Primavera Orzo

Cook Time: 15 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 4 servings


Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 shallots, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
1 cup shredded carrots, chopped
1 teaspoon curry powder
3 cups chicken stock
1 cup orzo pasta
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
3 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley, a handful
1 cup frozen peas
Salt and pepper


Directions

Heat a medium skillet over medium high heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan in a slow stream. Add garlic, shallots, zucchini and carrots. Saute 5 minutes. Add curry, chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add orzo and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring occasionally until pasta absorbs the liquid and is al dente in texture, 10 minutes. Uncover and stir in cheese, parsley and peas. Season with salt and pepper, to your taste.

From: foodnetwork.com

Aunt Angie's Lasagna Recipe

Cook Time: 2 hr
Level: Intermediate
Yield: 12 servings


Ingredients

For the Meatball Mix:

5 pounds ground beef
5 eggs, beaten
4 cups bread crumbs
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon garlic
1/4 cup chopped parsley leaves
1/2 pound grated Romano cheese

For the Meat Sauce:

1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 cup each carrots, celery and onion, roughly chopped in food processor
1 gallon ground pear tomatoes
1/2 tablespoon salt
1/2 tablespoon ground black pepper
1/2 tablespoon chopped garlic
1/2 tablespoon fennel seed
2 bay leaves
1/2 tablespoon chopped basil leaves

For Aunt Angie's Lasagna:

1 pound cooked lasagna pasta (about 10 pieces)
4 pounds meatball mix
2 pounds ricotta cheese
2 pounds mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup Romano cheese
32 ounces meat sauce


Directions

For the Meatball Mix:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.


In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients. Roll meatballs into desired size and bake in preheated oven for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. For the lasagna, instead of rolling into desired size, spread mix out evenly on a sheet pan and bake. Break up the meat for lasagna.


For the Meat Sauce:

In a stock pot (or large cooking vessel) brown the ground beef. Add the celery/carrot/onion mix and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and the seasonings. Let simmer for 2 hours.


For Aunt Angie's Lasagna:

Using a 1/2 hotel pan or medium to large baking dish, coat the bottom with a thin layer of meat sauce. Lay out 4 pieces of lasagna so they go up the side of the pan with an additional 3 to 4 inches hanging over the edge. Do the same in the other direction of the pan using pieces of pasta. Add another layer of meat sauce, followed by 1/2 of the meatball mix. Then top the meat with 1 pound of the ricotta cheese, 1 pound of mozzarella, and 1/4 cup of Romano. Add a layer of pasta and repeat to have 2 layers. Fold over the remaining pasta to cover the top. Top with meat sauce and place in preheated oven and bake until proper serving temperature is reached or top is golden brown.


This recipe was provided by professional chefs and has been scaled down from a bulk recipe provided by a restaurant. The Food Network Kitchens chefs have not tested this recipe, in the proportions indicated, and therefore, we cannot make any representation as to the results.

From: foodnetwork.com

Three Mushroom Rigatoni

Cook Time: 20 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 4 servings


Ingredients

1 pound rigatoni pasta
Salt
1 1/2 ounces dried porcini mushrooms
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 portobello mushroom caps
1/2 pound shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
4 cloves garlic, sliced
1/2 cup dry Italian red wine
2 to 3 stems rosemary, stripped and finely chopped, a couple of tablespoons
Black pepper
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, such as San Marzano
Hunk Pecorino Romano, for grating
Crusty bread, for mopping


Directions

Heat a grill pan to high.


Place a large pot of water on the stove to boil. Add salt and cook rigatoni to al dente.


Place porcini in a small pot with about 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, drop to simmer, and reduce liquid by half, 10 minutes.


While pasta and porcini are working, pour about 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil into a small bowl. Use a pastry brush to coat the portobellos in extra-virgin olive oil and place them on hot grill. Cook until dark and tender, 7 to 8 minutes, turning once. Remove and let rest.


Heat a large deep skillet with 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. Add shiitakes and cook a few minutes then add garlic and cook a couple minutes longer. Add wine and reduce a minute. Halve and slice portobellos then add to shiitakes. Scatter the rosemary into the pan and turn to distribute the herb. Season the mushrooms with salt and pepper. Stir in tomatoes. Remove the porcini from steeping broth with a slotted spoon and chop. Stir mushrooms into sauce then add a few ladles of the steeping broth. Do not use the very last of it: any grit in the dried mushrooms will have settled to the bottom of the pot. Let flavors combine for a couple of minutes more.


Drain pasta and add to warm pot. Grate some Romano down over the pasta and add a few ladles of the sauce to the pasta. Toss the pasta and sauce to coat, then transfer to a serving platter or into individual bowls and top with remaining sauce. Pass more cheese at table for topping, and bread for mopping. Yum-o!

From: foodnetwork.com

Heck of a Jicama Salad

Cook Time: 20 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 4 servings


Ingredients


1 medium jicama root, peeled and sliced into thick matchsticks
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
2 limes, juiced
2 hearts romaine, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves, a handful of leaves, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, eyeball it in the palm of your hand
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, eyeball it
Freshly ground black pepper


Directions


Place jicama in a bowl, sprinkle with salt and sugar, and add the juice of 1 lime. Let jicama stand 15 minutes. While jicama softens, work on the rest of your meal.


Arrange romaine on a serving plate. Top romaine with jicama. Juice 1 lime into a small bowl, add cilantro and cumin. Whisk in extra-virgin olive oil in a slow stream. Pour dressing over salad and season with salt and pepper.

From: foodnetwork.com

Mashed Potato Skins

Photograph by Con Poulos

Cook Time: 20 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 4 servings


Ingredients

6 slices turkey bacon
2 pounds small Yukon gold potatoes, halved
Salt
1 cup buttermilk, eyeball it
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives, a handful
1/2 cup shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese, yellow or white, 2 handfuls


Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.


Arrange the turkey bacon on a sheet pan and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until crisp. Cool and chop.


Put the potatoes in a medium sauce pot and cover with cold water. Bring the water to a boil and season with salt. Cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and mash potatoes with buttermilk and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the chives and cheddar and fold in the bacon.


Rachael cuts calories here by using turkey bacon, and buttermilk instead of sour cream. As she says, "If you eat well, you can eat more!" From the 30 Minute Meals library, courtesy of Rachael Ray, 2006

From: foodnetwork.com

Red and White Delight: Strawberries and Ice Cream

Cook Time: 5 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 2 to 3 servings


Ingredients

1 pint ripe strawberries
1 tablespoon sugar
1 pint French vanilla ice cream, softened


Directions

Rinse berries. Halve berries; reserve a few for garnish, one per person. Place halved berries in a small glass bowl and sprinkle with sugar. Toss berries and sugar. Spoon soft French vanilla ice cream over berries and smooth. Cover bowl and place in freezer. When you serve berries and ice cream, garnish each dish with remaining berries.

From: foodnetwork.com

Steak Pizzaola with The Works

Cook Time: 22 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 2 BIG GUY servings


Ingredients

1 24 ounce to 2 pound piece porterhouse or rib-eye steak
Salt and pepper
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 3 turns of the pan
4 cloves garlic, crushed away from the skins
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
12 mushrooms, sliced
1 small onion, sliced
1 green bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1/3 stick pepperoni, casing removed, then chopped, optional
1/2 cup dry red wine, eyeball it
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried oregano or 2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano leaves
1/4 cup grated cheese, Parmigiano or Romano


Directions

Heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Season the steak with salt and pepper. Add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil to the pan. Brown 3 minutes on each side and remove. Add another turn of the pan extra-virgin olive oil and reduce heat to medium high. Add garlic, pepper flakes, mushrooms, onions, peppers and pepperoni, if using. Cook mixture 5 minutes, then add wine and scrape up any good-bits from the bottom of the skillet. Add tomatoes, oregano, salt and pepper, to taste. Slide steak back in and reduce heat to medium. Cover pan and cook 5 or 6 minutes for medium rare, 10 to 12 minutes for medium well. Remove meat, cut away from bone or divide into 2 large portions. Cover steaks with sauce and top with grated cheese.

From: foodnetwork.com