I don't particularly care for pasta dishes - I know, sacrilege - but I do know how to cook some of them really well. I picked up a ziti recipe from Stephanie O'Dea at A Year of Slow Cooking who does hers in a crockpot. I've tried it and it's amazing, but my boyfriend likes the crispiness of baked cheese so I usually go for the oven to cook it. Also, it might be just a smidgen quicker.
Ingredients:
- 1 lbs. cheese of your choice (mozzarella, Parmesan, etc.)
- 1 box of pasta (penne, rigatoni, ziti, etc.)
- 1 jar of pre-made red spaghetti sauce (unless you want to make your own from scratch)
- 1 can of tomato paste (6oz)
- 1/2 lbs. of ground beef
- medium onion, chopped
- 1-3 cloves of chopped garlic (to taste)
- spices (salt, pepper, paprika, oregano)
- (optional) mushrooms
You will need a large pot and 9x13 baking pan. Preheat the oven to 425F
Start cooking pasta according to instructions prior to starting the sauce. Shred all of the cheese and have handy for later.
In a large pot (unless you have a giant frying pan), brown the beef while making sure it doesn't clump together. Add spices, garlic, and onion, and cook until everything is browned. Add sauce and the paste, mix until uniform and set aside, simmering. It's not necessary to cool the sauce.
Coat the pan with a non-stick spray (lining it with aluminum foil might help as well). Layer the ingredients as follows: a third of the pasta, a third of the sauce, a third of the cheese, repeat. Sprinkle the top cheese layer with a little paprika for extra spiciness. Bake for approx. 45 minutes, or until the top is a delicious golden brown.
You can serve it as a side to chicken Parmesan or by itself.
Enjoy!
This is one of those amazingly easy recipes that you can toss together and feel good about; it will turn out delicious no matter what. Quiche is a French breakfast equivalent of 'empty your fridge' with eggs kind of dish, so while I chose to use these ingredients they don't have to be copied 100%
Ingredients:
- deep pie shell
- 4-5 large eggs
- 1/2 pint of half and half (anything with less fat content won't taste as delicious)
- 2oz. goat cheese
- 2oz. Gruyere or smoked Gouda
- 2-4 white mushrooms, sliced
- salt and pepper to taste
- (optional) ground rosemary
Note: Cheeses can be changed out as long as one soft and one hard cheese is used. Also, the amount of cheese can be increased to your liking.
Preheat oven to 400F. You might need a cookie sheet to set the pie shell on so it doesn't overflow into the oven proper.
Roughly mix half and half with the eggs, add all spices, and set aside. In the pie shell set out the sliced up mushrooms, crumbled goat cheese and shredded Gruyere. Pour the mixture over it, stick the whole thing in the oven and bake for about 40 minutes.
Quiche should be ready when the top is a lovely golden brown color. You may try sticking a toothpick in there as a test of readiness, though the cheese will most likely keep it gooey.
Enjoy!
