Paleo Spaghetti and meatballs!

• Meatballs:
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 medium onion, peeled and grated
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 TBLSP chopped fresh basil (1/2 TBLSP dried)
• 2 TBLSP chopped fresh Oregano (1/2 TBLSP dried)
• 1 tsp red pepper flake
• 1/2 C diced apples or cooked quinoa
• 1 egg, wisked
• 1/4 C milk
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Pasta:
• 1 large spaghetti squash
• 2 cups cold water
• Salt and olive oil
• Sauce:
• 1 14 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 1 TBLSP honey
• Same amount of fresh herbs (dried) as meatballs
• 1 tsp red pepper flake
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 C chopped/sliced mushrooms
• 4 oz can sliced black olives
• ½ zucchini squash sliced
• 1 small bell pepper, chopped
• 1 TBSLP olive oil

Directions

1. Meatballs: Dump All ingredients for meatballs into mixing bowl. Mix by hand until all ingredients are throughout meat mixture. Heat 1 TBLSP oil in a pan. Wet hands with water and begin forming meatballs about the size of a golf ball (or smaller), trying to keep them all the same size. Place in heated skillet and cook on all sides until brown. Cook meatballs in two batches so as not to overcrowd your pan. Keep warm on stove top until sauce is done.
2. Squash: Carefully cut squash in half. Scoop out seeds. Place cut side down in 2-3 inches of water in a pot. Turn on high and put on lid. Cook for 20 minutes or until knife inserted into skin comes out easily. Drain and shred with a fork.
3. While waiting for squash to cook begin making sauce by putting 2 more TBLSPs olive oil into a sauté skillet. Toss in onions, pepper flake and garlic. Cook until translucent. Add rest of the chopped veggies, and cook three to five minutes. Add tomato, herbs and season. Add meatballs, and simmer on low stirring every once in a while. Cook for 20-30 minutes.
4. Serve with "pasta", dishing out 4-6 meatballs onto each plate. Serves 4-6.

Footnotes

• This recipe can be made vegetarian by not making meatballs and just the sauce with all the veggies and serving over the cooked squash.

Casseroles Casseroles Casseroles

So, Eric (my fiance) has been coming home lately after working nights and peeking into the ice box to see what I cooked the night before. Well, it just being me most nights and me being tired from work, I usually eat a bowl of cereal or cook a quick egg and bacon breakfast and that is all. However, me seeing him in want of some foodie action, besides him mentioning that he misses having just a simple casserole got me to thinking. Casseroles are really not that difficult, if we use the short cut methods of the cooks before us (ummm....canned soups) and even those methods have been improved by cutting the fat and salt and just breaking it down to the bare essentials that make a casserole so good and most of all comforting. With the right planning and a good mixture of ingredients, anyone can make several casseroles (or even dishes that just require a reheat and eat approach) so that no one goes hungry in your household. It is with great excitement that I make this entry about prepping casseroles for consumption...

So, I cooked two pounds of ground turkey meat, (adding diced onions, minced garlic and bell peppers) while I boiled a whole box of Penne pasta. I also had rotel tomatoes, corn chips and a few cans of mushroom soup as well as cream of chicken and tomato. Also cheese...Cheddar, mozzerella, and pepper jack.

I made three distinct casseroles.

I took my easy pasta bake and added  1/2 the ground turkey and half the pasta (easy pasta bake can be found in another entry on this blog) But instead of sauce I threw in a can of tomato soup and seasoned it Italian style (garlic, basil and oregano) . I topped with mozzerealla cheese and baked until bubbly and brown in my iron skillet.

I took the other half of the turkey, added it to 2 C crushed corn chips, rotel tomatoes, cream of chicken soup, mixed together, topped with pepper jack, again baked at 400 until bubbly and golden.

Finally, I took the last half of the pasta, added 1 C frozen peas, 2 Cans tuna, 1 Can Mushroom soup, a bit of tarragon, dill, and dried chives. Mixed it, poured into a glass dish, topped with Cheddar baked at 400 until again, the cheese was bublly, gooey and delicious.

I put all of these into the fridge after they had cooled and Eric and I enjoyed lunch and dinner for 4 days...pretty easy and I think I am going to try thinking ahead like this and cooking ahead atleast through the wedding!

Have any casseroles recipes you wanna share? Lemme know on my facebook link located on my profile page and you could be my next guest blogger!

Easy Pasta bake

1 Box whole wheat pasta, cooked for half the cooking time, drained
2 Zuchinni Squash diced
1/2 C mushrooms, sliced
1/4 C black olives, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Can diced tomatoes
1 Can crushed tomatoes
1 C shredded Mozzarella cheese
1/4 C shredded romano cheese
1 Small onion sliced
1 TBLSP basil, fresh
1 TBLSP oregano, fresh
1/4 tsp red pepper flake
Salt and pepper to taste.

Cook veggies in 1/2 TBLSP oil. Add diced tomatoes and crushed tomatoes and herbs. Season and let cook for 5-10 minutes. Add pasta and mix, being careful not to destroy the noodles. The noodles will absorb the liquid in the sauce making them perfect. Pour into oblong, greased pan. Top with cheese. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and golden. Serve with bread and salad. Leftovers can be easily stored and re-heated. Serves 4-6 people.

*this recipe can easily have meat added to it. Just brown the beef, pork or turkey before adding the veggies.

*photo could not be taken as we ate the WHOLE thing already. sorry guys...maybe you can submit a pic when YOU make it! :)

Shrimp Alfredo with Mixed Veggies and Pasta

1/2 Pound large Raw shrimp, peeled and cleaned
1 medium zuchinni squahs, quartered and diced
1/2 bell pepper (red or yellow)
2-3 cloves garlic minced
1/2 Large onion, diced
1/2 bunch fresh spinach, cleaned and cut into ribbons
1 TBLSP basil, minced, chopped
1 TBLSP oilve oil
1 TBLSP parsley, chopped
1 C alfredo sauce (homemade or jarred)
1 C milk
Extra fresh shredded parmesan
1/2 LB broken linguini/spaghetti pasta
1/2 TSP red pepper flake

Heat oil in pan. Add red pepper, garlic and onions. Cook over medium heat until onions are clear. Add bell pepper, and squash. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Cook until almost tender. Add spinach, herbs and sauce along with milk. Once it comes to a heavy simmer, add pasta. Stir regularly for 8 minutes or until pasta is soft. Add shrimp and cook 3 more minutes and turn off heat, cover and let sit. Noodles will absorb more liquid and the shrimp will turn pink and curl signaling they are done. Serve in a bowl with extra cheese if desired.
Feeds 4-6 people with Salad and bread added to the meal.