Day 3: Baked shells with pesto, mozzarella, and meat sauce

Tonight's recipe comes from a Food & Wine Cookbook. Food & Wine is not a usual source of food inspiration, due to the "fancy recipes" made with "weird ingredients!" Even though I thoroughly enjoy both Food and Wine. I draw my limit at calf liver... or really liver of any kind! And if that interests you, I will gladly give you that page!

These books were actually a gift from a friend who bought them at one of the many book fairs that frequent the teacher's lounge! She decided to pass them on to me, knowing full well that I would use them.

This recipe sounded interesting due to the fact that

a. It is Italian, and we like Italian. A lot.

b. There is none of the afore mentioned weird ingredients.

c. An appetizing picture always helps too!

Here's the recipe.

Ingredients-

• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 pound ground beef
• 2 (14.5 oz) cans chopped tomatoes , drained
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup pesto
• 3/4 cup medium pasta shells
• 6 oz. grated mozzarella
• Parmesan cheese

Directions (the Jenn version)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cook shells according to box directions.
3. Use large skillet to brown hamburger and onion. Drain and return to pan.
4. Add tomatoes and salt to pan with meat. Simmer for 10 min until thickened.
5. Remove from heat and add pesto.
6. Drain pasta and add to meat mixture.
7. Grease 9x13 pan. Add 1/2 of meat mixture. Add 1/2 of cheese. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers.
8. Cook 15 min, or until cheese is good and bubbly!

Doesn't it just look good?

This recipe is a keeper. We usually make the recipe according to directions first, then make changes. However, this time we made some initial changes.

• We cut the salt. 1 1/2 tsp sounded like a lot. We only used 1/2 tsp.
• Instead of mozzarella, we used smoked Gouda (my new favorite) and you could really taste it!
• Next time, add mushrooms and sausage instead of ground beef.

Since it is Thursday.... and Pie League is back from hiatus.... and just because...... I decided to finish my meal with a piece of Apple Pear Pie and a little Ben & Jerry's Dulce Delish! Yumm!

Day 2: Pork Chops and Mashed Potatoes

When we got married a year and a half ago, we had registered for some new cookware. We just happened to find a set that we really liked- Emerilware. Little did I know, Eric would now use it as an excuse to yell Bam! all the time! We decided that since we have the cookware maybe we should actually try an Emeril recipe. And what could be more perfect than one with TONS of Garlic! Eric has a love affair with garlic. It is in almost everything we make, and if not, we usually find a way to add it in.

So enter tonight's meal- Grilled Pork Chops with Garlic Jam

Ingredients

- 4 thick cut pork chops

- Olive oil

- Essence Creole Seasoning- You can buy this but it was easy to make.

- 2 1/2 T. paprika

- 2 T salt

- 2 T garlic powder

- 1 T black pepper

- 1 T Onion powder

- 1 T Cayenne pepper

- 1 T dried Oregano

- 1 T dried Thyme

- Garlic Jam (Recipe follows)

- 4 large heads of garlic (Yum!)

- 1/2 c olive oil

- 1/4 of a red onion

- 1/4 t. Worcestershire sauce.. plus a little more

- 1 t. lemon juice.. plus a little more

- 1/4 t. salt

Preheat oven to 300.

In a small saucepan, heat salted water to a boil. Cut garlic heads

in half cross-wise and blanche in water for 5 minutes. Pour olive

oil in a small baking dish. Remove garlic from water and place in

baking dish. Add 1/4 of red onion to dish. Cover tightly with

aluminum foil and bake for 1 hour.

Remove garlic from oil and squeeze softened garlic from skin

into a bowl. Dice onion and place in bowl with garlic. Smash

garlic with a fork and mix together. Add in Worcestershire

sauce, lemon juice, and salt. Stir until smooth and creamy.

Directions:

Heat Foreman grill. Brush pork chops on both sides with olive oil and rub with Essence seasoning. Cook until cooked through. Serve with garlic jam on the side or on top.

As a side tonight, I made mashed potatoes. Real Mashed potatoes. Growing up mashed potatoes were the bain of my existence. I loathed them, but my parents required that I ate them. And we had them EVERY Sunday! So every Sunday, I would always be the last one to scoop out my potatoes hoping that somehow my Mom had miscalculated the amount of potatoes. But there were always enough. So instead, I would make the tiniest, most minuscule dollop I could get away with.

As a grown up, if I make potatoes they are usually instant potatoes, because those I like. Weird. I know. If the potatoes aren't instant, then they are Slow Cooked Mashed Potatoes from Taste of Home. I don't make them often, usually when potatoes are on sale for cheap. :)

Ingredients-

- 6 cups of mashed potatoes ( no butter or milk added)

- 3 oz of softened cream cheese

- 1/4 cup softened butter

- 1 packet of dry Ranch Dressing

- 1/2 c sour cream

- parsley flakes on top

Directions

Put all ingredients in a slow cooker. Stir and mix completely. Cook on low for 3 hrs.

That is it for the potatoes. Easy and delish. And how can potatoes be bad with cream cheese and sour cream and ranch!

Overall good meal. The garlic was good to cool down your mouth, but if you were short on time a big glass of milk would do the same thing. Didn't really think about color until the very end. So sorry it is all in the same color family! Werm, my Foods teacher in HS, would not be very happy with me! :)

Generic Food Challenge-- Day 1

Hi. My name is Jenn, and I am a cookbook junkie.

Here is my story--

I can't help walking down the cookbook aisle at Borders or Target or Hyvee... (I think you get the idea.) And walking by is not such

a bad thing. However, I always seem to walk away with at least one or two. It has gotten to the point that my cookbook shelves are now overflowing. So many cookbooks, many marked with fantastic sounding/looking recipes, but it is getting out of control. I am forgetting what we have.. what we've tried... and which recipes I desperately wanted to try!

Solution? We created the Generic Food Challenge. What is the Generic Food Challenge? In a span of three months, our goal is to cook a different meal for supper each night of those 3

months- No Repeats. Once we have successfully completed a 3 month period, we are free to repeat up to 6 recipes over the course of the next 3 months.

Disclaimer--- I usually only cook 2 or 3 days a week, so I am not sure how this would work if you are super woman and cook EVERY night !

Impossible? Not really. It is actually a lot easier than I thought it would be. However I did get a HUGE craving for Asian Pork Burgers this summer and couldn't remake them, because that would break the rules! That was not fun, but we suffered through.

We have tried this out and seem to have worked out some of the wrinkles, so now I think I'm ready to share some good stuff!

Day One: 3 Cheese French Onion Soup with Turkey Bacon Panini

• 2 large red onions, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup butter, cubed
• 4 cups Chicken or Veggie Broth
• 3 cups water
• 1 envelope onion soup mix
• 1 teaspoon pepper (maybe a little less)
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder.. or a little more in our case.
• 7 slices French bread (3/4 inch thick)
• shredded Swiss cheese
• shredded mozzarella cheese
• grated Parmesan cheese

• 
  

  In a large soup pan, saute onions in butter until tender. Add the broth, water, soup mix, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic powder. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat: cover and simmer for 5 minutes.

  
  

  Place bread slices on a baking sheet. Put some swiss and mozzarella cheese on each slice. Broil for 1 to 2 minutes. Put a slice on top of soup and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

• To make the Turkey Bacon Panini.....
• 
  
• Leftover French Bread
• 2 slices of Apple Smoked Gruyere cheese
• 2 slices of bacon
• Dijon Honey Mustard
• Mesquite Turkey Breast Lunchmeat

Cut French bread into 4 slices. Place honey mustard, cheese, turkey, and bacon on a slice of french bread and top with the other piece of bread. Repeat because you husband needs one too. Brush outside with a little olive oil. Cook for a few minutes on panini grill until dark and crusty. Yum!

Both parts of super tonight were awesome! I love nights like this!

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