Broccoli Sausage Penne

Sometimes when it's hot outside it's hard to think about cooking dinner.  I just want to grab a salad or Popsicle or just something light.  Which means sometimes we don't eat very healthily in the summer.  I've been searching for light meals to cook for when we feel like this at my house and I came across some pasta recipes but nothing that my kids would eat. We decided to create our own using ingredients we love. 

Broccoli Sausage Penne

1 small package frozen broccoli florets
1 package  (1 lb) regular pork sausage (I used Jimmy Deans)
2 cups cooked penne noodles
2 TBSP butter
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Crushed red pepper
Salt & Pepper to taste

Brown sausage in a pan, drain and set aside.  Cook noodles according to directions on package, rinse in cold water, drain and set aside.  Cook broccoli in microwave following directions on the package. 

Mix broccoli, sausage, penne and butter in a pan on the stove.  Stirring occasionally, just long enough to melt butter over noodles and make everything nice and warm.  Serve with Parmesan cheese, crushed red pepper, and salt and pepper to taste.

We seriously have this meal about once a week.  It's becoming one of our favorites since it has a ton of flavor, is filling, and it's super fast and easy to make.

Toasted Ravioli

 We are huge, and I mean huge fans of ravioli at my house.  It's been my favorite food since I can remember.  I mean honestly, I was cleaning out some closets this week as an early kick off to my spring cleaning and ran across a file folder that my mom gave me of my childhood school papers she kept.  One of them was a questionnaire from second grade.  It asked questions like, what's your favorite color, favorite movie, name of your best friend, and of course the old classic, what's you favorite food.  "Ravioli" even then I knew a good thing when I tasted it.  So, this week as we are getting ready to ring in the new year I thought it would be fun to come up with a new appetizer to serve my family and friends.

I've seen a few recipes for deep fried ravioli floating around on the web and I've even tried a few but they were each missing a little something.  Then I thought of how amazingly well our deep fried zucchini turned out and thought that would be perfect for our ravioli.  You can eat these as an appetizer, or a meal, served with a salad.

Toasted Ravioli

1 bag frozen ravioli (any variety)
1 c flour
1 tsp garlic powder
salt & pepper
1 c Italian bread crumbs
1/4 c Parmesan cheese
2 eggs
1/4 c milk
Marinara Sauce

Bring a pot of water to a boil.  Place frozen ravioli in water, boil 1 minute.  Drain.  In 3 separate bowls mix ingredients as follows:

Bowl 1 = flour, garlic powder salt & pepper
Bowl 2 = Eggs, milk
Bowl 3 = Bread Crumbs, Parmesan cheese

Line a cookie sheet with wax paper.  Then roll ravioli in flour mixture, then egg mixture, then bread crumb mixture.  Place on wax paper.  Do this for each ravioli.  Then chill in refrigerator for 1/2 hour. Deep fry in hot oil until golden, drain.  Serve with marinara sauce.

Lasagna

Lasagna
1 lb ground beef
1/2 c chopped onion
1 large tomato, chopped
1 can  (10.75 oz) tomato soup
1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce or 3 of the small cans
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp garlic seasoning
1/2 tsp salt
8-10 lasagna noodles
2 eggs
1 large container cottage cheese (small curd)
1/4 c grated Parmesan cheese
3-4 c grated mozzarella cheese
2 TBSP parsley

In a medium skillet, cook onion and meet till brown.  Drain off grease.  Stir in tomatoes, tomato soup, tomato sauce, garlic seasoning, Italian seasoning, and salt.  Set aside.

Meanwhile boil noodles for 10-12 minutes or till tender but still firm.  Drain noodles, rinse with cold water.

In a medium bowl, combine cottage cheese, Parmesan cheese, 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese, eggs and parsley.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Prepare a 9x13 inch glass pan by spraying bottom with non-stick cooking spray.

Now you are going to put everything together in layers.  Start with a little bit of the meat sauce in the bottom of the pan, just barely enough to cover the bottom of the pan so the noodles don't stick.  Then you layer the noodles.  You will layer these lengthwise across the pan, so that the edges overlap by about 1/4 inch.  4-5 noodles across.  Then a layer of the cheese mixture.  Next a layer of sauce.  Then another layer of noodles, this time laying them width wise (you will have to cut them so they fit, I usually cut them about 2/3 of the way, then use the small piece leftover for the next section and so on till you cover your sauce and use the rest of the noodles).  Then a layer of cheese, then the rest of the sauce.  Top it all off with 2-3 cups of Mozzarella cheese.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, uncovered till cheese is melted and lasagna is heated all the way through.  Let stand for 10 minutes once you take it out of the oven and before serving.

We have been on a restricted diet at our house for the last 3 years, I have 2 kids who have had food allergies at different times.  My son had a gluten intolerance for 2 years that he was able to outgrow (though he still prefers to eat gluten free and won't eat things like cold cereal or bread)  and then my daughter developed a dairy allergy.  We have been working with an allergy specialist for the past 2 months and I am so happy to say that for once we can finally eat like we used to.  Last week while preparing a menu for our bi-weekly grocery trip, my daughter asked if we could have lasagna.  Something I haven't made in over 3 years.  I decided to give it a try, and voila.  It was as good as i remember. 

Crock Pot Mac N Cheese

Crock Pot Mac N Cheese
1 1/2 c milk (skim)
1 can evaporated milk
1/4 c butter
3 eggs
1/2 t salt
3 c cheese (shredded Italian blend)
1/2 lb. elbow macaroni - pre cook for 5 minutes until tender but not completely cooked
1/2 c Parmesan cheese

Spray inside of crock pot.  Combine milk, evaporated milk, eggs, butter, and salt.  Add shredded cheese (not Parmesan) and macaroni.  Sprinkle with pepper.  Stir gently with spatula to coat evenly.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese on top.  Cover and cook on high for 30 minutes.  Then reduce temperature and cook on low for 2 - 2 1/2 hours. Until custard is set in the center and the pasta is tender.  Saute bread crumbs in butter to top.

I love trying new things in the crock pot.  This was one of those meals that I was really excited about.  One thing I would do differently is use water instead of the milk and probably 4 cups of cheese.  The reason I say that is because when you cook milk like that it curdles a little bit.  The taste was still fantastic.  Let me know if any of you try it and how yours turns out.

Fettuccine Alfredo

Fettuccine Alfredo
1/2 c butter
2 TBSP cream cheese
1 pint heavy cream
1 tsp garlic powder
Salt & Pepper
2/3 c fresh grated Parmesan Cheese
1 lb. fettuccine noodles, prepared

In a medium saucepan, melt butter. When butter is melted, add cream cheese. When the cream cheese is softened, add heavy cream. Season with garlic powder, salt & pepper. Simmer for 20-30 minutes over low heat, stirring constantly, until thick. Remove from heat and stir in cheese. Serve over hot fettuccine noodles.

I got this recipe from Jared's cousin Nadalee. This was my first time making it and it was so yummy. I will definitely make it again.

Spaghetti

Spaghetti Sauce

1 lb hamburger
1/2 c diced onion
1/2 c diced tomato
1 can tomato soup
2 cans (8oz) tomato sauce
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp italian seasoning
1 TBSP sugar
salt & pepper

Brown hamburger, drain, set aside. In a saucepan put 2 TBSP of oil and sautee your onion and tomato until they cook down, then add tomato soup, tomato sauce and seasonings. If you want a thinner sauce add a little water.

I really dislike storebought sauces so I made up my own. I think the trick to a great sauce is the sugar. I know it sounds a little weird, but it really makes it taste great. Sometimes if I have company coming I add another can of tomato sauce and a little bit more seasoning.