Pasta Carbonara Florentine

Hold the florentine.

I grew up eating pasta carbonara, as both my mom and grandma make it often, but I had never attempted the dish myself. I saw this recipe in a recent Cooking Light issue and saved it for a night when I just wanted to throw something together. This was one of those nights.

The only reason that the spinach is missing is because we only have half a bag left in the fridge and I know Nick will want a salad with it for lunch tomorrow. The spinach would be a great addition to this dish, but it was fabulous without it as well! The texture was perfectly creamy and the combination of onion and black pepper gave it a nice bite. Thumbs up :)

Pasta Carbonara Florentine
(from Cooking Light)

Ingredients:
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1 (6-oz) package bagged prewashed baby spinach
6 slices center-cut bacon, chopped
1 cup finely chopped onion
2 T. dry white wine (I omitted this)
8 oz. uncooked spaghetti (I used fettuccine)
1/2 cup (2 oz) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 large egg
1 large egg white
3 T. chopped fresh parsley

Directions:
1) Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add 1/4 tsp salt and spinach; cook 1 minute or until spinach wilts, stirring constantly. Remove spinach from pan; place in a bowl.

2) Add bacon to pan; cook 3 minutes or until crisp, stirring frequently. Remove bacon from pan, reserving 2 tsp drippings in pan; set bacon aside. Add onion to drippings in pan; cook 2 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Add wine; cook 1 minute or until liquid is reduced by half. (I omitted this step.) Remove from heat; keep warm.

3) Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain well, reserving 1 T. cooking liquid. Immediately add pasta and the reserved cooking liquid to onion mixture in skillet. Add spinach and bacon; stir well to combine. Place skillet over low heat.

4) Combine remaining 1/4 tsp salt, cheese, pepper, egg, and egg white, stirring with a whisk. Add to pasta mixture, tossing well to coat. Cook 1 minute. Remove from heat. Sprinkle with parsley. Serve immediately.

Baked Pasta

I had never made a baked pasta dish before this weekend, but I thought it was something that my Italian in-laws would love, so I decided to give it a shot. I looked through tons and tons of recipes before deciding to make up my own. I also used a new recipe for sauce that I made by combining my favorite parts of different recipes. I definitely think this will be my new sauce recipe! I added the recipe for the sauce at the bottom of this post.


Baked Ziti

1 pound tube shaped pasta (I used mostaccioli because we had it in the pantry)
3 cups spaghetti sauce (my recipe is below)
1 pound sweet Italian sausage, casings removed, cut into chunks and cooked
1 cup grated Romano cheese, divided
8 oz. mozzarella, diced
Shredded mozzarella

1. Cook pasta to al dente. Drain and put into a large bowl.

2. Toss pasta with 3 cups sauce, sausage, 1/2 cup Romano cheese, and diced mozzarella.

3. Pour into 13x9 glass baking dish and top with remaining 1/2 cup Romano cheese and handful of shredded mozzarella sprinkled on top.

4. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake additional 15 minutes until sauce and cheese are bubbling.


Spaghetti Sauce

2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 large sweet onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 28-oz. cans crushed tomatoes
1 15-oz. can tomato sauce
1 6-oz. can tomato paste
2.5 teaspoons dried parsley
2 teaspoons dried basil
1.5 cup water
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 Tablespoons sugar
2 bay leaves, whole

1. Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until onion is tender.

2. Add tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, parsley, basil, water, salt, pepper, sugar and bay leaves.

3. Stir and bring to a boil. Stir and lower heat to a slow simmer. Cook 3-4 hours. Remove bay leaves before serving.

Comfort Food

Nothing can you make you feel cozier than a big bowl of warm and creamy mac n' cheese. I've had my eye out for a great homemade baked mac n' cheese recipe for awhile now and I finally found one that I wanted to give a shot.

My review of the recipe is that it was extremely tasty - Nick and I both loved it.


Baked Mac and Cheese
(Source: Amber of Amber's Delectable Delights)

8 oz. elbow macaroni
4 Tbsp. butter, divided
2 Tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. dry mustard (I omitted this because I didn't have any)
2 cups milk
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, divided
1/2 cup swiss cheese, divided
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs

1) Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain.

2) Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

3) Melt 2 T. butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and salt and stir until mixture is smooth. Stir in dry mustard. Add milk gradually, stirring constantly.

4) Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 5 minutes.

5) Stir in 1/4 cup of the cheddar, 1/4 cup of the mozzarella, and 1/4 cup of the swiss. Mix cheese sauce and macaroni in a large bowl. Spoon into a 9 x 7 inch baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheddar, mozzarella and swiss.

6) Melt remaining butter in saucepan over medium heat. Combine bread crumbs and melted butter in a small bowl and mix well. Sprinkle on top of the cheese. Bake until hot and bubbly, about 15 minutes.

Nick's Birthday Dinner: A Recap

I'm still updating from the weekend! On Saturday I had Nick's parents and his brother over for dinner to celebrate his birthday (which actually occurs during the lost moment in time between February 28th and March 1st - yep, a Leap Year baby!!). After wrangling with ideas for dinner, I decided to go with a tried and true favorite. I have made Giada's Dirty Risotto countless times and it has always been met with rave reviews. I served it simply Italian style - with a loaf of crusty bread and a romaine salad.

Risotto is a traditional Italian dish made with a short grain rice, usually referred to as arborio rice. It is one of the most common ways of cooking rice in Italy. It originated in North Italy, specifically Eastern Piedmont, Western Lombardy, and Veneto where rice paddies are abundant. It is one of the pillars of Milanese cuisine. When risotto is cooked, the rice is first cooked briefly in butter or olive oil until briefly coated and the rice starts to turn translucent, before the broth is added.

Patience is the name of the game when it comes to cooking risotto! You can only add about a ladle of broth at a time and must contstantly stir the rice mixture until the broth is almost completely absorbed before adding more. It takes some time, but the result is more than worth it!!

Unfortunately in the midst of getting dinner prepared I forgot to take a picture of the dish, but the recipe is below. If you like risotto, or want to try something new, I highly recommend this recipe!

Dirty Risotto

Ingredients:
5 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 T. butter
2 oz. pancetta, chopped
6 oz. Italian sausage, casing removed
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
4 oz. button mushrooms, coarsely chopped
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 1/2 c. Arborio rice
3/4 c. dry white wine
1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
1 T. chopped fresh Italian parsley

1. In a medium saucepan, bring the broth to a simmer. Cover the broth and keep warm over low heat.

2. In a large heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the pancetta and sausage and saute until golden brown about 5 minutes. Add the onion, bell pepper and mushrooms and saute until tender,s craping up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan, about 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Add the rice and stir to coat. Add the wine and simmer until the wine has almost completely evaporated, about 1 minute. Add 1/2 cup of the simmering brother and stir until almost completely absorbed, about 2 minutes. Continue cooking the rice, adding the broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly and allowing each addition of broth to absorb before adding the next, until the rice is tender but still firm to the bit and the mixture is creamy, about 25-30 minutes total.

4. Remove from heat. Stir in 3/4 of the parmesan. Transfer the risotto to a serving bowl. Sprinkle with the parsley and remaining parmesan and serve immediately.

Source: Giada DeLaurentiis - The Food Network

THE CAKE!!!

Nick's favorite type of cake is yellow batter with chocolate, surgar-rich frosting. In years past I have always just bought box cake mix and a can of frosting. Since I am on my new cooking kick I decided that this year it HAD to be made from scratch! It definitely took a lot of time, but I think it turned out really well. The cake came out in more of a sponge cake texture than a fluffy yellow cake, but it had great flavor and the icing was perfect! I topped the cake with some dark chocolate shavings. Below are a couple of pictures and the recipes that I used.



Four-Egg Yellow Cake
Three 8- or 9-inch round layers

This is a slightly modernized version of the old 1-2-3-4 Cake.

2 2/3 cups sifted cake flour
2 1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla OR 1 tsp vanilla + 1/2 tsp. almond extract
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 large egg yolks
4 large egg whites
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
1/4 cup sugar

Have all ingredients at room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour three 8x2-inch or 9x2-inch round cake pans or line the bottoms with wax or parchment paper.

1. Whisk together thoroughly in a bowl: sifted cake flour, baking powder and salt.

2. Combine in another bowl or in a liquid measure cup: milk and vanilla extract.

3. Beat butter in a large bowl until creamy. Gradually add 1 1/2 cups sugar and beat on high speed until light, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat in one egg yolk at a time. On low speed, add the flour mixture in 3 parts, alternating with the milk mixture in 2 parts, beating until smooth.

4. Using clean beateres, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar in a large bowl on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add 1/4 cup sugar, beating on high speed. Beat until the peaks are stiff but not dry. Use a rubber spatula to fold one-quarter of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture, then fold in the remaining whites. Divide the batter among the pans and spread evenly.

5. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 25 to 35 minutes.

Source: Joy of Cooking cookbook


Chocolate Buttercream Icing

YIELD: 3 cups

Ingredients:
1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening (I used butter flavored Crisco)
1/2 cup butter or margarine (I used butter)
3/4 cup cocoa
1 tsp. clear vanilla extract
4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar (powdered sugar)
3-4 T. milk
Light corn syrup**

Cream shortening and butter with electric mixer. Add cocoa and vanilla. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Keep icing covered with a damp cloth until ready to use.

**Add 3-4 T. light corn syrup per recipe to thin for icing cake.

For best results, keep icing bowl in refrigerator when not in use.

Refrigerated in an airtight container, this icing can be stored 2 weeks. Rewhip before using.

Source: Wilton