stuffed shells

oh so yummy! this recipe yields 23 shells (i know, weird number)
boil your shells with kosher salt and olive oil. drain and rinse in cool water and set aside.
in a medium bowl, mix together 1 tub of ricotta cheese (usually about 16oz i think) 2 heaping T of cottage cheese, 1/2 bag of shredded mozarella, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 egg, 1/2 cup of parmesean cheese, lots of fresh cracked pepper, and 1 t of kosher salt. wilt about 2 handfuls of spinach over medium heat and add to the ricotta mixture.
spoon about a T of mixture into each shell. Place in a casserole pan that is lined with spaghetti sauce.
you can usually fit 10 shells in a 9x9 pan. i like to make 2 sets of shells and freeze one of them for later!
top with some more sauce and more shredded mozz-bake covered at 350 for 25 mins, and uncovered for 10 more.ENJOY!!

chicken marsala

sorry-we ate it so fast-i forgot to take pictures!
alrighty-salt and pepper 4 pounded down (about 1/4-1/2") chicken breasts.
dredge in flour.
on medium/high heat, heat up some olive oil in a pan. saute the chicken, each side for about 5 mins. when cooked-place on a plate.
in the same pan, turn down the heat to medium, and throw in as many mushrooms as you desire. saute the shrooms for about 5 mins, then add some salt and pepper. add 1/2 cup of marsala wine, and cook off the alcohol (around 2 mins)
add 1/2 cup of chicken stock, and simmer for around 5 minutes, and allow to thicken.
whisk in 2T of unsalted butter and allow sauce to thicken nicely.
garnish with fresh parsely.
add the chicken breasts back in so they can reheat a tad.
toss this mixture over a pasta you like (i used bowties) or over mashed potatos.
this was YUMMY!!

meatballs (and spaghetti)

i have always wanted to try this-i think its something from childhood in me speaking out "meatballs!" (like in spaghetti o's, or when we'd go to a fancy italian restaurant and they had meatballs the size of your head)
this was easy. the only thing i didnt like was the sauce-so i wont include that recipe.
alrighty-this yielded 23 meatballs. i'm sure it was supposed to be 25!
mix in a medium bowl:
1 beaten egg
1 lb ground sirloin
a good shake of worteshire sauce
1/4 cup italian breadcrumbs
1/2 cup grated parmesean cheese
2 minced cloves of garlic
salt and pepper
mush around with your hands till totally mixed
olive oil up a cookie sheet
roll the meat into balls 1-1.5" balls.
bake at 425 for 20 mins.
(i did 10 mins, then another 10 mins after i turned the pan 180 degrees)
this was easy!!

chicken kiev

reasonably time consuming-but i think this one is worth it. You can also pre-prep several of these and stick them in the freezer to eat at a later time.
to start-take a stick of butter and put it on the counter so it can become room temperature.
mix the butter with 1 T of tarragon and 1 T of parsely (use dried) 2 pinches of salt and a few dashes of pepper. Mix with a hand mixer or with your table mixer. place this mixture on a piece of wax paper, roll one end over the mixture and roll on the ball of your hand into a log that is about 1" in diameter. stick it in the freezer.
take 4 chicken breasts-and place them, one at a time, inbetween some plastic wrap. and pound them down to no smaller than 1/8".
take the butter out of the freezer and cut into 4 pieces.
get another piece of plastic wrap on the counter-and put a piece of chicken on it-place one of the butters near the most narrow part of the chicken, and begin to roll, tucking in the sides as you go. wrap the rolled up chicken tightly and put in the fridge for at least 2 hours. It was recommended that you leave them only up to overnight-but i'm not sure if this is true or not.
now to cook:
in a pie pan-whisk 2 eggs with 1 T of water
in another-place your favorite bread crumbs (i like to use panko with added garlic powder, salt, and pepper)
egg wash your chickens, place in the bread crumbs-pressing them down to adhere, then pan fry with olive oil to brown the crust-then stick in the oven at 375 for about 20-30 mins-until the chicken is fully cooked.
I am serving these with an herbed orzo mixed with corn and peas. i think they would also go really well some yukon mashed potatos!!
enjoy!

up for next week....

this week i want to try all new recipes and see how they go.
1. chicken marsala
2. chicken kiev
2. spaghetti and meatballs (never made meatballs before!)

burgers and fries

sometimes you just want burgers and fries.
for 2 burgers:
3/4lb of ground SIRLOIN
1T worchteshire sauce
salt, pepper, garlic to taste
2T bread crumbs
fold and mash together with your hands, roll into 2 balls, stick between wax paper and pound down to rounds.
on medium high heat-warm up a cast iron skillet with slots. spray with some pam, and fry away.
i grilled some mushrooms and onions, topped the burgers...added some provolone cheese and steamed the burger to completion
i passed on the bun, and so did the boyfriend. i'm thrilled my eating healthy has rubbed off on him!
well here's the real reason there was no bun....
in a deep frying pan-i put 1 1/2 cups of shortening and brought to a semi-sizzling liquid.
i have a handy dandy slicer from williams-sonoma that aided in creating the french fries. i used just one potato for the 2 of us. i deep-fried the potatos for around 12 mins, placed on a cooling rack (with a pan under it to catch the grease) and sprinkled with lawrys seasoning salt.
no worries...we also had a salad. (if that could even possibly make up for the deep fried potatos!!)

chicken stew

this stew was awesome! it should serve 4-6, and you can use it for filling in pot pies, pocket pies, or in a bowl with a spoon.
step 1-making the stock:
i took 2 bone-in chicken breasts and 1 drum stick. i chopped 1/4 onion, 1 clove garlic, 1 t of kosher salt, a dash of white pepper, some ground black pepper, and a dash of paprika, and added enough water to cover the chicken.
bring to a boil, then simmer for 1 hour.
when completed, strain out the chicken, de-skin and de-bone, pull apart to serving sized pieces and add back to the pot with the stock.
step 2-add the goodies:
add 1 peeled and cubed potato and 2 carrots. bring to a boil again and simmer for about 30 mins. take off the head and add as much frozen corn and peas you desire (and any other frozen vegetable of your liking)
step 3-create a roux:
in a medium sauce pan, add 1 stick of butter, cut in thirds, and 1/2 cup of flour. on low/medium heat-combine with a whisk.
step 4-make it work:
i prefer to strain all of the contents out and place in another bowl, and then combine the stock with the roux with a whisk. when combined to a medium thickness-add the contents back, stir-and enjoy!
i used this for filling for my pocket pies i made-and i had just enough left over-so i made myself my own little pot pie. i took the filling and placed them into an oven safe glass bowl, and then topped it with the pie dough, pinched the sides, and baked at 350 for 35 mins. YUM!