The Best Meatloaf Ever!

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/4 cup minced onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 2 pounds extra-lean ground beef
• 3 slices bread, toasted and crumbled
• 7 buttery round crackers, crushed
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 3 1/2 tablespoons sour cream
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce, divided
• 1/4 cup milk (optional)
• 3 tablespoons ketchup

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat, and cook the onion and garlic 5 minutes, until onion is tender. Remove from heat, and season with salt and pepper.
3. In a large bowl, mix the onion and garlic, beef, crumbled bread, crushed crackers, egg, sour cream, Worcestershire sauce, and 1/2 can tomato sauce. Gradually stir in the milk 1 teaspoon at a time until mixture is moist, but not soggy. Transfer the mixture to a 5x9 inch loaf pan.
4. Bake uncovered in the preheated oven 40 minutes. Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C), and continue baking 15 minutes, to an internal temperature of 160 degrees F (70 degrees C).
5. In a small bowl, mix the remaining tomato sauce and ketchup. Pour over the top of the meatloaf, and continue baking 10 minutes.

Pasta alle Vongole (Pasta w/Clams)

So to continue on the kids choosing dinner, we have again chosen shellfish. This time the kids chose clams.  Again, they love to eat the shellfish.

Here are the ingredients:
8 ounces uncooked linguine (or spaghetti)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 bottle (8 ounce size) clam juice (or fish stock)
1/2 teaspoon dried chili flakes  (more or less depending on if you like heat.  I add to my own bowl because the kids aren't fans of super spicy)
1½ pounds clams, scrubbed- REALLY scrub them or the sauce is gritty
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
14 1/2 ounces whole tomatoes, undrained and chopped  (I cheated and used a can of diced)
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon butter or margarine (optional)

Directions:
Sauce: in a large skillet, heat olive oil on medium heat. Add minced garlic and saute for 1 to 2 minutes. Next, add chopped tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes. Shkiaff in chili flakes, white wine and clam stock and cook until the mixture reduces by half, about 5-8 minutes.

Stir in clams, cook until they open (throw out ones that don't) about 3-5 minutes. 

 

Pasta: Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add a teaspoon of oil to water and a pinch of salt. Throw in 8 ounces  of  linguine pasta and cook until al dente. Strain.

In a large serving bowl toss pasta with 1-tablespoon butter, then with clam sauce, chopped parsley, salt and pepper until combined. Serve immediately. (You may find it easier to remove clams when mixing pasta… if you’re a newrd.).

And of course, if you need proof, here are the boys enjoying them!

YUM!!!!

Mussels Josephine

So I asked the boys what they wanted me to make and they said mussels like at Bonefish. I love that dish , especially the sauce to dip bread in so I set out to make it.
So first, here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 3 dozen fresh prince edward mussels (about 2 pounds)I used 2 bags from the store
• 4 ounces chopped yellow onions
• 2 ounces chopped garlic
• 14 ounces chopped tomatoes, juice and all (canned organic tomatoes can be substituted)
• fresh basil
• 2 ounces sambuca romana or 2 ounces ouzo or 2 ounces Pernod
• 1/2 lemon, juice of
• parsley, garnish

Lemon Butter Sauce (use 3/4 cup)

• 1/4 cup real butter
• 2 tablespoons minced yellow onions
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons dry white wine
• kosher salt or sea salt
• white pepper, to taste
• 2 tablespoons cold butter 

 Also I bought a pack of 8 Ciabatta Rolls to warm and use for sauce dipping- HIGHLY recommend

  First really scrub the mussels, then follow these instructions. DO NOT skip the Sambuca.  It made all the difference!!!
I would also get all ingredients prepped and ready as it is best to try to make the mussels and sauce at the same time. 

1.   Directions: 

1

1      Coat a hot skillet with melted butter. Add the fresh Prince Edward mussels to the skillet, and cover. The steam will cook the mussels, along with the heat of the pan. It will take about 1-2 minutes to cook the mussels. You'll know when they're done when the mussels begin to open. Mine took a little longer to open.

2.       Next, add into the pan: 4 oz chopped onions, 2 oz chopped garlic, 14 oz chopped tomatoes.

3.      Add 2 ounces of sambuca (licorice flavored liquor) - let the alcohol cook off, then add fresh basil, lemon juice and lemon butter sauce to the pan. Cook for 45 seconds.

4.        Discard any mussels that did not open. Serve in a large bowl, topped with fresh chopped parsley.

       Lemon Butter Sauce.

1.    Melt butter over low heat;remove from heat and let sit until the milk solids settle to the bottom; skim the clear butter from the top; discard the sediment.

2.    Sauté onion and garlic in 2 tbs of the clarified butter until transparent.

3.       Stir in lemon juice and white wine and season with salt and pepper.

4.       Simmer 2-3 minutes to reduce liquid.

5.       Remove from heat and swirl in cold butter until sauce is smooth and butter is melted.

Pour sauce over mussels and serve.  Dip bread in the sauce while eating the mussels.
Pretty much tastes just like the Bonefish mussels.  There was not 1 single mussel left as well as zero sauce.  The kids and us ate every bite!

 
 

Pineapple Angel Food Cake

Since I'm counting my calories I was searching online for a "healthy" dessert when I came across this Weight Watchers recipe. It is so simple and soooo delicious! You only need two ingredients to make the cake: a box of one step angel food cake mix and one can of crushed pineapple. You mix the two together and bake according to the box. When you serve it you can top it with cool whip for some added goodness! I will definitely be making this cake again!

Linguine with Eggplant Ragout

I have wasted far too much time on Pinterest, so instead of pinning, this time I was determined to go through my "Recipes I Must Try" board and find one to actually make.  I stumbled upon this Rachel Ray recipe that I thought would suit both my and the hubs' tastes.  Since we're getting ready to go away for the week, I decided to add some leftover mushrooms I had in the fridge to mine.  (He HATES mushrooms, which makes one of my main, hearty-vegetable, go-to staples a tough one to sneak into recipes.)  I also added turkey meatballs to the hubs' dish and veggie meatballs to mine in order to add some protein to our meal.  Topped it with some fresh parmesan and YUM-O!  A keeper!

Ingredients

• 2 eggplants (about 2 pounds)
• 1 pound linguine pasta
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 14 1/2 ounce can  chopped tomatoes
• Salt and pepper
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees . Pierce the eggplants all over, place on a baking sheet and cook until very soft, about 1 hour. Let cool slightly, then cut each eggplant in half and scoop the flesh into a bowl; discard the skin.
2. Meanwhile, in a pot of boiling, salted water, cook the linguine until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water.
3. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and their juice and cook until the liquid has reduced, about 10 minutes. Stir in the eggplant; heat through. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Add the pasta and basil; toss to coat. Add the reserved pasta cooking water as needed.

Prep - really it was mostly just a matter of cutting up the garlic (can you say, E-A-S-Y?!)

Everything's cookin'!  Eggplant is out of the oven and ready to have it's guts scooped out.

Ragout is finished!  

Citrusy Swordfish

Hey guys!

I want to apologize ahead of time for not having measurements for this recipe, however it can be judged by your discretion, depending on how much spice you like.  Enjoy!

The main ingredient comes from Whole Foods, near the seafood

Buy Swordfish steaks and Sizzling Pepper Rub

Cube the swordfish and add pepper rub, olive oil, basil or cilantro
Mix so that all the pieces are covered
Saute in pan until cooked through
Top with fresh squeezed citrus (we did lemon)

Crab Fettuccine

So tonight I tried this recipe for Crab Fettuccine. I did alter a couple of things from this original recipe.  I cut the half and half amount to 1 cup.  I also then cut the second simmer time to 5 minutes.  I like mine with a little more zest so I added extra chili when I served it.  Everyone ate it.  The kids had 2 helpings. I thought it was just right, not too heavy but very flavorful.

• 1 pound (or 500 grams) egg fettuccine
• 12-16 oz crab meat
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 clove garlic, minced- I used 2 cloves
• Pinch hot chile flakes - I used more
• 2 cups sweet cherry tomatoes, halved
• Pinch sea salt

• Pinch brown sugar
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cups half-and-half  - I only used 1 cup
• 1/2 cup fresh sweet peas
• 1/2 cup plus a pinch freshly grated Parmesan cheese
•  1/4 cup minced fresh parsley  
•  
• Cook the egg fettuccine according to package directions for al dente. Drain. In a pan, heat the unsalted butter in a pan over medium heat. Add the garlic, and pinch of chile flakes and saute until it becomes golden and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the sweet cherry tomatoes, sea salt, brown sugar, and freshly ground pepper to the pan. Cook for about 8 minutes, until the tomatoes begin to create a nice, light sauce. Add in the half-and-half and bring to a boil. The moment it starts to boil, turn the heat down to medium-low and add the sweet peas, 1/2 cup of Parmesan and a big handful of minced parsley. Stir and let it thicken for about 8 minutes.(if you cut the amount of half and half, cut cook time to 5 minutes) Mix in the crabmeat and heat through, about 2 minutes.
  
  Using tongs, mix the cooked fettuccine and the sauce. Serve topped with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and minced parsley