Veggie Manicotti

I combined mom's manicotti recipe with a recipe that I found on Peas and Crayons. Adding veggies made me feel a bit better about eating all that cheese :) and it was good to boot.

Ingredients:

• 
  
• 1 box of manicotti noodles
• Torn up baby spinach
• 1/2 medium onion
• 1/4-1/2 cup (or more) of grated carrots and/or zucchini 
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 15 oz ricotta cheese
• 1 cup (approx) shredded parmesan/romano cheese
• 1-2 cups (approx) shredded mozzarella cheese - and some more to sprinkle on top
• to taste: black pepper, salt, parsley, oregano, thyme & garlic powder.
• 16 oz marinara sauce

Preheat your oven to 350.  Gently boil shells until tender/al dente (Very important you don't boil them too long or you'll end up doing a manicotti noodle casserole like me). Drain & arrange cooked noodles in a glass baking dish with a layer of spaghetti sauce on the bottom.  Dice and sauté, onions and garlic together with shredded carrots/zucchini in olive oil. In a large bowl, fold ricotta, parmesan, and mozzarella cheeses, and torn spinach together with all your herbs and spices.  A note about cheese: I NEVER measure. I just go with what looks/tastes right. Next, add your veggies to the mix.  Put the stuffing in a bag with a hole cut in the corner and stuff the noodles gently. Pour more sauce on top.  Top with shredded mozzarella/parm cheese and bake for approx 20-30 minutes at 350F.

Baked Ziti with Summer Veggies

From Rantings of an Amateur Chef
This was great! But a bit dry. Next time I will add some marinara sauce.

Ingredients:

• 4 ounces uncooked ziti (I used rigatoni and probably more than 4 oz)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cups chopped yellow squash (my squash measurements were approximate based on what I had. I think I ended up with 1 1/2 c yellow squash and 1 1/2 c zucchini)
• 1 cup chopped zucchini
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 2 cups chopped tomato (I've also used a can of diced tomatoes)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided (I used more cheese all around. I don't know my measurements. I just kept putting it in until it looked the right cheesiness to me)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano
• 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/4 cup (2 ounces) part-skim ricotta cheese (same with this)
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• Cooking spray
• Marinara sauce (to taste)

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, drain.

2. Preheat oven to 400°.

3. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan. Add squash, zucchini, and onion; sauté 5 minutes. Add tomato and garlic; sauté 3 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in pasta, mozzarella, herbs, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper.

4. Combine ricotta, remaining salt, and egg. Stir into pasta mixture. Spoon into an 8-inch (mine was probably bigger since I used more pasta) square glass or ceramic baking dish coated with cooking spray; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until bubbly and browned.

Homemade Alfredo Sauce

From 100 days of Real Food

This was so good! Proof: When I asked Mark how often I could make this. He said, "As often as you want." He basically says that . . . never. I doubled this recipe and we had enough left overs for maybe 1 1/2 lunches, but we like a lot of sauce on our pasta.   

• 1 lb boxed 100% whole-grain pasta
• 2 tablespoons butter, unsalted
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream, (I have also used half and half and it worked just fine) (I only used 2/3 c to get it thicker, but I may try it her way next time just to see)
• 2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (I just went by taste and look - not sure how much I used)
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• I also added some garlic, peppers, and onions to give it a little kick

1. In a large pot, boil the pasta according to package directions
2. Meanwhile melt all the butter and saute some garlic.
3. Add 2/3 of the cream in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Stir with a wooden or other large spoon.
4. In a separate pan saute some peppers and onions to sprinkle on top
5. Once the cream and butter start to thicken (after a couple minutes) turn the heat to medium low. (mine never really thickened, but it thickens up when you add the cheese and let it sit for a bit before you eat).

6. Slowly stir in the cheese a little at a time so you don't get clumps. (if you want to use the remaining 1/3 c heavy whipping cream (or half and half) this is the time to stir it in)

7. Stir in salt, pepper

8. Remove it from the heat and let sit for a while to thicken.

At this point you can stir it into the pasta or serve separately. I don't stir it in since Mark likes more sauce on his noodles than I do. Be creative and add whatever you want. It's pretty versatile. 

Low fat Pumpkin Mac and Cheese

There's no real recipe for this creation, so I figured I'd just show you exactly what I used. I was craving mac and cheese, but wanted to make a much healthier version than the one we grew up on. I had the leftover pureed pumpkin eyeing me from the fridge and it hit me, maybe I could throw that in with the cheese sauce. I am super proud of the end results, it was creamy and delicious and even a little healthy.

INGREDIENTS
100% whole wheat elbow macaroni noodles
one bag of reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese
pureed pumpkin (I used about a cup and a half) *If no pumpkin, you could use butternut squash
50/50 Smartchoice butter (about a tablespoon)
all purpose flour (a couple of tablespoons)
almond milk (a couple of cups)
unsalted chicken stock (about a cup)

1. Cook the pasta according to box directions and drain.
2. In the same pot (while noodles are sitting in the strainer) add the butter, let it melt, add the flour and stir.
3. Add the almond milk and chicken stock. Whisk until it's heated through.
4. Add the pumpkin and cheese. Stir until it's thickened and delicious looking.
5. Add the noodles and a healthy dose of salt and pepper.
6. SCARF! (This goes without saying...but obviously sprinkle some vinegar on top)
7. Force yourself to not eat seconds.

I've let the leftovers cool completely and then portioned it out into single servings to put in the freezer. I know it's not completely vegan (sorry Feather and Laina), but it really is a great alternative to regular mac and cheese!