Easy Spaghetti Sauce Recipe

My grandparents are Italian. We had pasta and homemade sauce all of the time when I was a kid. I was very spoiled to have sauce that was literally made with love, and the taste proved it! Mom and Pop would schedule a day during the week to make a "batch" of the sauce. They usually made it together, and it would be an all day event. All fresh ingredients, simmering on the stove for hours, and then portioned into containers to 1) be used for dinner,2) be distributed to my mom and aunt & uncle  or 3) to be put in the freezer for use later.

I would consider myself a sauce snob! (Funny I know)  I am not a fan of jar/store bought spaghetti sauce. My grandparents, who are now in their 80's still made their sauce, but not nearly as much as I wish that they did, and every once in a while I get a batch sent to me.

My grandmother gave me her recipe, and I feel soo lucky to have it. (And I'm not sharing it, it's a secret family recipe) However, it takes time..I mean..like I need to literally plan to spend a half of a day to make the sauce. And, unfortunately, its not feasible to make it on a regular basis for me.

In conversation with my sister in law recently, I was telling her about my dislike for jar/store bought sauces, and she shared with me a recipe that she found online.Thanks Donna!!!

The following recipe is from America's Test Kitchen.

-It's inexpensive to make

- It only takes about 20 minutes to make

- It taste really good

- You can tweak it to add additional ingredients to suit your taste.

- You can freeze it and it still taste great when it is reheated!

The recipe is called "QUICK TOMATO SAUCE"

Ingredients:

This recipe make 3 cups which is enough for 1 lb of pasta.
 (If you are like me, and like sauce, I would double the recipe..that's what I did!)

Ingredients
2 tablespoons of unsalted butter
1/4 cup (one medium) grated onion (I put mine in a food processor, I don't like chunks of onions, so  if I can't see them, I'll eat them!)
2 medium garlic cloves (minced or pressed in garlic press) GET the Garlic Press from Pampered Chef!!
1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes (Recipe suggests using Tuttorosso or good quality brand tomatoes)
1/4 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons of coarsely chopped basil leaves
1 tablespoon of Extra Virgin olive Oil
Ground Black Pepper

(I add Freshly grated Romano and Parm Cheeses, and I use more Sugar then the above calls for)

Heat butter in a medium saucepan until melted.

Add onion oregano and 1/2 teaspoon of salt until liquid has evaporated and onion is golden brown
Add garlic and cook until fragrant (hmmm..garlic and onion are already fragrant right?)30 seconds

Add tomato and sugar Increase heat to high and bring to simmer. Then lower heat to medium-low and let simmer until sauce begins to thicken..about 10 minutes. Take off heat, add in basil and olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.

I add the cheeses prior to taking it off of the stove and I add  more sugar while still on the heat. (I'm a rebel!)

I also like to add pork or small pieces of chicken to my sauce

To serve, I scoop sauce on the plate, top with pasta, then add more sauce to top, and garnish with fresh parsley and more shredded cheese.

(Are you hungry??? look at that stove top, sauce is splattered everywhere)

I couldn't wait to eat it, I had to test it by dipping fresh Italian bread in the pan..YUMMM!!

Very quick, and good recipe!!

Try it, and let me know what you think!!

Buttermilk Bananna Bread

Thank You Shelley at House of Smiths for this amazing Buttermilk Bananna Bread Recipe.

It in fact, is very good, and so far, 5 out of the six people that I  gave "samples" to are in agreement.

(The sixth person has not yet given me his feedback, Craig!!)

Here is a printable of the recipe, so feel free to make a copy. (Again, thanks Shelley)

Directions, and ingredients are above.

I'll share a couple of my pictures, just to prove that I did actually make these myself!!

Wet and Dry ingredients separated

Mashed Banannas

(I could not help myself but to sing the HOT POTATO Song from the Wiggles, the entire time that I was making this bread!)

"Mashed Banannas Mashed Banannas"

I let the mini loafs cool, then added

 powdered sugar to the tops

before removing them and wrapping with saran wrap.

Who Lives in a Pineapple.....

That's the song that has been stuck in my head since I made these tastey Cupcakes on Saturday morning...

This is a YUMMMMMYYY dessert, that is simple to make, with ingredients that you can find in your cabinets! You don't need a cast iron frying pan, or tons of time, and your kids can help along in the process.

Pineapple Upside- Down Cupcakes

(Recipe from Disney's Family Fun Magazine Aug 2009)

Batter:

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) of salted butter

1/2 cup milk

1 cup flour

1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping:

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) salted butter

3/4 cup light or dark brown sugar tightly packed

6 maraschino cherries

1 20-oz can pineapple rings (I prefer FRESH Pineapple, so I buy a whole skinned pineapple)

Heat oven to 350

Place the butter and milk for the batter in a small saucepan over med. heat. Warm until the butter is melted.

Once melted, mix, and transfer to a small bowl to cool

Meanwhile, prepare the topping.

Into each cup of a 12-cup muffin pan, add 1/2 tablespoon of unmelted butter, (I don't measure 1/2 a tablespoon of butter, I just slice the 3/4 slick into 12 pads), then evenly sprinkle brown sugar over the butter. place pan in oven until the butter melts,

appx. 3 minutes

Halve each cherry, and cut the pineapple rings into quarters. Place one quarter of pineapple into each cup against the edge of the cup, and place a cherry halve, with the sliced side up (so that you see it in the pan) in the center of the pineapple/cup.

Push the cherry down to the bottom of the cup.

Place the muffin pan aside for right now.

Finish making the batter.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt and stir with a fork until blended.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar and vanilla until smooth.

Add the flour mixture, and stir until the flour is fully incorporated.(What ever that means)

Add the milk butter mixture into the large bowl, and stir into a smooth batter. (..It was runny...if runny means smooth, your good)

Pour the batter into the muffin pan, dividing it evenly among all of the cups

 Bake the cupcakes, until lightly browned, dry around the edges and pulling away from the pan a little. (About 26 minutes)

Transfer the pan to a cooling rack, and let sit for about 5 minutes. then, use a butter knife to loosen each cupcake from the edges of the pan. Place a foil lined cookie sheet over the muffin pan, and flip the cupcakes onto the sheet. Serve at room temperature.

Makes 12 cupcakes

(Note- the empty beer bottle was not mine)

All 12 Cupcakes were gone by Monday morning in my house!

Did you say, "Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Brownies?"

Disclaimer: Let me start this post by saying that I am not a sweets junkie. I like something sweet every now and then, but my life does not require a daily dose of ice cream, cake or chocolate.

I do love peanut butter, and chocolate plus peanut butter is just pure awesomeness. So, when I saw the recipe for my favorite dessert, Brownies, plus peanut butter, I just had to try it, and let me just say, I Loooove this treat!  It's not super sweet, but hits the spot!


O-M- G!
That's short for Ohhhh Maaaaaaa Gawd! Yum-o (Thanks for that phrase along with EVOO Rachel Ray!)

I found this recipe on the Hannaford Foods Website.

If you like Peanut Butter and chocolate, and Brownies, start printing this recipe now!!

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup chunky peanut butter
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chunks
1/2 cup peanut butter chips


Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Line an 8" square baking pan with foil so that the foil comes up the sides of the pan and overhangs the dish (see picture below)

In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the butter. When it's melted, remove from the heat and whisk in the two sugars, then the peanut butter, until all of the ingredients are incorporated. Let stand to cool slightly, about 5 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl. whisk the eggs, then whisk in the vanilla. When the peanut butter mixture has cooled, stir it into the eggs until smooth and incorporated. Stir in the flour and salt next, mixing until incorporated. Lastly, stir in the chocolate chunks and peanut butter chips.

Spread the batter in the prepared aluminum foil lined pan, smoothing to the top.

Bake for 35 minutes

Place on a rack to cool.

When brownies are cool, (about 15 minutes after then come out of the oven), turn dish over onto cutting board, and brownies and foil will slide out of  pan.

Remove foil, and slice brownies into 16 squares (or more, depending on the size chunks that you want)

Enjoy!

This just begs you to have a nice tall glass of milk along side of it!! Yum!

********PERSONAL TIP*******

I want to offer a personal tip to make cooking, esp. baking easier. Since I am not a cook, and just really learning how to prepare meals, I have learned that the best thing that you can do before starting a recipe, is to not only have all of the ingredients out on the counter in front of you, but to have each item measured out in a separate container ready to be used! I measure all dry ingredients such as flour, sugars, liquid ingredients that are more then a spoon measurement (ie. 1/3 cup of milk, if applicable), and ingredients such as cheese, etc. I also place the measuring tool that will be required for each step out on the counter by the mixing bowls, or spice, or liquid.

This may sound a little OCD or a little overkill, esp when it comes to having to wash the dishes, but for me it works. I never find myself having to rummage through the utensil drawers, or trying to measure something that needs to be added to something simmering on the stove.

Sunday Dinner- Baked Ziti

My grandparents are Italian. When I was a kid I remember them making homemade spaghetti noodles for Sunday dinner. They are in their 80s now, and still make homemade sauce. And boy is it good!!!

It takes the two of them many hours to create their homemade sauce. (And, honestly who has hours to make sauce when you can get carry out or buy it in a jar) They each have their own jobs when it comes to the creation, and they make a huge batch, portion it, and freeze it. I have never tasted sauce as amazing as theirs. (And I have been handed down the recipe- and have actually made it once, but it was time consuming!)

But, this recipe is a Cheaters Italian dinner. Nothing about it was difficult, except going to the grocery store on a Sunday to purchase all of the ingredients!

The recipe that I used/altered is from Joy's Hope blog. And, it is referred to as "Cheater Cheater Baked Ziti"

Sounds like something I can do!!

Ingredients

1 lb of tube pasta

1 lb of lean ground beef

 (I prefer ground turkey, but unfortunately it was not on sale this week, so beef it was)

2 jars of red sauce (I used Hunt's Four Cheese)

1/2 cup Half & Half

Shredded Mozzarella

Parmesan Cheese (I used 3 Cheese Italina Mix, Romano, Par., & Asiago)

Fresh Garlic

Fresh Parsley

Onions (Or Onion Salt)

1/2 tsp. Italian Seasoning

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Brown & drain Ground Beef. (I use 97% lean ground beef)

Prepare Pasta according to package.(Tip- add a little salt and olive oil into the water)

While beef is browning, and pasta is cooking, put 3/4 of your red sauce in a pot. Add half & half, italian seasoning, Fresh chopped garlic, fresh chopped parsley, Onion or Onion Salt, and a handful of the Parm mixture. Simmer on low heat until your pasta is cooked.

Add drained  ground beef to the sauce mixture, and stir until evenly coated.

Put drained Pasta into a 9X13 baking dish.

Pour sauce/meat mixture onto the pasta,

then sprinkle parm cheese on top. Cover with Mozarella Cheese.

We love Mozarella, so I use a lot!! (But the receipe calls for 2 cups)

Cover with aluminum foil, and cook for 35 minutes.

After 35 minutes, remove foil, and cook for an additional 10 minutes uncovered.

Mozarella should be slightly brown/golden, and sauce should be bubbling when ready!

Let this cool for about 10 minutes prior to serving.

I always make extra sauce to pour on top of the portions when served. . (I use the remaining 1/4 of the red sauce, add parm cheese mixture and some half and half)

I made homemade Brazilian Cheese Bread with the Ziti. It was just ok, and I am not going to share that recipe, as it cost too much money to make, and didn't turn out as good as expected.

I would serve this with frozen Texas Toast Garlic Bread in the future!

Review:

Me- Pros:EASY PEASY recipe, great taste, lots of leftovers

        Cons: Way too much food for 3 of us, I need to adjust portions or have people over for dinner

Scott- Very good taste, "I'm getting used to you cooking on the weekends"

E- "Mommy, can I have more, this is really good!"

J- E's friend was over for dinner..I really like it, I think my mom has made something like this before!

This is a keeper recipe that will be used again!         

Hamburger Sliders- I cooked again!

So, how many Pampered Chef parties have you been to? I've been to a lot. A couple of years ago, I swear I was going to at least one "home party" every two weeks. They were for jewelery, or cooking supplies, or food products, or purses, or cleaning supplies, or home decor, or Tupperware, the list goes on and on.

I have to admit, anything and everything that I've purchased from home parties, I have actually used, except, some of my Pampered Chef items are still in the original boxes. I only buy items that I think that I will actually use, but since I am not really the chef in our family, I guess I tend to buy based on that concept that I will actually cook a meal now and then.

So, it is my goal this year to not only cook more, but to declutter my house of things that I do not use or need. And, with he price of some of the Pampered Chef items, I have decided that I need to find a reason to keep the food prep items that I have purchased..

Today's meal, made by me, with an altered recipe given to me by the Pampered chef rep, was for Hamburger Sliders, French Fries, and my homemade deviled eggs.




Ingredients for sliders
1-1/2 # Lean (97%) ground beef
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup of fresh parsley (I had to use dried, I thought that I had fresh, but didn't)
garlic cloves
small onion finely chopped
3 slices of cheese
1 pack of potato rolls dinner rolls

Pampered Chef tools to use if you have them:
Large Stonewear Bar Pan (I used)
Food Chopper (I used my own- electric, not a Pamp Chef product)
Garlic Press (I used- I love this Pamp chef item, and use a lot!!)
Cutting Board (not Pamp chef)
Pizza Cutter (not Pamp Chef)

Preheat oven to 450.
Chop Onion and Parsley with food Chopper. Mix together in a bowl ground beef, parsley, salt, onion, and press a couple of cloves of garlic into the mixture.

I had a little helper press the garlic!

I mix this by hand, it seems like it all blends better then by using a spoon.

Then, place the mixture onto the bar pan.

Now, cover the pan with plastic wrap, and spread the beef mixture to cover the pan.

In the meantime, I put a tray of frozen french fries in the oven to start cooking, they usually take 20 minutes to cook.

Take the plastic wrap off of the meat mixture, and place pan into oven and cook for 12 minutes or until beef is no longer pink.

While the meat is cooking, slice your dinner rolls in half.(I always forget that the are not presliced, and rush at the last minute to do this)

During this time, I also cut my American Cheese slices into quarters, and cut hamburger pickle slices in half.

I also whipped up a batch of deviled eggs while the meat was cooking.

Everyone knows how to make deviled eggs, but mine are always a big hit. I have a few basic ingredients, and one "Secret" ingredient. Wanna see??

Mayo
Yellow Mustard
Dill Pickle juice
Pepper
and
OLD BAY!! (It's a Maryland thing!)

Mix all of the above ingredients with the yolks to taste.

I sprinkle OLD BAY on the top for garnish too!


So, after 10-12 minutes, remove your beef from the oven. Be careful, there will be a lot of juice on the tray, and the beef will have shrunk away from the edges.

Drain the liquid off of the pan, and cut the huge burger patty into 12 squares with a pizza cutter.

I trim off the edges to make perfect squares, and save the scraps for my dogs!

Next, place the bottom of the hamburger rolls directly on the bar pan,  top with cheese quarter,place mini burger on next, top with a pickle slice and bun top.

Now, cover tray with aluminum foil, and place back into oven for 3-5 minutes to melt the cheese.

Serve with condiments, and Enjoy!!

Review:

Me- I think that these are really good. I ate 2 sliders, a deviled egg, and some fries and was full!!
Scott-  Ate 3, 4 deviled eggs, and french fries.He thought that these were Great, but could use more onion.(I limit the onion because I don't like it)
E- "These don't taste like McDonalds" He barely ate 1 uggh!!

Tips-

Use the fresh garlic and fresh parsley. If you use dried parsley, use less salt.

Party Prep

Let me start this post by saying how jealous I am of parents with kids who have Summer/Spring/Fall Birthdays!  Winter Birthday parties are tough. It's hard to come up with different place to host the parties without breaking the bank. And it's tough to be the host of  a bunch of kids in your own home. Any other season but winter allows parties to be held outdoors. And there are sooo many options for outdoor parties. I envy you parents!

E turns 7 on Sunday!

We are having his party at an ice Skating Rink.

We are expecting fifteen kids.

I have not been ice skating in at least 15 years. Scott has not been ice skating in at least 15 years.
E has never been ice skating, nor has most of the kids that are attending.

I am scared!

Since the party is at the rink, I don't have to clean my house I don't really have my normal "Party Prep" extravaganza to worry about. And, since the only food that I can bring into the arena is the cake, (I'm sneaking in ice cream, even though the party coordinator told me that they typically don't allow that), I don't really have a bunch to do.

I wanted to keep it simple, (yeah right), and minimial, and not go over the top.

Buuuuttttt, I couldn't help myself with some of the details.

Here's just a glimpse for you: (Sorry for the bad pictures, cell phone pictures, uggh)

Coconut Chicken

I don't cook. Not because I don't like to cook. I'm just very lucky that my husband LOVES to cook, and our schedules make it so if we want to eat dinner before 7:30 at night, he HAS to cook!

I am sooo grateful that he cooks everynight, but lately I feel like we have been eating the same exact menu every week.

I've been searching online for simple, kid friendly, inexpensive recipes, and have found a few that are "attempt-worthy."

So today, I decided to try Coconut Chicken.

 I altered this recipe from Make 5 Dinners in 1 Hour. to fit our needs.

I really liked it, my husband liked it a lot, and E, who all of the sudden doesn't like coconut peeled the batter and coconut off of the chicken strips and dipped it in BBQ sauce.(Can't please everyone all of the time!)

If you like coconut shrimp from Outback, you will really enjoy this simple recipe!

All that you need-

1-1/2 lbs chicken tenders (I bought a pack of Perdue fresh chicken tenders at BJ's that included 5 indivually packaged packets of 5 strips per pack for $13) I used two packs, for 10 tenders

1 cup of PANKO bread crumbs (I had no idea what Panko bread crumbs were, so I googled them and found them at Target in the Ethnic food isle. They were with the Asian food items)

1 cup of Coconut flakes (Target in the cereal aisle by the chocolate chips)
2 eggs beaten
1/2 cup of Orange Marmalade (Bought at target for $1.69/jar)
1/2 cup of Honey

Preheat oven to 400degrees

Mix the coconut and  bread crumbs together in a shallow dish, beat the two eggs and put in a separate shallow dish, put the raw chicken in another dish and have a cookie tray with aluminum foil, sprayed with cooking spray ready for the assembly line.

Dip your raw chicken tender in the beaten eggs. Use tongs to coat both sides, then place chicken into the bread crumb/coconut mixture and coat.

Place cookie sheet in oven and cook for 25 minutes.




I pulled the tray out of the oven after 15 minutes, and flipped the chicken, so that it could cook evenly on both sides. (And I was worried that I would overcook the chicken because the coconut was getting a little dark- BUT the next time that I make this, I will actually cook for at least 5 more minutes, to make the bread crumbs a little bit more crispy/crunchy)

While the chicken is cooking, make your dipping sauce.

1/2 cup of Orange Marmalade and 1/2 cup of honey I mixed together in a bowl, and put in the microwave for one minute.

We had a caeser salad, and mac and cheese with our coconut chicken, and had a quick, simple, tastey dinner!