Tag Archives: comfort food

PW’s Baked Ziti

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I don’t normally make a meal for someone when I haven’t made it before, but PW has yet to steer me wrong; so I went for it. I also don’t get many chances to make meals like this, (the hubbs doesn’t like baked pasta dishes!), so when a friend from home group was scheduled for surgery, I thought that this would be a comforting meal for her and her family. This pasta is rich and filling and what you see in the picture is only half of what the recipe makes! I don’t think a 13 x 9 baking dish could have contained it all – so if you have a lasagna pan, you might want to use it!  Thanks for reading, enjoy!

pasta

Baked Pasta – adapted from The Pioneer Woman

  • 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 3 cloves Garlic, Minced
  • 1 whole Large Onion, Diced
  • 1 pound Italian Sausage
  • 1 pound Ground Beef
  • 1 can (28 Ounce Can) Whole Tomatoes, With Juice
  • 2 cans (14.5 Ounce) Tomato Sauce Or Marinara Sauce
  • 2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
  • 1/2 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
  •  Salt And Pepper, to taste
  • 16 ounces, weight Ziti Or Mostaciolli, Cooked Until Not Quite Al Dente
  • 1 tub (15 Ounce) Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese
  • 1-1/2 pound Mozzarella Cheese, Grated
  • 1/2 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
  • 1 whole Egg
  • Fresh Minced Parsley

Directions -

Heat olive oil in a pot over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and saute for several minutes, or until starting to soften. Add Italian sausage and ground beef and cook until browned. Drain off fat, leaving a bit behind for flavor and moisture.

Add tomatoes, tomato juice, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes. Stir and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes. After that time, remove 3 to 4 cups of the sauce to a different bowl to cool down.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a separate bowl, mix together the ricotta cheese, 2 cups of the grated mozzarella, Parmesan, egg, and salt and pepper. Stir together just a couple of times (do not mix completely).

Drain the pasta and rinse under cool water to stop the cooking and cool it down. Pour it into the bowl with the cheese mixture and toss to slightly combine (there should still be large lumps.) Add the cooled meat sauce and toss to combine.

Add half the coated pasta to a large casserole dish or lasagna dish. Spoon half of the remaining sauce over the top, then top with half the remaining mozzarella cheese. Repeat with another layer of the coated pasta, the sauce, and the mozzarella.

Bake for 20 minutes, or until bubbling. Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes before serving.

 

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Creamy Tomato Soup

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Quick Post: As a kid, I hated tomato soup…but that was the condensed kind, so I had every right! ;)  Because of that bad experience, I have only recently tried tomato soup again. I was a little obsessed with Panera’s creamy tomato soup and adult grilled cheese, and decided that I needed to recreate that meal at home. This batch makes quite a lot of soup, but it freezes beautifully! My kids loved this and agree that I need to make it again :) Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Creamy Tomato Soup -

  • 2 TBSP olive oil or butter
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 – 28 ounce cans of whole peeled tomatoes (San Marzano or other good quality is best)
  • 2 cups chicken stock
  • 2 sprigs fresh thyme
  • Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper
  • 1 tsp. raw sugar
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • Parmesan cheese, optional

*Special Equipment – immersion blender, food processor or blender

Directions -

1. Heat up oil or butter in a medium stockpot over medium heat. Cook onion and garlic (if using), stirring constantly, until soft and translucent, about 3 minutes.

2. Add tomatoes, their juices, thyme and stock. Season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes.

3. Remove the thyme, and carefully puree the soup. ( I used my immersion blender in the pot, while using the pot lid as a shield ;) It worked great!).

4. Whisk in cream; season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately with Parmesan if desired.

Baked Rice Pudding

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I was in need of some comfort food! Rice pudding reminds me of my Gram, so what’s more comforting than that? ;) The rice baked up perfectly, with a nice bite, not mushy, and it was just sweet enough for my tastes. The original poster claimed this recipe will serve four – ha! ;) Let me put it this way:  if it was a really bad day, I could easily have eaten all of this myself! Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Milky Rice Pudding – adapted from The Parsley Thief

  • unsalted butter, for greasing baking dish
  • 2 cups milk
  • 1/3 cup arborio rice
  • 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
  • a pinch of salt
  • ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Generously butter a baking dish, or pie plate.
Add the milk, rice, brown sugar & salt to a mixing bowl, or measuring cup. Whisk, until well combined & pour into the prepared baking dish. Bake for about 1 hour 10 minutes, or until the rice is very tender & most of the liquid has been absorbed. While the pudding is cooking, stir every 10 minutes, or so. When it nears the end of the cooking time, a skin will form on the surface of the pudding. When done, stir the pudding, divide into serving bowls & garnish with a sprinkle of ground cinnamon.

Triple Layer Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Icing

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This week my parents came to visit, so I pulled out all the stops! But this wasn’t just to create a more memorable visit, it was mostly to celebrate our little girl’s fifth birthday. We forgot to pick up candles and I meant to put rainbow sprinkles on this, but she assured me that it was “okay”. Thankfully the lack of these items didn’t take away from the flavor and richness of this cake.

This was my first ever homemade icing and it was so easy, thanks to my trusty KitchenAid standing mixer. It is a messy process sifting all those six cups of powdered sugar, but it was worth it. Next time I will be more generous with the frosting between the layers, but I was worried I wouldn’t have enough to frost the “outside”. Once the cake was frosted, I put it in the fridge to set up. Oh, and don’t mind the wax paper – that was meant to keep the cake plate cleaner but I forgot to remove them before the rest in the fridge. Overall, this cake was really worth the effort and not at all difficult. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Double Layer Chocolate Cake – adapted from Smitten Kitchen

** This became a “triple layer” cake because I only have 9″ cake pans**

The recipe below is for 2 10-inch layers filled and coated in chocolate ganache. My adaptations were to split the layers to create a four-layer cake and use raspberry filling instead of chocolate. To do the same, use half the frosting and all of the raspberry filling, recipe at the end.

For cake layers

  • 3 ounces fine-quality semisweet chocolate such as Callebaut
  • 1 1/2 cups hot brewed coffee
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
  • 3 large eggs
  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 cups well-shaken buttermilk
  • 3/4 teaspoon vanilla

Make cake layers: Preheat oven to 300°F. and grease pans. Line bottoms with rounds of parchment paper and grease paper.

Finely chop chocolate and in a bowl combine with hot coffee. Let mixture stand, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.

Into a large bowl sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another large bowl with an electric mixer beat eggs until thickened slightly and lemon colored (about 3 minutes with a standing mixer or 5 minutes with a hand-held mixer). Slowly add oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and melted chocolate mixture to eggs, beating until combined well. Add sugar mixture and beat on medium speed until just combined well.

Divide batter between pans and bake in middle of oven until a tester inserted in center comes out clean, 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Cool layers completely in pans on racks. Run a thin knife around edges of pans and invert layers onto racks. Carefully remove wax paper and cool layers completely. Cake layers may be made 1 day ahead and kept, wrapped well in plastic wrap, at room temperature

Quick Chocolate Buttercream – adapted from Williams-Sonoma

  • 8 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped
  • 6 cups confectioners’ sugar
  • 16 Tbs. (2 sticks) unsalted butter
  • 6 Tbs. milk, plus more, if needed
  • 2 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp. salt

Directions -

Have all the ingredients at room temperature.

Put the chocolate in the top pan of a double boiler set over but not touching simmering water in the bottom pan. Stir until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Let cool to room temperature.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, combine the confectioners’ sugar, butter, the 6 Tbs. milk, the vanilla and salt and beat on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Increase the speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes, then reduce the speed to low. Add the chocolate and beat until combined, then increase the speed to medium and beat for 1 minute more.

If the frosting is dry, add more milk, 1 tsp. at a time, until it is creamy but still holds peaks. Makes about 4 1/2 cups.

Buffalo Chicken Calzone

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Quick Post: By now you can tell we like buffalo chicken! I love Frank’s Red Hot because it has great flavor and a mild kick to it. I made two calzones tonight – one for the adults and one for the kids. The other calzone had mozzarella, Parmesan, cheddar, pepperoni and sliced baby Portobello mushrooms in it. They both tasted excellent:) I warmed up some marinara sauce for the kids to dip theirs, and for the buffalo calzones I made a quick blue cheese dip. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Buffalo Chicken Calzone – a Mom Make’s Recipe

  • 3/4 pound roasted chicken breast, shredded
  • 1/4 batch of this pizza dough
  • 1/4 cup Frank’s Red Hot
  • 1/4 cup crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
  • 1/3 cup sharp white cheddar
  • 1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
  • 1 egg plus a splash of water for the egg wash
  • pizza seasoning to taste

Directions -

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.

2. Roll out your pizza dough in a large rectangle – about 10×14 inches. Sprinkle your shredded cheddar on the dough leaving at least an inch of space from the edge. Toss your roasted chicken with the Frank’s Red Hot to coat, then layer on top of the cheese. Sprinkle the Gorgonzola and Parmesan cheeses over the top of the chicken.

3. Brush the egg wash around the perimeter of the dough, and then fold the long side of the dough to the opposite side and crimp to seal. Place on a lined baking sheet, brush the top of the calzone with the egg wash, and bake for 15 minutes.

Blue Cheese Dip – a Mom Make’s Recipe

  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 1/4 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup blue cheese
  • fresh cracked pepper to taste

Directions -

1. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. YUM!

Peanut Butter Pie

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Quick Post: This has to be the easiest, least-fancy dessert I have ever made. I’m not usually one to make something this unhealthy, but it’s one of M’s favorites. Don’t judge it’s outward appearance! I know chocolate would make all the difference, but this pie is decadent enough without it in my humble opinion. I know M would disagree, as he likes things so sweet it makes my teeth hurt! Also, he just really loves chocolate. If you decide to make this, make sure it sits in the fridge for at least four hours, but overnight would be even better. The last time I made this we didn’t wait too long – it tasted ok, but the day after it was so much better. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Peanut Butter Pie – adapted from Let’s Dish

  • 1 (8-inch) graham cracker pie crust
  • 1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 cup peanut butter
  • 1 (8 oz.) tub frozen whipped topping, thawed

Directions -

With an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth.  Blend in peanut butter and vanilla.  Fold in whipped topping.  Spoon mixture into prepared pie crust.  Refrigerate at least 4 hours, or until firm.



Chicken Parmesan

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Quick Post: This recipe is a combination of a few different techniques and ingredients I pulled together from some simple chicken parm recipes. I liked the addition of Panko in this recipe verses the typical Italian breadcrumbs. I pulled the shallow fry method from the same recipe, but baked the chicken, sauce and cheese in the oven before serving like this one. Oh, and I used my favorite marinara sauce for this recipe. This was a tasty and filling meal – even my picky eater happily ate this. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Chicken Parmesan – a Mom Makes Recipe

  • 4 chicken breast cutlets
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten with 2 TBSP water
  • 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • oregano, salt, pepper to taste (for Panko)
  • 2 TBSP butter
  • 3 TBSP olive oil
  • 1 batch of this marinara or at least 2 jars of your favorite store-bought sauce
  • 1 pound of thin spaghetti
  • 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese
  • 1/4 Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Directions -

1. Preheat oven 400 degrees and put a large pot of water to boil.

2. Clean and dry your chicken well. Set up an assembly line for your breading – one shallow dish for your flour, one for your egg, and one shallow dish for the season Panko. Season your chicken with kosher salt and pepper then lightly coat with the flour, then dip in the egg mixture, then coat the chicken with the seasoned Panko – set aside.

3. Heat oil and butter in a large, heavy bottomed skillet over medium heat until a pinch of the breadcrumb mixture sizzles immediately when added. Add the chicken breasts and fry without disturbing for 5 to 6 minutes, or until golden brown. Using tongs, turn the chicken breasts and fry another 4 to 5 minutes, or until just cooked through and golden brown.

4. Place the finished chicken in a 13×9 baking dish. Top the chicken with enough marinara sauce to cover the tops of each, then sprinkle the parm and mozzarella cheese. Bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

5. While the chicken is in the oven, cook off your spaghetti noodles in rapidly boiling, liberally salted water – cook according to package directions. Drain pasta, spoon over some marinara and set alongside your yummy chicken parm! Enjoy!:)

Three Ingredient Crock Pot Dinner…(and it’s good, too!)

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Quick Post: Easiest.Dinner.Ever. Crock Pot meals are so convenient and this one is no exception. If you want to use the store bought ingredients, it’s even easier. I had some carrots that I needed to use up so I roasted them in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes seasoned with kosher salt, pepper, and some olive oil. I didn’t roast any garlic for the potatoes described on the blog, so I just mashed my potatoes with Parmesan, some butter, half and half, milk, salt and pepper. They’re really basic, but that’s okay because the pork makes its own gravy – yum! Thank for reading, enjoy!

Ranch House Crock Pot Pork Chops – adapted from Picky Palate

Directions -

Place all ingredients in a crock pot – cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours.

Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

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Oh, this is too good! While searching for a recipe to use up leftover roasted chicken, I came across this. I had to buy the cheese but I had everything else on hand which is always good:) While reading through a few of the comments, I noticed that several people wrote that this recipe makes “a ton” but they successfully halved it. Well, that sounded like a good idea to me because I didn’t have enough chicken to make three cups anyway. The recipe also doesn’t seem so decadent when you halve the amounts of cheese and butter;) Everyone enjoyed this, but M still prefers this one over all others I’ve made. Honestly, I’m looking forward to eating leftovers;) Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese – adapted from Food Network

  • 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for the dish
  • Kosher salt
  • 1 pound elbow macaroni
  • 1 small onion, finely chopped
  • 2 stalks celery, finely chopped
  • 3 cups cooked chicken, shredded
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3/4 cup hot sauce (preferably Frank’s)
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons dry mustard
  • 2 1/2 cups half-and-half
  • 1 pound yellow sharp cheddar, shredded
  • 8 ounces pepper jack cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
  • 2/3 cup sour cream
  • 1 cup panko
  • 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese (I used Gorgonzola)

Directions -

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain.

Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken and garlic and cook 2 minutes, then add 1/2 cup hot sauce and simmer until slightly thickened, about 1 more minute.

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the flour and mustard with a wooden spoon until smooth. Whisk in the half-and-half, then add the remaining 1/4 cup hot sauce and stir until thick, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the cheddar and pepper jack cheeses, then whisk in the sour cream until smooth.

Spread half of the macaroni in the prepared baking dish, then top with the chicken mixture and the remaining macaroni. Pour the cheese sauce evenly on top.

Put the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl and microwave until melted. Stir in the panko, blue cheese and parsley. Sprinkle over the macaroni and bake until bubbly, 30 to 40 minutes. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.



Strawberry Cream Cheese Bread (just keeping it real)

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Note to self: impatience is NEVER rewarded. I learned this the hard way. I’ve made this bread twice this week (and plan on making it again next week – hopefully with better results). The first time was fine because I didn’t bother getting the loaf out of the pan while it was still hot and just cut the pieces out of the pan. There is a short window of opportunity to get loaves out of their pans before they stick, so I wanted to work on it within seven minutes of taking it out of the oven. That obviously didn’t help either. This loaf sticks like crazy, so now with two failed attempts at de-panning, I know now that I need to butter the pan and then put a piece of parchment paper on top of that. Next week we’ll see if that works! It better because this is not something I want to happen again.
Thanks for reading, enjoy!
Fresh Strawberry Bread – My Baking Addiction
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • 1 1/2 cups strawberries, rinse, dried and chopped

Directions
1. Grease and flour a 9×5 inch loaf pan.
2. With electric mixer cream butter, sugar and cream cheese until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time. Mix in vanilla.
3. In separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Blend flour mixture with butter mixture just until blended. Add buttermilk and only stir until just combined; do not over mix.
4. Carefully fold in strawberries. Dough mixture will be thick.
5. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 50 to 60 minutes.