Category Archives: Pasta

Mushroom and Pasta Frittata

Yesterday I was watching Everyday Italian and Giada was making this frittata. It looked so easy and delicious that I decided I should make one myself – but then again, Giada could be making a heart soufflé a la True Blood and make it look easy and delicious…

Yesterday being Friday, official refrigerator clean-up day in my house, I had to use what I had on hand. The frittata came out tasty and certainly good-looking, although it was missing something, some layer of flavor. I wouldn’t want to add meat to this dish because the mushrooms are hearty enough, but maybe bacon? Any suggestions?

(Serves up to 6)

Ingredients:

6 eggs

3 tbsp milk

¼ c grated parmesan cheese

3 tbsp chopped parsley

8 oz baby bella mushrooms, chopped

¾ c slightly undercooked short-cut pasta

1 tsp salt, ½ tsp pepper

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

In a bowl, whisk together eggs, milk and cheese. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir to combine. Pour mixture into a greased round baking dish and bake for 30 minutes. Slice into wedges and serve with marinara sauce.

Chicken and Ricotta Stuffed Shells

I was making some chicken broth earlier this week and had a few chicken breasts left over to do with as a pleased. This was my first time making stuffed shells and I kind of just threw everything together hoping that it’d work and it did! I didn’t really measure anything but the proportions came out perfect. It was obviously meant to be.

(Four portions)

Ingredients:

6 oz (about half a box) jumbo shells

½ c marinara sauce

About 1 cup shredded poached chicken

¾ c mozzarella cheese

8 oz ricotta cheese

2 tbsp chopped parsley

The zest of ½ a lemon

1 egg

Boil a large pot of salted water. Cook the shells three-quarters of the way. Remove from the water and place on a greased sheet pan. Set aside to cool. Preheat the oven to 375.

In a bowl, mix the chicken, ½ cup of mozzarella, ricotta, parsley, lemon zest and the egg.

Spread some of the marinara on the bottom of a glass baking dish (to prevent sticking.)When the shells are cool enough to handle, fill each one with about 1 tbsp of the filling. Place the shells in the dish.

Top with the remaining marinara and cheese.

Bake for 25 minutes.

Bolognese Sauce

Again I haven’t blogged for a week. Boo for me. During the last few days the weather in New York has warmed up quite a bit which means more time out with friends and very little nookie for my kitchen. Lately it’s been mostly sushi and barbecues. But no more! Here is my most recent adventure:As I’ve said before, I eat very little red meat. Except for cheeseburgers, of course, I can’t resist those. But I’ve been wanting to make Bolognese sauce for a while and tonight I finally had the chance. This red sauce is originally from Bologna, Italy (hence the name) and is made with beef. Every cook has their own recipe and this one’s mine : ]

Yield: 4-6 portions
Ingredients:
2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 medium white onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 stalk of celery, diced
2 small carrots, diced
1 pound ground beef
1 tsp dried oregano
1/3 cup dry red wine
1 12 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 tbs light brown sugar
Parsley and parmesan cheese for garnish
Salt/pepper
Cooked pasta

Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed skillet on medium-low heat.

Add the vegetables and season with salt and pepper. Sauté for 5 min. Increase the heat to medium-high and add the beef. Season with salt, pepper and oregano. Break up with a wooden spoon and cook for 5 min, until the meat is no longer pink. Add the wine and simmer for 5 more min, to cook off the alcohol. Add the tomatoes and brown sugar. Re-season again if needed. Stir and bring the mixture to a boil. Then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 min, loosely covered.

Then taste for seasoning and serve with pasta of your choice, topped with parsley and cheese. Bueno appetito!

Baked Ziti

Everyone loves pasta and baked ziti is definitely many people’s favorite. It’s a cheesy, bubbly, baked pasta dish, what’s not to love? I currently have about a pound of basil in my fridge and am trying to find ways to use it up before it wilts so I added it and it totally worked! It sort of infused it with a floral scent and gave it an incredible flavor so feel free to add a few tablespoons-worth if you have some lying around.

All you’ll need is:
1 pound ziti pasta (you can surely cheat with penne or fusilli), cooked until al dente
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
12 oz. ricotta cheese
6 oz. marinara sauce
A few tablespoons parmesan cheese
Basil (optional)
Salt/pepper

Preheat the oven to 370 degrees F.
In a large bowl, combine pasta, mozzarella, ricotta, marinara, 1/4 tsp of salt, ½ tsp of pepper and the basil if you’re using it. Add the drained pasta and stir well. Pour the mixture into a baking dish and sprinkle with parmesan over the top. Bake for 25 minutes and ta-da!