One Pot Basil Tomato Pasta

One Pot Basil Tomato Pasta

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces linguine
• 12 ounces cherry or grape tomatoes, halved or quartered if large
• 1 onion, thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced (I minced mine and did 6 cloves)
• 1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes 
• 2 sprigs basil (6-8 leaves, or more!), plus torn leaves for garnish
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 4 1/2 cups water
• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

Directions:
1. Combine pasta, tomatoes, onion, garlic, red-pepper flakes, basil, oil, 2 teaspoons salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and water in a large straight-sided skillet. Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil mixture, stirring and turning pasta frequently with tongs, until pasta is al dente and water has nearly evaporated, about 9-11 minutes.

2. Season to taste with salt and pepper, garnish with basil. Serve with oil and Parmesan.

Notes: I had this pinned for awhile but I was totally skeptical. No sautéing? Just throw it all in and it will turn out fine 10 minutes later? Well, after making it on Sunday, I am converted! It was simple but fresh and delicious (all the kids gobbled it down). Plus, it's very much my style to just throw it all in and let it cook:) 

Source: http://www.marthastewart.com/978784/one-pan-pasta. Picture: http://www.joyouslydomestic.com/2013/10/one-pot-tomato-basil-pasta-martha.html

Black Bean Smothered Sweet Potatoes

Black Bean Smothered Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:

• 4 medium sweet potatoes (optional: 1 t cumin, 2 T olive oil, 1 t salt, dash pepper  - if roasting)

• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed 
• 2 medium tomato, diced 

Toppings: 

• sour cream
• chopped fresh cilantro
• diced avocado
• fresh lime juice

Directions:
1. For sweet potatoes, you can cook them two ways: baked or roasted.
-Baked: Prick sweet potatoes with a fork in several places. Microwave on High until tender all the way to the center, 12 to 15 minutes. (Alternatively, place in a baking dish and bake at 425ºF until tender all the way to the center, about 1 hour.) 
-Roasted: OR You can peel, dice into large bite-sized pieces, toss with some olive oil, 1 t cumin, 1 t salt, dash of pepper. Spread on a cookie sheet and roast at 450F for about 30 minutes, turning half way through. I've tried both ways (baked or roasted) and love both. 

2. For the black bean "smothering": sautee the onion in the olive oil over medium heat until translucent and then add the garlic and spices and salt, cooking for one more minute. Then add the beans and tomatoes until heated through and tomatoes start to let out some of their juices. 

3. If baking the sweet potatoes, when just cool enough to handle, slash each sweet potato lengthwise, press open to make a well in the center and spoon the bean mixture into the well. Alternatively, serve the roasted sweet potatoes and top with the black bean mixture. Top with desired toppings (listed above). 

Notes: My sister Corinne served the baked version over the Christmas holiday. We all loved it! I LOVE these flavors. These flavors are very similar to the black bean and sweet potato burritos and the stacked roasted veggie enchiladas that I have posted before. I love the subtle spice and southwest flavors matched the sweetness of the sweet potato. I also love all the whole foods this provides and how filling it is! 

Source: Adapted from: http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/NutritionCenter/Recipes/Black-Bean-Smothered-Sweet-Potatoes_UCM_442433_Recipe.jsp

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

Ingredients:

• 5-1/4 to 5-1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I usually do 3 C whole wheat pastry flour and have also tried with all whole wheat, which is great, just denser).
• 2 cups quick-cooking oats
• 2/3 cup nonfat dry milk powder
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
• 3 teaspoons salt
• 2-1/2 cups water
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 egg
• 1 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup sugar

• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions:

• In a large bowl, combine 2 cups flour, oats, milk powder, brown sugar, yeast and salt. In a small saucepan, heat water and butter to 120°-130°. Add to dry ingredients; beat just until moistened. Add egg; beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a firm dough. Stir in raisins.
• Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bow, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
• Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide in half. Roll each portion into an 18-in. x 9-in. rectangle. Combine sugar and cinnamon. Set aside 2 tablespoons for topping. Sprinkle remaining cinnamon-sugar over rectangles to within 1/2 in. of edges. Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a short side; pinch seam to seal.
• Place seam side down in two greased 9-in. x 5-in. loaf pans. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Sprinkle with reserved cinnamon-sugar.
• Bake at 375° for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown. Cover loosely with foil if tops brown too quickly. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. 
• Yield: 2 loaves (16 slices each).

Notes: We have made this several times and I love it for toast in the morning. It's a nice make-ahead breakfast option and the kids love to snack on it as well. It's filling, especially if you use whole wheat flour, and has a bit of sweetness that makes it even more appealing to the kiddos. 

Source: My sister Camille!

Baked Oatmeal

Baked Oatmeal

Ingredients:

•  2 cups quick oats
• ½ cup packed brown sugar (I used less and it was still quite sweet)
• 1/3 raisins (or cranberries, dates or other dried fruit, or a combo)
• 1 tbsp. of chopped walnuts (I usually don’t have walnuts on hand so I often omit)
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 ½ c. skim milk
• ½ c. applesauce (other fruit puree or something similar i.e. pumpkin)
• 2 tbsp. melted butter (or canola oil)
• 1 large egg, beaten
• Dash of salt

Other additions/substitutions:

Double for a 9x13 pan (this is what we do for our family)

Wheat bran (add up to ¼ c. and maybe just a little extra milk)

Wheat germ (not too much b/c wheat germ can change the flavor)

Flax meal (great!)

Cranberries, other dried fruit

Almonds

Coconut

A little dash of vanilla extract

Dash of cinnamon

Agave nectar (or honey or maple syrup) instead of brown sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Combine the first five ingredients in a medium bowl. Combine the milk, applesauce, butter (oil), and egg. Add milk mixture to oat mixture, stir well. Pour oat mixture into 8 inch square pan coated with cooking spray (glass pan cleans up very easily!) Bake for 20 minutes (give or take a few, depending if you’ve really let the oven warm up)

Serve warm – with a drizzle of milk to cool it down a bit.

Notes: Another great make ahead breakfast option. I love mixing it up the night before and just popping it in the oven when I get up. The kids LOVE oatmeal and usually Jordo and EmmaMae then eat it throughout the day. My sister Camille has tried lots of the variations. I'm excited to try the pumpkin variation next!

Source: My sister Camille!

Refrigerator Bran Muffins

Refrigerator Bran Muffins

INGREDIENTS

• 4 cups wheat bran flakes or plain wheat bran
• 2 cups bran buds (look like little pebbles) or all-bran (look like little twigs)
• 2 cups boiling water
• 1 quart (4 cups) buttermilk
• 8 tablespoons (1/2 cup) butter, melted
• ½ cup (no-added sugar) applesauce
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 5 cups whole wheat flour
• 4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large bowl with a tight fitting lid, place the wheat bran flakes (or plain wheat bran) and the bran buds or all-bran. Pour the boiling water over the bran and mix well. Stir every couple of minutes while the mixture cools to room temperature. The mixture will become very thick and sticky.
2. After the mixture cools, add the buttermilk, melted butter, applesauce, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Mix well. Add the flour, baking soda and salt. Mix well to combine all the ingredients together.
3. The batter can be covered well and kept in the refrigerator for up to 30 days. To bake, scoop the batter into greased or lined muffin tins. Fill 3/4 full. Bake at 375 degrees for about 14-16 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.

Notes:

I know that Grandma Lauritzen and Mom Toone used to make bran muffins. Due to Jordan's unpredictable schedule, breakfast time is sometimes our only consistent meal together as a family so we are trying to make it more of a sit down event, even on busy school mornings. I LOVE these make ahead muffins! It helps get us out of the cereal rut and makes my morning so easy! They are filling and pretty healthy and paired with fruit make a meal. I have made this big batch about 4 times now and each batch makes about 4 dozen muffins. I love having it just sitting in my fridge, waiting to be made. I highly recommend these. I see them as a staple of our school mornings now. (And now that our church has changed from 1pm to 9am, we eat them on Sundays as well).

Source: (recipe and picture)

http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2010/09/healthy-and-delicious-refrigerator-bran-muffins.html

Penne Rosa Pasta

Penne Rosa

Noodles & Co copycat recipe

1 lb Penne Noodles cooked

1 8oz can diced tomatoes

1 8oz can of tomato sauce

1-2 cups of heavy whipping cream

1 clove garlic

1 tsp of garlic salt

1 tsp Oregano

1 tsp Basil

Sliced mushrooms

2 cups of fresh spinach

2 Tbsp Fresh lemon juice

Feta Cheese (or parmesan if you would rather)

If you want a little spice, add some red pepper flakes. Combine tomatoes, tomato sauce, garlic and whipping cream.  Bring to a simmer.  Add garlic salt, oregano, basil and mushrooms. Once heated through, take off heat and add spinach and lemon juice.  Let spinach wilt a little (dont over-wilt). Add pasta to the sauce.  Dish up in bowls and sprinkle with feta cheese.  Yum!