PENNE W/ PROSCIUTTO AND SPINACH

This is a rustic and hearty meal that is perfect on a cold winter night!! Everything can be combined ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to bake.

First, start out by making a thick and smooth besciamella sauce, by whisking some butter, flour,milk, salt and pepper. ( nutmeg optional)

Next, toss in 1lb. of al dente pasta with the warm besciamella sauce in a large bowl, stir in a 10 oz. of frozen chopped spinach which has been thawed and squeezed dry. Fold in 1/2 lb. of diced prosciutto, 1 cup of grated Parm, salt and pepper to taste.

Finally, pour everything into a roasting pan, dot with butter, sprinkle with more cheese, and bake at 450 for about 30 min’s or until golden and a little crunchy!!

Buon Appetito!!

Signature

NOT YOUR MAMA’S CHICKEN SOUP!!!


Sometimes I just don’t have the time to slow cook a chicken for some great homemade soup. But yet when it’s cold outside that’s exactly what I want! We just had 6″ of snow drop on us with more to follow this weekend.
Yaay some may say…not me! The older I get the less I like winter, but I guess I better grin and bare it because it’s only the beginning!So with that being said, here’s my quickie roasted chicken noodle soup.

Warm and comforting  just like you simmered it for hours, but in reality, it only it took 20 min’s.

The key ingredient is this roasted chicken, that I threw in the oven along with something else I was making the other day, you know, like 2 meals in one! Seasoned with lots of thyme, salt and pepper and olive oil. Actually, it’s the seasonings that makes the soup tastes so good. Now if you don’t have the time to roast some chicken, buy a rotisserie chicken at your favorite grocery store, it works just as well.

Then I simply just shred all the chicken up and stick it in my fridge until I’m ready to make the soup.

Take out your favorite soup pot and add a little olive oil in there. Next sauté 3 cloves of garlic, 3 or 4 diced carrots, 3 or 4 stalks of celery and 1 large onion, sprinkle with thyme, salt and pepper.

Add in some great boxed, organic, low sodium chicken broth like the one from Trader Joes, or Costco( or any of your favorites) and a sprinkling of fresh parsley. I used. almost 2 quarts.

In addition to that I always throw in a couple of Parmesan rinds that I always keep on hand in my freezer, it takes the broth to another level, then just toss in your shredded chicken.

I always cook my egg noodles or pasta on the side and add them into the bowl as needed, otherwise they tend to blow up from sitting in the hot broth too long.

And of course, you must top it off your steaming hot bowl of soup with some freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese.

Another quick meal for this busy time of year!!

Buon Appetito!

Signature

" STUFFED PORTOBELLA’S"

This is my idea of FAST FOOD! This is something I make quite often especially when I’m in a hurry, and we’re not in a meat mood.

The ingredients are simple, as you can see above. I usually make a quick marinara with good tomatoes, fresh basil, and garlic. In the meantime, I scrape the gills out of the portabella’s, you don’t have too, but I personally think it makes my sauce dark looking sometimes. Next, I mix some GOOD ricotta with romano cheese, 1 egg, you could use fresh parsley, chopped spinach, whatever! I also mix a little shredded mozzarella in there too, finish with salt and pepper.

Now, layer your pan with sauce, place your caps in, drizzle them with olive oil, and then put sauce as the first layer. Now, take your ricotta mixture and fill your cap up with it. Finally, top it off with a little more sauce. Thats it!! Bake till mushroom gets tender at 375


A nice salad, a glass of wine, and you got a light and tasty dinner!!

Buon Appetito!!!

Signature