Onion, garlic, sweet yellow, orange and red peppers, grape tomatoes, 

baby bella mushrooms, parsley, basil, S&P

De-glaze with vegetable broth.

Add in cooked pasta to simmer and thicken sauce.

Top with Parmesan Cheese! 

Enjoy! 

CCTP

In an attempt to be a vegetarian for the week, I knew that I would need to add lots of cheese to my diet.  Cottage cheese was one of my choices.  This was a part of my packed lunch today.  

Cottage Cheese - Grape Tomatoes - Fresh Parsley 

(with a little S&P)

I want this to be in my lunch everyday! 

It is my new favorite snack! 

In fact, as I sit here about to embark on another school project that is due this week.....I think I will make myself up a big ol' bowl of CCTP!  

Smoked Blue Cheese and Honey Flatbread

I love when I make happy mistakes!

I grabbed a container of smoked blue cheese rather than the regular crumble blue cheese that I normally buy.  When I first opened the container I thought that it had gone bad because the edges of some of the pieces were a little brown.  When I looked for the expiration date I realized that it was smoked....hence the brown edges.  I was a little nervous about it but figured just like any smoked meat that I had, smoked blue cheese had to be good.  Well....turns out it is fantastic.  

I have put this on my scrambled eggs in the morning and decided to try it out on some flat bread, as well.  

This was easy and delicious!

Pizza Crust

Olive Oil

S&P

Smoked Blue Cheese

Parmesan Cheese

Honey

Bake and drizzle with more honey! 

Enjoy!!!

Cucumbers....

Cucumbers have become a staple in my house, as of late. 

My daughter requests cucumbers as a bedtime snack every night.  

I have so many cucumbers in my fridge at any given time now that I seem to put them in and on most everything that I eat cold.  

This was breakfast one day! 

A nice, light, refreshing breakfast! 

Triscuit, Cucumber and Fresh Mozzarella! 

Marinated Artichoke Salsa

Marinated artichoke hearts are one of my new favorite ingredients. 

I needed an appetizer to serve while cooking the rest of dinner and came up with this tasty treat.  

Marinated Artichoke Hearts

Grape Tomatoes

Green Olives

Shallot

Mozzarella Cheese

A dash of S&P

A splash of Red Wine Vinegar

A drizzle of EVOO

Viola!

Rotisserie Chicken Mexican Pizza

With very little time in my schedule, the key to my week night dinners is finding quick proteins to work with.  I picked up a rotisserie chicken at the grocery store the other day, knowing that I could make some quick meals with the meat.

Saute onion, shallot, garlic, red pepper and mushrooms. 

Season with S&P, cumin, oregano, chili powder, cayenne pepper.

Add chopped rotisserie meat.

Saute more.

Layer:

Crispy baked corn shell

Fat free re-fried beans

Cheese

Chicken-N-Veggie Mixture

Crispy baked corn shell

Fat free re-fried beans

Taco sauce

Lots of cheese

Green Onions

Bake until cheese is melted!

Top with chopped veggies and sour cream.

Enjoy!!!

Tostadas con Venison

A friend of mine gave me some venison to experiment with.  

It is super lean and has a very gamy flavor to it, if it isn't prepared right.  

I was instructed to drain off as much of the fat as possible to avoid the gamy flavor.  

It was absolutely delicious!

  I could have served this as ground beef to anyone and 

they would have never been able to tell the difference.  

It is a super healthy, lean alternative to beef....if you can get your hands on it, of course! 

I don't think you can readily find it in many retail markets.   

I will be trying venison spaghetti sauce tomorrow night! 

A Thai Lunch

After working in a little city with no good restaurants for a couple of months, it is nice to have some good options again.  Today I went to Jack & Jin's Thai restaurant.  

I had Hot and Sour Soup, a Spring Roll and Chicken Satay w/ Cucumber Salad. 

All for $9 including tip! 

Can't beat it! 

The Incredible Edible Egg Experiment - Pho

With far too much school work and starting a new job, I have had very little time to cook lately. In an effort to wake up enough to write a paper at 11pm on a Tuesday night, I opted for a big, hot bowl full of Pho. Without any other protein options, I decided to chop up a couple hard boiled eggs for my soup. It was a great choice! It was the perfect addition to the rest of the un-authentic ingredients that I threw in this bowl. It was egg-stra yummy!

Now back to writing.....

Marinara Sauce

I may never make marinara again. This is the best sauce EVER! I used it on pizza and pasta. It is fabulous!

Try it!

Gourmet Breakfast Express

I have to eat breakfast. No question about it. Finding the time seems to be the main issue. I've been experimenting with egg sandwiches lately and really got it this morning.

This was quick, light and delicious!

• 1 Whole Wheat Sandwich Thin Bun
• 1 Slice Low Fat Provolone Cheese
• 1 Egg + 1 Egg White mixed with real bacon bits, fresh basil and S&P in a round microwave dish sprayed with cooking spray

Microwave 45 seconds, toast bread, add cheese and breakfast is served!

Italian Roasted Chicken and Veggie Pasta

My goal this week was to make one huge portion of something to last me through the week.  

I achieved my goal with this dish.  

Add to a baking dish:

Cherry Tomatoes

Baby Bella Mushrooms

Sweet Peppers

Onion

Garlic

Fresh Basil

Olive Oil

S & P

Lay split chicken breasts on top of the veggies and season with S & P, garlic powder and oregano.

Cover and bake @ 400 for 1 hour

Remove chicken, set side and rough chop the cooked vegetables.

Put veggies and juice into a sauce pan to simmer down a little bit.

Add cooked spaghetti to the pan and simmer a couple more minutes to let the pasta absorb some of the flavor of the chicken and vegetable broth.  

Serve pasta and vegetables topped with fresh shredded Parmesan Cheese 

and a chicken breast.  

Cap City Diner in Columbus, OH

In an effort to break up a long drive from Hocking Hills to home, I was fortunate enough to talk a friend into meeting me for dinner! The menu was a little overwhelming and made it hard to make a decision, but we chose well!!

The rolls are served swimming in a bath of melted butter. I am told at breakfast they add cinnamon and sugar. Yum!

Maytag Blue Cheese Chips for an appetizer packed more calories than I care to know. They were amazing, to say the least!

Blackened Tilapia Po Boy with a side of blue cheese cole slaw was my choice. The light grilled fish was a good balance to the heavy appetizer! It was delicious!

I can't wait to go back to try more of their menu.

I am told that the Eggs Benedict on their breakfast menu is to die for! I will be the judge of that!!!

Stuffed Pork Chops

Slit a pocket through the middle of a thick cut chop, stuff it, sear it, bake it! Yum!

The stuffing could be just about anything you could dream of. This was portobellos, onion, garlic, S&P, Parmesan cheese and blue cheese mixed with a little olive oil and a touch of truffle oil.

Seared in a little olive oil, and then baked at 450 for about 10 minutes. Done!

I threw some grape tomatoes in the pan before I put it in the oven. I figured it would be a healthy meal if I added a veggie (or fruit in this instance, I guess)!

Enjoy!!

Sushi w/ Sriracha Soy Sauce

During a bedtime sushi snack session, I had an idea. Instead of mixing wasabi in my soy, I mixed in Sriracha.

Don't mean to toot my own horn, but I have to this time.

That was a fantastic idea!!!

Try it, you'll like it!!

flipflop Pinot Noir

In my quest to find decent, affordable wine, I think I have a winner!

I thoroughly enjoyed this! I will buy it again!

Seared Ribeye w/ Blue Cheese Noodles

Beef. Need Beef.

Got it...and kept it simple!

Ribeye seasoned with S&P, garlic powder and seared to a medium rare in a scorching hot pan.

Spaghetti sautéed in the pan drippings, deglazed with pasta water and tossed with blue cheese, Parmesan cheese and S&P.

Something really amazing happens when the beef juices mix with the pasta!

Beef craving satisfied!