Easy Peas-y Penne Pasta

Well, I tried a recipe from Rachael Ray called "More Peas if you Please Penne". I thought it was really easy, so I made up my own name for it. Easy Peas-y Penne Pasta. I like that name better. Anyway, Avery loved it. Logan wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole. He ran away from the table and hid in the corner behind the couch, only to run back to the table on occasion to grab an apple slice. I am really trying to crack down on making him try what I make for dinner, and if he won't, he can't eat anything else. So, here is the recipe. It is a good, easy meal.

More Peas if you please Penne* Rachael Ray

This makes a lot!

Salt
1 pound penne pasta with ridges
3 cups frozen peas
1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth
2 cups ricotta cheese
3 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1 cup fresh basil leaves, sliced
Freshly ground pepper

Cook pasta al dente. Set aside a ladle of pasta cooking water and then drain.

In a small saucepan, add peas and broth. Simmer 5 min.

In a large serving bowl, mash half the peas and broth with the ricotta cheese. Toss with the pasta, butter and half the Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Add the reserved pasta cooking water to moisten if needed. Stir in the remaining whole peas and the basil; season with salt and pepper. Top with the remaining Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

* I forgot to add fresh basil to the shopping list, so used dried instead. I also used the fresh shredded parmesan instead of the grated since that's what I had.

Thanksgiving desserts

So, we are going to someone's house for Thanksgiving dinner this year. They are inviting a lot of families who have no family to celebrate with. There will be a lot of people there. The good thing about this is that I don't have to make very much food. I was asked to bring dessert. I am going to bring two. This is what I plan on making. I will post later to let you know how they turned out.

Pumpkin Chocolate Cheesecake Bars

1 recipe graham cracker crust
2 8 oz. pkgs. Cream cheese, softened
1 ¾ c. sugar
3 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin
½ tsp. pumpkin pie spice
½ tsp. vanilla
¼ tsp. salt
1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 Tbls. butter
1 ¼ cups sour cream
¼ c. sugar
grated fresh nutmeg

•Preheat oven to 325.Prepare crust and set aside.
•In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar on medium speed until smooth. Add eggs, 1 at a time, on low speed beating until just combined after each one. Beat pumpkin, spice, vanilla and salt on low speed until just combined. Pour 1 ¼ c. filling into a bowl. Set aside.
•In a small saucepan, heat chocolate and butter over low heat until melted, stirring frequently. Whisk the melted chocolate mixture into the 1 ¼ c.pumpkin filling. Carefully spread the chocolate fiilling into crust. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and fill with remaining pumpkin filling, spreading evenly.
•Bake 40-45 minutes more or until mixture is puffed and center is set. Cool in pan on wire rack for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, combine sour cream and ¼ c. sugar. Cover, and let stand at room temp. while bars cool. Gently spread sour cream mixture over bars. Cool completely. Cover and refrigerate for 3 to 24 hours before cutting. Sprinkle with nutmeg just before serving. Cut into bars or triangles. Makes 24-36 bars.
•Place bars in a single layer in an airtight container, cover. Store in fridge up to 3 days. Do not freeze.

Graham Cracker Crust

Lightly grease a 9x13 pan. In a medium bowl combine 1 ¼ c. graham cracker crumbs and ¼ c. sugar. Add 1/3 c. melted butter; mix well. Press evenly into the bottom of the pan.

Nutmeg-Maple Cream Pie
New York Times

¾ cup maple syrup
2¼ cups heavy cream
4 egg yolks
1 whole egg
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 9-inch pie crust (see Pie Crust 101–will only require half a recipe).
1. Par-bake pie crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line pie refrigerated pie shell with foil or parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until beginning to set. Remove foil with weights and bake 15 to 18 minutes longer or until golden. If shell puffs during baking, press it down with back of spoon. Cool on wire rack. Lower temperature to 300 degrees.
2. Prepare filling: In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, reduce maple syrup by a quarter, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in cream and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks and egg. Whisking constantly, slowly add cream mixture to eggs. Strain mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a cup or bowl with pouring spout. Stir in salt, nutmeg and vanilla.
4. Pour filling into crust and transfer to a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until pie is firm to touch but jiggles slightly when moved, about 1 hour. Let cool to room temperature before serving.
Yield: One 9-inch pie, 8 servings

**** UPDATE:

The Chocolate pumpkin cheesecake bars were fantastic! The nutmeg maple cream pie was not. It didn't turn out like it was supposed to. It had a nice flavor, but the texture was not good. I don't know what went wrong since it seemed like a simple recipe. Oh well. No one else tasted it but me, so I am glad! I would have been really embarrassed!

Vanilla Caramel Popcorn

This has become a favorite recipe. I like it because I usually have the ingredients to make it, and it is really fast, and satisfies the sweet tooth. It is a great Family Home Evening treat!

Vanilla Caramel Popcorn (aka sticky popcorn)

2 sticks butter
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup karo syrup
1 tsp. vanilla
2 bags microwave popcorn

Cook popcorn and pour into large bowl. Melt butter, sugar, and corn syrup together and bring to a boil. Boil for 1 minute and remove from heat. Add vanilla. Pour over popcorn and enjoy!

Baked Parmesan Chicken

This is what we are having for dinner today.

Parmesan Chicken
brussels sprouts
rice
Rhodes rolls

Baked Parmesan Chicken

boneless chicken breasts
bread crumbs
Parmesan Cheese
oregano, basil, or italian seasoning
pepper
Salt to taste
garlic powder
1/4-1/2 cup melted butter

Combine bread crumbs, cheese,and seasonings; set aside. Dip chicken in butter then roll each piece in bread crumb mixture. Place chicken in 9x13 pan and sprinkle with remaining bread crumb mixture. Pour on remaining butter. Bake at 350° for 35-55 minutes, depending on thickness of chicken.

* This is a new favorite of ours. Tony loves it. It is really easy, and tastes delicious too! I am all about easy, I can't say that enough!I just pour a few handfuls of bread crumbs, a handful of shredded parmesan cheese, and then the seasonings until it looks good. I add the garlic powder in the bread crumb mixture, but I have also sauteed garlic in the butter, and then dipped the chicken in the garlic butter first. I just wanted it a bit simpler. Try it! You'll like it!

Baked Oatmeal

Ok. Who likes oatmeal? I can eat it fine, but I don't usually love it. Sometimes it is hard for me to get through my entire serving without gagging. I have to sprinkle on sugar, and make sure to add milk to mask the gummy consistency. While my comments are making it sound like I really don't like oatmeal, I do. It's just not my favorite.

Enter Baked Oatmeal. This is seriously good. I just had two servings without complaint. My complaint now is that I am full. But that's good. It's one of the perks about eating oatmeal for breakfast. It is full of fiber, and fills you up good so you aren't wanting to snack. So, on to the recipe.

Baked Oatmeal

6 Cups Quick Cooking Oatmeal
1 Cup Sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups milk
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs, slightly beaten

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Pour into a greased 9x13x2 baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes or until set. Serve with additional milk.

* I actually halved the recipe and baked it in an 8x8 casserole dish. I only baked it for 35 minutes. It was a bit crispy around the edges, but slightly soft in the middle. Sorta like an oatmeal cookie! I think next time I might leave it in a bit longer to get a little more crunch. I also may add some extras like raisins and cinnamon to make it even more like an oatmeal cookie. Who wouldn't want to eat a cookie for breakfast? Anyway, I did add a little milk to it before eating, and my first serving I sprinkled some cinnamon on top. It is really quite tasty! So, if you are looking for a new way to serve oatmeal, or just a yummy, comfort food for a cold winter morning, this is it! It is super easy to make too. Now that's my kind of recipe!