Lasagna Soup

Well I'm still pregnant....and BORED!!!  Today I baked two kinds of cookies and decided to make up some dindin.  Baby S - please come soon!!!

This was awesome though :)  It even had a little kick (you are supposed to eat spicy food to get baby moving...)!  We really liked it though - and most likely will be eating it tomorrow for leftovers while we wait!  So I'm glad I have something good to look forward to!  Make it up!

Ingredients
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 1/2 lbs Italian Sausage
3 cups chopped onions
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
28 oz can diced tomatoes, preferably fire roasted
2 bay leaves
6 cups chicken broth
8 ounces fusilli or mafalda pasta (or other pasta of your choice)
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil, or a heaping tablespoon dried basil
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
8 ounces ricotta cheese
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon salt
a few cracks of black pepper
optional: shredded mozzarella for sprinkling on top

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add sausage, breaking up into bite sized pieces and cook until browned and cooked through. Add onions and cook until softened, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes.   If you’re using dried basil, add it at this point.  Cook for about a minute. Add tomato paste and stir well to incorporate.

Add diced tomatoes, bay leaves, and chicken stock. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes.  You can add the dry pasta to the soup in the last 8-ish minutes of cooking, or do as I prefer, and cook the pasta separately and add to individual servings. Right before serving, stir in fresh basil if you’re using fresh, and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, Parmesan, salt, and pepper.

To serve, place a generous dollop of the ricotta mixture in each soup bowl, add pasta if you cooked it separately, and ladle the hot soup over the cheese.  Let it sit for a minute for the cheese to get all melty, sprinkle mozzarella on top if desired and eat up.

Homemade Ornaments

I had to come up with a fun way to ask Brody's aunt / uncle to be godparents...and this was perfect cause his due date was 12.20.12!!  Figured it would be the perfect way for them to always remember him asking!!  :)  You could do this for any special occasion or just a fun xmas gift!!

Supplies:
Clear glass ornament (from michael's)
Marker pens that write on glass (from michael's)
Ribbon
Fake snow

Filet of Beef with Mustard Sauce Dijon

I submitted a couple recipes of my own awhile back to the General Store - and I was "submitted"  for one of their cookbooks :)  I'm pretty pumped - as close as I'll ever get to being famous!  Being that I have my recipes in their cookbook, they gave each of the winners the cookbook for free - so I decided to make something from there this week!  (that and I have nothing left to do...Baby S needs to get impatient and come play!)

This meal was the easiest thing EVER - but tasted like it took forever!  It was so great!!  I could have licked the mustard sauce - but the tenderloin was so tasty too!!  Beef tenderloin is kinda pricey...but it's worth it!!

Makes 8 servings - General Store Holiday Cookbook

Beef Ingredients:
3 lb whole beef tenderloin, trimmed
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon pepper

Spread tenderloin with 1/4 cup mustard and sprinkle with pepper.  Fold the thin end of the tenderloin under to create uniform thickness.  Place the tenderloin on a rack in a shallow roasting pan.  Bake in a 425 degree oven for 50-60 minutes, or until meat thermometer reads 140 (rare).

Remove from oven.  Tent with foil and let stand for 10-15 minutes before slicing.

Mustard Sauce Dijon Ingredients:
1/4 cup shallots, finely chopped
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup beef broth
1/3 cup Dijon mustard
2  tablespoons brandy
1 tablespoon chili sauce

In a medium sauce pan, cook shallots in butter until tender.  Stir in flour.  Cook and stir until flour just begins to brown.  Add beef broth.  Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.  Cook and stir 1 minute more.  Add mustard, brandy, and chili sauce.  Serve with beef.

Apricot Glazed Pork Loin

I worked from home today, and since Ross has been doing all the cooking / dishes - figured I would treat him to a night off!  This was super easy - you literally throw it all in a crock pot and DONE!  It was super tasty too!  We made this up with some wild rice....so good!!

Ingredients:
2 lb pork tenderloin
1 lb bag baby carrots
1 medium red onion, thickly sliced
1 cup chicken stock
18 ounce jar apricot preserves
2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 Tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
Salt and pepper, to taste

Place baby carrots and onion slices in the bottom of your slow cooker.

Place your pork tenderloin on top of the carrots and onions and season with salt and pepper.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together stock, apricot preserves, mustard and thyme leaves.  Pour glaze mixture over tenderloin.

Cover and cook on low for 6 hours, or until tender and cooked through.

Herbed Risotta with Chicken and Caramelized Onions

I noticed I've been slacking on my monthly recipes lately...I haven't had much motivation to stand on my feet and cook with all my preggo swelling :)  BUT Ross was nice enough to make this one up for us!  It sort of took longer than we thought - but it was really good!!  For sure make this again - just took longer than 30 min from start to finish (and I found it under "quick fixes").

 6 sisters blog

Ingredients:

1½ tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 yellow onion, thinly sliced

Pinch of sugar

5 cups low-sodium chicken broth

2 cups water

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

¾ teaspoon salt

2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

2 cups Arborio (medium grain) rice

1 cup dry white wine

2 oz grated Parmesan cheese (about 1 cup)

1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

2 tablespoons minced fresh chives

Ground black pepper

Add 1½ teaspoons of the olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the sliced onion and sugar, stirring to coat.  Allow the onion to cook, stirring occasionally, until deep golden brown and caramelized.  Remove the onions to a plate and set aside.  

In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine the chicken broth and water and bring to a simmer.  In the meantime, add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the skillet used to cook the onions set over medium-high heat.  Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper.  Transfer the chicken to the heated skillet and cook, turning once, until each side is a light golden brown.  Remove from the heat and transfer the chicken pieces to the saucepan with the simmering broth mixture.  Let cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers 165˚ F or until cooked through (no longer pink).  Remove the chicken from the broth and transfer to the plate with the onions.  

Add 2 tablespoons of the butter to a Dutch oven set over medium heat.  Once melted, add the garlic and cook just until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Add the rice to the pan, stirring to coat.  Cook, stirring frequently, until the grains are translucent around the edges, about 3 minutes.

Add the wine and cook, stirring constantly, until fully absorbed, about 2-3 minutes.  Stir 5 cups of hot broth mixture into the rice.  Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until almost all liquid has been absorbed and the rice is just al dente, 16-19 minutes, stirring twice during cooking.

Add ¾ cup of the hot broth mixture to the risotto and stir gently and constantly until the risotto becomes creamy, about 3 minutes.  Stir in the Parmesan.  Remove the pot from the heat, cover and let stand for 5 minutes.  

Meanwhile, shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces.  Stir the shredded chicken and caramelized onions into the risotto with the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, lemon juice, parsley and chives.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  If desired, add up to ½ cup of the remaining broth mixture to add moisture and loosen the texture.  Serve immediately.

Pumpkin Roll Pancakes

I am not a fan of pancakes, but being preggo (and not able to eat sunny side up eggs) - I'm running out of bfast options!  I found this recipe and decided to try it out....AND OMG (yup...I just said that) - these were soooo good!!  I had at least 5 - and am really excited for leftovers.  So good...plus it makes you feel awesome cause you just made your bfast from scratch!  (like our g-rents used to make!)

Makes 14 pancakes - OBB Cookbook

Ingredients
3/4 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cups whole wheat flour
4 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoons ground cloves
3/4 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 eggs
2/3 cup pumpkin puree
Pure maple syrup for serving

Prepare Whipped Cream.  

Prepare pancakes.  Whisk together flours, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger.  Make sure to break up any clumps of brown sugar.  In a separate bowl, whisk together buttermilk, vanilla, oil, eggs and pumpkin.  Combine wet ingredients with dry and gently combine until mixed.  Do not overmix.

Heat a nonstick griddle to medium heat.  When hot, use butter or nonstick spray to coat the pan.  Drop 1/4 cup pancake batter to form each pancake and cook until edges set (if you wait until they bubble, it might be just a bit too long).  Flip pancakes and cook remaining side.

Serve warm pancakes with a dollop of cream cheese topping and a drizzle of maple syrup.

Cream Cheese Whipped Cream

Call me Betty Crocker.....This was SO AMAZING!!!  I could almost "4-finger scrap the bowl" (reference for all my cousins out there...)!!  I want to put this on everything....it's so good!!  Try it!

I made this to go with these yummy pancakes!!

Ingredients:
4 ounces cream cheese (low fat is fine, no fat free)
4 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup whipping cream (heavy or regular)

First whip the whipping cream until medium peaks form.

Prepare whipped cream by beating cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth and creamy.  Take 1/2 of the whipped cream (that you already whipped) and beat it in until smooth.  Add the rest of the whipped cream and use a spatula to gently fold in (do not beat).  Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.