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This is a super healthy, quick and delicious dish. Did I mention it is a one pot meal as well? Yes it is. It has cremini mushrooms sauteed with whole wheat penne. I add ready made or homemade pesto to boost the flavor and keep the cooking down to a minimum. I start off with prosciutto and shallots. I then add the mushrooms and pesto. All the flavors are very bold. There are a few ingredients in this pasta but all of them add a great punch of flavor- that is the key to a successful dish.

Once the pasta is cooked al dente, I add it to the mix including some of the pasta water. The starchy water creates a delicious sauce and thickens the pasta.

I then add loads of fresh baby spinach. I love using baby spinach in my salads and pastas. I always have it in the fridge. My daughter doesn’t like salad dressing- so when I make a salad for my husband and I, I give her a hand full of baby spinach as her ’salad’. She eats it up and claims it to be her favorite vegetable.

The pasta is delicious and so healthy…. make it for the family through the week…
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This dish can be served on its own- not just as a  side… it is that substantial and delicious. I decided a while ago to experiment with polenta- to me it is like a blank canvas.. one can add anything to it to enhance the flavor.

For this one, I sauteed raisins and pine nuts in some olive oil. I then added thawed, chopped spinach and cooked it down for a bit. It was then time to add the a mixture of chicken broth and milk and the delicious polenta. I cooked it and seasoned it with salt and cheese- that was it. It took no time to make the dish but it was amazing with the shrimp dish.

Try it next time you are confused about making a side dish…
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This is a simple, weekday pasta dish I made the other day. Mushrooms is a staple in my house- everyone loves it and I try to incorporate the fungus in every cuisine I can.

In this case I bought ground chicken and decided to pair it with chopped cremini mushrooms. I added my homemade tomato sauce as well as shallots, garlic and fresh thyme. I also added a bit of red wine I was sipping while making this delicious one-pot meal.

I used an interesting looking pasta to make the pasta more appealing. The whole dish was healthy and yummy. I served it with a quick salad and a glass of wine..
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This is a very sophisticated meal- if I do say so… oh, and it is very delicious as well…

It started off with me buying the frozen, marinated lamb chops from Trader Joes. I don’t buy any prepared food- accept this one. It is perfectly marinated and is delicious. It is not cheap but totally worth the price. Speaking of price- this meal is not very cheap to put together but is definitely worth every bit. In addition to the lamb chops this meal has a very rich mushroom risotto. It included dried morels which are super flavorful. I soaked them in some warm water to reconstitute them. I then used them to make a delicious risotto. It also includes a variety of wild mushrooms. To add more mushroom flavor, I also used delicious mushroom broth to cook the risotto. I then topped the risotto and the lamb chops with some mixed greens tossed in lemon juice, olive oil and salt.

Definitely try this one…..
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I would save this recipe for when one has had a crazy busy day but one still wants to serve a healthy, home cooked meal to ones family. This hardly takes any time- of course the key is to have the ingredients in the fridge and the pantry- that being said- any kind of vegetable or meat can be substituted for the zucchini and the sausage.

I like combining the two especially because of the way they look cut into perfect rounds. I sauteed up the sausage and added the onion and garlic. Some tomatoes, thyme and chicken broth later, I had a delicious dish. I simply served it with whole wheat couscous- which take all of five minutes and voila- I had a delicious meal…
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