Rigatoni Pasta Pie

Rigatoni Pasta Pie:

1 lb rigatoni pasta

1 lb ground beef (I used ground sirloin)

2 garlic cloves (minced)

1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

1 small jar of spaghetti sauce

cooking spray

salt

1 cup finely grated parmesan cheese

2 cups grated mozzarella cheese

4oz cream cheese

15oz ricotta cheese

2 eggs

1 tsp basil

1 tsp oregano

1 cup onion

spring form pan

DIRECTIONS:

Your going to boil the noodles according to the directions on the box. You want them very firm and avoid stirring them so they do not fall apart. Once done, drain and run cold water over top so they are cool enough to handle. You can add a little bit of oil if they start to stick.

In a skillet add your ground beef, brown then drain excess grease. Add chopped onion and garlic. After about 5 minutes add your cream cheese and stir until melted then add your spaghetti sauce. I always add a pinch of sugar to my red sauces to cut down on the acidity but you dont have to do that.

In a small mixing bowl you are going to mix your ricotta, parmesan, basil, oregano and 2 eggs until smooth then set aside.

Now go find a cute little helper to help tightly pack pasta into pan, standing each piece on end. I sprayed the bottom of my springform pan with cooking spray before I started.

Then I took a tall glass and put a ziplock bag inside it. I then filled the cup up with the cheese mixture and closed the bag. I snipped the corner of the bag and piped a small amount into every noodle

Then I poured my sauce over the whole top and tried to push down as much as possible.

Then topped with 2 cups of mozzerela (Yes, I said TWO cups)


Stick into a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes then turn the broiler on until the cheese starts to brown.

Eggplant Italiano

Eggplant Italiano:

Coat 1/2 in. thick slices eggplant with beaten egg white, then instant mashed potato flakes.

Place on wire rack on a baking sheet. Coat slices with nonstick spray (use oil mister if you have one); season with dried oregano, salt and pepper.

Bake at 425 for 30 minutes. Turn, spray, season and bake 10 minutes more, or until tender and golden. Serve with marinara sauce.

Mile-High Lasagna

Mile-High Lasagna
~*~Sandy~*~

1/2 pound Italian sausage, removed from casings
1 onion, chopped
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
1 (14.5 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
2 cups water
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon white sugar

12 ounces cottage cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg

9 lasagna noodles (sub no-boil noodles)
1 pound shredded mozzarella cheese

1. In a large skillet over medium heat, cook sausage and onion until brown. Add tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, water, oregano, garlic powder, and sugar. Cook over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer 1 hour.

2. While sauce is simmering, blend cottage cheese, Parmesan and egg until smooth. Set aside. (Or just stir together)

3. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain. (Use no-boil noodles)

4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

5. Spread 1 cup of sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Cover sauce with 3 noodles. Cover noodles with one-third of remaining sauce. Top with half the mozzarella. Place another layer of noodles and one of sauce over the mozzarella; top that with the cottage cheese mixture. Top with remaining 3 noodles and remaining sauce.

6. Bake in preheated oven 30 minutes. Sprinkle remaining mozzarella on top and bake 15 minutes more, until golden and bubbly.

Slow Cooker Marinara and Meatballs

I combined a new recipe for sauce to make this incredible dish! I am posting both recipes, and you just substitute the jarred sauce for this quick crock pot marinara. Cooked for 9 hours on low and it

Slow Cooker Marinara (Christine0120)

INGREDIENTS		COST
2 (28 oz.) cans	crushed tomatoes	$3.47
1 (6 oz.) can	tomato paste	$0.56
1 medium	yellow onion	$0.54
1/2 Tbsp	minced garlic	$0.10
2 whole	bay leaves	$0.10
1 Tbsp	dried basil	$0.15
1/2 Tbsp	dried oregano	$0.07
1 Tbsp	brown sugar	$0.02
1 Tbsp	balsamic vinegar	$0.09
to taste	salt & pepper	$0.05
TOTAL		$5.15

STEP 1: Cut the onion into a small dice and mince the garlic (or use pre-minced garlic from a jar). Place both in the slow cooker. Also add the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, bay leaves, basil, oregano, and freshly cracked pepper. Stir well to combine. If your slow cooker tends to lose moisture and dry things out, add 1/2 to 1 cup of water as well.

STEP 2: Secure the lid on your slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hrs.

STEP 3: Remove the lid on the slow cooker, stir the sauce, and remove the bay leaves. Season with salt to taste (I added about 1 tsp). Enjoy over your favorite pasta!

Now how easy was that? You can also try adding other ingredients like sliced mushrooms, Italian sausage (cook separately and add to the sauce after it has cooked), crushed red pepper, olive oil (for a richer sauce), bell peppers... the sky is the limit.

Slow Cooker Saucy Meatballs
Amy - amylz

1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Turkey
1-1/2 lb. lean ground beef
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup water
2 cups sliced mushrooms
2 medium green peppers, sliced (about 2 cups)
4 cups spaghetti sauce
1 pkg. (1 lb.) spaghetti
1/3 cup KRAFT 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese

COMBINE stuffing mix, meat, egg and water. Shape into 1-inch balls. Place in slow cooker; top with mushrooms, peppers and spaghetti sauce. Cover with lid. COOK on LOW for 6 to 8 hours (or on for HIGH 3 to 4 hours). COOK spaghetti as directed on package; drain. Serve meatballs with sauce over spaghetti. Sprinkle with cheese.

Make your slow cooker preparation even faster. Prepare the meatballs and cut-up vegetables the night before. Cover and refrigerate until ready to add to the slow cooker. Top with the spaghetti sauce and continue as directed.

Spaghetti with Turkey Meatballs

Spaghetti with Turkey Meatballs
Amy - amylz
Recipe courtesy The Neelys

Turkey Meatballs:
3 slices white bread, crust removed and torn into small shreds
1/4 cup whole milk
3/4 pound ground turkey (recommended: 93 percent lean dark meat)
1/2 pound Italian turkey sausage, casing removed
1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley leaves
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Vegetable oil, for pan-frying

Spicy Tomato Sauce:
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoons red pepper flakes
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, in thick puree
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound spaghetti, cooked al dente

For the meatballs: Preheat vegetable oil over medium heat. In a medium bowl, soak the torn white bread with the milk. Let soak for 1minute then remove the bread and squeeze out the excess milk. In another bowl, add ground turkey, turkey sausage, Parmesan, parsley, garlic and salt and pepper. Add milk soaked bread and mix all ingredients gently. Form meat mixture into 1 1/2-inch meatballs. In a large heavy skillet, add meatballs and cook until golden brown on all sides. Remove the meatballs to a paper towel lined platter. Repeat in batches until there are no remaining meatballs. Add meatballs to the cooked sauce and add salt and pepper, to taste. Cook for 10 minutes. For the sauce: Heat olive oil in a large heavy bottomed saucepan. Add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant. Add crushed tomatoes and let simmer for 15 minutes. Add dried basil, sugar, salt and pepper. Toss spaghetti and sauce with meatballs in a large serving bowl. Top with grated Parmesan cheese.

Amy’s Notes: I use 1.25 pounds of ground turkey, leave out the sausage and double the sauce!

Spaghetti Tacos

Spaghetti and Meatballs (Kris10RD)

3/4-1 cup chopped onion (I used half an onion I had at home, it was HUGE), several cloves of minced garlic, 1/4 cup or so olive oil, 1 large can whole tomatoes, 2 small cans tomato sauce, 1/2 can tomato paste, 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar, 1 tsp dried basil, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1 bay leaf, salt and pepper....cook the onions and garlic in the oil until the onions are translucent, add the rest of your ingredients and cook for a couple hours.

For my meatballs, I used: 1 pound ground turkey, 1 cup panko bread crumbs, 1 tbsp dried parsley, 1 tbsp grated parmesan cheese, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1 egg (beaten), salt and pepper.....combine all ingredients, form balls and refridgerate until you're ready to add them to your sauce. They take about 1/2 an hour in the sauce.

Dinner was GOOD!

Baked Parmesan Tomatoes

BAKED PARMESAN TOMATOES
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ My friend Leah, via Eatingwell.com)

4 tomatoes, halved horizontally
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 450* F.
Place tomatoes cut-side up on a baking sheet. Top with Parmesan, oregano, salt and pepper. Drizzle with oil and bake until the tomatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.
* Amy's notes: I used mozzarella and just sprinkled a little on each tomato. I then sprinkled Parmesan over the entire thing.

Baked Parmesan Tomatoes

BAKED PARMESAN TOMATOES
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ My friend Leah, via Eatingwell.com)

4 tomatoes, halved horizontally
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 450* F.
Place tomatoes cut-side up on a baking sheet. Top with Parmesan, oregano, salt and pepper. Drizzle with oil and bake until the tomatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.
* Amy's notes: I used mozzarella and just sprinkled a little on each tomato. I then sprinkled Parmesan over the entire thing.

Creamy Spaghetti and Beans

Creamy Spaghetti & Beans~ This was really, really good. So differant than your normal spaghetti recipe. You really do need a BIG skillet to cook it in if you don't mind a bit of a mess. I used a 12 inch skillet that's about 1 inch deep and every time I had to stir it (until the pasta really started to cook) the noodles were snapping and popping out of the pan. Or you could just break them in half. I did change it up a tad, I used homemade ham broth insted of chicken and grated parmesan cheese, other than that I followed the recipe. We will make this again.
Creamy Spaghetti and Beans
Rachel~burns_toast via ~ Rachael Ray
Risotto meets pasta e fagioli in this Tuscan classic.
Ingredients
•5 to 6 cups chicken stock
•2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
•2 tablespoons butter
•1/4 pound chunk pancetta chopped into small dice
•4 cloves garlic, chopped
•1 pound spaghetti
•1 medium onion, chopped
•2 carrots, cut into a small dice
•1 fresh bay leaf
•5 to 6 sprigs fresh thyme
•1 (15-ounce) can Roman beans or small white beans (recommended: Goya brand)
•Salt and freshly ground black pepper
•1 cup dry white wine, eyeball it
•1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
•A generous handful flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
Directions
Place the stock in a sauce pot and warm it over medium heat then reduce to simmer.
Heat the extra-virgin olive oil and the butter in a large, deep skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add the pancetta to brown slightly. Next add the garlic and spaghetti and toast the noodles lightly, 3 to 4 minutes. Add onions and carrots, bay leaf and thyme, and season with salt and pepper. Soften veggies a bit, 5 minutes. Add wine and allow it to be completely absorbed. Add beans then add a few ladles of stock and stir the pasta. Keep adding stock a few ladles at a time allowing liquids to be mostly absorbed before adding more, as if you were preparing a risotto. When liquids are absorbed and spaghetti is cooked to al dente, 12-15 minutes, stir in cheese. Adjust salt and pepper. Turn off heat and stir another minute. Remove the bay leaf and thyme stems. Serve in shallow bowls and garnish with lots of parsley.

Italian Wedding Soup

ITALIAN WEDDING SOUP
Grace (TigMode)

* 1/2 pound extra lean ground beef
* 1 egg, slightly beaten
* 2 tablespoons fine dry bread crumbs
* 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
* 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
* 5 3/4 cups chicken broth
* 2 cups thinly sliced escarole (spinach will work in a pinch)
* 1/2 cup orzo macaroni, uncooked (sometimes I use dittalini or tubetini)
* 1/3 cup finely chopped carrot
* grated Parmesan cheese

(1) In medium bowl, combine meat, egg, bread crumbs, cheese, basil, and onion powder; shape into 3/4-inch balls.
(2) In large saucepan, heat broth to boiling; stir in escarole or spinach, pasta, carrot, and meatballs. Return to boil; reduce heat to medium. Cook at slow boil for 10 minutes or until pasta is tender to bite. Stir frequently to prevent sticking. Serve with additional grated Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top.

3 Cheese Stuffed Shells with Meaty Tomato Sauce

3 Cheese Stuffed Shells with Meaty Tomato Sauce

thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/10...

Ingredients

· 8 ounces, weight Jumbo Pasta Shells

· 30 ounces, weight Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese

· 8 ounces, weight Parmesan Cheese, Grated, Divided

· ½ cups Grated Romano Cheese

· 1 whole Egg

· 12 leaves Basil, Chiffonade

· 2 Tablespoons Minced Parsley

· Salt And Pepper, to taste

· 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

· ½ whole Medium Onion, Chopped

· 5 cloves Garlic, Minced

· ½ pounds Italian Sausage

· ½ cups Red Wine

· 1 whole 28 Ounce Can Crushed Tomatoes

· 1 whole 15-ounce Can Crushed Tomatoes

· 2 Tablespoons Sugar

· ½ teaspoons Salt

· 2 Tablespoons Minced Parsley

Preparation Instructions

Cook pasta shells for half the cooking time; make sure not to overcook. Drain and rinse in cool water. Set aside.

Heat olive oil in large skillet or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and saute for a minute or two. Add Italian sausage and brown, breaking it up into small pieces as it cooks. Pour in red wine and let it cook for a minute or two.

Pour in cans of crushed tomatoes and stir. Add sugar and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 30 to 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Check for seasonings; can add crushed red peppers if you like a little heat.

In a separate bowl, mix ricotta, half the Parmesan, Romano, egg, salt and pepper, basil, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Stir until combined.

To assemble, coat the bottom of a baking dish with sauce. Fill each half-cooked shell with the cheese mixture. Place face down on the sauce. Repeat with shells until cheese mixture is gone. Top shells with remaining sauce. Sprinkle on extra Parmesan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.

Serve with crusty French bread.