Spinach and Salami Pasta

This dish is loosely based on the Broccoli Rabe and Salami Pasta dish, a Rachael Ray recipe, I spotted on A Taste of Home Cooking. Joe loves salami, but neither of us cares for broccoli rabe, so I decided right away I would use spinach instead. Then, the afternoon before I was going to make the dish for dinner, Joe commented that he was really in the mood for pasta and I was afraid he would be disappointed with this dish since it didn't have any real sauce to it. So I improvised and sort of made up my own concoction that incorporated tomato sauce and it was really good! The ricotta made it nice and creamy and the salami gave the whole thing a little kick. Joe loved it and I don't think I would change anything the next time I make it.

Spinach and Salami Pasta

1 jar (24 oz) marinara sauce

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Black pepper to taste

1/3 pound salami, sliced into ribbons (I used Genoa deli salami)

1 1/2 cups 2% ricotta cheese

1 pound penne pasta

1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese

4 cups baby spinach

Cook pasta according to package directions. As pasta cooks, heat marinara sauce over medium heat until bubbly. Stir in garlic powder, red pepper, black pepper and salami. Cook until salami is heated through, then stir in the ricotta cheese. Drain pasta and toss immediately with the sauce. Add spinach and combine until spinach begins to wilt.

Holla!!! (aka Challah Bread)

I had to use the above title in honor of Joe. I had printed out two bread recipes and was debating on which to try. I asked Joe if he would prefer Italian bread or challah, to which he responded "Holla!!!" and then asked what challah bread was. I love challah, so I decided to go with his choice. This bread is super delicious and tastes just like a nice bakery loaf of challah, even though its not it the traditional braided shape. Plus the whole thing is made in the bread machine so it requires little effort. Based on the reviews on All Recipes, I heated the milk in the microwave and melted the butter into it before adding it to the bread machine. I also upped the sugar and used closer to half a cup to make sure the bread was sweet enough. I thought it came out perfect - I will definitely make this again soon!

Bread Machine Challah

3/4 cup milk
2 eggs
3 tablespoons margarine
3 cups bread flour
1/4 cup white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

Add ingredients to the pan of the bread machine in the order suggested by the manufacturer.
Select Basic Bread and Light Crust settings. Start.

The best kind of eggs

are filled with peanut butter! Who doesn't love a nice big chocolate peanut butter egg? I decided to make up a batch to bring to Easter dinner - if ever there is a holiday that demands chocolate it's Easter. I used this recipe from Gale Gand of the Food Network and just shaped the peanut butter mixture into eggs instead of balls. I topped the finished eggs with some Easter sprinkles. They were delicious and tasted almost exactly like Reese's eggs. I did find the peanut butter mixture to be rather dry and added about 1/3 cup extra peanut butter to make it easier to work with. Aside from that, this recipe is a winner. Happy Easter!

Peanut Butter Eggs

1 jar (18 ounces) creamy peanut butter
1 (16-ounce) box confectioners' sugar
1 1/3 cups graham cracker crumbs
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 packages dark cocoa candy melts, melted

In a large bowl, combine peanut butter, confectioners' sugar, graham cracker crumbs, and butter. Mash together until combined. Form the mixture into balls. Transfer to the refrigerator until hardened, about 30 minutes. Dip the peanut butter balls into the melted chocolate and set inside mini paper cupcake forms. Decorate as desired. Let the chocolate set before serving.

Pineapple Cake

As soon as I saw this recipe for pineapple cake on Anna's blog, I knew it was the dessert that I wanted to bring to my aunt's house for Easter. In order to make it a little fancier I chose to do a two-layer cake and put the pineapple mixture between the layers and on top of the cake. This was a tasty cake! I used a butter recipe yellow cake mix and the result was a nice, dense, pound cake-like cake. The pineapple filling is quite sweet but it goes nicely with the cake. This was the perfect compliment to our yummy ham dinner.

Pineapple Cake

1 box butter recipe yellow cake mix
1 (20 oz) can crushed pineapple
4 ounces butter (1 stick) – regular salted type
5 oz can evaporated milk
1 ½ cups sugar
3 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray two 9-inch round cake pans with cooking spray.
Drain crushed pineapple and reserve juice.
Prepare cake as directed on box, substituting the reserved pineapple juice for half of the water.
Set a large (3 quart) saucepan over medium heat and add butter. When butter is about halfway melted, add evaporated milk and sugar. Continue cooking over medium heat, whisking often, until butter is completely melted mixture is hot and just beginning to simmer around the edges. Add egg yolks and continue cooking over medium, whisking constantly, until mixture boils and thickens. Cook and whisk for a little over a minute, then remove from heat and let cool for about 5 minutes. Add vanilla extract and drained pineapple. Leave pineapple mixture at room temperature (still in pan) while cake continues to bake and cools.
When cake is cool, pour room-temperature pineapple mixture over cake. Place in refrigerator and chill until pineapple topping sets.

Snap, Krackle, Pop

My sister Jill was invited to Easter dinner with her new boyfriend's family and she offered to bring a dessert. She then called me and asked me to make said dessert. I had lots of things in mind, but Jill wanted Rice Krispie treats. So Rice Krispie treats it was. Naturally, I used the recipe on the Rice Krispies website. We made one batch of regular and one batch of chocolate - I just added some cocoa powder and vanilla to the marshmallow and pressed chocolate chips on top. Unfortunately, gossiping with your sister and cooking aren't always the best combo and I added two few cups of Rice Krispies to the original treats, so they were slightly thin and greasy, but Jill insisted I didn't need to remake them. I paid more attention when mixing the chocolate ones and they came out much better! Hopefully Jill's boyfriend's family enjoyed them. And if they hated them, Jill promised to claim that she made them herself ;)

Rice Krispie Treats

3 tablespoons margarine or butter
1(10 oz.) package regular marshmallows
- or -
4 cups mini marshmallows
6 cups Rice Krispies®

Melt margarine in large saucepan over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat. Add KELLOGG'S RICE KRISPIES cereal. Stir until well coated. Using buttered spatula or waxed paper, press mixture evenly into 13 x 9 x 2-inch pan coated with cooking spray. Cut into 2-inch squares when cool. Best if served the same day.

MICROWAVE DIRECTIONS:In a large microwave safe bowl, heat margarine and marshmallows at HIGH for 3 minutes, stirring after 2 minutes. Stir until smooth. Follow steps 2 and 3 above.

The eating of the green

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Being that I'm not Irish I don't typically celebrate St. Patrick's Day, but I had a can of green Christmas-themed funfetti frosting in my pantry and I felt St. Patty's Day was the perfect chance to use it up. I whipped up some cupcakes from a yellow cake mix and added food coloring to turn them green. I frosted them with my green frosting and decorated with green sugar sprinkles and green M&Ms.

Venetian Shrimp and Scallops

Frozen seafood was on sale at the grocery store last weekend, so I had a freezer full of shrimp and scallops. I was at a loss as to what to do with the two together, so I turned to the girls on the What's Cooking board on the Nest, who recommended this Rachael Ray recipe. I changed the recipe a bit, since I didn't want to spend the money on saffron. I substituted Italian seasoning instead and it worked great. This dinner was very tasty. I served Joe's portion over penne and ate grilled asparagus with mine. This meal also requires a nice loaf of bread to sop up all the sauce. Delicious! I only wish my shrimps and scallops were larger, but they tasted good regardless!

Venetian Shrimp and Scallops

1 pound sea scallops
1/4 cup flour, seasoned with salt and pepper
1 tablespoon (1 turn around the pan) extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large shallot, finely chopped (I used onion)
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken broth or stock
1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes in juice
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads (I used Italian seasoning)
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
12 leaves fresh basil, shredded or torn (I omitted)
1 lemon, zested (I omitted)

Lightly coat the sea scallops in flour seasoned with salt and pepper. Discard remaining flour.
Preheat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add oil (1 turn around the pan) and butter. When butter melts into oil, add scallops. Brown scallops 2 minutes on each side, then remove from pan.
Add an additional drizzle of olive oil to the pan and add the garlic, shallots, and crushed red pepper flakes. Reduce heat a little and saute garlic and shallots 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add wine to the pan and free up any pan drippings. Reduce wine 1 minute, then add stock, tomatoes and saffron threads. When liquids come to a bubble, add shrimp and cook 3 minutes. Return scallops to the pan and cook shrimp and scallops 2 to 3 minutes longer. Transfer shrimp and scallops to a warm serving dish and top with basil and lemon zest. Pass plenty of bread to enjoy the juices.