Cakes & Cooking » pasta

Stuffed Shells

cait — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 17:56:21 +0000

This is a handy ricotta filling that is useful in many pasta recipes. Smooth and mild, it works well in shells, as filling for manicotti, or even in a layered lasagna that showcases other flavors of meat or vegetables.

Ricotta Stuffed Shells

15 ot 20 large pasta shells, cooked and drained

Filling

2 cups of ricotta, whole or part skim
1/3 cup grated parmesan or parmesan-romano blend cheese
4 oz grated or crumbled motzarella
pinch of salt and pepper
1 medium egg
1 tbsp chopped fresh or dried basil

Fold all the filling ingredients together. Put into a pastry bag, or a ziplock bag and then snip off the corner to have a hole 1/2 inch in diameter. Pipe filling into the cooked shells.

Spread 1/2 cup of your favorite tomato sauce in a baking dish. Arrange the filled shells in rows, top with another 1/2 cup of tomato sauce and another 4oz of crumbled motzarella. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until cheese begins to brown. Serve with additional meat or red sauce.

Shrimp Scampi over Pasta and Veg

cait — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 03:17:56 +0000

This is a great 2 person meal (double it for 4 people) and can work with any shape of pasta or pretty much any vegetable you have. Even frozen vegetables are fine, just thaw and steam them first.

0.5 lb shrimp peeled and deveined
3 tbsp minced garlic
olive oil
splash of white wine
zest of 1 lemon OR generous splash of lemon juice
3 tbsp parsley, fresh or dried
angel hair pasta, enough for 2
2 cups of cooked green veg
3 tbsp cold butter
parmesan

Thaw, peel, and devein the shrimp. Toss them with olive oil, garlic, parsley, and some salt/pepper. In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the shrimp in the sauce until just heated through – 2-3 minutes on each side. While shrimp is cooking, boil and drain the pasta.

Remove shrimp from the pan with tongs when just cooked through, leaving oil and garlic in the pan. Turn heat to medium high and cook until garlic is browned. Deglaze with a generous splash of white wine, cook until reduced by half. Add the lemon or lemon juice, salt and pepper, and cook until reduced again. Add the cooked and drained pasta to the sauce, and the vegetables. Reduce heat to medium and toss to coat the pasta. Add the butter in 1 tbsp chunks, and a generous palmful of parmesan. Toss again until butter is melted. Add the shrimp back into the pan, toss a final time to coat everything.

Lasagna Roll-Ups

cait — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 00:27:00 +0000

I like this tasty recipe as part of our meatless meals plans – it’s filling and hearty without meat or beans. Taken from an original recipe in Cooks Country, I made a few changes that I think punch things up a little bit (though the changes probably knock it out of the 30 minute meal category into a 45 minute meal).

8-10 no boil lasagna noodles
15 oz. container ricotta
1 block mozzarella, shredded 8 or 10 oz. (approx 2 cups?)
1.5 cups grated parmesan cheese
1 cup cheddar, shredded
1 large egg
1/2 cup chopped basil (or 1/4 dried basil)
1/2 tsp salt
1 can, 20 oz, crushed tomatoes
2 onions, chopped
3 tsbp olive oil
2 tbsp minced garlic

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place the noodles in a microwave safe dish with hot tap water, enough to cover noodles. Microwave until noodles are softened, 3 to 6 minutes. Discard water. Dry noodles on clean towel.
2. Combine ricotta, 1 cup mozzarella, 1 cup cheddar, 1 cup parmesan, egg, salt, and half the basil in a bowl.
3. Saute onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat until onion is soft. Remove from heat, add crushed tomatoes and remaining basil. Spread half the tomato sauce in a 9×13 dish, set the other half aside.
4. With the short side facing you, dollop 1/4 cup of the ricotta mixture on each noodle, roll up. Arrange seam side down in the dish. Pour the remaining tomato sauce over all.
5. Sprinkle remaining cheese over top the rolls, cover with foil and bake until heated through, 10-12 minutes. Remove foil and bake for 5 additional minutes, or until cheese is browned. Let stand 5 minutes and serve.

This makes a pretty hefty portion…but it freezes and reheats well, and makes great leftovers for lunches.

Tri Color Pasta Salad

cait — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 20:23:00 +0000

What is better in the heat of summer than pasta salad. Ice cream, maybe? But that’s not appropriate for dinner. You can make a great pasta salad by just cooking tri-color pasta, draining and rinsing, and then tossing it with halved cherry tomatoes and diced bell peppers. A bit of fresh coarsly grated parmesan finishes it off. Top with any thick dressing – I use homemade balsamic vinagrette that I pop in the freezer for a few minutes to chill and thicken. I find it much better to dress individual portions right before eating, that helps to avoid the oily slimy pasta salad fate that so many people suffer at BBQs.

Best Macaroni and Cheese

cait — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 20:11:00 +0000

Everyone always needs an excellent homemade mac and cheese recipe, it’s just that kind of comfort food. This one is my favorite. Originally passed to me by a friend, I stared in abject horror at the ingredient list when I saw that it containted Velveeta. I was sure that I would never make it and I planned to tuck the recipe away in my pocket, never use it, and never tell my friend. But she must have known what the mental objection was, because she was quick to assure me that the Velveeta is there just to enhance the texture, and to help keep things smooth when reheating. She then even gave me a sample of Velveeta so I wouldn’t need to go to the grocery store and degrade myself by buying a block of my own. I turned out to really love the recipe and now if I think I might want to make a batch I send my husband to the store for some Velveeta – so I’ll never be caught on camera buying it! My mother would be proud.

Cook 2 cups elbow pasta. I like the slightly nutty flavor of Barilla Plus. Drain, rinse.

Melt 3 tbsp butter with 1/4 cup flour in saucepan to form a paste. Add 2 cups of milk, whisk till smooth. Add in 4oz of Velveeta, cut into chunks. Stir till smooth and melted. Add 8 oz of grated sharp cheddar cheese, stir on low till sauce thickens. (Use a 10oz block of cheese and reserve remaining 2 oz). Salt and pepper liberally, add a pinch of onion powder and a dash of chili powder. Mix cooked and drained pasta into the cheese sauce. It should be very saucy.

Pour into a baking dish. Combine 1 tbsp melted butter with 1tbsp bread crumbs. Sprinkle the bread crumbs and reserved cheddar cheese on top. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or so. This reheats fairly well. Thanks J, for the recipe!