Italian Sausage Caprese Pasta

Talk about quick and easy! Not to mention absolutely delicious and inexpensive! This is a great weeknight recipe that you can throw together in less than half an hour! It may look heavy, but actually it's filling but doesn't leave you feeling like all you want to do is take a two hour nap!

Ingredients:

Olive Oil
1 lb. ground Italian Sausage (we like sweet Italian sausage)
8 oz. Ditalini, Orzo, or mini bow tie pasta
3 cups of fresh baby spinach torn
1/2 to 1 lb. cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1 package of fresh mozzarella  

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella

1 Tsp. red pepper flakes
Salt and Pepper to taste
Fresh basil leaves, torn or sliced  

Directions:

1.  Bring pot of water to boil for pasta.
 
2.  Meanwhile heat an ovenproof skillet on medium.  Drizzle hot skillet with a little olive oil           and brown Italian sausage in skillet until cooked through.
 
3.  While sausage is cooking, cook pasta according to package directions.  Once cooked,           drain the pasta. 
 
4.  Next, add the spinach to skillet (with sausage) to wilt and then add cooked pasta. 
 
5.  Stir in tomatoes and cook for a few minutes to soften the tomatoes slightly.  Add the red       pepper flakes and salt and pepper to taste.
 
6.  Mix in fresh basil and shredded mozzarella until melted and well combined.
 
7.  Remove from heat and add sliced fresh mozzarella on top. 

8. Put in oven with broiler on high until mozzarella slices melt. About 5 minutes. 

9. Remove from broiler and serve!

Bon Apetit! Buon Apetito! Buen Provecho! Douzo Meshiagare!

One-Pan Creamy Chicken Orecchiette Pasta

One-Pan Creamy Chicken Orecchiette Pasta

I don't know about you, but one pan dishes are some of my favorites to make. Why? You may ask. Because, yes I'm lazy and it means less dishes to wash! This recipe here is a good one! Tasty, comforting and easy to make....can't beat that! Try it, you'll like it, as my Dad used to always say to me :)

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 TBS. olive oil, add more if needed
• 1 package (12 oz.) Chicken Sausage, sliced at an angle
• 1 large shallot, thinly sliced
• 3 gloves of minced garlic
• 2 cups orecchiette pasta ( don't be stingy, mound those cups! )
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 large handfuls of fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 2 TBS. heavy whipping cream
• Salt/Pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large, deep sided skillet over medium heat
2. Add the sliced sausages and cook until golden brown
3. Transfer the sausage to another plate and set aside
4. Add shallot and minced garlic back to the pan and cook until softened, about 1 -2 minutes
5. Add pasta and all of the broth to the pan
6. Scrape up any of the brown bits on bottom of pan before covering.
7. Cover, increase heat to high and bring to a boil
8. Once boiling, uncover and reduce heat to medium
9. Cook for about 10-12 minutes or until pasta is al dente and most of the broth has been reduced
10. Next, reduce heat to low and add spinach, peas and parmesan cheese
11. Stir until the spinach has wilted slightly
12. Add the heavy cream and stir
13. place sausages back into pan and add salt/pepper to taste
14. Stir together and serve with a little parmesan cheese sprinkled on top

Bon Apetit!Buon Apetito! Buen Provecho!Douzo Meshiagare!

ITALIAN ORZO SPINACH SOUP

ITALIAN ORZO SPINACH SOUP

I don't know about you, but I absolutely LOVE soup, especially on these cold Winter nights! Which is pretty funny since I live in "sunny" California! I swear to you though this is one of the coldest Winter's I can remember and I've lived in the Bay Area my entire life! I digress, this is one of the easiest recipes and absolutely delicious! It's vegetarian and if you get gluten free orzo, it would be gluten free as well...but if you prefer, you can add some chicken if you want. That's what I love about cooking...it's really a art! You have all of these ingredients and you, the artist combines them in a way that's to your liking. You're doing it simply for the love of the art, not to impress anyone else and there are really no wrongs or rights...to an extent of course, but really the only wrong thing you could do is not to try and cook...you don't know what you're missing out on!

Anyway....on to the recipe! 

INGREDIENTS:

   2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 small white onion, peeled and diced
• 1 cup diced carrots
• 1 cup diced celery
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 6 cups chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 (14-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
• 1 1/2 cups (about 8 ounces) cooked orzo pasta
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 4 cups loosely-packed spinach
• salt and black pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS: 

Heat oil in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add onion and saute for 4 minutes, until soft. Add carrots, celery and garlic and saute for an additional 3 minutes. Add chicken stock, tomatoes, cooked orzo (pasta), thyme, oregano, rosemary and stir to combine. Bring soup to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is al dente.

Stir in the spinach and cook for 1-2 minutes until it is bright green and wilted. Season with salt and black pepper to taste (if needed). Serve warm topped with shredded Parmesan! 

HELPFUL HINT:

I suggest you precook the orzo otherwise what happens is that it absorbs the liquid if you cook it in the soup and you end up having to add more broth/stock. If you prefer to cook it in the soup for ease, just make sure to buy more broth/stock to add more liquid. 

Bon Apetit!Buon Apetito! Buen Provecho!Douzo Meshiagare!

Smoked Sausage Cheesy Rice Skillet

Smoked Sausage Cheesy  Rice Skillet Dinner

This is a great recipe for those cold winter nights! Simple to make and takes less than 45 minutes to prepare and cook, that is not including the time it takes to cook rice! Great for leftover rice!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups cooked rice
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 tbs butter
• 1 lb. smoked sausage (or any sausage you like really), sliced 
• 1/2 small onion, diced small
• 1 small red bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion posder
• black pepper to taste
• 1 1/2 cups extra-sharp shredded cheddar cheese

Directions: 

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and once hot, add butter and olive oil until they sizzle in the pan.
2. Add the sliced sausage and onions and cook for about 5 minutes until onion is tender and sausage starts to brown.
3. Next add the red bell pepper and broccoli, cover the skillet, reduce heat and cook covered for approximately 5 minutes.
4. Add the cooked rice, pepper,garlic and onion powder next. Combine well and heat until rice is hot.
5. Remove skillet from heat, stir in the shredded cheese until well-combined and melted.

Voila! Warm, filling meal in minutes! 

Easy Pork Tenderloins

Easy Pork Tenderloins

Ingredients:

3-4 garlic cloves, quartered/sliced/slivered
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoon country dijon mustard (whole grain mustard)
4 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoon fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary or Herbs de Provence
freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 tablespoons olive oil

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Take tenderloins out of package. Rinse and pat dry. Spray a 9x13 baking dish and place tenderloins inside.
Use a paring knife, poke holes on the top side of the tenderloins, about a 1/2 inch deep. Place a garlic piece into each hole.

Next, make the marinade. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together everything except the olive oil. Once blended, slowly drizzle in the oil while still whisking. Pour entire marinade over the pork loins.

Bake, uncovered, for 35-40 minutes, making sure to baste about 1/2 way through cooking time. Remove tenderloins from baking dish and let them rest on a cutting board for 10 minutes before slicing. Pour sauce over meat, serve with rice or polenta and enjoy!
 

Bon Apetit!Buon Apetito! Buen Provecho!Douzo Meshiagare!

SKILLET PASTA WITH SAUSAGE

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 14-16 oz fully cooked smoked sausage, sliced
• ½ cup diced onion
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1(12 oz) package Green Giant Garden Vegetable Medley
• 2½ cups chicken broth
• ½ cup milk
• 8 oz. uncooked penne
• salt and pepper
• ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
• chopped parsley

1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage garlic, and onion and cook until browned and softened, about 3-5 minutes. Add in the Green Giant Vegetables, chicken broth and milk, then stir in the uncooked penne.
2. Cover and cook until the pasta is al dente, about 15 minutes. Stir and season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the top with parmesan cheese and parsley.

Bon Apetit!Buon Apetito! Buen Provecho!Douzo Meshiagare!

Mushroom Asiago Chicken 

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast (about 2 large)

2 cups sliced mushrooms

1 garlic clove, minced

3 springs fresh thyme

1 1/2 cups dry white wine

2 tbs butter

2 tbs olive oil

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/4-1/2 cup shredded asiago cheese

1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)

1/4 tsp pepper (or to taste)

Seasoned Flour:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

Directions:

Cut into serving-sized pieces (2 or 3 pieces per breast). Pound the chicken breast so that pieces are about the same thickness.

Heat the butter with *1* tbs of olive oil in deep, heavy skillet or saute pan over medium heat.

Toss chicken in seasoned flour, I used a Ziploc bag and tossed chicken in bag with flour and shook it around for good even coverage.  Add to hot oil/butter in skillet.  Saute until golden on each side, about 5 minutes per side.  Remove from pan.

Add another tbs. of olive oil to hot skillet and sauté mushrooms and garlic until mushrooms begin to brown.

Add white wine to skillet, scraping up all the browned bits that are at the bottom of the pan . Bruise the fresh thyme by twisting it between your fingers.  Add thyme to mushroom/wine mixture in pan.

Put the chicken back in the pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 15-20 minutes.

Remove the chicken from pan, add the cream and heat through. Then slowly add the asiago cheese. You can use less cheese if you don't want too strong of a flavor. (You can also substitute Romano or Parmesan for the Asiago as well.) 

Cook over low heat until cheese melts. (Make sure to continually stir so that cheese melts evenly and not in clumps) Continue cooking until sauce is reduced by about 1/2 and thickens up

Add chicken back to pan and heat through.

Serve over pasta or my favorite....polenta. 

Bon Apetit!Buon Apetito! Buen Provecho!Douzo Meshiagare!