Pasta with pumpkin, bacon and gorgonzola sauce

Yep so with a 7 month old, plus working full time, plus everything else life wants to toss at me I don't have the time to cook like I did before. So when I find some short cuts that I can gussie up to make a meal more...well...good, I take them and run. I saw this jar of sauce at the Market District and dove right in. It even had a little hang tag on it with some recipes, even better!

One of the recipes was to add bacon and gorgonzola and make a lasagna or other baked pasta dish. We figured we'd use that as a jumping off point. I caramelized some onion and deglazed the pan with a little balsamic vinegar. We had cooked some bacon yesterday morning and actually had some leftover (truly a miracle)...that got chopped up and added in. Then added the jar of sauce and about 3 oz of crumbled gorgonzola. I let it simmer until the cheese got all melty and served it over farfalle. Fall goodness!

The pictures are terrible... but last time I checked I was doing this as more of a digital archive of recipes not to win photography awards, lol.

Creamy Shrimp Pasta

I found this recipe on the McCormick Web site...the original calls for chicken. I thought it would be great with shrimp as well, so that's what I made it with. It was good...not great...but tasty enough. It definitely needs some more flavor. Maybe next time I'll doctor it up a bit and add some minced garlic, maybe some freshmore parmesan, etc.

I also added some more veggies. I had a plethora of fresh veggies in the fridge, so I thought I'd add some color to the mix - even if you can't see it in the picture! I sauteed some mini bell peppers, a handfull of chopped mushrooms and some onion and seasoned them with some salt, pepper and a dash of white balsamic vinegar, and added to the pasta before I put the sauce on it. Oh, and I added a wedge of garlic and herb light laughing cow cheese, jus for kicks.

Creamy Chicken Penne

(Source: McCormick Web Site)

8 ounces uncooked multigrain penne pasta
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen small broccoli florets
1 cup fat free half-and-half
4 ounces Neufchâtel cheese (1/3 less fat than cream cheese), cubed
1 teaspoon McCormick® Oregano Leaves
1 teaspoon McCormick® Rosemary Leaves, finely crushed
1 teaspoon McCormick® Thyme Leaves
1/2 teaspoon McCormick® Garlic Powder
1/4 teaspoon Sea Salt from McCormick® Sea Salt Grinder
1 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken breast (I used about 1/2 lb of cooked shrimp)
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan or Asiago cheese

Cook pasta in large saucepan as directed on package, adding broccoli during the last 3 minutes of cooking. Drain well.

Meanwhile, bring half-and-half to simmer in small saucepan on medium heat. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add cream cheese, oregano, rosemary, thyme, garlic powder and sea salt; whisk until cheese is melted and sauce is well blended. Add chicken; simmer until heated through.

Place pasta and broccoli in large serving bowl. Spoon sauce evenly over pasta mixture. Toss gently to coat well. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve immediately.

Saffron Tomato Sauce with Capers

Saffron...it's the world's most expensive spice.

**Sigh**

It adds such a unique flavor to dishes, and a little goes a long way. We actually pretty much always have it in the spice cabinet so that Norm can whip up his famous paella (actually its his dad's recipe, but he's pretty much mastered it!). So when I found this recipe for Saffron Tomato Sauce with Capers in Fine Cooking, I quickly bookmarked it to try.

I was delicious. More than delicious. I loved it! The first time we had it, had it with some sauteed shrimp. The next time we stepped it up a notch and steamed some mussels and clams in the rich broth. Yummy! We had it over whole wheat pasta...and I didn't use as much oil as the recipe called for. It's easy to fit this into South Beach, Weight Watchers, or other healthy eating plan.

Saffron Tomato Sauce with Capers

(Source: Fine Cooking)

3 T extra virgin olive oil

1/2 a small yellow onion, finely chopped (about 1/2 c)

2 large cloves of garlic, very thinly sliced crosswise

30 threads of saffron

Pinch crushed red pepper

28-oz can whole peeled plum tomatoes, drained and small diced (about 2 C)

2 tsp capers, rinsed and chopped

1 small sprig fresh thyme

Pinch sugar

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 T chopped fresh parsley

Heat oil in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and garlic and cook stirring occasionally, until soft but not browned, about 5 minutes. Crumble saffron into the pan and stir in the crushed pepper. Let cook for about 20 seconds and then add the tomatoes, capers, thyme, sugar, 1/2 t salt and several grinds of black pepper. Simmer briskly, adjusting the heat as necessary until the tomatoes are softened and the flavors melded, about 15 minutes. Discard the thyme sprig and stir in parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Whole Wheat Pasta with Prosciutto, Arugula. Mozzarella & Cabernet Marinara

One of our favorite restaurants in Pgh has this absolutely mouth-watering pizza - thin crust, with marinara, fresh mozzarella, and prosciutto...topped with arugula and shaved parmesan when it comes out of the oven.

To die for. Since we've been on "the diet" we haven't been there or had the pizza in forever. Sooooo for a Valentine's weekend surprise, I bought all of the makings for the pizza with the intent to make a whole wheat crust and make my own. Plans went astray, and the dough never got made so I decided to use the ingredients and incorporate them into a pasta dish that was South Beach friendly.

Whole Wheat Pasta with Prosciutto, Arugula, Mozzerella & Cabernet Marinara
(Source: me!)

8 oz whole wheat pasta

1/2 C chopped onion

4 oz prosciutto, chopped

4 oz sliced mushrooms

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 T fresh basil

1 jar cabernet marinara (I used Muir Glen Organic)

3 cups arugula, chopped

Salt, pepper, italian seasoning

6 oz fresh mozzerella, sliced

Cook pasta according to directions on box. Saute onions, garlic, mushrooms until tender over med-high heat. Add prosciutto. Sautee a few minutes longer until fragrent. Stir in sauce and let simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, italian seasoning, etc to taste. Stir in arugula and let wilt. Spoon over pasta and top with cheese.

Fettuccine with Shiitake Mushrooms & Basil

This was our Halloween dinner. Norm cooked while I handed out candy to a paltry 21 trick-or-treaters. I was so disappointed! We've lived here for almost 3 years, and have never been home for trick or treat night. I was excited to finally be home to hand out candy...and then practically nobody came. Oh well! We had TONS of candy leftover. I took a big bucket of candy into work with me, and sent Norm to work today with 3 additional bags. At least it's all out of the house (except for the couple of kit kats and PB cups that I squirrelled away for myself...in case of an emergency) and I won't be tempted to eat my weight in fun size candy bars.

But I digress...about the pasta! It was delicious. Norm decided to make a couple of modifications that turned out to be fantastic....he added a little bit of white wine to de-glaze the pan after cooking the garlic and mushrooms. Speaking of the mushrooms, our grocery store didn't have just shiitake mushrooms, but had a nice 'shroom mix of cremini, shiitake and oyster that we used. Then at the end, added some halved grape tomatoes and a sprinkling of crumbled goat cheese. We finished every last bite, it was that good = )


Fettuccine with Shiitake Mushrooms & Basil
(Source: Eating Well)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced (1 1/2 cups)
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste Freshly ground pepper to taste
8 ounces whole-wheat fettuccine or spaghetti
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (1 ounce)
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil, divided

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil for cooking pasta.

2. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over low heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant but not browned, about 1 minute. Add mushrooms and increase heat to medium-high; cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and lightly browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in lemon zest, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Remove from the heat.

3. Meanwhile, cook pasta, stirring occasionally, until just tender, 9 to 11 minutes or according to package directions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid.

4. Add the pasta, the reserved cooking liquid, Parmesan and 1/4 cup basil to the mushrooms in the skillet; toss to coat well. Serve immediately, garnished with remaining basil.

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per serving: 311 calories; 11 g fat (3 g sat, 6 g mono); 9 mg cholesterol; 44 g carbohydrate; 13 g protein; 8 g fiber; 307 mg sodium.Nutrition bonus: Fiber (28% daily value), Calcium (14% dv).2 1/2 Carbohydrate Servings

It's a Gnocchi Night!

I found this recipe while browsing thru blogs and it looked fantastic. Now I just needed to convince the hubby that he would like it. He "thinks" that he doesn't like pasta with anything other than a red sauce or an alfredo sauce. I tried to get him to try my aglio e olio one night when we were out for dinner and he turned it down, saying there was "no sauce." *sigh*

So I kinda sprung this on him tonight...saying we were having gnocchi with sausage. I figured at least if he thought there was something Italian that had sausage in it he'd be game. I think he was skeptical at first (took a tiny serving and hoped for the best). Then went back for seconds and thirds. Ladies and gents....we have a hit!

I made a couple of slight modifications from the original recipe (as posted on a blog titled "Delish" - how could it NOT be good?????). My modifications are noted below...

Gnocchi with Sausage & Spinach
(Source: delishfood.wordpress.com, adapted from Real Simple Magazine, March 2007)

2 9-ounce packages refrigerated gnocchi (or a 17.5-ounce package shelf-stable gnocchi) *I used 1 pkg of whole wheat gnocchi
1/2 medium yellow onion, finely chopped *I used maybe 1/3 c chopped onion
1-2 Italian sausages (~1/4-1/2 lb), casings removed * I used 2 hot Italian turkey sausages
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
7-ounces baby spinach *I used probably 3 oz total
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
*1/4 c white wine
*1/4 c chicken broth (in place of reserved cooking liquid)
*hot red pepper flakes

Cook the gnocchi according to directions, drain. Meanwhile, heat sausage in a large skillet over medium heat, crumbling with a spoon until browned, 5-7 minutes. Add the onion & garlic and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add wine to deglaze pan. Let cook 1-2 minutes. Add the spinach, salt, and pepper and cook, tossing frequently, until the spinach wilts, about 3 minutes. Add the drained gnocchi, chicken broth, let heat thru. Add Parmesan and toss. Add red pepper flakes to taste.

Dinner in a Pinch

Normally when we plan meals for the week, we make sure we have everything on hand. And normally we have a supply of staples on hand. However, even the best laid plans can go..um..awry, lol. So it was a little strange when we went to make dinner on Tuesday night (pasta with grilled shrimp) found we were without one of the main components of the meal! No pasta sauce. Not one single jar. I know, I know...you can't believe I wouldn't make sauce myself - being Italian and all. But we found this spicy red pepper sauce from Classico that's yummy, we doctor it up with a mix of spices and away we go.

But since there wasn't any pre-made sauce to be hand, we had to ge by in a pinch. I did have a can of diced tomatoes with basil in the cupboard, and a can of tomato paste, so I made my own. The hubby was a bit skeptical, to say the least, but it turned out delish! Here's basically what I did...sometimes when I cook I just toss things in and don't measure.


Quick Pasta Sauce
(Source: me!)

1 clove garlic, minced
1/3 C diced white onion
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can of tomato paste
1 tsp (approximate) Italian seasoning
salt, pepper, garlic salt, cayenne pepper, hot pepper flakes - to taste
1/4 C cabernet sauvignon (wine makes everything just a little bit better)

Sautee onion and garlic in cooking spray. Add diced tomatoes, tomato paste, spices to taste, and wine. Let simmer for until thickened (approx 15 minutes).

We had the sauce over multigrain pasta, topped with grilled shimp seasoned with cajun seasoning, salt and pepper.