Are you tired of pasta and sauce being on sale at the grocery stores? I know Publix has one brand on sale EVERY week. Needless to say, I have plenty of it on hand. But surprisingly enough, I haven't cooked anything with it lately! I came across this recipe on Foodbuzz the other day and though it was perfect because the chicken was on sale last week and this week its the pasta, sauce and ricotta cheese. This is a good twist on your typical Chicken Parmesan. It was a winner in my house!
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup lowfat ricotta
1 tablespoon milk
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs (2 slices of bread)
1/2 clove garlic, chopped
1/4 cup grated parmesan
salt and pepper
10 oz. spaghetti noodles (just shy of one box)
1 jar spaghetti sauce
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Trim chicken breasts of excess fat and pound slightly with a meat tenderizer. Season both sides with salt and pepper. Arrange on the bottom of a baking dish.
In a small bowl combine the ricotta, milk and parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Spread ricotta mixture evenly over chicken breasts.
In a food processor or blender, pulse bread and garlic to make the bread crumbs. Mix in the parmesan cheese. Sprinkle the crumbs over chicken breasts liberally, pressing into chicken to ensure a good stick.
Bake in a 400 degree oven for 25-35 minutes or until juices run clear.
Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Also warm sauce in a separate saucepan over low heat.
To serve, slice the chicken and serve over the pasta with a ladle of sauce.
Enjoy!
(adapted from Eatin' On The Cheap)
This is one for the kiddos. I'm sure you can tell by the name that this one is a Rachael Ray creation. She has a "for the kids" section in her magazine that has easy kid-friendly recipes. This is one of them. I had the ingredients on hand, so I haven't had to shop Publix yet this week. The hot dogs and cheese are on sale though. This was quick and easy. If you could make two at a time, you could make it that much faster. I think the leftovers would be great for lunch the next day. You could totally eat it cold....like pizza!
4 beef hot dogs
4 10-inch flour tortillas
1/2 cup spaghetti sauce (or salsa)
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Using a small knife cut the hot dogs in half lengthwise, then into 1/2-inch pieces. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil if you don't have a non-stick pan, then add the hot doogs and cook until browned all over, 2-4 minutes. Drain the hog dog slices on paper towel-lined plates. Wipe out skillet.
Spray the skillet with Pam. Add 1 tortilla. Cook for 1 minute, then flip over with tongs and turn the heat to medium-low. Place a big spoonful of spaghetti sauce (or salsa) on half of the tortilla. Spread it around with the back of a spoon. Top the sauce with 1/4 of the cheese (a big handful of each kind). Top the cheese with 1/4 of the hot dog slices. Fold over the tortilla to form a half-moon shape. Press down on the folded tortilla with a spatula to flatten the pizza-dilla and make it stick together.
Cook the pizza-dilla, flipping it carefully once more with a spatula, for 1 minute per side (I probably did mine more like 2-3 minutes per side to get it slightly crispy). Cut into 4 wedges and serve. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
**I also think this would work on a panini press. Mine will fit two of these at a time so that will speed things up a little instead of having to cook them all separate.
Enjoy!
(adapted from Rachael Ray Magazine)
Frozen spinach is a great bargain at the grocery store. Just think of all of the bags of fresh spinach it would take to wilt down and fit into a 10-oz. frozen box of spinach. A lot! This recipe is a great way to sneak spinach into your diet. My husband even ate it! I made him some without the spinach, but he said that the ones with the spinach were just as good! If you have a small family, go ahead and make this whole recipe. Cook half now and freeze the other half of the shells for later. Freeze the stuffed shells (without the sauce) and then store in a zippy bag. Top with sauce and cheese before baking. You could use Italian sausage, ground beef or Jimmy Dean like I did. Change it up to use what you have on-hand!
1 box jumbo pasta shells (I didn't use the whole box)
1 lb. Italian sausage (I used Jimmy Dean)
1 15-oz. container ricotta cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella
1 10-oz. box frozen spinach
3/4 cup shredded or diced carrots (I forgot these!)
1 26-oz. jar spaghetti sauce
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13 X 9-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Cook and drain pasta according to package directions.
In a large skillet cook sausage over medium-high heat until browned, breaking up chunks with a wooden spoon. Drain. Thaw spinach in the microwave. Squeeze out all excess liquid.
In a medium bowl, stir ricotta cheese, 1 cup of the shredded cheese, spinach, carrots and sausage (I was going to cook the carrots with the sausage to soften, but I forgot!)
Spread about 1/2 cup of the pasta sauce over bottom of baking dish. Fill the shells with the cheese sausage mixture. Arrange shells, filled side up, on sauce in baking dish. Pour remaining sauce over stuffed shells. Cover with foil and bake 40 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake uncovered 5-10 minutes longer until cheese is melted.
Enjoy!
(adapted from Eat Better America 2010 Calendar)
Alright...so this was one of the ones that didn't turn out good. I've seen this written several times in magazines on the side column as a Ragu ad. El-Yucko. Don't waste your time. If you want to try it for its simplicity, use the chicken broth instead of the water. It tasted exactly like what it is: watered down tomato sauce pasta. It has potential though. It reminds me of a simpler version of One Pot Spaghetti and Meatballs. My opinion, just go for the meatball recipe. WAY more flavor and only a few additional ingredients.
Here's the recipe anyway, in case you want to try to improve it:
2 lb. ground beef
1 jar Ragu (the BIG one- 2 lb. 13 oz- I used 1-1/2 regular jars)
4 cups water (use chicken broth for more flavor)
1 lb. uncooked rotini pasta
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Brown ground beef in 6-quart saucepot; drain. Stir in sauce and water. Bring to a boil. Stir in uncooked rotini; return to a boil. Reduce heat and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, 14 minutes or until rotini is tender. Remove from heat; sprinkle with cheese. Let stand covered until cheese is melted.
(adapted from All You Magazine)
What's with that name? Well, this started out in my head as a panini. Once made, it resembled more of a quesadilla. So this is the name Clay came up with! Spaghetti sauce has been on sale every week at all of the grocery stores these last few weeks, so I'm stocked. Shannon from The Bargain Buggy and I were brainstorming ideas to use the Flatout bread that Publix had B1G1 this week. This is what we came up with. This is super easy and great for a weeknight dinner.
4 Flatout breads
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked and sliced
1 cup spaghetti sauce, plus more for dipping
1-1/2 cups shredded mozarella
parmesan cheese
Heat chicken and sauce together in a skillet over medium heat. Preheat panini grill. Lay out the flatbread. Divide half of the cheese evenly among the 4 pieces. Top each with 1/4 of the chicken mixture. Top with remaining cheese and a sprinkle of parmesan. Fold over to cover chicken. Spray panini grill with a cooking spray. Lay the quesa-nini's on the grill and cook for 3-5 minutes until cheese is melted and bread is slightly crisp. Repeat with the other two quesa-nini's. Remove to a cutting board. Slice into 3 triangles. Serve with additional sauce and a side salad.
Enjoy!
I had a lot of alfredo sauce that I bought the other week and wanted to find a new way to use it. My sister-in-law Jennifer shared this with me. Its a take on a ziti bake. Five ingredients and super easy. Not to mention, delicious! I have to credit Shelley with the cooking for this one though! She made this while I stood around and kept her company :) Thanks Shelley! I'll let the recipe speak for itself.
1 box penne noodles (we used Smart Taste)
1 jar alfredo sauce
1 lb. ground beef
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1-1/2 cups shredded cheese (we used Italian Blend)
Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, brown ground beef over medium high heat. Drain off excess fat. Pour jar of spaghetti sauce over meat and heat through.
Drain pasta and return to pan. Pour in alfredo sauce and mix well. If it is too thick, you can thin it out with a splash of milk.
Spray a 9 X 13 inch baking dish. Spread a think layer of the meat sauce in the bottom. Top with the noodles and meat sauce in this order: noodles, meat, noodles, meat. Sprinkle with the cheese. Bake in a 350 degree oven for approximately 20 minutes until bubbly. Serve with garlic bread and salad.
Enjoy!
(adapted from Jennifer Ammons)
This recipe turned out really yummy. Not a "stoup" like Rachael Ray's original recipe. Closer to a big bowl of spaghetti and meatballs. But, it all cooks in the same pot...hence the new name! Rachael Ray describes her "stoup" as thicker than a soup but thinner than a stew. I think I put too many noodles, which contributed to mine thickening up more. You can lessen that amount if you want to aim more for the "stoup" consistency. I like eating mine with a fork, so it worked out perfectly! I like having the carrots tucked in there too. Ella ate hers with no problem. Heck, even Clay ate them! This recipe makes good use of the spaghetti sauce, chicken broth, bread crumbs and parmesan cheese that has been on sale at Publix. I must confess though. My meat was not thawed when I got home, so I had to improvise and use frozen meatballs. If you have those in the freezer, go right on ahead. It makes this dish that much easier. I used 20, but I think you could throw a few more in there. If spaghetti is a favorite around your house, knock this one out. Its sure to be a crowd pleaser!
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped (I used about 1 cup chopped baby carrots)
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups chicken broth (1 carton)
1 26-oz. jar spaghetti sauce (My Classico jar was 24 oz.)
2 8-oz. cans tomato sauce
1 lb. ground beef
1 large egg
1/3 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, divided
salt and pepper
3/4 box spaghetti, broken into thirds (I used whole wheat)
In a large soup pot, combine the olive oil, onion, carrots and garlic and cook over medium-high heat for 5-7 minutes. Add the chicken broth, spaghetti sauce and tomato sauce. Cover and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
In a large bowl, using a fork, combine the ground beef, egg, bread crumbs and 1/4 cup parmesan cheese; season with salt and pepper. Roll the meat into balls the size of a large walnut and drop each one into the soup pot (will make about 16-20 meatballs). Simmer for 10 minutes.
**This is where you could make life easier and use frozen meatballs like I did!
Stir the broken spaghetti into the pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, about 12 minutes. Add in the additional 1/4 cup parmesan cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste. Its ready to serve now, but I covered it and reduced the heat to low and simmered probably another 15 minutes or so until we were ready to eat. Serve in bowls and top with additional parmesan cheese. We served ours with some Cole's Garlic Bread we got B1G1 at Publix a couple of weeks ago.
Enjoy!
(adapted from RachaelRayMag.com)
I just recently started cooking with Italian Sausage since I've picked it up during the sales at Publix and Winn Dixie. I really like the change it gives me in my regular dinner routine. I found this recipe in a Philadelphia Cream Cheese insert in one of my magazines. It is very simple and very delicious. Great for quick weeknight meals. The peppers give it a good fresh kick. You probably have most of these items in your stockpile. Its a great change on the noodles-pasta sauce dinner!
1 box Penne Noodles (I used Ronzoni Smart Taste)
1 lb. Italian Sausage
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 jar (26 oz.) spaghetti sauce
8 oz. cream cheese (I used reduced-fat)
1/4 cup milk (add more as needed for desired consistency)
Cook pasta according to package directions.
Meanwhile, brown sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Break up large chunks with a wooden spoon. Drain off excess fat. Return to skillet and add peppers. Cook 5-10 minutes or until softened. Stir in spaghetti sauce and cook until heated through, about 5 minutes. Add cream cheese, cook another 5 minutes or until melted, stirring frequently.
Drain pasta and return to pot. Add sausage mixture, mixing thoroughly. Add enough milk to thin out the consistency (I didn't measure, so I'm not sure how much I added. I'm guessing between 1/4 and 1/2 cup. It will resemble an alfredo sauce). Top with Parmesan. Serve with a small salad.
Enjoy!
(adapted from Kraft)
Today was Cook-For-Kids-Day at my house! Yogurt Cups for breakfast and Pizza Pockets for dinner. This was super simple, and like the yogurt cups, could also be changed up with your favorites. Next time I'm going to add mushrooms to my pocket. Olives would be good too. You could leave out the hot dogs all together and do sausage or pepperoni. My husband really liked this one. I used the leftover pizza sauce I had for the Italian Sausage Calzones, but you could certainly use some spaghetti sauce if you had some on-hand.
1 Pillsbury Thin Crust Pizza Dough
3 hot dogs, sliced lengthwise into half-moons
1/4 cup pizza sauce
1 cup shredded mozarella cheese
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Roll out the pizza dough to form a rectangle on the baking sheet (if you're using the regular pizza dough, not the thin crust, you'll want to roll it out to about a 10 X 14 rectangle). Using a pizza wheel or a knife, cut into four 5-by-7-inch rectangles.
Spoon one-quarter of the chopped hot dog onto the center of each rectangle, leaving a 1-inch border around the filling. Top the hot dogs with 1 tablespoon sauce and 3 tablespoons shredded cheese. Fold the rectangle in half lengthwise over the filling, wrapping the dough around. Pinch and fold the edges together to secure. Repeat with all the rectangles. Cut 2 or 3 small vents in the top of each pocket. Bake until browned and bubbling, about 15 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
Serve with green beans or celery sticks.
Enjoy!
(adapted from Rachael Ray Magazine)
Sometimes I get tired of the same pasta-noodles-cheese combinations. I did this one a few years back, and to be honest, I've kind of forgotten about it! It is a little more time consuming than just a regular noodle-sauce-pasta-in-the-oven-dish, but it is so worth the extra prep work. I love ricotta cheese, and the parsley gives it a slight burst of freshness. A "bunch" of parsley was $.88 at Wal-mart the other day. So its nothing that will break your wallet. Of course, if you don't have any, its perfectly fine without it. I think most of you probably have your own version of this. Let me know how you do yours! And if you want to go for a change, try this one next time!
9-12 lasagna noodles
1 lb. ground beef
1 regular sized jar spaghetti sauce (plus 1-1/2 cups extra)
1 15-oz. ricotta cheese
3 cups shredded cheese (mozzarella or Italian blend)
1 tablespoon Italian flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
salt and pepper
Cook pasta according to package directions. Lay out on a work surface to cool when done. You might want to drizzle them with a little olive oil or spray with a butter flavored cooking spray (that's what I did).
Meanwhile, brown the beef in a skillet over medium heat until brown, breaking up the bigger pieces with a wooden spoon. Drain off excess fat (I use a baster for this most of the time). Pour 1/2 cup sauce in the bottom of a 9- inch baking dish. Pour the rest of the sauce in the meat. Simmer over low about 5 minutes.
In a large bowl, mix ricotta cheese, 2 cups shredded mozzarella, 1 tablespoon chopped parsley and salt and pepper (to taste). Mix well.
Lay out a lasagna noodle. Spread approximately 2 tablespoons of the cheese mixture over noodle. Top with approximately 2 tablespoons of meat. Gently roll up and place on top of sauce in baking dish. Repeat until your dish is full. My dish held 9 lasagna rolls. Top with any meat that is left. Pour an additional 1-1/2 cups sauce over lasagna rolls. Top with 1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese (or more if you feel adventurous!)
Bake in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes or until bubbly. Serve with salad and breadsticks.
Enjoy!
We made this recipe a while back at a Pampered Chef party we had at my sister-in-law's. I've been wanting to make it ever since, and just never did. It was so easy and so yummy! This week Publix had the Pillsbury Pizza Crusts and the Johnsonville Italian Sausage on sale. Everything else I had in my stockpile. This recipe makes two side-by-side calzones. I cut each one into 6 slices. One and half did me right! Pizza is something that is really good to make at home yourself. You can add the things that your family likes. And I just hate to pay for pizza. I cringe when I have to write the $20 or more check for the pizza guy. The ones from home just taste so much better! I have a really awesome pizza recipe that I came up with a while back, but we'll just have to wait for that one! Here's how you do the calzones...
**I completely forgot to add the sauce in the sausage mixture! We just dipped it instead :)
1 lb. Italian sausage
1/2 cup onion, diced
1/2 cup green pepper, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 can olives, sliced
1 8-oz. jar pizza sauce (more for dipping)
2 tubes refrigerated pizza crust (I used the thin crust)
1 8-oz. block mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Cook sausage in a medium skillet until browned, breaking up the chunks with a wooden spoon. Drain off excess fat. Return to pan and add onion, garlic and pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until the vegetables soften. Stir in pizza sauce and sliced olives.
Unroll one package of pizza dough across the entire rectangular baking sheet or baking stone (I used my large rectangular baking stone from Pampered Chef). Sprinkle half of the cheese in two rows on the dough with about 2-inches in between (remember you're making two long calzones). Top cheese with the meat mixture, dividing evenly between the two rows. Top each row with the remaining cheese.
Unroll second package of pizza dough and stretch to cover the top of the first. Press along the edges to seal. Press down the center creating the two calzones. Use a pizza cutter to cut down the center of the dough, making two separate calzones. Press the seam to seal. Lightly brush with olive oil and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Cut five two-inch slits in top of each calzone to vent.
Bake 22-25 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with extra sauce for dipping.
Enjoy!
(adapted from Pampered Chef)
I changed this up a bit from the original recipe I played with a few years ago. Publix had their Italian sausage on sale for $2.99 lb. In my original recipe I used some of the chicken sausage that you can find in some of the grocery stores. Really, either one works. If you do use the chicken sausage cut it in chunks. Tonight's version was especially good! I had to change it up to use some of the things I had on hand (it calls for cans of diced tomatoes...I used Ragu). Like Shannon at The Bargain Buggy mentioned today, you have to be adaptable and make use of your stockpile. Sure, I could have spent more tonight and got the tomatoes at the grocery store, but I knew I could play with the recipe some, and it would turn out great. Actually, my husband said it was one of my better dinners! "Yay for me," as Ella says.
1 box penne pasta (I used Ronzoni Smart Taste)
1-1.5 lbs. Italian sausage (5 links), casings removed
1 jar Ragu
1 tablespoon tomato paste (use $1/1 Muir Glen to get it for $.09)
1/2 10-oz. jar Classico Sun-dried Tomato Pesto (the kicker!)
1 cup shredded cheese (I used Mozzarella)
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese (I use Kraft)
Cook pasta according to package directions.
Heat about 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large skillet. Add sausage, with the casings removed, and saute until brown. Crumble with the back of a wooden spoon while cooking. Remove to a paper towel to drain off excess fat. Return to skillet. Add tomato paste, Ragu and pesto. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 10 minutes.
Combine pasta and sausage mixture, and spoon into a 13 X 9 baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with the cheeses. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until bubbly.
Now, I realize that the pesto is probably never on sale, but I think it makes this dish DELISH! The flavors are just so wonderful. I picked up my jar at Wal-mart before I started couponing , so I can't remember how much it was. I can't image it being more than $3.00 or so. But, if you can't bring yourself to splurge on the pesto here's the original recipe for the sauce...
Here is the original ingredients:
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
sprinkle of salt, oregano, crushed red pepper (to taste)
3 (14.5 oz.) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
Add garlic to the sausage and saute while the sausage is cooking. Drain excess fat from sausage and return to pan. Add the seasonings, tomato paste, and tomatoes. Cover and simmer on low for 15 minutes. Assemble as directed above.
I definitely think that the pesto version is better. But, the tomatoes were on sale the other week at Publix, so you may have a lot to use in your stockpile. Whichever version you do choose, be sure to leave a comment below so that others will know how it turned out for you!
Enjoy!
The first few times I made this recipe I used it with ground beef. Very quick and easy. Since Publix had their ground chicken on sale this week, I thought I would give the original recipe a try. This should fit in nicely with any "dieting" New Years Resolutions. This turned out really good. And overall, its very figure-friendly. I used whole wheat pasta and was pleasantly surprised. Even the hubby liked the change. I think its appropriate that I make this on the same day that Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs comes out on DVD!
2 slices whole-grain bread, torn into pieces
1/4 cup skim milk
1 lb. ground chicken (or ground beef)
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
shake of garlic powder
2 teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce
1 jar Spaghetti sauce
1 box Whole Wheat pasta (or Ronzoni Smart Taste)
Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Lime a rimmed baking sheet with foil and place a baking rack over it; coat rack with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
In a large bowl, combine bread pieces and milk and let stand for 5 minutes or until bread softens. Mash with a fork until a paste forms. Add chicken, Parmesan, salt, pepper, garlic powder and Worcestershire Sauce, and stir until evenly mixed. (I mixed with my hands)
With clean hands kept wet with water (the mixture is very sticky), shape mixture into 20-24 golf-ball-size meatballs. Place meatballs on prepared rack and bake at 375 degrees for 24-28 minutes.
Cook pasta according to package directions. While meatball are cooking warm sauce in a medium saucepan over low heat. When meatballs are done put them in the saucepan with the sauce and keep warm.
Place noodles in the bottom of a bowl or plate. Top with the meatball sauce and Parmesan cheese.
Enjoy!
(adapted from Family Circle)
I've got some ground chuck that I bought on sale this weekend at Publix, so I thought I'd use it with some of the Ragu and pasta noodles that I stocked up on in the last couple of weeks. This dish is also great to use with leftover spaghetti meat if you wanted to change up your leftovers the next night.
1 lb. ground beef12 oz. penne noodles (the whole 14.5 oz. box is too much)
1 jar spaghetti sauce
8 oz. can tomato sauce (or extra Ragu, etc.)
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
1 1/2 cup shredded cheese
Preheat oven to Broil.
Cook the ground beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat until brown. Drain off excess fat. Return to skillet. Pour in the spaghetti sauce and tomato sauce. Cover and simmer over low.
Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling water, cook penne noodles until al dente. Drain and return to pot. Pour the meat sauce in with the noodles. Add parmesan cheese and mix well.
Pour noodles into a baking dish. Top with the shredded cheee (add more or less to your liking). Put under broiler until bubbly and light brown on top. Watch carefully, because it browns quickly! (Note: You can also bake it slower in a 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly.)
Enjoy!
