Basil e Garlicky Pasta

I love this dish. An Italian friend told me the recipe, but I don't remember exactly what she does, since I've modified it!! Here's my take on it!


1 pkg egg noodles
5 T of butter
1- 2 handfuls Basil, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
Salt
1/4 c. pine nuts, toasted (opt)
1/4 c. Parmesan Cheese (opt)

Cook noodles as directed for al dente. Drain. Meanwhile, melt butter in a heavy pan on medium. Reduce heat to low, add garlic. Let garlic cook for a minute til just slightly brown. Add noodles to pan, toss. Add basil, salt, and pine nuts, toss. Keep heat on until the basil has slightly wilted. Remove from heat. Serve. Sprinkle cheese on pasta. YUM!

Cheese makes any dish!

So, I love cooking from the garden. But there are a few things that I don't especially love--zucchini, to name one! Well, I've realized that if I grill or roast a bit of pretty much any veggie with a bit of cheese smothering it, it tastes fabulous! These zucchini rounds were fried in a pan... and delicious! Another variation: Take a zucchini or yellow summer squash that has overgrown and split it down the middle. Scoop out the seeds. Fill the hollow with a bit of cheese (or cheese and garlic and basil (or any veggie, actually) if you have them on hand. Grill or roast in oven til tender. They are fabulous!

Gyros... Glorious gyros!!!

I LOVE gyros... and I HATE that I only get to eat them once a year at Fair time... but I found a recipe that curbs my craving!!.. and I don't even buy them at the Fair anymore!!!

Tzatzki Sauce
1 1/2 c. whole plain yogurt (drain off excess water, if needed)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp salt
10 mint leaves, chopped
1/2 large onion, diced
2 med cucumbers, de-seeded and diced


1 lb sausage
1 lb ground beef
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 large onion, diced
1/4 c breadcrumbs
salt & pepper
Handful of basil (optional)
Lettuce, washed, thinly sliced
Tomato, thinly sliced
Naan* or Pita Bread, warmed in oven or grill (in foil) or lightly toasted

In a mixing bowl, add yogurt, garlic, salt, mint leaves, onion and cucumber. Stir to mix. Cover and refrigerate until needed. I try to prepare this a couple of hours to days in advance because it gives the flavors more time to mix.

In another bowl, mix sausage, beef, garlic, breadcrumbs, onion, s&p and basil. Mix together with your hands (knead, mush) until all ingredients are well dispersed. From into patties and either grill or cook on med until well done.  Remove from heat and slice the patties into thin rounds. (so you'll end up with 3-4" circles of very thinly sliced burger).

Place meat in warmed bread, add lettuce and tomato and top with Tzatkzi Sauce. And devour!

* I've always used split Pita bread.... until last week! The Naan worked great and didn't fall apart when you filled it too full!!  I'm sold. I will be using the Naan from now on. It was fabulous!

THE best tomato!

This is the best heirloom tomato--Black from Tula. They are absolutely delicious... and this is the first ripe one of the season!

Sunshine Rays

These these little lemon bars sure do pack in the flavor

Crust

1 cup butter, room temp

1/2 cup sugar

2 cup all purp flour

Lemon Filling 

2 c sugar

4 eggs

2/3 c. lemon juice (pref from fresh lemons)

2 T. lemon zest

4 T. flour

Powdered Sugar for topping rays

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease 9 X 11 or 11 x 13 baking dish (or use two 8 x 8 pans).

Crust: Beat *butter* and sugar with electric mixer or hand mixer until light and fluffy. Add flour and mix just until mixture comes together. Press into prepared dish. Cook for 20 - 25 minutes (will depend on the size of your baking dish) until lightly browned.  While baking, prepare filling. With mixer, beat eggs and sugar until smooth. Hand mix in the lemon juice and zest. Fold in flour. When crust is ready remove from oven, give the filling a quick stir in case it has settled, and pour lemon filling on top. Return to oven for another 20 minutes until the filling has set. Remove from oven and place dish on wire rack to cool. When lukewarm, sprinkle with powdered sugar. When completely cool, cut into squares and then again into diamonds/rays. Enjoy!

This recipe will make about 64 rays. Half the recipe if you don't need quite so many!!

Pasta Alfredo

Pasta Alfredo

1 lb/box pasta
A bunch of broccoli
2 med Tomatoes, sliced or diced

Sauce
3 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp flour
¼ Tbsp salt
1/8 Tbsp pepper
2 c. milk
1 c. cheese (any kind), grated
¼ c parmesan cheese, finely grated

Cook pasta according to pkg directions.  Steam
broccoli.
While cooking, melt butter in a heavy saucepan over
medium heat. When melted add the flour and whisk
together. Let the mixture bubble a little, but do not let it
burn.  Turn heat to very low. Add salt & pepper.  Add
milk. Turn heat back to med-high til the mixture
thickens.  Again reduce heat to very low and add
cheeses.  
Serve pasta with broccoli.  Spoon sauce on top.  Add tomatoes on sides.


Adding grilled chicken is a yummy addition too!

Meatballs

I made some yummy meatballs the other day and cooked them in a sweet and sour sauce.  I need to fix the recipe for the sauce, but the meatballs were really good.  I don't usually do green onions, but they sounded good that night and I thought they went well with the sweet and sour.  This recipe makes about 18 meatballs.

1 pound ground meat (1/2 lb beef and 1/2 lb turkey)
1 egg
1/3 c breadcrumbs
dash pepper
dash salt
1/4 t onion powder
1/4 t garlic powder
dash italian seasonings
5 baby carrots, finely grated (you can add any vegetable of your choice, or leave them out)
2 green onions, chopped fine

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix all ingredients in a bowl.
Heat skillet over med to med-high heat.
Shape meatballs to be about 1 1/2 inch wide.
Spray pan with cooking spray.  Brown meatballs on all sides. (about 8-10 minutes)
If skillet is oven safe, then put into the oven to bake for 10 minutes.  If skillet is not oven safe, transfer to a small casserole dish and bake.
Add sauce of your choice to meatballs and return to oven for an additional 15 minutes.  Check a few times and re-cover meatballs with sauce if needed.
  Serve with spaghetti, mashed potatoes, rice, or other pasta.