Tormented Kitchen

Hello, my friends.  It's been quite a while since I've been in the kitchen cooking from scratch.  Being pregnant is hard work!  The baby is now almost 3 weeks old, the garden is bursting with tomatoes, and I've gotten slowly back in the kitchen. Today, I'm sharing with you, my recipe for lasagna. I made a small batch of homemade tomato sauce with bell peppers and pork to use up some tomatoes.  I used that for my lasagna sauce this time, but you can use jarred sauce from the store.  I normally use marinara or a tomato-y sauce in a jar, so use what works for you. Ingredients 1 lb ground beef 2 eggs 1 15oz container part-skim ricotta cheese 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (for mixing into filling) 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 2 Tablespoons dried parsley 1 box lasagna noodles (I prefer American  Beauty's Oven-Ready) 1 28oz jar Marinara or Tomato-Garlic pasta sauce, or about 3 cups homemade sauce 1 1/2 cups water 1 cup shredded ...

Hello, dear readers. I have been a busy mama and trying to make new things at home has been a challenge. You might remember that I joined Influenster a while ago. I was very surprised when I was given something totally awesome to review. Annie's Homegrown frozen lasagna! OK, you're probably thinking "What's the big deal about frozen lasagna? It's not that great." Well, that's what I thought too. I've had other brands of frozen lasagna that were fairly bad with thick, pasty pasta, gummy cheese, processed meat, and sometimes it was all I could do to eat it because I was that hungry. We've eaten other products from Annie's and I'm happy with them. The kids love the bunny gummies and cheddar snack mix. They are so-so with the mac & cheese. I was definitely game to try the new frozen family size entrees. I picked up my box from Target.  They have other flavors, Mac & Cheese, Butternut Mac & Cheese, Chicken and White Chedda...

Once upon a time, a long time ago in an apartment just across town, I attempted to make meatballs for the first time.  I didn't have a recipe. I had a package of ground beef and a friend with an idea for dinner by my side.  We rolled the meat into balls and put them in a hot frying pan.  We stood there, poking at the meatballs, wondering how in the world would we know when they were done? Then I rolled one, and it was burned. Then another and another, all burned. We laughed at our mistake and tried to eat the unburned half of the meatballs with spaghetti sauce from a jar and slightly overcooked pasta. But it was still OK.  I had to learn somehow.  Cooking is about doing it.  Pick something, come up with a way to cook it, then give it a taste. Since then, I have figured out how to cook meatballs without burning them into little briquettes. I got a recipe from a real cookbook and tried it. Then I made it again with a little change.  Then again...

This year, Thanksgiving was fairly quiet. Justin's mom was the only guest we had.  With that in mind, we kept the big feast pretty small. I actually did not make a pie. I had lots of good ingredients for a couple of pies, but we decided that was too much for us.  We ended up buying a few loaves of pumpkin bread from House of Bread and some of Starbuck's holiday gingerbread. I had to make the basic Roast Turkey , and at 11.5 lbs, we thought it was small.  Trust me, that is still a lot of bird. It took about 3 1/2 hours at 325F. I fixed my Turkey Stock so I could make Turkey Gravy and Turkey Giblet Dressing and made sure I had enough stock to have some left for tetrazini. The only thing I did different was add parsley to the stock and the dressing.  I also made Michel's Cran-Raspberry Mousse . I also happened to get some really good rolls from House of Bread. Thanksgiving Eve Dinner, I didn't even bother to get out the good china or serving bowls. Ton...

I was on a cooking spree this weekend. I had so many plans, that I didn't get to everything.  However, I managed to make this, which happens to be one of Justin's favorite pasta dishes.  It's great for a quick lunch or as a side to something else. This versatile pasta salad has been a hit whenever I bring a bowl of it to a pot-luck. It's mayonnaise-free so food-poisoning chances are slim. Also, you can change up the additions, say roasted red bell peppers are one of your favorite foods.  Go ahead and add some!  Change up the cheese.  I used Colby-Jack this time. Ingredients 1/2 pound shaped pasta, like rotini or fusilli (corkscrew-shaped pastas) 1 garlic clove, peeled 1/2 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard 3 tablespoons red-wine vinegar 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar 1/2 tablespoon water 1/4 cup olive oil or canola oil 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped 1/4 pound cheese (mozzarella, cheddar, provolone, or Colby-Jack) cut into 1/2-inch cubes 3 ounces sliced ...

Frog's Eye Salad. Doesn't that name just sound gross? It sounds kind of like Halloween food to me. When I look at this in a bowl, I think it should have a nice name. Maybe I will just call it something else. Maybe I will just call it ambrosia or picnic fruit salad. Or I will make up something odd like "insalata con acini de frutta" which really means nothing in Italian. I like making up words. How about Fru-cini? Prounounced Froo-cheenee. What about Fru-cina-lata (froo-cheena-laa-tah)? This dish uses a tiny shaped pasta called Acini de pepe . They are just little balls of pasta. For anyone unfamiliar with the pronunciation of Acini de pepe , the correct way to say it is "ah-chee-knee duh pay-pay". Wow, I didn't realize I was going to be giving Italian language lessons on a food blog. Go me! Anyhow, I gleaned this gem of a recipe from my dear hubby's stepmom. It makes a lot of food. This fills a very large mixing bowl, and it's fairly ...

This is one of my favorite dishes. It's super easy. Of course, using good basil is key to making this pesto. You may omit the parsley if you don't like it. I do. I think it adds a nice freshness that compliments the basil. I recommend this dish for pot-luck parties and picnics because you could keep the crab out separately (in the cooler) and add it to the pasta right before serving, if keeping the whole bowl cool is an issue. I could envision cooking the garlic first to reduce its pungency. I would probably mince it and sautee in the olive oil 1-2 minutes before adding it to the processor. Ingredients 2 cups basil leaves, large stems removed 1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, large stems removed 1 clove garlic, peeled 3 Tablespoons pine nuts 3 oz. real Parmesan cheese, from a wedge or block, *NOT KRAFT* 1/3 to 1/2 cup olive oil 12 oz crab, imitation or real if available 8 oz tri-color rotini salt to taste Method 1. Boil rotini according to package instructions....

OK OK I forgot to take pictures again , but there are leftovers so I could. If I remember... Anyhow, who loves Italian food? Who loves cheese? And marinara sauce? And MEAT? And and and...(wiping drool) it makes a whole pan-full. So this is certainly not a top-secret, high class recipe. It's mine. It's pretty basic. It's in the style of good ol' Sandra Lee of "Semi-homemade" fame. Ingredients 1 box manicotti 1 jar marinara sauce 1 lb shredded mozzarella cheese(16 oz. or 4 cups) 1 15-oz. tub ricotta cheese 1 egg 1/2 teaspoon basil 1/2 teaspoon oregano 1 lb. ground beef 1 cup water parmesan or romano cheese (optional) Method 1. Boil manicotti according to package directions. This takes usually about 7 minutes to get to. Also, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 2. Meanwhile, brown meat until cooked through. Drain excess fat. Set aside. 3. In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg. Add mozzarella, ricotta, basil, and oregano and blend well. 4. ...