Mac n Cheese n Peas

This recipe was filed under "must-try way to make food I love." I finally tried it and OH MY it was yummy and oh so easy.

First, I put 2 cups of dry rotini in the rice cooker with 2 cups of chicken broth.

While it cooked, I shredded 2 cups of cheese, a mix of cheddar and monterey jack.  Food processors make life better.

The macaroni is done when there is no more liquid in the rice cooker.  Mine just popped up from "Cook" to "Keep Warm."

At that point, I added some milk and the frozen peas and put the top back on to melt the peas.

The last step was to mix in the cheese.  The heat and steam of the "keep warm" function melted it perfectly!

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Clams Oreganata and Asparagus Macaroni

We stuck with our meal plan well this week!  On Wednesday night we had Clam Oreganata and a cool asparagus macaroni invention.  It was actually pretty boring, but SO GOOD!  I just realized I say that about lots of the things we make over here.  Hmm.  That's a good sign.  Anyway, on to the clams!

Step 1:  Clean clams.  Little neck clams were on sale for 3 dozen/$10.  We are only 2 people, so we got a dozen.  Only 1 was bad (open before it was cooked) so I scrubbed up 11 clam-o-s.

Step 2:  Cook clams.  Stick the clams in a pot with a small layer of water and boil the water.  The steam will cook the clams.  When they open, they are ready.  If they don't open, don't eat 'em.  We lucked out, they all opened!  Don't forget to save a little of the cooking water to add to the stuffing!

Step 3:  Chop clam insides.  Actually, the real 3rd step is to get the clam bodies out of the little shells.  I didn't take a picture of that because my hands were all clammy.  I just stuck them in the food processor and pulsed it a few times. 

Step 4:  Make stuffing.  I started with about a 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs, and then added lots of garlic powder, parsley, oregano, and sea salt.  Then I streamed in maybe a 1/2 cup of olive oil.  As it mixed, I added the clam cooking water to get it to the right consistency. 

Step 5: Fill shells.  This is the fun step!  Scoop up the stuffing, make it into a ball, and add it to the (rinsed) clam shells.  I put the little balls in the shells, and then smushed them down when it was time to cook them. 

Step 6: Serve with awesome macaroni with roasted asparagus in a lemon butter sauce.  This was easy.  Cook macaroni and roast asparagus.  When you pour the macaroni into a colander, use that pot to melt lots of butter.  Then add in the juice of a lemon.  Chop the asparagus and add that into the pot.  When it is mixed in, put the macaroni back in the pot.  This is great because it only uses one pot, and because you can reheat it on the stove when you go back for seconds.  Because you WILL go back for seconds!!!

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Chick Pea Macaroni Monday (and how to make greens less bitter.)

This Macaroni Monday Meal was based on this recipe.  I, of course, took my own liberties, but I must say, it came out SO WELL!!  

Before I even start, how sweet is this grape seed oil container?  

 

I swirled this in the pan with an onion, and when the onions were soft, I added smushed up garlic.

 

John smushed it all up for me.  Is he the sweetest or what?!  He also cooked up a cup of dried chickpeas for me!  We use dried chick peas because they lend a better texture, in my humble opinion, to this dish.  If you have never made them, don't worry.  They are really hard to mess up.  You just have to soak them overnight and then boil them, taking care to keep them covered in water.  It's totally okay if they, ahem, overcook a little.  They just make it a little... smokier.I mixed them up with a few splashes of lemon juice, some grape seed oil, and some salt. 

   

I know I always talk about cooking greens with garlic and oil.  I mean, I've mentioned it in at LEAST four different posts.  What I DON'T know if have mentioned is the radish green dilemma.  John eats radishes all the time, but he finds the greens bitter.  I hate wasting the greens and have been determined to make them palatable.  

This time?  I figured it out.  

Boil it first.  Yes, I said it.  Boil it.  

I threw the cleaned radish greens in boiling water for about a minute, just until they turn bright green.  Then they were scooped out and added to the onion-garlic mixture.  

 

I added a little kosher salt and bread crumbs for good luck.

Once everything was warm and smelling great, the chickpea mixture from before joins the party.

And trust me.  It is a paaaaaaaaaarrrrrr-tay

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Oh!  That boiling water?  That the radish greens were blanched in?  Don't waste it!  I used it to cook the whole wheat rotini.  When they were done, they were thrown into the pan with the chickpea-onion-garlic mixture.  

  

I also had some leftover roasted garlic cloves, so of COURSE they were added in.  

Doesn't it look delicious?  With Parmesan Cheese on top?

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Macaroni Monday!

I was able to check yet ANOTHER meal off my list.  We were all out of frozen gravy and meatballs, so it was time to make another batch!  This recipe is based off the one my grandma taught me.  I made very few changes.

Mix 1 package of ground beef, pork, and veal with 2 eggs.  

 

 Add breadcrumbs, parsley, oregano, garlic powder, parmesean cheese, and salt.  There are not really any measurements, since my grandma doesn't matter.  It was mostly breadcrumbs.

 

Combine until it is mixed well and the right consistency.
 

Shape it into cute meatballs.
 

Admire your work (or the work of your fiance, John.  Those were his arms, not mine.)
 

After this is complete, or while someone else is making them, start the gravy.

Brown some garlic cloves and onion slices in a bit of oil.  If you have gravy meat (chunks of beef, pork and veal) with this, brown them, too. 
 

Drain any excess oil and add tomato sauce, water, and tomato paste.  The ratio is about 2 parts sauce:2 parts water:1 part paste.  I usually use 2 15 oz cans of sauce, then fill those cans with water, and then 2 little cans of tomato paste.  I think they are around 6-8 oz each. 
 

 Then you have to add seasonings.  The amount will depend on whether or not you use sauce/paste with seasonings.  I don't.  Grandma does.  Either way, add garlic powder, parsley, oregano, and salt.  Add in the meatballs, and boil.
 

After it boils, simmer it for at least 2 hours.  Then, ENJOY!

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Thrown Together Meals

Let me just start off with the end products. 

I came home after work today completely exhausted.  I hadn't planned dinner AND I was hungry and cranky.  I wanted a Macaroni Monday, but didn't want the typical topping.     After snooping around in the fridge, I found the mushrooms I bought.  ::LIGHTBULB::  MUSHROOM SAUCE.  Yeah. 

 

I started with a little bit of butter melted in the pan.  (Shhhh....Don't tell John!  He doesn't DO butter.)

I added the sliced up Portabellas and let them simmahhhhh.

Once they were set, I added 2 sliced up onions and a bunch of sliced up garlic to the mix.

John smashed the garlic, THANKS JOHN!!

Eventually, the flavors all blend together and are just steamy.

Check out those flavors floating through the air!  You know it's ready when you can smell it and you can barely keep yourself from devouring it! 

Of course, what meal is finished without dessert?  What do you get when you mix:

 

1 melted banana,

3 spoonfuls of peanut butter, 1 spoonful of cinnamon syrup,

 

and a just-about-cooked-brownie that is so delicious that I may or may not have been scooping secret bites from?

HEAVEN!!

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Macaroni Monday!

Continuing with the whole oats-in-the-morning thing, today was peanut butter and banana oatmeal.  I heated up the banana and made it all mushy and sweet.  It was really good.  

Now that I am almost totally healthy, Macaroni Monday was back!  I wanted something fast, easy, and healthy so I pulled something from here.  We had all the ingredients for "Velvety Broccoli and Feta Pasta" except the feta, so that's what I made!

I steamed a bag of frozen broccoli in 1 cube of homemade chicken broth.

While that cooked, I cut up an onion and 4 cloves of garlic.

I mixed it all together with a little olive oil and 1/4 cup of parsley and let it cook up.

While THAT cooked, I squeezed up 2 lemons and added it to the mix.

When it was all cooked I threw it in the blender.

Once mixed in with whole wheat shell macaroni?  YUMMY!

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Sick Sick Sick

Hi!

So, I'm back!

So sorry I was gone for so long.  I had pneumonia.  For a while.  I was sick.  Really sick.

BUT NOW! I am back and cooking and eating again!!!

I was lucky enough to be sent some yummy leftovers to tide my over when I was sick.  I added the chicken to my salad and had that for dinner last night.  MMMmmmMMMm!

Today, I wasn't quite ready for a smoothie for breakfast.  I decided to have cinnamon raisin oatmeal instead.  UNFORTUNATELY there was no cinnamon left.

So I soaked some raisins, 

Cooked some oatmeal,

and added peanut butter to make it yummy!!!  It was probably the best oatmeal I have ever made myself. 

And I deserve it!

Lunch was a simple spinach salad with mushrooms and balsamic vinegar.

 aaaaaaand dinner was a version of this but with spinach.  Just rotini, penne, in a garlic clam sauce WITH spinach.  GO ME!

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