Tag: mozzarella cheese
Cheesy Meatballs
As you may know I love making burgers and meatballs.. this recipe like yesterdays included ricotta cheese… very delicious!
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 medium shallot, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- ¼ cup ricotta cheese
- ½ cup shredded cheese (I used a mixture of mozzarella and parmigiano)
- 1 teaspoons salt
- 1 egg, beaten
- ½ cup panko crumbs soaked in ¼ cup milk
- 4 cups marinara sauce
Transfer turkey, shallot, garlic, ricotta, shredded cheese, salt and egg into a medium bowl. Mix well and let it sit for 2 to 3 hours. Add the panko crumbs and mix well. In the meantime, add the tomato sauce to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Form the meatballs and add to the simmering tomato sauce. Cook the meatballs covered with a lid for about 20 minutes. Take the lid off and check for seasonings. Serve with whole wheat spaghetti.
Turkey and Cremini Mushroom Cheeseburgers
This by far is the best turkey burger I have made and if I do say so- eaten as well. The patties were tender, juicy and delicious. The secret ingredient- are the cremini mushrooms. I processed them and added them to the ground turkey. I also added basil and garlic- thats it. It is very simple, yet it is amazingly scrumptious.
Try these burgers and give them to your kids- they won’t know you have mushrooms in them…
read more …
Macaroni and Cheese with Tomatoes and Spinach
My daughter’s friend was coming over for dinner and I didn’t have anything to serve. I didn’t want to cook the boxed macaroni and cheese and so decided to make my own. There is nothing wrong with the boxed kind (especially the healthy ones) – I do make it once in a while but I try not to serve it very often.
The fact is it doesn’t take very long to make your own from scratch. I made the bechamel or white sauce quickly and added the shredded cheese. I boiled whole grain pasta on the side and added that to the mix. I had some homemade tomato sauce which I added as well. Now, in order to make it balance, I needed to come up with a vegetable. I always have frozen spinach in the freezer. I added some of that as well and put it all in an oven proof pan and baked it for about twenty minutes. Best of all- it was a one pot meal- yay!!!
The kids enjoyed it but did not appreciate me calling the pasta macaroni and cheese. They informed me anything with spinach and tomato sauce is not mac and cheese….
- ½ pound whole grain penne or elbow pasta, cooked al dente
- 1 small yellow onion, chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
- 2 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup homemade tomato sauce
- 1 cup frozen chopped spinach
- Salt
In a large frying pan heat the olive oil. Add the onion and garlic. Saute on medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes or till soft. Add thyme and basil. Sprinkle the flour and sauté for a minute. Add the milk and whisk gently to remove lumps. Bring to a boil and simmer till thickened. Add cheese and mix well. Add the spinach and tomato sauce. Mix well and add salt. Add the cooked pasta and place in an oven proof container. Bake in a 350 degrees F for 20 minutes.
Chicken Curry Pizza
This creation came about without any planning. I love using leftovers for things like pizza toppings, quesadilla fillings, etc.
I believe it was a Friday and I bought pizza dough from our local pizzeria. I didn’t have any specific toppings in mind. I had my homemade tomato sauce, and mozzarella cheese in the fridge- so I wasn’t worried.
I knew my daughter would ask for a plain pizza. I made her a delicious pizza with the tomato sauce and shredded cheese with some lettuce leaves on the side- good, healthy meal.
I decided to do pizza carbonara for myself. Since it would be made without tomato sauce, I knew my husband would not be interested. He loves his tomato sauce. So, for him I added the tomato sauce and the cheese and looked for a topping in the fridge. That is when the chicken curry stood out. I also took out half a green pepper and some onion. I decide to saute the vegetables and add them to the pizza with the chicken chunks.
My husband’s pizza definitely passed the ‘look’ test- it was gorgeous with all the vibrant colors. Once it came out of the oven oozing with melted cheese, my husband was very excited. It was delicious. The crunchy green pepper and velvety onions went really well with the savory chicken pieces.
Overall it was a big success. So, the next time you have leftovers in the fridge- consider using them as a pizza topping.
Sauteed Chicken Sausage and Broccoli Pasta
This is the quickest meal I have made recently. It was a rare unscheduled weekend day and we were planning to do absolutely nothing. My daughter usually is very good at keeping herself busy or playing with her Daddy on the weekends. I like to get a bit of a break where I hide in my room to read a book or watch a movie.
My daughter somehow secured herself a play date for the whole day. Her friend came over at 10 and stayed till around 3. She was thrilled. Actually we all were. My husband needed to work from home and I decided to go out with a friend for coffee.
Before leaving, I wanted to make a quick lunch for them. I did have a couple boxes of macaroni and cheese but I wanted make something else. I had a pack of chicken sausages in the fridge- which my daughter loves. I sauteed them quickly and added frozen broccoli florets. I boiled some penne on the side and added the cooked pasta with some of the starchy liquid to make a simple sauce. I topped the pasta with some light shredded mozzarella and that was it.
It was a fast and delicious meal- perfect for a quick lunch for the kiddies. Try the chicken sausage and broccoli pasta- it is yum!
read more …
Turkey and Pesto Panini
This is a quick lunch on the weekend or even a quick dinner through the week. My husband loves turkey sandwiches but I usually don’t end up making too many sandwiches at home and so he end up eating them for lunch at work. I am not sure why- but sandwiches don’t come to mind when I think of lunch- and then I wonder why my daughter doesn’t like them. I never gave her a sandwich while she was a baby- so she never got used to one.
I bought sliced turkey since I had a large loaf of bake at home baguette in the fridge. I planned on making turkey pesto sandwiches for my hubby. My initial thought was to bake the bread first and then assemble the sandwich- but then I thought of assembling it first and then cooking it on a grill pan. I used another heavy pan to press down on the sandwich while all the ingredients melted together. Speaking of melting- I also had mozzarella cheese in the fridge which went perfectly with the pesto and the turkey.
I served a few potato chips and a green salad with the delicious sandwich. It was really good- I had a few bites…
Next time you are in a bind and don’t know what to make for lunch- try a turkey and pesto panini.
- 2 teaspoons extra light olive oil
- One (6 inch) piece of bake at home baguette
- 3 thin sliced herb turkey
- 3 thick slices of mozzarella cheese
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon basil pesto
- 4 to 5 fresh basil leaves
- Fresh black pepper
Heat a grill pan with the olive oil. Slice the baguette in half. Spread the mayonnaise and pesto evenly on both sides. Spread the cheese and turkey slices. Add the basil leaves and black pepper on top. Place the second slice on top and place it on the grill pan. Press the panini down with another heavy pan or anything heavy. Brown the sandwich on both sides pressing well for 5 minutes each. Cut in half and serve.
A Homemade Pizza Recipe with Store Bought Dough- Plain and White with Spinach
Pizza is a staple in our house. I remember when my daughter, Sia was about two years and change- she was quite picky. She had no problem eating mushy food and didn’t want any texture at all. I slowly got her into the habit of eating adult food- pizza played a big roll in the process. We ran into our neighbors with their daughters around that time at a local pizzeria. Sia saw them eating pizza with olives- and that is what started her love of pizza- with olives! She must have eaten cups and cups of olives in the last four years. The people working at the place knew as soon as we walked in- a slice of olive pizza for Sia with a cup of olives on the side. I even looked up the nutritional value for olives- not too much. Since then, she has graduated to mushroom pizza. She loves it! She is very particular about the mushrooms though- turns out some places use canned mushrooms and they taste very different than the fresh ones. Well, she only likes the fresh ones- so we stick to our favorite pizzeria, Arturos.
I am always trying to make things she likes at home healthier so I don’t feel guilty about giving them to her more often. We have tried many different ways of making pizza at home over the years but nothing has been very delicious and authentic. What I like about making pizza at home is that I can control all the ingredients. I use my basic marinara sauce for the pizza sauce. I usually buy low-fat mozzarella cheese- although in this case I couldn’t find any so I used full fat- but I didn’t use too much of it.
I was making two pizzas that day- a plain one for the kids and a white one with spinach for the adults. I made the marinara sauce the morning of and kept it aside. I bought shredded low moisture mozzarella cheese to make my life easier. The plain one was quite simple to put together. I did add some olive oil to the crust before cooking it on the grill. The oil gives the dough a nice sheen and a crusty top. For the white one I mixed ricotta cheese with Parmesan and mozzarella cheese. I added garlic powder and salt to season the cheese sauce. I sautéed frozen, chopped spinach with fresh garlic for extra flavor. Both adults and kids enjoyed the pizzas. I made a nectarine salad for the adults- the recipe will be up tomorrow. I served the apricot kuchen as dessert and of course some wine- we ended up opening two bottles!
To read more about pizza making at home, please read my post in New York Times blog, The Local. It will be out Wednesday, June 24th.