Baked Pasta

I love pasta of all shapes and forms. I sometimes even make it from scratch. During college, I made spaghetti like once a week, and somehow never got tired of it. The hubby, however, has gotten bored of the more traditional recipe, so I try to make baked spaghetti or some kind of baked pasta on a regular basis. And I must say, there is nothing quite like the bubbly, gooey goodness of melted cheese.

This recipe is a fairly basic baked pasta recipe. It can be modified to suit a number of different ingredients, which is great. If I don't have spaghetti on hand, I'll use penne or ziti, or some other pasta. I've used thawed out frozen spinach in it, diced zucchini, shredded carrots, cream cheese, cottage cheese, etc. It's a very versatile recipe. Feel free to mix in some of your favorites, too!

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef
1 lb. spaghetti (or other pasta)
1-2 tsp. Olive oil
1 jar of spaghetti sauce (I used mushroom)
1 onion, diced
4 mushrooms, sliced
2 Tbsp. diced/crushed garlic (I used the stuff from a jar, but fresh is better)
Garlic powder
Salt
Pepper
Basil/Italian seasoning (optional)
Crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
Shredded parmesan cheese
1 bag Italian Cheese blend (or Mozzarella cheese)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Begin by browning the ground beef and boiling your spaghetti noodles. While the meat is browning, dice the onion and slice the mushrooms. If using fresh garlic, dice your fresh garlic now, too. Drain the hamburger and set aside. Sauté the onions in olive oil. When the onions become translucent, add the mushrooms and garlic. Continue sautéing until the mushrooms are tender. Season the mushroom/onion mix with a sprinkle of salt and pepper.

After draining the spaghetti noodles, return them to the pot you used to boil them and add the jar of spaghetti sauce. Mix until the sauce has thoroughly coated the noodles. Add the hamburger and mushroom/onion mix to the spaghetti, combining all of the ingredients together. At the time, add about half of the cheese to the spaghetti. (Cottage or ricotta cheese would make a delicious addition. I would have added it during this step, if I had any.) Also, if using any crushed red pepper flakes or Italian seasoning, add them in now, before transferring the mixture to a baking dish. Spray a baking dish (9x13) with Pam and then add the spaghetti mixture. Spread it out evenly in the pan and then top with the remainder of the shredded cheese.

Bake for about 15 minutes, or however long it takes for the cheese to melt and brown a little.

If you have leftovers, try putting some in the freezer! I've put individual portions in the freezer and taken them to lunch a week later. If you put it in your lunch box at night or first thing in the morning, it is usually thawed out by lunch time and ready to microwave.

Enjoy!
-Deb

I Heart Avocados!

Over the past few years I have developed a great love for the avocado. My love for the strange green fruit began a few years back when my husband and I traveled to Chicago. We simply could not escape from it. It was on every menu. Even at the Field Museum, surrounded by dinosaur bones and historical displays, we were encountering avocados. I had real sushi for the first time on that trip, too. (As opposed to the creations offered at our local small-town Chinese buffet/Mongolian BBQ.) I think the reason I really like avocados so much is because of sushi. My husband and I began making sushi at home shortly after that, partially to save money, partially just to have fun. We started out small, making California rolls, and soon began putting avocados in everything.

A few days ago I made sandwiches for lunch. In order to save a few calories (and because nothing else sounded good) I skipped putting any condiments on mine. I just added a little mushed up avocado and called it good. The sandwich was okay, nothing really to brag about. My husband suggested that next time I mash up some on his too. (I just sliced some avocado for his and used honey mustard for the condiment.)

I decided to make a sandwich for the hubby for lunch today before he headed to work and created a pretty tasty avocado spread. I like it. Hubby loved it. Hope you like it too. If you try it, please let me know!

Avocado Sandwich Spread

Ingredients:

1/2 of an avocado
sprinkle of garlic powder
sprinkle of cumin
sprinkle of kosher salt
dash of lime juice (no more than 1 tsp.)
2 tsp. mayo (approximately)

Makes enough for 2-4 Sandwiches

I began by removing the pit and slicing the avocado. To remove the pit, use a sharp knife and in one quick motion, place the blade of your knife into the center of the pit. The pit should be stuck to your knife. Hold the avocado in one hand and turn the knife so that the pit comes free from the avocado. Set aside the avocado. To remove the pit from the knife, I find it easiest to bang the side of the knife on the edge of the sink. One good bang will usually be enough for the pit to come free. Too see more about taking the seed out of an avocado, please watch this video:



I then diced the avocado, while still in its shell and removed it with a spoon. Place the avocado in a small bowl. Because the avocado I was using was still fairly firm, I used a pastry blender to break the pieces down until they looked like a lumpy mess. I found that using a pastry blender is an ideal way to break it down to the consistency that I desired.

Next, add salt, garlic powder, and cumin to the mashed avocado and combine them together. Add lime juice and stir. At this point the mixture should still be fairly thick. Add the mayo and stir. Taste test and adjust for flavor. Then, just add it to your favorite sandwich! (Our sandwiches had chicken breast, cheddar cheese, lettuce, and the avocado spread. Bacon would have made a tasty addition though!)

Enjoy!
-Deb

Note: The amount of the ingredients is approximate because I don't really measure unless I'm baking. I mix in what I think will work, taste it, and adjust as necessary.

Welcome!

I am starting this blog with the hope of sharing recipes that I create. Friends have asked for recipes in the past, and this provides me with a way of sharing them. I hope to use the site to share information about other websites, inspirations, culinary disasters (because they do happen) and other stuff. Stay tuned for more! ~Deb