Beef Penne Pasta

Bug actually made this recipe awhile back and it was really good. She got it from the Taste of Home magazine. I stole the magazine from her and decided I would make it too. Joe really likes it too, which makes it that much better! :)  And the best part about it- it's no fuss and pretty quick!

So here you go!
What you'll need:
1 3/4 c. uncooked penne pasta
1 lb. ground beef
1 teaspon minced garlic
1 can tomato puree (15 oz)
1 can beef broth (14 oz)
1 1/2 t. Italian Seasoning
1 t. Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
2 c. chopped fresh spinach
2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

What to do:
Cook your pasta according to box directions.

Meanwhile in a separate pot/pan, cook beef until no longer pink. Add garlic, cook a little longer and drain the grease.

Stir in the tomatoe puree, broth, Italian seasoning, Wooster sauce and S&P.  Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer uncovered for 10-15 minutes, until sauce is slightly thickened.

Add spinach and cook for 1-2 minutes, until your spinach is wilted.

Stir in your drained pasta and sprinkle with cheese.

Serve and enjoy!

Raspberry Lime Cheesecake Squares

As if there isn't enough citrus and cream cheese on this site, here's one more delicious variation. This was nice because you get the taste of cheesecake without all the hassle. I altered the original recipe just a bit and made mine with fresh raspberries instead of strawberry jam... mainly because that's what I had on hand and also because I don't like jam on my cheesecake.  I much prefer the taste of fresh fruit.  I loved the combination of the tart raspberry topping with the creamy lime cheesecake. But feel free to substitute strawberries for the raspberries!

Source: slightly adapted from Tasty Kitchen
Feeds: 9

Crust:
1/4 cup butter
1 whole sleeve graham crackers (9 crackers), finely crushed
1/4 cup sugar

Cheesecake:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup lime juice
1 tsp. lime zest

Topping:
1 pint raspberries, fresh or frozen (if frozen, defrost and drain off the excess liquid)
1/4 cup sugar
splash of lime juice

1. Pre-heat oven to 325°F. Melt your butter in an 8x8 square baking pan.

2. Mix sugar and graham cracker crumbs together, until combined and add to melted butter. Mix well and press into the bottom of your baking pan. (I usually use the bottom of a large glass to press it down firmly... works great!)

3. Bake the crust for 5-8 minutes, or until the crust starts to brown. Remove from oven and allow to completely cool.

4. In a small sauce pan, heat the raspberries and sugar. As they cook, mash the raspberries with your spoon until well mushed. (That sounds like a technical term, right?) Bring to a boil, and continue to boil until the liquid has thickened and cooked down a bit.  I usually let mine cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Once they've thickened and cooked down a bit, remove from heat and add your splash of lime juice.  Then allow it to cool.

Now, if you're a crazy perfectionist like me and time doesn't really matter (heh!  who am I kidding...), you can go ahead and strain your raspberry sauce now through a fine mesh sieve.  As much as I LOVE raspberries, I don't love millions of tiny raspberry seeds and so I always strain them out.  But... it is annoying and time consuming.  But so worth it.  I recommend it... it'll give you a nicer presentation and a seed free bite!  (If you're too lazy to strain your raspberries, I suggest going the strawberry route... then you don't really have to worry about as many seeds, right?)

5.  In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk, lime juice and zest. Beat until well combined. Pour over cooled crust.

6. Spoon cooled raspberry topping over the cream cheese mixture and use a butter knife to create a marbled effect. Chill for at least 6 hours.

Nutella Panna Cotta

Oh my sweet goodness, I daresay we've managed to make Panna Cotta even better.  When it's comes to recipes, I have absolutely no imagination, whatsoever.  I am definitely a recipe follower.  Which is why it never occurred to me that you can change up your panna cotta, simply by adding different flavors.  When I saw this recipe on bell'alimento, my mouth literally dropped... and I started drooling.  Nutella and panna cotta?  Yum!  This recipe is made in the identical manner as this panna cotta... only you add a couple Tbsp. of some delicious Nutella, and suddenly you have a chocolate version that reminds me of chocolate milk.  It was so good with some fresh strawberries on top.  Now, I can't wait to try the lemon version!  Oh, and this may very well be a new favorite site... she has an entire category devoted to Nutella!  Now, that's my kind of cooking site...

Recipe Source: adapted from bell'alimento

Serves: 6-8

1/3 c. skim milk

2 1/2 c. heavy whipping cream (or you can pretend to cut calories and use half and half... but why?)

1/2 c. sugar

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 packet (.25 oz.) unflavored gelatin

3 Tbsp. Nutella, melted for a few seconds in the microwave

1.  Pour the milk into a small bow, and sprinkle the gelatin powder on top.  Set aside.

2.  In a saucepan, stir together the heavy cream and sugar and set over medium heat.  Cook until it nears a full boil, watching carefully (and stirring frequently) as the cream will quickly rise to the top of the pan. 

3.  Once the mixture is beginning to boil, add the melted Nutella and and bring the mixture back to a boil. 

4. Pour the gelatin mixture into the cream, stirring until completely dissolved.  Cook for one minute, stirring constantly.

5.  Remove from heat, stir in vanilla and pour into six or 7 individual ramekin dishes.  (About 1/2 c. in each dish)

6.  Cool the ramekins uncovered until they're room temperature.  Once they've cooled, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or until firm.

7.  Serve with fresh berries, slightly sweetened with sugar.

Pork Carnitas

Here is the third and final part of our perfect Pork Carnitas! It is super easy, low--maintenance, and has a great smoky (not sweet!) flavor.  I found the recipe on Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen and my sister and I tweaked it just a bit to enhance the flavor.  Sadly, our tweaking resulted in a bit more work and one more dish to clean, but it definitely strengthens the flavor.  But even without our little addition, this is still a great pork for tacos, burritos, taco salad, and of course, my beloved carnitas.

Recipe Source: Tasty Kitchen
Serves: 6

3.5 lbs. Pork Shoulder Roast or Pork Butt

1 quart chicken stock

3 Tbsp. tomato paste

4 cloves garlic

1 whole onion, chopped

1 bay leaf

1 1/2 Tbsp. Cumin

1 Tbsp. Oregano

1 Tbsp. Pepper

2 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. chipotle chili powder

Additional taco garnishments:
shredded lettuce
shredded Monterey Jack cheese or crumbled Queso Fresco
small corn or flour tortillas
Chipotle Ranch Dressing
Corn Salsa

1. In a small bowl, combine the stock, tomato paste, garlic, onion, bay leaf, cumin, oregano, salt, pepper, and chipotle powder.  Stir everything to combine.

2.  Place your pork in a large pot or crockpot.  Pour your seasoned mixture over the pork.  If cooking on the stovetop, bring the pork to a boil, turn down to low and simmer, covered for 3-5 hours, or until the meat easily shreds.

3.  If cooking in a crockpot, simply cook on low for 7-8 hours, or until the meat easily shreds.

4.  Once the meat is tender and shreds easily, transfer to a cutting board and trim the fat.  Then shred or pull into small pieces.  Save the liquid. from your pot for later.

5.  Preheat your oven to 450°F.  Transfer the shredded meat to a large baking dish.

6.  In a small bowl, combine 2 Tbsp. cornstarch and 2 Tbsp. slightly cooled pork liquid.  Stir well, making sure there are no lumps.  Set aside.

7.  In a small saucepan, bring about 2 cups of reserved pork liquid to a boil.  Once it's boiling, stir in the cornstarch mixture, stirring constantly to avoid lumps.  Boil for 1-2 minutes, or until thickened.

8.  Pour this slightly thickened mixture over your shredded pork and stir to combine.  Bake in oven for 25-30 minutes.  (I usually cover the pork for the first 15 minutes and then bake it uncovered for the remainder of the time to get it slightly crispy.)

As an alternative to the thickened mixture, you can just pour a couple cups of reserved pork liquid over the pork before you bake it.  I liked how the thicker mixture really coated the meat and I liked the texture and added flavor it gave the meat. However, you can save yourself some time and another dirty dish by just pouring the straight liquid over your meat.

9.  If serving in tacos, top the pork with the corn salsa, chipotle dressing, shredded Monterey Jack cheese or queso fresco, and shredded lettuce. 

These carnitas are probably in our top 3 favorite recipes of all time so we hope you enjoy these as much as we do!

Chipotle Ranch Dressing

The second part of the perfect pork carnita... the chipotle Ranch dressing!

If you thought the corn salsa was easy... wait till you see this. It doesn't get any easier than this and the resulting dressing is fantastic. I love it over my taco salads, tacos, burritos, and of course, pork carnitas. I usually have a container with this stuff sitting in the back of my fridge for last minute quesadillas and burritos.

1 envelope Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix
mayonnaise and milk as called for on the dressing packet (I definitely prefer a bit more milk to the mayonnaise when I make this... I think it gets too thick going half and half, so I usually use a little less mayo and a bit more milk to get the right texture)
1/2 t. - 1 tsp. chipotle powder
1 lime

1.  Prepare dressing according to package directions.

2.  Add chipotle powder and some fresh lime juice, according to taste.  Go easy at first, as the chipotle and lime will intensify as it sits.  I usually start with the 1/2 tsp. of chipotle powder and just a couple squeezes of fresh lime juice.  Then I taste it a little later and adjust as necessary.

Corn Salsa

So, before Cafe Rio showed up in Las Vegas, I had to get my fresh Mexican salad fix elsewhere.  (Believe me, it was painful.  I had to wait years or drive to Utah to get my fix...)  Luckily, my husband stumbled on a fresh Mexican grill, called Zaba's here in town and they were a very good substitute.  What I liked about Zaba's was that they had the same idea behind their salads and food, i.e., fresh meat, homemade tortillas, and delicious dressings, but different sauces and accompaniments, giving their food an entirely different flavor.  One of my very very favorite things to order there is their pork carnitas tacos. They are the perfect blend of smoky pork (NOT sweet!... I do NOT like sweet pork), cilantro, delicious corn salsa, and an awesome chipotle ranch dressing.  I love the tacos so much, that I could easily eat them once a week.  So, I decided I needed to re-create them at home.  I went searching for bits and pieces of the meal and ended up with an almost perfect substitute for my Zaba's tacos.

The next three posts will have all you need to make your very own Zaba's inspired Pork Carnitas.
And here's part 1 of our perfect pork carnitas meal... the corn salsa.

So, in my quest to recreate my beloved Zaba's carnitas, I had to find a corn salsa. They use this delightful medium corn salsa, that had something weird in that I couldn't quite label.  Obviously, I don't eat a lot of jicama because that's what it is... and I didn't recognize it.  I loved it, though.  It tastes sort of like a cross between an apple and snap pea.  I looked high and low for a corn salsa recipe that was similar to the Zaba's variation and I couldn't really find one, so Dacia and I created one ourselves.  Granted, there isn't much to it... just throw some veggies together and call it done.  But, as simple as it is, it's mighty tasty.  It was spectacular with tortilla chips and of course delicious over the carnitas tacos.  It's super simple to whip up and a nice change from your typical tomato salsa.  I highly recommend this stuff.

2 Cups frozen corn, defrosted, and drained of excess liquid
1 cup diced red onion
1 cup diced jicama
juice from 1 lime
1/2 -1 cup cilantro (you can probably bet which way I lean...)
salt, pepper, cumin, and chili powder to taste

1.  Throw your corn, onion, and jicama all together in a bowl.

2.  Add lime juice and seasonings to taste.  And that's it.

Cajun Shrimp

We love shrimp in our house.  Really LOVE it and I'm always looking for yummy variations.  I found this on Tasty Kitchen and we loved it so much, I made it twice in one week!  And then I made it again for my birthday.  Even the kids loved it, despite a slight kick from the Cajun seasoning.  This is seriously delicious and super fast and easy to whip up.  We paired it with a loaf of Frech bread and used our bread to sop up all the delicious buttery liquid that was in the bottom of the pan.  It may not be pretty on my thighs (nothing really is), but it was SO worth it.  A perfectly quick, easy, and delicious weeknight meal, made even better in that you can use the shrimp either defrosted or still frozen.  Just adjust your baking time accordingly.

Recipe Source: Tasty Kitchen

Serves: 4

1/2 cup butter

2 tsp. garlic, minced

1 Tbsp. Cajun seasoning

1 tsp. coarse salt (I used Kosher)

1 tsp. black pepper

2 lb. bag of shrimp (the original recipe only calls for 1 1/2 lbs., but I thought that made the dish too salty)

1. Preheat oven to 450°F.

2. Melt butter in a small saucepan and saute the garlic.  Add Cajun spices and salt and pepper and stir well.

3.  Place shrimp in a baking dish and cover with Cajun butter mixture.  Toss to combine and evenly distribute the butter mixture.

4.  Bake uncovered for at least 10 minutes, or until shrimp is pink.  (Mine typically takes about 15 minutes or even longer if I put my shrimp in frozen--then it takes 20-25 minutes.)

5.  Serve with French bread to soak up all the remaining buttery goodness at the bottom of your pan.  Yum!