I am always on the lookout for a new macaroni salad. I love macaroni salads in the summer. Why? Because there are no potatoes to peel, you just boil the macaroni, prep any other ingredients, drain the macaroni and stir it all together with a dressing. Easy.
I took a break from salads yesterday, cooking a simple pasta dish that is not only quick and easy, but quite QUITE delicious! Spicy Tomato and Sausage Pasta. Its a bit of a cheat in that it uses jarred marinara sauce, which is quite time saving. If you use a really good quality one however, it won't really matter.
You begin by browning off some Italian sausage meat. Just push it out of the casings and crumble it into a heated saucepan. I used the Riverway Foods Hot Italian Sausages that you can get at Costco. They have a lovely flavour that I really like. So you brown them off, breaking them up a bit. (You won't need them all, but you can freeze the rest for another time.)
You add some chopped onion and let them soften, finally adding some garlic. The original recipe (from Seriously Simple, by Diane Rossen Worthington) called for 3 cloves of garlic. You can cut back on that a bit. The Italian sausages I used are plenty garlicky so I only used 2 cloves of garlic and small ones at that.
Then you add the marinara sauce and let it simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, upon which time it should have thickened up a bit. I used the Lloyd Grosman Tomato and Basil Marinara Sauce which is really nice. Just use whatever kind is your favourite. At the end of that time you stir in some prepared Basil Pesto which gives the sauce a really nice basil kick.
Spoon a thin layer of the sauce into the bottom of a large shallow baking dish, and then stir your cooked pasta into the remaining sauce along with some fresh baby spinach. I like to remove any thick or long stems from the spinach. Its a texture thing really. I don't like a lot of stringy stuff in my sauces, so I just remove them. The heat from the sauce and the pasta will cook the spinach.
I also like to use whole wheat pasta. Seriously I can't really tell much of a difference between regular and whole wheat. If anything, to me, the whole wheat pasta tastes better!
Then you stir in a quantity of Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Coz you JUST got to have cheese . . . its Italian. Pour it into your prepped baking dish and scatter the remaining Parmesan on top.
Bake for half an hour in a hot oven, upon which time the cheese will have melted and the top will be golden brown. And that's all there is to it!
You can divide it up and bake it in two smaller dishes, freezing one for a later date . . . I made mine in one really small dish and one larger dish, which I sent down to Ariana and Jose. Ari will be having her baby any day now. I thought she would appreciate having a meal delivered. It has been so hot and I know she is feeling a bit exhausted with the pregnancy and everything.
It was very much appreciated. She texted me later to tell me how good it was. And Jose works in a premium Italian restaurant, so if he thought it was good, then you know it was really good!
This has so much going for it flavour-wise. I have fallen in love with it and I know I am going to be making it for the Missionaries one day as I am sure they will also really enjoy it!
I love dishes like this that go together quickly without much fuss or faff. To me they spell winner/winner!
*Spicy Tomato & Sausage Pasta Bake*
Serves 6 to 8
I
cheat a bit with this by using a good jarred marinara sauce, but I
think you will agree that this dish is fabulously tasty! Quick, easy
and delicious!
For the sauce:
splash of olive oil
1 pound Italian sausage links, casings removed and discarded
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 730g jars/cartons of good marinara sauce (2 26-ounce jars)
6 TBS of good Basil Pesto
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
You will also need:
450g penne pasta, uncooked (1 pound)
230g of finely diced or grated mozzarella cheese (8 ounces)
180g grated Parmesan Cheese (1 cup)
170g baby spinach leaves (6 ounces)
Heat a large heavy bottomed pan over medium high heat. Add a small
splash of olive oil, then crumble in the sausage meat. Cook, breaking
up with a spoon, until the sausage is evenly browned and no pink
remains. Add the onion and saute for about 5 minutes longer. Add the
garlic, cook for 1 minute and then add the marinara sauce. Reduce the
heat to medium. Simmer for about 10 minutes, then stir in the pesto,
salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasonings to your taste. Set aside.
Cook the pasta according to package directions in a large pot of lightly salted water. Drain well.
Preheat
the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 6. Butter a 9 by 13 inch baking
dish. Spoon a thin layer of sauce over the bottom of the dish.
Combine
the pasta with the remaining sauce, the spinach leaves (I like to try
to pick off and discard any large stems), the mozzarella cheese, and 60g
of the Parmesan cheese (1/3 cup) Mix well to combine and then spoon
into the prepped casserole dish. Scatter the remaining Parmesan cheese
over top.
Bake in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes, until the casserole begins to bubble and the cheese is golden. Serve hot.
I saved some of the sauce out and Todd had it on a baked potato with some cheese on top. He, as you know isn't overly fond of pasta, although he will eat it when push comes to shove. He really enjoyed it on his potato. The sauce itself would also go very well on spaghetti, or even ladled over polenta!
However you choose to enjoy it I am sure you WILL enjoy it. This is . . . simply put . . . quite fabulous! Bon Appetit!
I really love salad weather and we have certainly been enjoying lots of that these past few weeks! Summer and salads go together like, well . . . peas and carrots! Especially when they are as delicious as this beautiful Green Slaw!
This recipe today is an adaptation of one I discovered on Foraged Dish, by way of The View From Great Island. I was looking for something slightly different that I could make for our combined Canada/Independence Day bash on Monday evening, and when I saw this recipe, I knew I had found a perfect contender!
One of the reasons it really appealed to me was that it was not a claggy, mayonnaise based coleslaw. I adore coleslaw with vinaigrette dressings.
And this vinaigrette is amazing, with an almost fusion take on different cultural flavours, with fresh lime, olive oil, ginger, sesame oil, and . . . maple syrup. Say what??? I thought it matched the idea of both American/Canadian/ British cultures, which are more and more becoming a melting pot of cultures/flavours/foods! You can't get much more Canadian than Maple Syrup!
I also loved the idea of all of the fresh vegetables in the dish, each one being a variant of the colour green . . . almost like Ireland you know, with its many shades of green . . . and America is full of Irish people, and I myself am 27% Irish . . .
I used a very British cabbage here, which is long and pointed . . . loosely leafed . . . the sweetheart cabbage. The original recipe used savoy cabbage, which is also fairly loose leafed . . .
Add to that thinly julienned sweet green bell peppers . . . slivered spring onions . . .
diagonally sliced sugar snap peas . . . be sure to de-string them . . . its very easily done. Just insert your knife beneath the underside at the tip opposite the stem and pull towards you . . . the strings should pull right off. Strings are chewy things, not crisp things, and they have no place in this salad, where only the crispest of intentions should lay . . .
chunks of rich and creamy avocado are the exception to the rule . . . luxurious . . . delicious . . . creamy . . .
For a bit of a bite, a thinly sliced green jalapeno chili pepper . . . you can de-seed if you want to decrease the heat from the pepper . . . but I just left the seeds in. I knew the guys could take it and would actually probably really enjoy it . . .
There is the soft leafed herb, with a bold, bold flavour . . . fresh coriander leaf . . . or cilantro as it is called in North America. Very Tex Mex, but also Thai . . . fusion again . . .
Finally we have the nutty addition of toasted flaked almonds . . . almost sweet, and certainly crunchy . . . about 8 minutes on a baking sheet in a hot oven does the trick. Perfect. Make a few extra to nibble on. I always do. I adore almonds. Altogether this was beautiful!
*Green Slaw*
Serves 6 - 8
Green, fresh and slightly spicy. Goes great with all your grilled meat, chicken or fish.
1/2 head of cabbage, thinly shredded with a knife
(I used a sweetheart cabbage, but savoy is also recommended)
1 green sweet bell pepper, trimmed, de-seeded and julienned
1 cucumber, washed, dried and cut into half moons on the diagonal
3 spring onions, washed and thinly sliced on the diagonal
85g of sugar snap peas, trimmed, de-stringed and sliced thinly on the diagonal
1 green chili, trimmed and thinly sliced (optional)
1 ripe avocado, pitted,peeled and cubed
a handful of fresh coriander leaf, coarsely chopped
85g flaked almonds, toasted (1/2 cup)
For the dressing:
60ml fresh lime juice (1/4 cup)
60ml olive oil (1/4 cup)
2 TBS toasted sesame oil
1 tsp finely grated peeled, fresh ginger root
1 TBS maple syrup
salt and black pepper to taste
Prepare all of your vegetables and toss together in a
large bowl. Whisk together the dressing ingredients. Pour over the
salad and toss together again. Sprinkle with the toasted almonds and
served immediately.
The lads actually enjoyed this salad on their grilled burgers, kind of like a pickle. It made me happy to see them tucking in like they did!
We were a motley crew mix of Alaskan, Canadian, Utah'n, Irish, and Brit! What better cause for celebration!
Elder Boyer did a fine job of grilling the burgers and dogs! Oh boy, did he fall in love with the Space Grill! I think he is putting one on his wish list for when he and Sister Boyer go back to the US after their mission is finished. (Psst, that is a bottle of BBQ sauce in his hand, not a bottle of beer, lol)
Happy 4th of July to all my American Readers! Have a good one. Stay safe and enjoy all of your festivities, food, fireworks, BBQ's etc.!
One of the nice things as a food blogger is that occasionally I get sent new products, improved products, products to try out and voice my opinion on. I love trying and experiencing new things, especially when it has anything to do with food or eating! Ask me try try chocolate? Well, I feel like I have hit the motherlode! I adore chocolate! Recently the Grown Up Chocolate Company asked me if I would like to sample a couple of their bars of chocolate and let me tell you . . . they didn't have to ask twice!
About the company:
The Grown Up Chocolate Company was born in 2011, with a mission towards providing th most indulgent and decadent chocolates, the same chocolate you might have enjoyed as a child, but with a grown up twist and for Grown Ups only.
All of their chocolate is made in Harlow, UK, using only the highest quality ingredients. Their chocolate consists of 41% pure cocoa solids, which is an exceptionally high ration when compared to the market standard of only 18%.
They come in magnificently indulgent creations such as Very Naughty Nutty Nougat, Gorgeously Gooey Caramel Truffle Cups and Dark Chocolate Smoothy. There is also an option to "Make Your Own" with the opportunity to create your very own tailor-made chocolate bar of your dreams. Simply pick & mix from a selection of ingredients, choose your wrapper and Bob's your uncle. 3 tasty bars of your creation will be delivered right to your front door! Mmmm . . .
I was sent two 100g bars.
NUTS! Oh Hazelnuts! A creamy milk chocolate bar, enveloping a middle of deliciously crunchy whole roasted hazelnuts. (£3.25)
Fruit & Nut in Milk Chocolate. A decadent mix of milk chocolate, crunchy nuts, apricots and cranberries. (£2.95)
As you can see they were both chocker-blocked full of lovely whole hazelnuts, and fruit and nuts.
With the hazelnut one (which is the first one I tried) I found that there was a really decent amount of tasty roasted hazelnuts in proportion to the amount of chocolate. The chocolate was milky but not overly sweet. Like. LIKE!
Likewise the fruit and nut bar, which I'm afraid must have melted a tiny bit in the heat of the day during transit, but was still delicious and wonderfully full of lots of chopped toasted nuts and tasty fruits. Again, not overly sweet.
What I liked: Both really had a lovely, not overly sweet, chocoate flavour. You could tell that there was a much higher quality of cocoa solids in the chocolate. It tasted of cocoa, not sugar.
I loved the high ration of nuts to chocolate, and fruit of nuts to chocolate. A ration that was the same throughout the bar. I didn't find plain pockets. The nuts and fruits were consistent.
I also really like that these are produced right here in the UK. I love to buy UK produced goods if I can, to shop British. We need to support these home grown industries if we want our country to grow and flourish! Having quality goods to use/eat, etc, makes it easy!
There was no plastic used in the packaging. That is a biggie with me these days. We need to be reducing our plastic use, and I was quite happy that they were not using any.
What I didn't like: I am really trying hard to find something here, and I can't find anything, for the most part, other than the fact that they are a tad bit pricey. But that is not exactly an entirely bad thing. I might not be tempted to indulge as often as I could be were they not on the pricey, because these are really, really good!
If you would like to find out more about these bars and where you can buy them be sure to check out:
Note - I was sent two complimentary bars to try for myself. I was not required to write a positive review in exchange. Any and all opinions and comments are my own.
I never thought I would like a cold soup. I mean, isn't soup supposed to be served hot? Cold soup has just never appealed to me before NOW! And with just one spoonful of this fabulous ice cold Sweet Pea & Avocado Vichyssoise, I have converted into a lover of cold soup, or at the very least a lover of THIS cold soup!
The recipe is one I adapted from the cookery book entitled "Seriously Simple," by Diane Rossen Worthington. Its a book I have had in my bookcase for a number of years now, and after having made this soup at the weekend, I wondered why I did not refer to this book more often than I do. It is quite simply delicious as has been any recipe I have cooked from this book.
Simple ingredients put together in an amazing and delicious way. This is the way I love to cook and to eat.
It takes simple things like frozen petit pois . . . fresh avocado . . . sour cream . . . fresh salsa . . .chicken stock . . .lemon juice . . . spring onions . . . a bit of seasoning . . .
Nothing in the list is really out of the ordinary, unless you count the avocado pear . . . and they are very common here in the UK now, so not a problem.
All blitzed together until smooth and creamy. I pushed mine through a sieve to get rid of any little bits . . . because I am pedantic like that. Diane did not call for that step, but I really thought this soup would be better without them. I think I was right, at least presentation-wise.
This was quite simply beautiful, delicious . . . creamy, flavourful . . . very tasty!
She suggests that a clever cook could choose to garnish with some shredded cucumber & carrot, or a fresh corn relish (can you imagine how pretty that would be?), cooked shrimp, lobster or crab meat . . . all beautiful suggestions. I garnished with some fresh tomato salsa. Sour cream and slivered spring onion would also be very pretty and delicious.
If there was one drawback to this soup, and I am really having to stretch here, it would be that you do need a blender or a food processor, but they are pretty standard appliances in most kitchens today. I could not live without mine. I have a lovely stick blender as well as a food processor and they both get regular workouts!
I served this in chilled half pint canning jars, set on cut glass plates, which made for a really lovely presentation.
This was fabulous. Really fabulous. If you are looking for a delicious first course for your summer entertaining needs, look no further. This is perfect!
*Sweet Pea & Avocado Vichyssoise*
Serves 4
1 large ripe avocado, peeled, pitted and cut into chunks
150g frozen petit pois, thawed (1 cup)
600ml of cold chicken stock (2 1/2 cups)
3 spring onions, thinly sliced (the light green and white parts only)
3 TBS fresh lemon juice
40g sour cream (1/2 cup)
salt and black pepper to taste
4 TBS fresh tomato salsa, divided
Cold soup . . . yum. I am converted. I just wish I had taken the photos yesterday instead of this morning so you can see how truly vibrant the colour is. Alas, my day got away from me, and I did them this morning instead. Yes . . . I did eat this for breakfast, and I gobbled up every scrap of it. It was delicious (and now you know what a true glutton I really am.) Oh, and I was also able to successfully cut the recipe in half. This is plain and simple gorgeous! Bon appetit and Happy Summer!
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