Spaghetti and Meatballs

I recently tried a recipe for spaghetti and meatballs, where the meatballs were simmered in the sauce. It was from a source I normally trust, and it sounded good, but I thought the meatballs were horrible! They had a really mushy texture from simmering in the sauce, which I couldn't stomach.

I wanted to make spaghetti and meatballs again, as the husband has requested it several times recently, so I did some Internet digging and found a recipe from Alton Brown that incorporated spinach into the meatballs and then bakes them in the oven. I decided to riff off his recipe, switching out grated zucchini for the spinach and changing the seasonings to use what I had on hand.

These meatballs were infinitesimally better than the other recipe I tried! I simmered a semi-homemade tomato sauce to top the noodles and made some quick garlic bread to go with the meal and both the husband and I were happy.

Spaghetti and Meatballs
Source: meatballs inspired by Alton Brown
Printable Recipe

Meatball Ingredients
1 pound ground turkey
1/2 a zucchini, peeled and grated
2 tablespoons dried basil
1 tablespoon dried thyme
2 teaspoons garlic salt
1 Tablespoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 cup panko + 3/4 cup additional
1 egg

Tomato Sauce Ingredients
(double this if you like a lot of sauce or there are more than 2 people)
1 can stewed Italian tomatoes
1 small can tomato paste
1 Tablespoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
2 teaspoons pepper
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

Directions
Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Put a pot of water on to boil for the noodles.

Spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray and set aside.

Combine the turkey, zucchini, seasonings and egg in a medium bowl and mix to combine. Add the 1/4 cup panko and mix into the meat mixture.

Pour the 3/4 panko into a small bowl.

Form the meat into meatballs and roll each meatball into the panko. Set the meatballs on the baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.

While the meatballs bake, combine the stewed tomatoes, the tomato paste, cheese, and seasonings in a small saucepan and simmer. You can add some water to make a thinner sauce if you like.

Cook the spaghetti noodles according to the directions on the package. Drain the water from the cooked noodles.

Layer the noodles, sauce and meatballs and enjoy!

Tomato Shrimp Pasta

This was supposed to be a pesto shrimp pasta recipe, riffing off of this recipe, but as the pasta was cooking, I realized I was out of pesto. :( I didn't want to make a run to the grocery store to buy more, so I decided to improvise and whip up a quick tomato sauce instead.
I was really happy with the way it turned out and would definitely make it again. While the pasta is cooking, butter some rolls, sprinkle with garlic salt, and place under the broiler for quick garlic bread.

Tomato Shrimp Pasta Source: a Cooking in Cucamonga original Printable Recipe Ingredients
3 cups twirly pasta
2 cups peeled, uncooked shrimp
1 can stewed Italian tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
salt
pepper
1 tablespoon dried basil
1/2 -1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
3 cloves of garlic, crushed.
1 tablespoon olive oil
grated Parmesan cheese

Directions
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook the pasta to al dente (mine took about 8 minutes).

Remove the pasta, but reserve the water. Boil the shrimp in the pasta water, for about 2 minutes, or just until the shrimp is completely pink. Remove the shrimp, reserving about 2 cups of the cooking water.

Heat the olive oil in a large sauce pan. Once the oil is hot, add the crushed garlic and saute for about a minute. Add the tomato paste, stewed tomatoes, salt, pepper, dried basil, and crushed red pepper. Bring to a simmer and add 1/2 cup of the pasta water at a time, until the sauce has reached your desired consistency.

In a large serving bowl, combine the pasta and shrimp and toss with the tomato sauce. Garnish with Parmesan cheese.

Roasted Veggie Pasta with Arugula

I'm sure you read about my mean decision to deprive the husband of his requested salmon dinner, only to recant after a chiding from some co-workers. Well, I still wasn't feeling like eating any salmon, so I threw together this pasta dish for myself, and popped his salmon fillet in the oven while the water boiled. There, now everyone is happy. :)

But salmon is on the menu again this week. *sigh* At least I convinced him to try salmon pesto pasta...I'll let you know how that goes.

Roasted Veggie Pasta with Arugula
Source: Martha Stewart Every Day Food (The Light Issue)
Printable Recipe

Ingredients
2 pints grape tomatoes (I only had about 3/4 of a pint on hand...I wish I'd had more tomatoes!)
6 large garlic cloves, unpeeled
3 shallots, cut into eighths
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves (I used a few heavy shakes of dried)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
8 ounces rigatoni pasta (I used whole wheat penne)
1/2 cup pitted olives, coarsely chopped (I omitted these)
3 cups baby arugula or spinach (I used an arugula mix that also included radicchio and frizzze)

Directions
Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees.

Place tomatoes, garlic, shallots, and thyme on a rimmed baking sheet (I lined mine with parchment to save on clean up). Toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Roast about 20-25 minutes, or until garlic is soft and tomatoes are bursting.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook the pasta until al dente (I cooked my penne about 11 minutes). Reserve 1/4 cup of pasta water and drain the rest. Return pasta to the pot, with the 1/4 cup reserved water.

Peel the roasted garlic and smash with the side of a knife. Add garlic, tomatoes, shallots, thyme and olives to the pasta and cook over medium-high for about 3 minutes.

Let cool slightly and mix with the arugula. Serve and enjoy, glad to not be eating salmon!

Shallota Pasta

I used to menu plan every Sunday for the upcoming week. I liked having all our dinners planned out in advance, as it saved me from unnecessary grocery store trips mid-week, as well as standing in front of the refrigerator for half an hour after I got home from work, wondering what the heck to make for dinner. Sometime over the summer I stopped menu planning, figuring I was home all day anyway, I could just plan on a daily basis.
Of course, that didn't work well, and I soon found myself repeating the old habit of wondering what to make for dinner 20 minutes before my husband would be walking in the door. I'm the kind of wife that likes to set dinner down on the table as the husband is walking in the door, after a long day at work. This doesn't happen all the time, but planning out our dinners in advance sure goes a long way in helping get dinner on the table right as I here the garage door open and the car door slam shut.
Yesterday, as I was getting ready to go grocery shopping, I decided it was time to go back to meal planning. I had somewhat of a grocery list written out, but wasn't really sure what else I needed to buy. Now that we are making an effort to eat more organic foods, I have to be careful not to over spend at the grocery store. Not having a set list would definitely equal spending too much money. So I sat down with my laptop, two favorite cookbooks, and a piece of paper and began planning out our meals for the week.
The result? Efficient, money-wise grocery shopping and some new meals added to this week's menu. The husband blessed this meal by requesting that it be added to "the rotation", though he did ask that I add some grilled chicken or shrimp next time.


Shallota Pasta
Source: Adapted from Rachel Ray's Big Orange Cookbook
Printable Recipe

Ingredients
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 Tablespoon butter
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
6 large shallots
1/2 pound whole wheat spaghetti
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1/2 handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
dash chili pepper flakes (optional)

Directions
Peel the shallots and then cut them in half. Thinly slice each half and set aside.

Heat the olive oil with the butter over medium-low heat in a large skillet. Add the garlic ans shallots, season with salt and pepper, and cook until gently caramelized (about 20 minutes), stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of eater to boil for the pasta. Salt the water liberally, then add the spaghetti and cook to al dente. When the pasta is almost done, add about 1 cup of the cooking water to the shallots and stir. Drain the pasta and add to the shallots and garlic. Ass the parsley, cheese, and more pepper to taste. Toss for a minute or two to allow the pasta to absorb the sauce. Sprinkle a dash of chili pepper flakes on top and serve.

A Fresh Take on Pasta

I really wanted to make the Szechaun noodles from Annie's Eats the other day, but as I read through the ingredient list, I realized I was missing at least 7 ingredients. Combine that with my husband's distaste for peanut butter (a prominent flavor in the dish), I decided to save that for some other time. But I was craving some kind of noodle dish, so I started pawing through my pantry to see what I could come up with. Here is my creation, with a bit of inspiration off the side of the pasta box. :)

This is great hot or cold. We ate all of it right away! This is another recipe to be added to the "rotation", according to my husband. Feel free to substitute the veggies for your own personal tastes or whatever is in your kitchen/garden. You can also omit the chicken for a vegetarian dish.

Garden Pasta
2 chicken breasts
3 tomatos, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, diced
1 bell pepper, chopped
fresh basil, about 7 leaves torn
1-2 teaspoons dried oregano (you can use fresh too)
2-3 teaspoons pepper
1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
thin spaghetti (I just eyeball it and use however much I think we'll eat. I like to use the Barilla Plus, but you can use whole wheat or regular pasta too.)
2 cans vegetable broth (I only had one can, so I added about 6 ounces of water to the broth. Worked just fine)

Directions:
Bring the vegetable broth to a boil. Add the chicken to the boiling broth and cover. Boil until cooked through.

Once the chicken is cooked, remove it and place on a plate or bowl. SAVE the broth!!! Shred the chicken and set aside.

Bring the broth to a boil again and add the pasta. Cook about 7-8 minutes. (Since I only used one can of broth, my pasta absorbed all the broth, and the rest evaporated, leaving no liquid in the pan at the end. Watch your pan to make sure the pasta doesn't burn if this happens to you. Mine was totally fine.)
Cooking the chicken and pasta in broth imbibes more flavor into the two ingredients, resulting in a tastier dish than if just cooked in water. You can use chicken broth instead, if you'd like. Using the same broth to cook the chicken and pasta, gives another layer of flavor to the pasta as well.

While the pasta is cooking, heat 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil in a sauce pan. Saute the garlic until golden and fragrant. Add the tomatos and saute for about two minutes. Set aside.

Once pasta is cooked and drained, combine in a large bowl with the shredded chicken, sauted tomatos and garlic. Toss to coat the pasta and chicken with olive oil. Add in the diced bell pepper, torn basil leaves, oregano, and pepper. Toss once more and serve.


Note: I am trying to limit my sodium intake, so there is no salt in this recipe. Feel free to add salt to your taste. This would also be great with some parmesean cheese sprinkled on the top.