Penne with Roasted Vegetables

The Occasion: It seemed like a good summer night for a healthy, refreshing, filling dinner.

The Recipe: Partially inspired by a friend's recent birthday picnic dinner, I found this recipe online.

How it Went: Husband even liked this! I call that success!

What You Need:
1 box penne pasta
Chopped vegetables, about 6 - 7 cups total
(Good blend: 1/2 C mushrooms, 1 medium zucchini, 1 medium yellow squash, 1 green bell pepper, 3 large carrots (peeled), 1 small head broccoli, 1 red onion)
2 T red wine vinegar
1 T extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp honey
1/2 tsp dijon mustard
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 T basil
1/2 T chives
1/2 T parsley
grated parmesan cheese (the kind in the shakey bottle)

Your Turn:
Boil water, and cook 1 box of penne.

Chop the vegetables into fork-able pieces, not too little and not too huge.

If you're using carrots, they will need a little extra time, so put them in a 9x13 baking dish and toss with a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Broil them for for about 10 minutes under the broiler.

Add the remaining vegetables and toss with more olive oil, salt, and pepper. Broil about 12 minutes, then stir, and broil another 10 minutes.

While the vegetables are broiling, make your vinaigrette.
Whisk together: 
2 T red wine vinegar 
1 T extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp honey
1/2 tsp dijon mustard
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 T basil
1/2 T chives
1/2 T parsley

When the vegetables are done, scoop them out of the baking dish with a slotted spoon and transfer to a large bowl. Alternate veggies, cooked penne, and vinaigrette in the bowl until all is transferred. Sprinkle in some parmesan cheese. Then toss gently to combine.

Enjoy alone, or with other summer favorites like grilled chicken and corn on the cob!

Note: I liked the broccoli best in this mixture. It also held up best when re-heated as leftovers. The zucchini was not as good when re-heated, so if you expect to have a lot of leftovers of this meal, you might want to go light on the zucchini and squash.

Oven Roasted Potatoes

The Recipe: My own concoction

What You Need:
Potatoes, redskinned or another type
Carrots
Salt
Pepper
Olive oil
Rosemary
Thyme
Garlic powder or minced garlic

Your Turn:
Scrub and chop the potatoes. Smaller will make them crispier and more flavorful since the herbs will coat more surface area. But larger is quicker and makes for a softer texture.

Place in a large bowl.

Add some baby carrots, or chopped whole carrots.

Toss in a few tablespoons of olive oil.

Shake in salt, pepper, rosemary, thyme, and a dash of garlic.

Stir with a large wooden spoon.

Spread on a cookie sheet. You can cover it with aluminum foil for easier cleanup.

Bake at 475 for about 20 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking time.

Serve with grilled chicken, fried pork chops or burgers.

Week Alpha

Husband's been asking for a while now to have a regular meal routine, a predictable schedule of foods he knows he likes that I serve on a rotating basis. I have resisted this concept, preferring to create my own weekly menus, try out new things, and surprise constantly with the food I put on the table. But I finally decided to cave and give it a try. I set up a three-week rotation of meals filling out dinners for Monday - Thursday. Weekends I left blank for the chance to jump on a spontaneous gathering with friends, to eat out or order out, or to use up leftovers not used during the week. We're both on board with the rotation, and I'm actually finding surprising freedom in it. I know what's coming next, even for the next two weeks. Not only is this liberating in the kitchen, but in the grocery store too. I can buy ingredients I see on sale because I know exactly when I'll have a chance to use them. I can focus, when I'm shopping, on lunch foods, breakfast foods, and snacks because the dinner list (and therefore my weekly shopping list) is preplanned. It's only week two (and last week hardly counted because Husb was sick, so I veered off the schedule), and I already like the way this is going.

We've named the weeks Alpha, Bravo, and Charlie. Here is the Week Alpha Menu:

Monday: Tortilla Soup with Mexican Rice
I'll cook two lbs of chicken breasts in the crock pot on Monday, during the day, then shred it up after work. This will provide chicken for the Tortilla Soup, Tuesday's dinner, and Thursday's dinner. 

Tuesday: Quesadillas or Burritos with the leftover Mexican Rice

Wednesday: Grilled Cheese with condensed Tomato Soup

Thursday: A chicken casserole
(most likely Broccoli Chicken Casserole or Crunchy Chicken Casserole)
This will make use of the rest of the chicken I cooked on Monday

These are stellar meals. Week Alpha is a week worth getting excited about.

Coming Next: Week Bravo!

Crescent Roll Breakfast Bake

The Recipe: From this blog post, but with some changes to make it a bit heftier.

What You Need:
1 lb mild or sweet Italian sausage
(optional: a few slices of cooked bacon)
1 package crescent rolls
8 eggs
1/4 C milk
1 C shredded cheddar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp rosemary
1/2 tsp oregano

Your Turn:
Cook 1 lb sausage until no longer pink. Drain fat. Crumble in a few slices of cooked bacon, if desired.

Spread the crescent roll dough out flat in the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Top with the meat and 1 C shredded cheddar cheese. 

Whisk together

• 8 eggs
• 1/4 C milk
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp rosemary
• 1/2 tsp oregano

Pour this mixture over the meat and cheese in the pan.

Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes, until eggs are set. 

Fajita Pizza

The Recipe: From Betty Crocker's Quick & Easy cookbook, but I made some changes

What You Need:
1 storebought pizza crust
5 slices provolone cheese
olive oil
1 chicken breast
chili or fajita seasoning
1 green (or red) bell pepper
1 small onion
1/2 C salsa
3-4 scallions
1/2 C black olives

Your Turn:
Slice the bell pepper and onion into narrow strips.

Slice the chicken breast into strips.

Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet.

Add chicken to skillet. Sprinkle with chili or fajita seasoning. I use a homemade blend I found here. I probably used 3 tsp total.

When chicken is mostly cooked, add peppers and onions. Add more seasoning. Stir the whole thing occasionally.

While this is sauteing, slice the white parts and the pale green parts of the scallions and the black olives.

Place the pizza crust on a round baking sheet. Sprinkle a bit of olive oil over it. Tear three slices of provolone cheese in half and spread them evenly across the crust.

When the chicken and veggie mixture is done, stir in 1/2 C salsa. Spread the whole mixture evenly across the cheese on the pizza crust. Sprinkle scallions and olives across the top, then tear up the last two pieces of cheese and scatter them across.

Bake at 420 for about 15 minutes until sizzling and bubbly.

Enjoy hot with a dollop of sour cream.