Macaroni and Cheese AKA Pasta salad

I haven't felt much like mac & cheese due to the warm weather. Then, my cousin suggested a caprese salad mac dish. Mmmmm...


Ingredients:
1/2 lb box pasta
2 cups cherry tomatoes
2 oz basil
1 fresh mozzarella
1T Olive oil
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan
salt & pepper

Directions:
Cook the pasta according to the package directions, then drain and rinse with cool water.
Wash the basil. Cut half into a chiffonade and place half in the bowl of a food processor. Add the garlic and cheese to the food processor and process until the basil is well smashed. Add the oil slowly to form a sauce.
Cut the mozzarella into 1/2 inch cubes and the cherry tomatoes in half. I saw a trick for this on Rachael Ray. Take two lids (I used Ziploc storage lids and put a layer of tomatoes between; run your knife between the lids and voila!
Combine the pasta, tomatoes, cheese and chiffonad-ed basil. Stir in sauce and add salt and pepper to taste.

I served this with a spinach salad and grilled swordfish.

Ham and Cheese with Peas!

Ok, so I haven't posted in a while because I had a flop.  I made a cheddar cheese and elbow macaroni and added diced ham and peas but I got one of my measurements off so it didn't set right.  I either needed more flour in my roux or less liquid or something.  I won't post the recipe here but I do think that the taste was good and you could even toss diced ham and peas into the blue box mac and cheese.

Italian Mac & Cheese: Sun dried tomato, artichoke, spinach

Ingredients:

8 oz pasta (cooked according to package directions)
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 t parsley
1/4 t garlic powder
1/2 t basil
1/4 t onion powder
1/2 t red pepper flakes
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
2 cups chopped chicken precooked (great use for store bought rotisserie chicken
2 cups shredded Italian cheese
1 box frozen artichoke hearts, thawed and chopped
1 box frozen spinach, thawed and drained well
1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/2 t paprika (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. In a big bowl whisk together the eggs, milk and seasonings. Stir in pasta, chicken, 1 1/2 cups Italian cheese, artichoke hearts, spinach, and sun dried tomatoes. Pour into 9x11 inch pan.

2. Bake covered for 20 minutes. Meanwhile mix remaining cheese, bread crumbs and paprika (I think I saw this on Rachael Ray... I omitted the 1 t melted butter). After 20 minutes, sprinkle the mixture over the pasta and bake uncovered for 10 more minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Thanksgiving leftovers

Ingredients:

8 oz elbow macaroni

3/4 cup hot broth

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup chopped turkey

1 t thyme

1 cup stuffing

cranberry sauce (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375.

2. Cook macaroni according to package directions.

3. In a bowl, mix broth, egg, cheese, macaroni, thyme and turkey. Pour into an 8x8 pan. Crumble stuffing over the top and bake for 30 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, over medium heat, mix cranberry sauce and enough water to create a thick sauce. Drizzle over dish after it comes out of the oven.

You could toss in other leftovers as well: corn, green beans

Acorn Squash Ravioli

So, this was supposed to be done with butternut squash but Albertson's was out, so I changed it up. It would also be good with pumpkin.

Ingredients:
1 T butter

1 T olive oil

1/2 small onion

2 T flour

2 packages cheese ravioli (about 20 oz)

1 1/2 cups veggie broth

2 cups squash puree (cook squash and puree in a blender/food processor)

2 cups cheddar

2 T bread crumbs

2 T brown sugar

Directions:

1. Cook ravioli according to package directions.

2. Melt the butter and oil in a skillet, add onion and cook for 5 minutes. Add flour and cook 1-2 minutes more.

3. Mix broth and onion mixture in a sauce pan and cook until the mixture begins to thicken. Add 1 3/4 cups of the cheese and stir until melted. Add the squash puree; stir until combined. Toss in the ravioli.

4. Pour into 9x11 pan. Mix remaining cheese, brown sugar and bread crumbs and sprinkle on top. Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes until cheese and brown sugar melt.

Carmelized onion, garlic and blue cheese

This concoction was inspired by our friend Jake. He put this combination together on a pizza and it was amazing. I am taking it to their house tonight and serving it with a spinach, strawberry, candied walnut with raspberry vinaigrette salad.

Ingredients:
16 oz pasta of your choice
1 medium onion
2 T butter
2-3 cloves garlic
2 T flour
1 cup veggie broth (you could use chicken)
1 cup milk
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup blue cheese crumbles

Directions:

1. Chop the onion into skinny slices. Melt 1 T butter in a skillet over medium low. Add the onion and cook slowly, stirring frequently. You want to slowly caramelize the onion. This should take 25-35 minutes.

2. Cook the pasta in salted water. Drain and set aside. In the same pot mix the milk and broth. Bring to a simmer (not boil).

3. Preheat the oven to 350. Finely chop or grate the garlic and add to the caramelized onion. Allow this to cook for about 5 minutes. Add the remaining 1 T butter and, after the butter has melted, the flour. Stir constantly for about 5 more minutes. Add the onion mixture to the liquids and stir until well combined (2-3 minutes). Add the mozzarella cheese and stir until melted.

4. Add the pasta to the cheese and continue to stir until the pasta is evenly coated. Transfer to a 9x11 inch baking dish. Sprinkle the blue cheese on top and bake, covered, for 10 minutes or until the blue cheese melts. Let sit 5 minutes before serving.

Artichoke, Bacon, Swiss Farfalle

This is a twist on a dish I used to roll up in a pizza crust (sans noodles, milk and eggs).

Ingredients:

8 oz farfalle (bowtie pasta)
1/2 small onion
1T butter
2 eggs
1 can evaporated skim milk
1/4 t nutmeg (because we all know that nutmeg and swiss are like PB & J)
2 1/4 cups shredded swiss cheese
1 box frozen artichoke hearts (thawed)
1 box frozen chopped spinach (thawed and drained)
1/2 cup crumbled bacon
1/2 cup store bought bread crumbs (you can make your own of course)
Salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Cook the pasta according to the package directions, drain.

2. Meanwhile, heat butter in skillet over medium heat. Grate in onion (you can chop if you prefer). Stir until tender (about 5 minutes).

3. In a large bowl whisk together eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Add artichoke, spinach, bacon, onion, pasta, and 2 cups of cheese. Pour into a 9x11 baking dish.

4. Bake, covered, for 20 minutes. In a bowl mix together remaining cheese and bread crumbs. After 20 minutes, remove cover and sprinkle bread crumb mixture over the dish. Bake an additional 10 minutes or until the top is browned. Let sit 10 mintutes before serving.