Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

I don't know anyone that doesn't like Spaghetti!  My daughter was the pickiest eater when we started table food but this is the one dish that she loved.  It's become a staple in our house.  I like to simmer my sauce for a few hours letting the flavors marry but this can easily be made in 30 minutes when needed.  Freeze the extra sauce for a fast, last minute meal!

Ingredients:

(for the meat sauce)

1 lb Lean Ground Beef

1 Yellow Onion, chopped

2 cloves of Garlic, minced

1- 6oz can of Tomato Paste

1- 15 oz can of Tomato Sauce

1- 28 oz can of Whole Tomatoes

8 oz Water

1 & 1/2 tsp dried Italian Seasoning

1/2-1 tsp Garlic Powder

Salt & Pepper

Spaghetti Pasta

Freshly grated Parmesan Cheese (for topping)

Fresh, Flat Leaf Parsley, chopped (for garnish)

Directions:

In a large pot, or dutch oven drizzle a little olive oil in the bottom & add the ground beef.  Season with salt & pepper & brown over medium heat.  When the meat starts to cook, add in the onion & garlic.  Cook until the onion is soft & the ground beef is no longer pink. 

 Add in the canned tomatoes (with all their juices), the tomato paste, the tomato sauce, water (I use the tomato sauce can filled half way) the dried Italian Seasoning & the garlic powder.  Stir to incorporate, breaking up the tomatoes with your spoon.  If you are in a hurry, simmer on low-medium uncovered for 20 minutes.  Prepare your pasta, according to the package directions, while it is simmering.  But don't forget to add salt to the pasta water!!  If you have some time, cover the sauce & simmer for as long as you can.  (Wait to cook your pasta if you are letting your sauce simmer for a while.)

 I try to let mine simmer for at least an hour.  But when I can cook it even longer.  Ever notice how spaghetti sauce tastes better left over?  It's because it's had time for it all the seasonings to blend with the meat & tomato sauce.  Cooking on low for a long time does the same thing.  The longer you simmer, the better it will be!

When you are ready to eat, uncover the sauce & let it simmer uncovered while you prepare the pasta. 

 Serve with lots of freshly grated Parmesan & a sprinkle of fresh chopped flat leaf parsley.

 Make a Caesar or simple green salad with vinaigrette dressing to complete the meal.

This recipe is for 8-10 servings.  I always freeze half of the sauce, so this makes 2 meals for my family (plus some left overs).

Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken Breasts with Havarti

Similar to Chicken Cordon Bleu in that it's chicken with ham & cheese but this recipe is so quick & easy- you can have it on the table in 15-20 minutes!  This was another star in John's week of favorite & it's not hard to see why!

Ingredients:

Boneless & Skinless Chicken Breast

Thinly Sliced Prosciutto, 1-2 slices per breast

Thinly Sliced Havarti Cheese, 1 slice per breast

Butter

Olive Oil

Salt & Pepper

Directions:

I always try to use my smaller chicken breasts for this recipe.  (If you have extra large ones, you can slice them in half or pound them thinner for quick cooking.)  Season both sides of the chicken breasts with salt & pepper.  Go light on the salt as you will be adding salty ham to it!

Over medium- high heat, melt a mixture of butter & olive oil together.  (About 1 tbsp of each for 3-4 chicken breasts.)  You want the skillet hot enough to sear the chicken but not hot enough to burn the butter. 

Cook the chicken breasts on each side, until browned (3-5 minutes per side, depending on the size).  You want the chicken to be mostly cooked at this point.  Remove the chicken to a plate but keep the skillet on the heat.

Working quickly, wrap 1-2 pieces of Prosciutto around each chicken breast & return to the hot skillet.  Don't worry about getting the ham perfect around the chicken, it will stick to the chicken when it cooks. 

Cook over medium high heat until the ham crisps up (this only takes a 2-3 minutes).  Flip to crisp the other side. 

Lay a piece of cheese on the top of heat Prosciutto wrapped breast.  Place the lid over the pan & reduce the heat to low (or off). 

Just leave the lid on long enough to melt the cheese, just a minute or 2.  (I plate my sides while it's melting.)

Serve immediately, with a little fresh, chopped Parsley to garnish.  It goes nicely with my Creamy Scalloped Potatoes & Steamed Broccoli! 

Creamy Scalloped Potatoes

Oh my!  I know exactly why these lovely potatoes were apart of my husband's week of favorites this year!  They are so darn good!  Thinly sliced potatoes cooked in a rich & creamy sauce with a crispy Parmesan top- what's not to love about that?!?  Other than their caloric content of course.  But we won't talk about that!!

 Ingredients:

5 medium sized White Potatoes

1 medium Yellow Onion, cut in half & thinly sliced

2-3 Cloves of Garlic, minced

3/4 cup Heavy Cream

4 tbsp Butter

1 tbsp Olive Oil

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan Cheese

Salt & Pepper

Freshly chopped Parsley (to garnish)

Directions:

In a small skillet, saute the onions in a little bit of olive oil over medium heat until the start to soften.  Add the minced garlic & continue to cook 1-2 minutes. 

 While the onion is cooking, pour the heavy cream into a small sauce pan.  Add the butter & cook over low heat until the butter is melted. 

 Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Then thinly slice the potatoes into 1/8" slices.  A mandolin makes this go quickly, but it can easily be done with a knife too. 

 Spray a 9" X 7" casserole dish (or something close to that size) with non stick spray.  Spread half of the onion & garlic evenly in the bottom.

 Layer in about half of the potatoes & sprinkle with salt & pepper. 

 Pour just under half of the cream & butter mixture over top.  Then repeat the layers.

 Bake, covered with aluminum foil at 425 degrees for about 45 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. 

 Top with the Parmesan cheese.  Then bake, uncovered, for another 15-20 minutes.  Just until the Parmesan & potatoes are crispy & brown and the cream is absorbed. 

 Let it sit for 10 minutes or so before cutting into & sprinkle a little fresh Parsley on the top to serve. 

 This is my picky one...she said that she didn't want scalloped potatoes.

 But I got a 2 thumbs up after she tasted them!!

 See the crispy topping?  It's like having a Parmesan crisp on top!

This recipe is for 4-6 sides. 

John's Favorite Grilled Shrimp

My husband loves this simple shrimp recipe.  I marinate shrimp with lots of garlic, olive oil & Old Bay then grill them.  They are so tasty, no cocktail sauce is needed!  I made this for part of John's birthday dinner this week.  Along with a big Porterhouse Steak, my Twice Baked & Over Stuffed Potatoes & a green salad with Homemade Ranch Dressing.  He was a happy (and very full) birthday boy!

 Ingredients:

1 lb Large Shrimp, heads removed, shells on

4-5 Cloves of Garlic, minced

1/4 cup Olive Oil

1 tsp Old Bay (plus additional for serving)

Fresh chopped Parsley, to garnish

Directions:

Use large shrimp, since these will be grilled and the fresher the better!

 These were 21-30 count. 

 Mince up the garlic.  Add the shrimp to a large Ziploc type bag.  Add the garlic, olive oil & Old Bay to the bag.  Close the top of the bag & distribute the garlic & oil evenly over the shrimp. 

 Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, I marinated them for 4 hours this time.

Grill the shrimp over medium- high heat.  They will cook quickly, so don't leave them unattended!  As soon as they turn pink & start to curl remove them from the grill. 

 Plate & sprinkle with chopped Parsley to garnish.  Serve with Old Bay & a bowl for the shells.

This recipe is for 2 main course servings or 4 appetizers. 

Beef Stew

 This past Sunday marked the start of John's Week of Favorites.  His birthday was on Monday & I am a firm believer of celebrating your birthday to it's full potential, so in my house you get a week of favorites.  When I was younger I celebrated my birthday for an entire month.  So I guess I've matured...slightly.  ;)  For my hubby's first day of favorites, I made Beef Stew.  Warm & comforting, this hearty stew was perfect for a chilly Sunday dinner!  I slowly cooked it for a good portion of the day while we finished up our Christmas decorating & got ready to start the work week after the long Thanksgiving weekend.  I cook my stew in the oven but you could use a crock pot if you'd prefer.  It takes some time to make it but it's so worth it.  The slow cooking renders meat is so tender it falls apart!  I love that my hubby's birthday falls in between Thanksgiving & Christmas.  It's such a special time of year- which makes perfect sense that my guy was born then!

Ingredients:

1.5- 2 lbs Beef Roast

2 medium Yellow Onions, cut in 1/2 then sliced

2 (big) hand fulls of Baby Carrots

6 small-medium Red Potatoes, halved or cut into quarters

1/2-1 lb Frozen Green Beans

4 cups Beef Broth

6  oz can Tomato Paste

2-3 cups of water

1/2-1 cup Flour

3-4 tbsp Olive Oil

2 Beef Bouillon Cubes

Garlic Powder

Salt & Pepper

Cooked Egg Noodles to serve (optional)

Directions:

If cooking in the oven, preheat to 300 degrees.

 Generously season the roast on all sides with Garlic Powder, Salt & Pepper. 

 Then coat with flour. 

 In a large skillet or dutch oven, heat up about 2 tbsp of olive oil to medium/ high heat.  Sear all the sides of the roast. 

 When the meat is seared, remove from the pot & reduce the heat to medium.  Add the onions & carrots to the pot.  Saute for a couple of minutes, scraping up the flour & bits from the roast.  (You may need to add a little bit more olive oil to the pan for this.)

 (If you are using a crock pot, transfer all the onions & carrots to the bowl of the crock pot.)  Add in the tomato paste & 1/2 of the beef broth.  Stir to incorporate. 

 Then add the meat & all it's juices.  Pour in the rest of the beef broth on top.  Cover & place in the oven.  Cook for 3-4 hours in the oven at 300 degrees.  In a crock pot, cook at high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours.

 After 3-4 hours (or 6-8 hours, depending on your cooking method) check on the roast.  I use a wooden spoon to help break it up.  If your meat is falling apart easily, then it's ready for the rest of the veggies.  If it's still tough, then you need to cover & continue to cook it.  At this point, you should also check the liquid level.  You may or may not need to add more water or more broth to cook the potatoes.  I needed more so I added 2-3 cups of water & 2 beef bouillon cubes.  Then I covered & continued to cook it for another hour.  When your roast is starting to falling apart, add the potatoes & frozen green beans.  You can add any veggies that you'd like.  Add in some corn, peas- anything you want!  Turn the heat up to 350 degrees in the oven (high for your crock pot).  Adjust your seasonings, then cover & continue to cook for an hour, or until the potatoes are tender. 

This time I served with wide egg noodles but some times I just served with some crusty bread. 

 The hubs was very happy with his first evening of favorites!  So much so that he took it for lunch again the next day! 

 This recipe will served 6-8 people.