Shrimp Scampi Anne

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 pound jumbo bay shrimp
1/4 cup olive oil
salt, black and red pepper -- to taste
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup parsley, chopped
1/3 cup seasoned bread crumbs
8 tablespoons melted butter
1/3 cup white wine
1 dash Tabasco sauce
linguini -- cooked
1/4 cup Parmesan and Romano Cheese -- grated

PREPARATION:

Slit shrimp down the back leaving tail tip section of shell on the shrimp. Devein, wash and dry shrimp.

Arrange shrimp, single layer, in 10-inch square baking dish. Pour olive oil evenly over shrimp. Sprinkle to coat with salt, black and red pepper, garlic, parsley and bread crumbs. Cover dish and bake in preheated 300F oven for 20 minutes.

Pour butter, Tabasco, and wine evenly over shrimp. Bake uncovered 5 minutes longer or until done. Do not overcook; the shrimp will toughen. Serve over cooked linguine and top with grated cheese.

Serves 4.

*Recipe from cdkitchen.com.  Andy's cousin, Lori, made this at a family reunion. It was amazingly easy and delicious.  Also was easy to quadtruple to feed a large crowd.

Broccoli Calzones

From Everyday Food

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
2 packages (10 ounces each) frozen chopped broccoli, thawed
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1/4 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
Flour, for rolling dough
2 packages (1 pound each) balls fresh or frozen pizza dough, thawed if frozen
1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 cups shredded (6 ounces) part-skim mozzarella cheese
Coarse salt and ground pepper
Prepared tomato sauce, optional

1. In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium. Add onion; cook until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add broccoli, garlic, and pepper flakes. Cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has evaporated, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl; set aside to cool.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Form calzones: Divide dough into 8 equal pieces. On a lightly floured surface, stretch each piece out, first to a 3-by-4-inch oval, then stretch again, this time to a 6-by-8-inch oval. (Let dough rest a few minutes if too elastic to work with.)
3. Stir cheeses into cooled broccoli mixture; season generously with salt and pepper. Assemble calzones: Spread a rounded 1/2 cup broccoli mixture over half of each piece of dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border; fold over to form a half-moon. Press edges to seal. With a paring knife, cut 2 slits in the top of each calzone.
4. Using a wide metal spatula with a thin blade, transfer calzones to 2 baking sheets lined with parchment or waxed paper; reshape if needed.
5. Bake until golden, about 25 minutes. Serve with tomato sauce, if desired.

**I did not have ricotta cheese, so I added something that has a somewhat similar texture: pureed white beans! I figured it would add some more protein to the dish. You didn't even notice that they were in there because of all the other cheeses. These were so yummy. We dipped them in marinara sauce. YUM!

Zucchini Parmesan

Zucchini (or Eggplant) Parmesan (Angie Brandt)

Batter-mix to consistency of tempura batter
2 C flour
2 eggs
1-2 C milk
s&p

Slice zucchini (or eggplant) thin (I use a mandolin) and dip in batter. Fry in vegetable or olive oil.

For parmesan, layer marinara sauce, zucchini, mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
Bake at 375 for 20-30 min.

It’s easy and delicious!

Fettuccine Paolo

1 1/3 c. red bell pepper, thinly sliced
4 tsp olive oil
1 tsp. chopped garlic
1 pkg. fettuccine
1 1/3 c. chicken stock
4 tsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 c. sun dried tomatoes
1/2 c. marinated artichoke hearts with liquid
1 1/2 c. grilled chicken, sliced
2 Tbsp fresh basil, thinly sliced
2 tsp. grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

In large saute pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add peppers and cook 3 minutes or until soft. Add garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add stock and vinegar, bring to a boil, and simmer until reduced by half. Add sun dried tomatoes, artichokes with liquid, chicken, and basil. Season with salt and pepper. Keep warm. In large pot cook fettuccine and drain. Add to pasta sauce and mix thoroughly. Top with Parmesan cheese.

Turkey and Artichoke Stuffed Shells

This is a KEEPER that I found from a recipe blog that had posted this from Giada from Food Network. I made it yesterday for Sunday dinner and I have to say that all three boys gobbled it up, including Ewan. Andy and I can't get enough of it and are loving the leftovers. This was from an episode about dishes you can freeze. It really didn't take that long to prepare, either. YUM!

1 (12-ounce) box jumbo pasta shells (recommended: Barilla)
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 large yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound ground turkey
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus 1/2 teaspoon
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus 1/4 teaspoon
1 (8 to 10-ounce) package frozen artichokes, thawed and coarsely chopped
1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
3/4 cup grated Parmesan
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
5 cups Arrabbiata Sauce, recipe follows
1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella (about 5 ounces)

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and partially cook until tender but still very firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 4 to 5 minutes. Drain pasta.

Meanwhile, in a large heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and the garlic and cook until the onions are soft and starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the ground turkey, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is slightly golden and cooked through. Add the artichoke hearts and stir to combine. Remove from heat and let cool.

In a large bowl combine the cooled turkey mixture with the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, eggs, basil, parsley, and the remaining salt and pepper. Stir to combine.

To stuff the shells, cover the bottom of a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking dish with 1 cup of Arrabbiata sauce. Take a shell in the palm of your hand and stuff it with a large spoonful of turkey mixture, about 2 tablespoons. Place the stuffed shell in the baking dish. Continue filling the shells until the baking dish is full, about 24 shells. Drizzle the remaining Arrabbiata Sauce over the shells, top with the grated mozzarella. If freezing, cover tightly with plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 1 day and up to 1 month.

To bake, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bake until the shells are warmed through and the cheese is beginning to brown, about 60 minutes (20 minutes if shells are unfrozen.)

Arrabbiata Sauce: 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6 ounces sliced pancetta, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves, minced
5 cups jarred or fresh marinara sauce

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the pancetta and saute until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until tender, about 1 minute. Add the marinara sauce and red pepper flakes and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and let cool until ready to use.
Yield: approximately 6 cups

(I didn't make the Arrabbiata Sauce, but just poured a bottle of Newman's Marinara Sauce in its place. For the freezing method, I'm thinking of stuffing the shells and freezing them on a large baking sheet so once they are frozen I can put them individually in a large freezer storage bag. Then I can just take out what I need when I need it. Seriously, this is a great recipe.)

Vegetable Lasagna

4 cups thinly sliced zucchini (about 4 medium)
4 cups thinly sliced yellow squash(4 medium)
2 cups thinly sliced carrots
2 cups thinly sliced fresh mushrooms
1 large onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 15oz can tomato sauce
1 60z can of tomato paste
1/2 cup fresh basil
3 cloves of garlic
1 tsp salt
1/s tsp pepper
1 80z cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups of cottage cheese
2 large eggs, beaten
10 oven ready lasagna noodles
3 8 oz packages of thinly sliced provolone cheese
4 cups mozzarella cheese

Cook veggies, simmer 10 minutes add tomatoes, sauce, paste, basil, garlic, salt and pepper. Simmer for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl combine cream cheese, cottage cheese, and eggs. Preheat oven to 350 F.

Spread 1 cup of sauce, place 3 uncooked noodles, spread 1/4 cheese mixture(cream cheese, cottage cheese, and eggs) and then follow with some more sauce. Top with six slices of provolone cheese and then 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese. Repeat Bake 35 to 45 minutes and let stand 10 minutes before cutting

****This makes 2 13x9 lasagnas. So you can freeze one or just half the recipe. This is so worth the extra effort, even the leftovers were delicious(I think it's the homemade sauce). I think next time I will add spinach and substitute the cottage cheese for ricotta cheese just for something different. I also steamed my veggies so I didn't cook all the nutrients out of them. I steamed the carrots for about 10 minutes and the rest for about 7 minutes. It left the veggies with a little more crunch, which Jens and I loved. We served it with a garden salad and garlic bread with Jamie's recipe on homemade garlic spread.

Tortellini Soup

1 T olive oil
1 pound ground meat (I prefer Turkey)
1 onion, diced
2 cloved garlic, minced
~3 C broth
2 32 oz cans tomatoes (I used 1 crushed and 1 chopped)
Tortellini (I use 2 of those dry pouches)
1 t basil
1 t oregano
salt
pepper
Vegetables (suggested spinach, green beans, zucchini, carrots)
parmesan cheese if desired

Add oil to pan and brown meat. When meat is mostly browned, add in onions and cook until soft. Add garlic, broth, tomatoes, and vegetables if you are using fresh. Bring to boil. When water is boiling, add in tortellini and herbs. When tortellini is soft, add vegetables if you are using frozen and continue to cook until thawed and warmed.

Note, the tortellini will soak up the liquid, and your leftovers will still be tasty, but won't be soup. I've heard people say they prepare the tortellini separate and add it into the bowls to prevent it from soaking up all of the broth later on. Sprinke with cheese to serve.

Tuscan White Bean and Garlic Soup

This is the new favorite soup in our house. We saw Giada make it on food network Tuscan White Bean and Garlic Soup. She served it with Pecorino Romano with Apples and Fig Jam Baguettes (Also delicious, and a nice salad works well too). I liked the fig jam enough to make a giant batch and add it to the deep freeze, but this is about the bean soup. By the way, I have always hated beans, hated them! These are puree'd, so its a great disguise.

2 T butter
1 T olive oil
2 shallots, chopped
1 sage leaf (or a sprinkle of dried)
2 (15-ounce) cans of cannelloni beans, drained and rinsed (I don't drain or rinse, there's good nutrient and fiber content in the liquid)
4 C low-sodium chicken broth
4 cloves garlic, cut in 1/2
1/2 C cream (we probably use more, who knows)
1/2 t freshly ground black pepper
6 slices ciabatta bread (or serve with those Romano, apple, baguettes as above)
Olive Oil for drizzling on the bread

Place a pot over medium head, add the butter, olive oil, and shallots. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots are softened (5 minutes). Add the sage and beans and stir to combine. Add the stock and bring to a simmer. Add the garlic and continue to simmer until the garlic is softened, about 10 minutes. Puree with a stick blender (boat motor) if you have one, otherwise carefully transfer to the blender in thirds to puree. After blending, add the cream and the pepper. Keep warm over low heat.

Place a grill pan over medium-high heat. Drizzle the slices of ciabatta bread with olive oil. Grill until warm and golden grill marks appear (3 minutes per side).

Fresh Garlic Bread Spread

1/2 cup butter (best if you use real butter, not margarine)
3 cloves garlic
2 T freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp parsley flakes
Pinch of salt

Put in a food processor and mix until blended thoroughly. Spread on bread of your choice for garlic bread. Broil until butter is melted. You can also sprinkle more parmesan cheese on top before broiling.

Pasta e Fagioli

1 tsp thyme
1 tsp rosemary
1 bay leaf
1 T olive oil
1 T unsalted butter
1 cup chopped onion
3 oz pancetta or bacon, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
5 3/4 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
2 14.5-oz cans red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
3/4 cup elbow macaroni
Freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 T extra-virgin olive oil

1. Heat olive oil and butter in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, pancetta (or bacon) and garlic and saute' until the onion is tender, about 3 minutes.
2. Add the broth, beans, and herbs. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat, then decrease the heat to medium and simmer until the vegetables are very tender, about 10 minutes.
3. In a blender, puree 1 cup of the bean mixture until smooth, then return the puree to the saucepan. Cover and return the soup to boil over high heat.

Add the macaroni, cover and boil, stirring occasionally until the macaroni is tender but still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Season the soup with pepper.

Ladle the soup in to the bowls. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil. Garnish with fresh rosemary, or parsley.

**This soup is super fast and super flavorful. Best of all, my kids LOVE it and it is really inexpensive to make. I have used turkey bacon instead of real bacon and it turned out great. I also went out and bought the pancetta, but didn't notice that big of a difference.

We usually serve this with a salad and some garlic bread.