Tortellini Primavera

This was a yummy dish, I am a sucker for spinach and I always feel healthier when eating it. Even when it's covered in cream cheese and served with cheese-filled pasta. This was yummy and very filling! I actually used tortellini with meat and it was delicious. If you notice that there are no mushrooms in my picture, it's because I didn't have any. I would highly recommend following the recipe and using mushrooms, it really completes the dish! Yum!

Tortellini Primavera

1 cup mushrooms, chopped
½ cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
2 Tbs butter {or margarine}
10 oz. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
8 oz. cream cheese
1 tomato, chopped
¼ cup milk
¼ cup parmesan cheese
1 tsp Italian seasoning
salt and pepper, to taste
family size cheese-filled tortellini {1 pound}, cooked and drained

Heat butter in a skillet. Add mushrooms, onion and garlic and sautee until onion is clear and tender and mushrooms are cooked. Add all remaining ingredients except tortellini. Heat and stir until all have melted together and are well blended. Cook until the mixture just begins to bubble, stirring occasionally. Stir in tortellini.

Recipe from Annie's Eats.

Breadsticks

These breadsticks are so simple to make, but you'd never know because they are equal parts beautiful and delicious! (Maybe baking in a cube of melted butter has something to do with the incredible taste... hmmm...) My mom has been telling me about these breadsticks for the longest time, because she knew I'd love how easy they are to make. I should've made them sooner! Klane and I loved them. They take about an hour from start to finish, but I think that's quick enough for a weeknight dinner. Make these, they're so delicious and the perfect addition to a pasta or salad to make a great meal.

They looked especially tasty through the oven door:

Mom's Breadsticks

3 ½ cups flour
1 T. instant yeast
3 T. sugar
½ t. salt
1 ½ cups warm water
½ cup butter, melted

Mix first four ingredients in large bowl. Add warm water, mix to form a soft dough and let it raise in bowl for 20 min. Preheat oven to 375, melt butter in preheated oven on cookie sheet (half the butter if you want it less buttery). Take sheet out when butter is melted, let it cool a little. Roll out dough flat, cut into strips about 3/4 inch wide. Fold strips in half and twist the two halves together. Lay them out on cookie sheet, roll them in melted butter till covered. Sprinkle with seasonings as desired (possible toppings: suddenly salad, parmesan cheese, italian seasonings, dill, seasoning salt, etc). Let rise 20 minutes in pan. Bake for 15-20 min, until golden brown.

Recipe from my amazing mom.

Giada's Orzo Stuffed Peppers

something different (for me) and sooo delicious.

4 italian sausages, casings removed
1 (28-ounce) can Italian tomatoes
2 zucchini, grated
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano, plus more for sprinkling
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups orzo (rice-shaped pasta)
6 sweet bell peppers (red or yellow)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cook the sausage till just done in a pan over med-high heat. Pour the tomatoes into a large bowl and break apart using a pair of kitchen shears or your finger tips. Add the zucchini, mint, cheese, cooked/drained sausage, olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Meanwhile, bring the chicken broth to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add the orzo and cook for 4 minutes (partially cooked). Drain, saving chicken broth. Stir orzo into sausage mix to combine. Transfer the warm chicken broth to a 3-quart baking dish.
Slice the tops off the peppers and remove all ribs and seeds. Cut a very thin slice from the base to help the peppers stand up. Place the peppers in the baking dish with the warm chicken broth. Spoon the orzo mixture into the peppers. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the foil, sprinkle the top of each pepper with cheese and continue baking until the cheese is golden, about 15 minutes.

Calzones

Rhodes Texas Rolls, thawed & risen
Pepperoni
Sliced olives
Chopped mushrooms
Chopped green &/or red peppers
Chopped red onion
Mozzarella cheese
Heated pizza/pasta sauce

P.S. I didn't give amounts, just use how much you want

Two rolls makes one big delicious calzone which Klane can finish and I cannot. Squish two rolls together and roll out flat into a 10 inch circle. Combine pepperoni, olives, mushrooms, onion, peppers and cheese, place 3/4 to 1 cup of mixture on each circle (the more filling, the better!). Fold dough over and seal edges with fork. Place on sprayed baking sheet, bake at 350 for 20-25 min. Serve with sauce for dipping. YUM!

Salmon Artichoke Pasta

This. Is. AMAZING.

(If you hate fish leave it out or use chicken)

3 Tbs olive oil
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 med. onion, sliced
1 can artichoke hearts in water, drained
16 oz can stewed tomatoes (I got "italian style")
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
1 tsp sugar
1 Tbs basil
1 lb pasta (I used fettuccini-yum)
1/4 cup white cooking wine
1 salmon filet (or chicken, or whatever)

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil. Add chopped artichoke hearts and saute 10 minutes on low heat. While you wait, measure out and compile the tomatoes, pepper, sugar, basil and wine. Raise heat, add tomato mixture and bring to simmer. Cook 35 minutes on low simmer. Don't worry children, the alcohol cooks out.

While you wait, cook the pasta and salmon. For the salmon, I heat up olive oil in a pan with italian seasoning and basil in the oil, then put the fish skin side UP in the oil. You want the top to be the yummy herb part, not the skin. Cook it for a few minutes, then flip it and cook a few more till it flakes. Don't overcook salmon. When it's done, remove the skin, chunk it up and toss it with the pasta and sauce. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese if you like.

Makes 4-6 servings.

YUM. This tasted like it was from Carrabbas or something. And it is seriously doable, which is good. I always thought cooking wine was as expensive as real wine... it's not. Find it by the vinegar at the store. Also, I have a little jar of minced garlic and it's so much easier than buying fresh and hoping it doesn't go bad before you use it. Buy some, it's worth it.

BBQ Chicken PIzza

This is SO EASY.

9 Rhodes Texas Rolls, thawed and risen
Bottle of your fave BBQ sauce
Shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 red onion, sliced
sliced mushrooms
diced green peppers
roma tomato slices
1 Chicken breast, cooked and diced

Preheat oven to 350. Squish the dough together into a big ball and roll it out into a circle. Bake for 10 min. Top with BBQ sauce, then cheese, then toppings, then a little more cheese, then little drips of BBQ sauce over the top. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Then EAT IT! YUM! If you want a parmesan crust, lightly butter the crust when it comes out and sprinkle parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning on it. Easy as pizza pie.

The lovely thing about pizza is you can put whatever you want on it. We like having all kinds of random pizza. Get creative, this is fun!