Sun-Dried Tomato Risotto

YUM!  Did you know that Risotto is actually another type of pasta?  This is what my pasta-loving dear husband tells me anyway.  This recipe comes from The Pioneer Woman, and it is delicious!  I think the baby ate as much as I did!  There looks to be a lot of ingredients, but don't be scared, it really is easy.  (Oh, and for a little extra oomph I added a white puree from the sneaky chef... no one ever noticed.)  For all who are ready to give me oodles of praise for this photo... it is indeed the Pioneer Woman's photo... She also has a ton of step by step photos if you are interested... I just didn't want to reinvent the wheel with this one.

Ingredients

• 4 Tablespoons Butter
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• ½ whole Large Yellow Onion, Diced
• 3 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 2 cups Arborio Rice, Uncooked
• 8 whole Sundried Tomatoes Packed In Oil, Drained And Minced
• 1 cup Dry White Wine (optional)
• 7 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
• Salt As Needed
• Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• 1 cup Parmesan, Freshly Grated
• ¼ cups Heavy Whipping Cream
• Fresh Basil, Chiffonade (optional)

Preparation Instructions

1. Heat broth (note: it’s important the broth be low sodium) in a saucepan or in a microwave safe pitcher. Set aside.
2. Heat butter and olive oil in a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
3. Add dry rice. Stir to coat and cook for 3 minutes, stirring gently.
4. Pour in wine. Stir and cook over medium-low heat until most of the liquid is absorbed. Add in minced sundried tomatoes and stir.
5. Then begin adding broth, one cup at a time, stirring gently while the rice absorbs the liquid each time. Repeat this until the rice is done—it usually takes between 6 and 8 cups of broth. The rice should have a slight bite to it, but not be crunchy at all.
6. Remove from heat, then stir in Parmesan and heavy cream. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Serve as a main dish with a salad, or as a side dish with steak, chicken, or fish. Delicious!

Spaghetti Squash Pancakes

I know what you must be thinking... Seriously?  Vegetables in a pancake?  Absolutely!  I haven't made them in a really long time, but everyone (and I mean everyone) gobbled these up!  I served them with a soup, if I remember correctly.  I honestly don't remember much about the preparation or anything, but I do remember their taste.  Delicious, especially with plain yogurt or sour cream topping!  I have no idea how I stumbled upon this recipe, or the website from where it came.  But, here it is from Mollie Katzen Online:

2 cups cooked spaghetti squash
1 cup onion, minced
1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour or rice flour
1/2 teaspoon salt (scant measure)
4 large eggs
Black pepper to taste
Nonstick spray and/or butter for the pan
Sour cream or yogurt for the top
Salsa for the top, too (but not too spicy--these are delicate)

1. Place the squash in a medium-sized bowl and separate the strands a little with a fork. Use the fork to mix in the onion, flour, and salt, and then to beat in the eggs.
2. Place a skillet or griddle over medium heat. When the pan is hot, spray it with nonstick spray, and, if you like, melt in a little butter. Add the batter in 1/4-cup amounts to make 2 1/2-inch pancakes.
3. Cook the pancakes cook until golden on both sides. Unlike cakier pancakes which toughen when turned from side to side, these can be turned more than once. Get them really well-done on the outside. They will still be tender and light, kind of chewy-crisp. So cook them for a good 20 minutes, minimum!
4. Serve hot, with or without toppings.

Moroccan Lentil Salad

This was another recipe I tested for vegetarian company.  Now I don't remember if we used it for that purpose or not, but I remember it being very good.  Even my husband would eat it.  I can't remember about the kids.  My guess is they didn't, as we only had it one time.  Regardless, it's a must stay on this blog, since my husband and I liked it.  Hopefully the kids' taste buds will grow to like it too!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup dry lentils
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1/2 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• 4 green onions, chopped
• 2 minced hot green chile peppers
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 lime, juiced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• salt to taste

1. Place lentils and water in a pot. Bring water to boil, reduce to simmer. Cook for 30 minutes or until tender.
2. In a medium size mixing bowl combine lentils, chickpeas, tomatoes, green onions, green chilies, bell peppers, lime juice, olive oil, cilantro, and salt to taste. Toss well. Chill for 20 minutes. Serve chilled.

Fancy Pumpkin Mac and Cheese

I'm changing the name of this recipe a bit, but it comes from Aggieland Mommy Cooks blog. Really it's called Pasta with Creamy Pumpkin Sauce (a Kraft recipe). Honestly, it's more like mac and cheese with a bit of pumpkin. Regardless, it's super yummy! I think each of us could have eaten the entire pound of pasta individually!  The nice thing about this recipe is that it does include some vegetable in it. I'm finding that in order to get our youngest son to eat anything other than broccoli as a vegetable, it needs to be well hidden in his meal. So, recipes like this are great! I'm not sure if you'd lose some of the flavor of the pumpkin or not, but I'm betting you could also add some pureed sweet potato and carrot to add a bit more of the good stuff to it, while not messing with the original color of the recipe. Think I'll try that next time and see how it goes over. You could also decrease the amount of fat and calories by using Neufachel cheese (or fat free cream cheese). I chose the middle ground and used the 1/3 less fat and it was fantastic, but I don't think you would lose too much in flavor with the fat free. This is great as either a side or a main dish.

16 oz penne, uncooked
8 oz cream cheese, cubed
1 c grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 c butter (I use margarine-- specifically Smart Balance)
1/2 c milk
1 c canned pumpkin
1/2 t ground red pepper [I used about half of this so it wouldn't be too spicy for the kids-- perfect!]
ground nutmeg [I used about about the same amount as I did for the red pepper... didn't want it too overpowering. I think it was also a perfect amount]

1. Cook pasta as directed.
2. Meanwhile, place cream cheese, parmesan, butter, and milk in large saucepan; cook on low heat until cream cheese is melted, stirring frequently.
3. Add pumpkin & spices; cook until thoroughly heated; stirring frequently.
4. Add pasta & toss lightly. Serve topped with additional Parmesan cheese if desired

Portuguese Roasted Potatoes

I love this recipe and have used it quite often. It's super easy with relatively few ingredients. I never measure any of it-- you put in as much or as little as you like. They are so yummy! The original recipe is from fullbellies happy kids.  It does a much better job of showing you the recipe with pictures and all, but here it is nice and handy.

5 medium potatoes (peeled or unpeeled- whichever you prefer)
olive oil
3 T flour
garlic powder
salt and pepper
paprika

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cut potatoes into bite sized pieces
3. Coat with a bit of olive oil-- you don't need a lot maybe a T will do or less
4. Mix dry ingredients and toss with potatoes to coat
5. Bake about 30 min at 400 (longer at 375)

*Note: You can make these potatoes a bit on the spicy side depending on how much pepper you add. I happen to like them spicier than the kids, so I have to be cautious with the amount of pepper I put in-- maybe 3/4 t or less would do. I may try to bake and then freeze these sometime to make them more of a quick serve item. Not that they take anything at all to make, but if you have potatoes you need to use up, would be really easy to do. I'll have to re-post if it works.