Spinach & Cheese Stuffed Pasta Shells

SC and I made this without a recipe! I had ricotta cheese leftover from the previous dinner and decided I had to make something out of it. So, here's what we did:

Ingredients:
-1 box of pasta shells
-12oz ricotta cheese
-1 box frozen spinach
-1 cup grated parmegian reggiano
-salt & pepper
-Cayenne pepper
-Italian seasoning
-oregano
-parsley
-0.75lb ground turkey (or beef)
-20oz can tomato sauce
-1 small can of tomatoe paste
-4 roma tomatoes
-1 onion
-6 garlic cloves

Prepare the pasta per packaged instructions but boil only for half the time. Remove and run cold water through it to prevent breakage.
Sauce: Cook the turkey (or beef) with onion & garlic. Add some italian seasoning, Cayenne pepper, salt & pepper. When done, mix in tomato sauce, paste and roma tomatoes.
Stuffing: Mix ricotta, spinach (defrosted & drained), salt & pepper, italian season, oregano, parsley.
Gently put stuffing into cooked shells. In a large baking dish, layer the bottom with sauce, place shells in one layer, pour remaining sauce onto shells. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes covered with foil. Sprinkle parmegian reggiano over the top and bake an additional 10-12 minutes uncovered.

Done! It was delicious! Rachel Ray ain't got nothin' on us!! =) Well, except maybe a few TV shows, cookbooks, and some millions & millions of dollars....

FLORENTINE PROSCIUTTO WRAPPED CHICKEN

Ingredients
• 1 box frozen spinach, defrosted
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
• 2 cloves garlic, grated or finely chopped
• ¼ cup onion
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• A few grates nutmeg
• 6 chicken breasts
• 6 slices prosciutto di Parma, 1/3 pound
• 3 to 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Italian seasoning

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Wring out defrosted spinach in clean kitchen towel.
combine spinach in a bowl, mix in cheeses, garlic, salt, pepper and nutmeg and Italian seasoning.
Cut into and across but not all the way through the chicken breasts, opening them up like a book with a sharp knife. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Fill each with a small mound of stuffing. Flap chicken breasts back over stuffing and wrap each breast with prosciutto to seal them, carefully covering the whole breast. Brush chicken all over with some extra-virgin olive oil & sprinkle on Italian seasoning and roast 30 minutes until cooked through.

Rather than using prosciutto, I wrapped the chicken in bacon. I don't know if I loved this. I may have cooked the chicken for too long (35 min total), but I also felt the stuffing wasn't very tasty. Considering I put two types of cheeses in there, I really couldn't taste much, or perhaps the bacon was too overpowering?? I don't know. In any case, this was my least favorite of the items I made tonight. If I try this again I may go for proscuitto and less bake time. I'm just scared of undercooking poultry.

Chicken and Rice Stuffed Bell Peppers

Chicken and Rice Stuffed Bell Peppers - I turned this into a vegetarian dish and substituted chicken with mushrooms.

ingredients
• 1 tablespoon margarine or butter
• 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
• 1 10-3/4-ounce can reduced-fat and reduced-sodium condensed cream of mushroom soup
• 1 cup water or chicken broth
• 1/2 cup onions
• 4 cups cubed cooked chicken (or mushrooms, about 6 cups)
• 3 cups hot cooked rice
• 5 large green sweet peppers (about 8 ounces each)
• 1 teaspoon lemon-pepper seasoning
• 1-1/4 cups shredded cheddar cheese (5 ounces)

directions
1. Melt margarine or butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add celery and cook about 5 minutes or until tender.
2. Stir in condensed mushroom soup, onions and water or broth. Heat until bubbly. Stir in chicken (or mushrooms), heat through. Stir in rice' remove from heat.
3. To assemble, halve peppers lengthwise; remove stems, seeds, and membranes. Place pepper halves, cut sides up, in a large shallow baking or roasting pan. Divide chicken mixture among the pepper halves. Sprinkle with lemon-pepper seasoning.
4. Bake peppers, loosely covered with foil, in a 350 degree F oven about 45 minutes or until heated through. Top with cheese and pimiento. Bake, uncovered, about 5 minutes more or until cheese is just melted. Makes 10 servings.

I only used 4 bell peppers so had some of the stuffing left, which was actually pretty yummy just on its own. I noticed some people just ate the stuffing and didn't really like the bell peppers anyway, so maybe make it as just a side next time?? Original recipe called for a packet of onion soup mix, but I took it out and added onions and some salt because I figured that's all the mix would be anyways. I also didn't have lemon pepper so squeezed some fresh lemon juice into it. I'm starting to get good at substituting and just winging the measurements. Pretty cool =)

Scalloped Potatoes

Ingredients
• 5 large potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
• 3/4 cup chopped onion
• 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cups chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• Paprika
• Bacon

Directions
1. In a 2-1/2-qt. baking dish, layer potatoes and onion.
2. In a saucepan, melt the butter; stir in flour until smooth. Gradually add broth, mayonnaise, salt and pepper; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thick and bubbly. Pour over potatoes. Sprinkle with paprika.
3. Cover and bake at 325 degrees for 2 hours or until tender.

The potatoes I bought were GINORMOUS, so I ended up making 1.5 servings of the mixture to fully coat the potatoes. Glad I did that because I think the consistency came out perfect. I liked it a lot. I made homemade bacon bits and threw about 1/4 cup between the first and second layer of potatoes as well as on top. Perfect dish for this carbo-holic! I think this and the brie tied for my favorite items made today.

Broccoli Salad

Broccoli florets
Purple seedless grapes cut in halves
Bacon bits
Scallions
Lighthouse coleslaw dressing

No measurements for anything because you just add as much, or as little, of everything as you want according to taste. I usually start with enough servings of broccoli for everyone, and then add bacon and grapes to balance. Throw in scallions for flavor, and add dressing tablespoon by tablespoon and toss. I don't like to drown it in dressing. It's also best to let the salad settle in the fridge for a day or so before serving. SC likes to blanch the broccoli first - I always just go with raw.

Got this recipe from my former boss's (NJ) wife. I was addicted to it for awhile. It's super easy to make in high volume - perfect for potlucks.

Baked Brie

1 sheet puff pastry
1/2 cup honey
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 tbs chopped rosemarry
1 thing of brie

Combine the honey, pecans, cranberries, and rosemary in a bowl. Roll the puff pastry if needed to make it larger. Place the brie on the puff pastry. Place the bowl mixture on top of brie and spread it around the top. Fold the puff pastry over the brie and topping. If you want, coat the exterior of the puff pastry with egg yolk (this adds a more golden crust).

Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

I love this! Recipe came out perfect, although might have been a tad sweet for some. I like it with french bread or plain deli flatbread crackers, nothing too heavy. DEFINITELY not triscuits, ER! Thanks for the recipe, BS!