Friday, December 21, 2012

Slow Cooker Spinach Alfredo Lasagna

Ingredients:

  • spaghetti sauce:
    • 2 tsps. olive oil
    • 1/2 small onion, chopped fine
    • 2 tsps. minced garlic
    • 28 oz. peeled an diced tomato
    • 4 tsps. basil
    • 4 tsp. oregano
Directions:
  1. Heat oil in a large sauce pan
  2. Add onion and garlic
  3. When onions are clear, add tomatoes, oregano and basil
  4. Bring to a boil and simmer about 20 minutes
Ingredients:
  • 1 lb. ground beef
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • Spaghetti sauce made ahead
  • 8 oz. lasagna noodles, cooked less than package instruction until just limp
  • 15 oz. ricotta cheese
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 tsp. black pepper
  • 32 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 10 oz. chopped spinach, cooked, drained and dried
  • 15 oz. Alfredo sauce
Directions:
  1. Cook the beef, onion and garlic in a large skillet until meat is browned
  2. Add spaghetti sauce
  3. Cook until warm
  4. Combine ricotta and Parmesan cheeses and add pepper
  5. Spread 1 cup of mixture in a slow cooker
  6. Layer 4 noodles over the meat
  7. Layer 1/2 cheese mixture over the noodles
  8. Layer 2 cups of mozzarella cheese
  9. Layer with 4 more noodles
  10. Layer spinach
  11. Layer Alfredo sauce
  12. Continue to layer rest of ingredients, topping with the remaining mozzarella 
  13. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours
8 servings

We ate 2 servings for dinner, plan to have 2 more servings 2 days later, and froze rest in 2 servings each portions.


Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Chili

Ingredients:

  • 5 lbs. ground beef
  • 2 lbs. turkey sausage
  • 3 tbsp. chili powder
  • 1 tbsp. paprika
  • 1 tbsp. cumin
  • 2 tbsp. garlic salt
  • 1/3 tbsp. red cayenne
  • 28 oz. peeled tomatoes
  • 1 large diced onion

Directions:

  1. Put all ingredients into a large pot or slow cooker - simmer on low for as many hours as you have
  2. Remove from stove or slow cooker and place in refrigerator
  3. Next morning, skim off fat, put back into a large cooking pot and simmer for an hour
  4. Taste and add picante sauce and jalapeno peppers to your taste
  5. Simmer all day
  6. Day 3 - Simmer again, adjusting garlic and chili powder and other spices to your taste
Enjoy on a cold day.

Monday, December 17, 2012

Eggs Florentine

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbsp. butter
  • 1 tbsp. all-purpose flour
  • sea salt
  • black pepper
  • 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
  • 1 cup milk
  • 5 oz. baby spinach - roughly chopped
  • 4 eggs
  • 4 slices beef or turkey bacon (we like the beef better)
  • 2 English muffins - split and toasted
Directions:
  • Melt butter in a saucepan on medium heat
  • Whisk in flour and cook about 20 seconds
  • Whisk in milk and mustard and cook until mixture is thickened and smooth
  • Add spinach and cook about 2 minutes, stirring to make sure all spinach is wilted and coated
  • Cook bacon until done
  • Poach eggs to taste, seasoning to taste
Assembly:
  • Place 2 halves of muffins on each of 2 plates
  • Spoon spinach mixture over each muffin half
  • Cut each piece of bacon in half and arrange on top of spinach
  • Top each with an egg
  • Serve
Serves 2

This one was a real test since it was a merger of 2 totally separate recipes - one for 1 person and the other for 4. I made several changes and it come out very tasty.

Friday, December 14, 2012

Roasted Turnips and Leeks with Parmesan

Ingredients:

  • 2 turnips, peeled and cut into 1/2 wedges
  • 1 leek, dark green removed, sliced in 1/4 inch pieces
  • dash cayenne pepper
  • 1 tbsp. olive oil
  • sea salt
  • black pepper
  • 1/8 cup grated Parmesan
Directions:
  1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees
  2. Coat bottom of baking sheet with oil
  3. Combine all ingredients and toss so vegetables are coated
  4. Arrange turnips and leeks in single layer on the baking sheet
  5. Cook 30 minutes - flip vegetables over at 15 minutes
  6. Serve
Serves 2

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Roasted Potatoes and Carrots with Dill

Ingredients:

  • 2 small gold potatoes, cut in half
  • 4 carrots cut lengthwise and in half
  • Olive Oil
  • Sea Salt
  • Black Pepper
  • Dill
Directions:
  1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees
  2. Toss potatoes and carrots in olive oil to coat - baggies work well for this
  3. Arrange potatoes and carrots on a baking sheet
  4. Season with salt and pepper to taste
  5. Cover with 2 tsps. dill or to taste
  6. Cook about 40 minutes - carrots and potatoes should be tender
  7. Serve
Serves 2

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Turnip and Potato Mash

Ingredients:

  • 2 turnips, peeled and diced (about 1/3 inch each side)
  • 2 small gold or new potatoes, diced (about 1/3 inch each side)
  • sea salt
  • black pepper
  • 3 tbsp. butter
Directions:
  1. In a medium sauce pan, boil potatoes and turnips in water about 20 minutes - should be tender
  2. Drain water, add butter and mash.
  3. Add salt and pepper to taste
Serves 2

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Sauteed Chicken with Capers

Ingredients:


  • 2 boneless chicken breasts
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • sea salt
  • black pepper
  • 3 tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
  • 1 1/2 tbsp. butter
  • 1 tbsp. capers in brine
  • 1/2 tsp. of the brine
Directions:

  1. Place chicken breast in Ziploc baggie, seal, cover with a towel and pound with a meat tenderizer to an even thinness
  2. Place flour in a bowl, and add salt and pepper.
  3. Heat olive oil on medium high
  4. Coat the chicken with the flour and cook in the oil until golden brown on each side
  5. Remove chicken from oil and place aside - keep them warm
  6. Add vinegar to the oil and cook about a minute
  7. Add butter, capers and brine to the oil and vinegar, cook until butter is melted
  8. Pour sauce over the chicken and serve