Florentine Roll-Ups

OK, so here's a solution for everyone who received WAY too much spinach from the parents over the weekend-use some of it in this yummy recipe!

Florentine Roll-Ups
16 oz. lasagna, uncooked
4 cups (2 lb.) ricotta cheese or cottage cheese
2 cups (8 oz.) shredded Cheddar cheese
1 cup chopped fresh spinach
½ cup sliced green onion
1 egg, slightly beaten
¼ tsp. ground black pepper
¼ tsp. salt
3 cups (26 oz. jar) spaghetti sauce, divided
Grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain. Lay flat on foil to cool. In large bowl, stir together ricotta cheese, Cheddar cheese, spinach, green onion, egg, pepper and salt. Spread about 1/3 cup cheese mixture on each piece of pasta to within 1-inch of end; roll up. In 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish, spread 2/3 cup spaghetti sauce; place roll-ups, seam side down, in dish. Top with remaining sauce. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, if desired; cover. Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Makes 9 servings (2 roll-ups each).

Bucatini All'Amatriciana with Spicy Smoked Mozzarella Meatballs

This is a recipe I found on one of the many food blogs I often read, and I have to tell you that I'm generally a meatball hater.  I know, we shouldn't be haters, but I usually hate meatballs.  Probably because most of the time to me they just taste like, well, a hamburger or maybe meatloaf. Bleh.  But for some reason this recipe caught my eye and I knew I had to try it, possibly because I knew Derk would probably like it.  So, after a few changes to the recipe I found, we came up with this:

Meatballs:

1/2 an onion, grated

1/2 C chopped fresh parsley

2 oz. (1/2 cup) fresh grated Parmesan cheese

1/3 C bread crumbs (we used panko)

1 1/2 to 2 garlic cloves, minced

2 T ketchup

1 large egg

1 tsp salt

1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 tsp dried basil

1/4 tsp dried oregano

fresh ground black pepper

8 oz. ground sirloin (all we could find was hamburger)

8oz. ground turkey

2 oz. smoked mozzarella cheese, cut into 18 cubes

-Preheat the oven to 400 degrees with the rack set in the lower 1/3 of the oven.

-In a large bowl, stir together onion, parsley, Parmesan, bread crumbs, garlic, ketchup, egg, salt, red pepper flakes, basil, oregano, and pepper.  Add in beef and turkey-combine ingredients just until combined, be careful not to overmix.

-Shape the mixture into 18 meatballs (though we wound up with 16) and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Make an indent in the center of each meatball and set a cube of mozzarella inside.  Reform the meatball around the mozzarella so it is completely hidden.  Place into the oven and bake until cooked through.  Ours took about 20 to 25 minutes.

Sauce:

1 T olive oil

4 oz. diced pancetta

1/2 an onion, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

14.5 oz. can fire-roasted crushed tomatoes

fresh ground black pepper

salt

2 oz. (1/2 Cup) of fresh grated smoked mozzarella cheese (original recipe said Pecorino Romano, but we didn't want to buy more cheese and already had a bunch of the mozzarella)

16 oz. dry bucatini pasta, or other fun, short pasta shape

-In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium.  Add pancetta-cook, stirring constantly, until golden brown, about 5-7 minutes.  Using a slotted spoon, remove the pancetta and transfer to paper-lined plate.  Stir in the onion, cook until softened, about 5-6 minutes.  Add garlic and red pepper flakes, cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Add tomatoes and reserved pancetta, season with salt and fresh ground black pepper.  Simmer over medium-low, uncovered, until the sauce thickens, about 15 minutes.  Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper.

-While the sauce is cooking, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to package directions.  Drain and place in a large bowl.  Add sauce and meatballs, tossing gently to coat.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Just before serving, sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese and chopped fresh parsley.

--My notes:  OK, I know this recipe seems a little daunting, long and time consuming.  But it didn't take all that much time.  It's not a quick and easy one, true, but the final result and effort will be totally worth it.  Because Derk and I loved this recipe!  And we also liked using the smoked mozzarella in the sauce (instead of Pecorino, which is probably good, too, we just didn't want to spring for more cheese), we felt that it sort of tied everything together and added a really nice flavor.  The original recipe said that it should serve about 6 people, but we found that for us it was probably a little closer to 4 servings, particularly for the sauce, even considering the fact that it's not really a saucy kind of dish.  The meatballs freeze well.  If you like things a bit spicier, you could try adding in a little more red pepper flakes and garlic.  The amounts in this post were decreased by about half from the recipe I found.  Try this one out, it's really quite delicious.

Sugar Donut Muffins

I knew I had to make these muffins when Derk told me about how sugar coated donuts were his favorite. The recipe claimed that they tasted like fluffy donuts with sugar stuck all over them. So I gave them a try. And we both liked them. They did sort of seem like a donut, not too sweet, even with the sugar coating, and really easy to make. The original recipe said to brush the tops only of the muffins with melted butter before rolling in sugar, which I did, but then they sort of got gooey, squishy on top. So next time I'm leaving the butter out, because as you can see, the sugar sticks just fine without the butter.

Sugar Donut Muffins, makes 10

3/4 C sugar

1 large egg

1 1/2 C flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg (but I'm tempted to try cinnamon next time)

1/4 C vegetable oil

3/4 C milk (low fat is fine)

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a muffin tin with cooking spray or vegetable oil. In a large bowl, beat together sugar and egg until light in color. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Pour into egg mixture and stir to combine (will be lumpy and dry). Pour in vegetable oil, milk and vanilla extract, and stir again. Don't worry, it will smooth out after a little bit of stirring. Divide batter evenly into 10 muffin cups, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake for 15-18 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.

When muffins are done, carefully remove from the pan and roll in sugar. Cool on wire rack.

Cream Soda - Toffee Cupcakes with Browned Butter Frosting

2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
3 eggs
1 Tbsp. molasses
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup cream soda (not diet)
3/4 cup toffee pieces
1 recipe Brown Butter Frosting

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 18 2 1/2 inch muffin cups with paper baking cups; set aside. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and 1/4 tsp. salt; set aside.
- In large mixing bowl, beat butter with electric mixer on medium to high for 30 seconds. Add sugars; beat until well combined. Beat in eggs, one at at time, on low until combined. Beat in molasses and vanilla.
- Alternately add flour mixture, buttermilk, and cream soda to butter mixture, beating on low speed after each addition until combined. Stir in 1/2 cup of the toffee bits. Fill cups 3/4 full. Bake about 20 minutes or until tops spring back when lightly touched. Cool on racks for 5 minutes. Remove from pans; cool. Frost; top with remaining toffee bits. MAKES 18 (but recipe doubles well)

Brown Butter Frosting:

For brown butter, in saucepan heat 1/4 cup butter over medium-low heat until lightly browned, about 8 minutes; cool. In bowl beat 1/4 cup softened butter with mixer on medium for 30 seconds. Add cooled brown butter; beat until combined. Add 2 cups powdered sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg, and dash salt. Beat in 1 to 2 Tbsp buttermilk until spreadable. Use immediately. If frosting begins to set up, stir in a small amount of boiling water.

I made these for a Relief Society Birthday Party thing this week, mainly choosing the recipe based on the fact that I don't like toffee very much, and therefore, wouldn't be tempted to eat them. Wrong! They are FANTASTIC! I'm sure they are awful for you, but I think once in while we all deserve a little treat. :)

Salmon with Capers

4 6 oz. salmon fillets
2 T olive oil
2 T capers
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
4 slices of lemon

-Heat oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat.
-Place salmon in skillet, increase heat to high. Cook 3 minutes. Sprinkle with capers, and salt and pepper. Turn salmon over and cook 5 minutes until browned. Salmon is done when it flakes easily with a fork.
-Transfer salmon to plates and garnish with lemon.

--My note: OK, this has got to be one of the fastest dinners of all time. And can I also add easiest? We really enjoyed this dish, but cut it down to just 2 pieces of salmon since there were only 2 of us. It was light, felt healthy, and tasted really quite good. Simple, but good. Sometimes, the simple dishes really shine, and we liked it a lot. We also cooked up some couscous and vegetables to go with it, and were quite happy with the results.

Palmiers

This was a new recipe I tried this past Christmas. I've seen Palmiers in bakeries, and tasted them, and when I saw this recipe, I figured I could actually do this!

Palmiers

Sugar for rolling and sprinkling

Puff Pastry (I used frozen & thawed)

Dust a work surface liberally with sugar, and then roll out the pastry into a rectangle 9 by 14 inches and about 1/4 inch thick. Trim the edges so the rectangle measures about 8 by 13 inches. Sprinkle the rectangle with sugar. Fold over 1 inch along a 13 inch side of the rectangle. Repeat on the opposite side. Sprinkle the folds with sugar and again fold over the sides 1 inch, sprinkle with sugar, and repeat until each side meets in the center of the rectangle. Pressing gently on the rolling pin, roll over the entire surface of the rectangle. This will help it hold its shape and will also lengthen it by about 1 inch. Fold the two sides of the rectangle together, folding the long sides in to meet in the center. Press gently along the sides of the rectangle to even them out, and roll over the now long, thin rectangle with the rolling pin. Cover and chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Slice the rectangle crosswise into 1/4 inch wide slices. Coat the slices with sugar and arrange the slices on the prepared pan, spacing them about 2 inches apart.

Bake for about 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Flip each cookie over and bake for about 5 minutes longer, or until brown on both sides. Let cool on the pan. Store tightly sealed in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

--My note: These really are pretty easy to make, but they burn pretty fast. So I advise checking on them starting 5 minutes before they're done. The original recipe said to bake for 25 minutes, but that was WAY too long--they were quite burnt. One recipe I saw for these said to just bake on one side, but I didn't try that version. Maybe next time. These cookies are crispy, but flaky and sugary. Really quite tasty. And a simple cookie that looks pretty impressive. I also read somewhere that someone make cinnamon sugar and coated the cookies in that. Maybe something else I'll try next time.

Update: Cinnamon sugar used in place of regular sugar was really, really good. And I noticed the second time I made these that I don't roll the pastry out to be 1/4 of an inch thick. It's probably thinner than that. I just roll out the frozen stuff so it's about 9 x 14 inches and go from there.

Shrek Soup

My friend Rachel in my ward gave me the recipe and said her kids love it because she calls it shrek soup. It is the easiest soup recipe ever and I have made it so many times. Every time I make it Billy and I both wonder why it is so tasty. I actually made this last night with a big yummy salad (with the dressing recipe that follows) and some really good rosemary olive oil bread. Soup and salad is one of my favorite dinners. There are not that many ingredients and it's not fancy, but man this soup is so good and so healthy.

Shrek Soup

saute 1/4 c onion in 1 T butter
add 1 clove garlic and saute until soft
Add 1 48 box of chicken broth, 1/2 c frog eye pasta (acini di pepe), 1/4 t nutmeg and some salt and pepper and simmer for 5-7 minutes
Add 1 10 oz pkg frozen chopped spinach (I actually use fresh spinach)
Simmer soup for 5 minutes and top with fresh grated parmesan cheese and serve (it's so good with fresh parmesan so don't forget this)