Easy Sausage and Pasta Dinner

This recipe is based on this recipe for Eating Well. However, I used pork sausage, added spinach, changed a couple amounts/times, and changed the mixing order - if you make it precisely as Eating Well instructs, you will have a mass of sticky cheese instead an evenly mixed result. My version is below.

Sausage & Arugula/Spinach Pasta

Ingredients

• 12 ounces whole-wheat short pasta (about 7/8 of a package)
• 2 links of hot Italian pork sausage, removed from casings
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 bag of arugula and baby spinach salad mix
• 2 cups halved cherry tomatoes
• 1/2 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese, plus more to taste (could use Pecorino Romano)
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Preparation

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta until just tender, according to package directions (6-8 minutes for the whole wheat elbow macaroni I used). 
2. Meanwhile, cook sausage in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, breaking it up into small pieces with a wooden spoon, until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, arugula and spinach, and tomatoes. Cook, stirring often, until the greens wilt and the tomatoes begin to break down, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat; cover and keep warm.
3. Combine pepper and salt in a large bowl. Measure out 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid; drain the pasta. Whisk the cooking liquid and oil together; add the pasta and toss to combine. Next, add the 1/2 cup cheese. Serve the pasta topped with the sausage mixture and an extra sprinkle of cheese, if desired.

How to Make a Reuben Sandwich

A yummy Reuben sandwich!

Ingredients:

- Rye bread (I used seedless)

- Butter

- Corned beef

- Sauerkraut

- Thousand Island dressing (I used Kraft)

- Swiss Cheese

Steps:

1) Prepare Sauerkraut - Remove from bag and place into a strainer over a bowl. Press kraut to remove excess liquid. Continue to let excess liquid drain into bowl as you prepare the rest of the meal.

2) Start toasting - Get a pan. Melt butter into pan over medium-low heat. Place empty sandwiches (just bread) into pan to toast one side of sandwich.

3) Melt butter in microwave until liquid. Pour over top side of sandwich bread and flip to toast the newly buttered side.

4) Warm it up - Place a slice of cheese onto the bread to warm it in the pan. Meanwhile, heat up the corned beef. You can do this in a separate pan, or heat it on a plate in the microwave.

5) Combine it - From the bottom, layer the meat, then the dressing, then the kraut, then the cheese. Enjoy!

Under the bread, it looks like this.

Pasta Dinner

@AnimatorsWife made this for craft night so I got the recipe from her!
The garlic bread is from Pepperidge Farm.

The recipe appears here on PepperPlate.com. It is also copied and pasted below:

Tomato Cream Pasta

INGREDIENTS

1	lb penne pasta
2	tablespoons olive oil
1	onion, diced
1	clove garlic, minced
1	(14.5 ounce) can crushed tomatoes, undrained
1	tablespoon dried basil leaves
3/4	teaspoon white sugar
1/4	teaspoon dried oregano
1/4	teaspoon salt
1/8	teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2	cup heavy cream
1	tablespoon butter

INSTRUCTIONS

1.	Cook pasta according to package instructions.
2.	In a saucepan, saute onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat. Make sure it doesn't burn. Add tomatoes, basil, sugar, oregano, salt and pepper. Bring to boil and continue to boil 5 minutes or until most of the liquid evaporates.
3.	Remove from heat; stir in whipping cream and butter. Reduce heat and simmer 5 more minutes. Toss with pasta. Tip from @AnimatorsWife: Make sure you use crushed tomatoes, not diced.

Girls' night BBQ

BBQ menu:
Sliders with wheat buns (at least they cook faster).
Tater-tots
Potato salad
Macaroni salad
Coleslaw

Desert menu:
Store-bought sampler

Basmati Rice

There is a ton of valuable rice cooking information here from Maureen.

My Basmati Rice:

Place 3 1/2 cups water in a saucepan. Add one tablespoon butter and two cups Basmati rice.

Heat until the water is boiling. Stir once. Then lower the heat to simmer and cover the pot.

Cook for 23 minutes with the lid slightly ajar.

Make sure the water is gone.

Serves four people, although the dog loves plain cooked rice too.

Add a sprinkle of Persian sumac spice if desired.



 

Maureen's Full Rice Tutorial:

"ALMOST" EVERYTHING YOU HAVE EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT RICE

Add a tablespoon of oil to the water when cooking rice so the grains stay separate and don't stick together.

To keep rice (especially brown rice) fresh longer, store it in the refrigerator. Brown rice should be stored at 55 degrees F. or lower.

Never stir rice while it cooks because it will crush the rice grains, releasing starch, and make the rice gummy.

Most foods take 3-4 hours to digest, white rice has such a low fiber content it only takes 1 hour to digest.

Microwavable rice costs almost $6.00 per pound. Bulk rice costs less than $0.50 per pound.

• 1 cup dry rice = approx. 7 oz. (wt.)
• 1 lb. dry rice = approx. 2 1/4 c. (vol.)
• 1 cup cooked rice = approx. 8 oz. (wt.)
• 1 lb. cooked rice = approx. 1 pt. (2 cups)

• 1 lb. dry rice yields about 6-7 cups cooked rice

How to Prepare Rice
American-grown rice is a clean product that does not need washing or rinsing before or after cooking. Most U.S. rice is enriched with iron, niacin, thiamin, and folic acid. Rinsing rice, or cooking rice in excess water and draining, results in loss of enrichment and other water-soluble vitamins and minerals.

For best results, always follow package directions. When directions are not available, use this easy chart:

Proportion & Yield

Rice
Parts liquid to 1 part rice (by volume)
Cooking time (minutes)

U.S. arborio
4½
20 - 30

U.S. basmati
1¾
20 - 25

U.S. jasmine
1¾
20 - 25

Brown, long grain
2¼
40 - 45

Parboiled
2
25 - 30

White, long grain
1¾
18 - 20

White, medium grain
1½
20 - 30

White, short grain
1½
20 - 30

Top of the Range: Combine 1 cup rice, liquid (see chart), 1 teaspoon salt (optional), and 1tablespoon. butter or margarine (optional) in 2- to 3-quart saucepan. Heat to boiling; stir once or twice. Reduce heat; cover and simmer. Cook according to time specified on chart. If rice is not quite tender or liquid is not absorbed, replace lid and cook 2 to 4 minutes longer. Fluff with fork.

Other Cooking Methods
In addition to cooking rice on top of the range, you can prepare it in a conventional oven, microwave oven, or rice cooker.

Conventional Oven: Cooking rice in the oven is an efficient use of energy when other foods are baking. Boiling liquid must be used to start the cooking process.

Combine 1 cup rice, liquid (see chart), 1 teaspoon salt (optional), and 1 tablespoon butter or margarine (optional) in a baking dish or pan; stir. Cover tightly and bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes (30 to 40 minutes for parboiled; 1 hour for whole grain rice). Fluff with fork.

Dog waiting for rice to cook.

Easy Roast Chicken

This recipe is from @AnimatorsWife, who said "As for the chicken, I tried a trick I learned in that knife skills class. I cooked it at 450 degrees for the first 20 minutes, then turned it down to 375 for the rest of the cooking time. That's supposed to make the skin crispy (seems to have worked!)."

 This Scotch Eggs recipe was prepared by The Animator's Wife from one on Pepperplate.

Link to Recipe on Pepperplate

Copied recipe:

Scotch Eggs

INGREDIENTS

1	pound pork sausage meat
2	teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
4	hard-cooked eggs, peeled
1	tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/8	teaspoon salt
1/8	teaspoon ground black pepper
1	egg, beaten
2/3	cup dry bread crumbs
1	quart oil for deep frying

INSTRUCTIONS

1.	Heat the oil in a large saucepan or deep fryer to 365 degrees F (180 degrees C), or until a cube of bread dropped into the oil turns brown in 1 minute. Lower the eggs carefully into the hot oil. Fry for 5 minutes, or until deep golden brown.
2.	Divide the sausage into four equal parts. Mold each part around one of the hard-cooked eggs, rolling between your hands to shape. Place the beaten egg and bread crumbs into separate dishes. Dip the balls into the egg, then roll in the bread crumbs until coated. Shake off any excess.
3.	In a medium bowl, mix together the pork sausage and Worcestershire sauce. Combine the flour, salt and pepper; mix into the sausage.

  

We also had a Fruit Salad prepared by myself (see photo)

Ingredients:

• 1 container strawberries
• 1 bunch red grapes cut in half
• 1 bunch green grapes cut in half
• 1 container raspberries

Steps:

• Mix, adding lightest ingredients (in this case raspberries) last. Serves 5-6 people.

Sarah of Speak Boylese made wonderful Salted Caramel Cookies. The recipe appears on her blog here.

Make-Your-Own-Pizza Party

For Party
for six ladies,
Ingredients:
8" pizza crusts, one per person
1 jar pizza sauce
4 cups mozzarella cheese
BYO toppings (peppers, feta, mushrooms, olives, spinach, artichoke, brie, pear...)
Steps:

1. Place on pizza stone in preheated 475 F oven for about 8 minutes

For Pear and Brie Pizza

This is the pizza at the bottom of Photo 3 and it is Sarah H's recipe based on a pizza she had at a pub in Ottawa.
Steps:

1. Brush crust with olive oil
2. Add a light sprinkling of red pepper flakes
3. Top with slices of brie cheese
4. Top with slices of pear
5. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese
6. Bake in preheated 475 F oven for 8 minutes

After the pizzas, Lindy treated us to an edible arrangement that was delicious!

Meat House Steak Tips

Bought steak tips from The Meat House

To cook, used Foreman grill

Persian Meal at Soheila's

Mushroom soup

Roasted veggies; Dillweed rice

Chicken and rice dish; Lamb shank

Layered gelatin desert

Additional store-bought Persian desert pastries

Meatloaf Made by Stacy

Meatloaf Recipe from PepperPlate.com

Yeilds one meatloaf; can double the recipe for two

INGREDIENTS

1	tablespoon butter
3	celery ribs, finely chopped
1/2	large onion, finely chopped
2	pounds lean ground beef
2	tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, divided
1/2	cup breadcrumbs
1/3	cup ketchup
1	tsp Lawry's seasoning salt
1	tsp ground black pepper
1	tsp oregano
1	tsp garlic powder
2	large eggs, lightly beaten
1	(8-ounce) can tomato sauce
3	tablespoons tomato paste
1	tablespoon ketchup
	Garnish: chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

INSTRUCTIONS

1.	Melt butter in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat; add celery and onion, and sauté 7 minutes or just until tender.
2.	Stir together celery mixture, ground beef, 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, breadcrumbs, and next 6 ingredients in a large bowl. Shape into a 10- x 5-inch loaf; place on a lightly greased broiler rack. Place rack in an aluminum foil-lined broiler pan.
3.	Bake at 350° for 45 minutes. Stir together remaining 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, tomato sauce, tomato paste, and 1 tablespoon ketchup until blended; pour evenly over meatloaf, and bake 10 to 15 more minutes or until no longer pink in center. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Ben's Grandma's Sloppy Joes

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lbs Hamburger
• 1 Large Onion, chopped
• 1 Green Bell Pepper, chopped
• 3/4 cup Ketchup
• 2 Tbs Sugar
• 2 Tbs Yellow Mustard
• 1 Tbs Vinegar

Steps (serves 6)

Brown meet over stove.

Add onion and green pepper.

Mix rest of ingredients.

Add to meat and simmer 30 mins.

Serve with buns.

My Notes: Had both Xmas week 2010 and 2011

Thanksgiving Food at my Parents'

Banana Shake

Banana Shake

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup ice cubes
• 1/3 cup 1% milk
• 1/3 cup non-fat plain Greek yogurt (about 2 large spoonfuls)
• 1/8 cup water
• 1 large extra ripe banana (about 8 inches)
• 1 Tbsp Smuckers sugar-free marmalade

Steps
Put all ingredients in the order listed above into a blender. Mix on "Shake" setting until ice cubes are fully blended. Serves 1

Ben's Turkey Pot Pie

This recipe makes two pies:

Bake three turkey legs in Dutch oven with baby carrots, one Yukon gold potato, one red potato, two chopped leeks, 1/4 of a chopped red onion, 1/2 quart chicken stock, and sprigs of fresh thyme and rosemary at 350 degrees F for 90 minutes. Discard thyme and rosemary.

To make gravy, broil the drippings from the turkey plus one quart of chicken stock in the Dutch oven with the lid removed. Add 1/2 cup ofwheat flour to thicken it while stirring occasionally.

Separate the turkey from the bone. Put pulled turkey and other ingredients plus frozen peas into two aluminum pie dishes and add salt and pepper. Add gravy. Roll out Pillsbury crescent dough and cover the pies. Bake in oven at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes to one hour.

Sheppard's Pie

This recipe is by Rachael Ray w/ modification by Stacy. Original recipe is available here.
The recipe below is for an 8x8in casserole dish and serves 4.
For a 9x13in (3 quart) dish double the recipe and it will serve 8.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds of potatoes (such as russet) peeled and cubed
• 2 Tbsp sour cream or softened cream cheese
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil to coat pan
• 1 3/4 pounds ground beef or ground lamb
• 1 carrot, peeled and chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 cup beef stock or broth
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire
• 1/2 cup frozen peas
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley leaves (optional)

Steps

(1) Boil potatoes in salted water until tender, about 12 mins.

(2) While boiling potatoes:

• Cook meat and vegetables
• Preheat large skillet over med high heat. Add oil to hot pan with meat.
• Season meat with salt and pepper.
• Brown and crumble meat for 3 or 4 mins (if meat is fatty, spoon away some of the drippings).
• Add chopped carrot and onion to the meat. Cook veggies with meat 5 mins, stirring frequently.
• Cook gravy
• In a second small skillet over med heat cook butter w/ flour 2 mins.
• Whisk in broth and Worcestershire sauce.
• Thicken gravy 1 min.
• Add gravy to meat and veggies
• Stir in peas

(3) Drain potatoes and pour them into a bowl.

(4) In a separate bowl, combine sour cream, egg yolk and cream.

(5) Add cream mixture to potatoes and mash until potatoes are almost smooth.

(6) Put it in the oven

• Preheat broiler to high.
• Fill a small rectangular casserole with meat and veggie mix.
• Spoon potatoes over meat evenly.
• Top potatoes with paprika and broil 6 to 8 inches from heat until potatoes are evenly browned.

(7) Top casserole dish with chopped parsley if desired and serve.