Broccoli Pesto

I made this broccoli pesto last night and tossed it over orzo and steamed broccoli florets, then topped it with avocado slices, pine nuts and freshly grated Parmesan. It was soo yummy! The recipe came from a new cookbook I picked up at Anthropologie. It's called super natural every day by Heidi Swanson. There are lots of great healthy recipes in it, and I can't wait to try out more of them. This broccoli pesto is really simple to make and easy to toss over your favorite pasta.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of broccoli, blanched
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 2/3 cup pine nuts, toasted
• 1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup whole milk
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt

Combine all of the ingredients in a food processor, except the olive oil and milk. Once all the ingredients are in the food processor stream in the olive oil and milk while pulsing the other ingredients until smooth. The original recipe called for creme fraiche, however I did not have any so I just used whole milk. It came out great!

Lasagna Cupcakes

I came across this recipe on Pinterest via The Girl Who Ate Everything. This recipe is super easy to follow, I adjusted it slightly to make more of them. These little lasagnas would be great as an appetizer at a party or an easy dinner to prep at home to take to someone for a meal. You can find the recipe here to make 6 cupcakes or follow along below; I made 18 standard sized lasagna cupcakes.You could also alter the recipe to make your favorite kind of lasagna.

Ingredients:

• 16 oz jar of marinara sauce or 2 cups of homemade marinara sauce.
• 1 lb of ground beef or turkey
• 36 wonton wrappers (find in the produce section of the grocery store, in the refrigerated section)
• 8-12 oz shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 1/4 cups freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• Basil, for garnish (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease your muffin tins.

2. Brown your ground beef or turkey over medium high heat until browned. Add Salt and Pepper.

3. Cut wonton wrappers with a drinking glass or round cookie cutter.

4. Start layering your lasagna cupcakes. First place a wonton wrapper into the bottom of each muffin tin. Sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese, Ricotta cheese, and mozzarella cheese on top. Then top with some meat and marinara sauce. You can add the ingredients to your taste. I added about 1-2 teaspoons of the cheeses and about 1-2 tablespoons of the meat and sauce for each layer.

5. Repeat step 4 and once you end with the marinara sauce you will add more Parmesan and mozzarella cheese on top of each cupcake.

6. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the edges are golden brown.

7. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes before removing from the muffin tins. Run a knife along the edges to loosen.

8. Garnish with basil and serve.

Greek Pesto Fettuccine with Toasted Pine Nuts and Feta Cheese

• 16 oz fettuccine
• 1 cup of Pesto (recipe link below; or you can use a store bought pesto)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 zucchini, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1/2 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1/2 orange bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 bundle of aparagus, tops cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 can artichoke hearts, quartered
• 1 cup of grape tomatoes, halved
• 1/3 cup kalamata olives, halved
• 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
• 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Bring a large pot of water to boil and add the fettuccine, cook until tender. Drain the pasta and toss with the pesto.  Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large saute pan and add the first 5 vegetables. Saute until tender. Add the tomatoes and olives, stirring to heat through. Toss the vegetable mixture with the pesto fettuccine and then top with the toasted pine nuts and feta cheese. Serve warm. 

Pesto recipe by Ina Garten

Casey and I had this pasta dish at a restaurant in La Jolla, and I decided to recreate it at home. It is a really easy recipe to make and can serve 6 to 8 people. You could even toss chicken into the pasta as well.

Pasta with Zucchini and Toasted Almonds

Ingredients:

• 2  cups  cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2  tablespoons  minced shallots
• 1  teaspoon  minced fresh thyme
• 2  teaspoons  fresh lemon juice
• 3/4  teaspoon  kosher salt
• 1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4  teaspoon  sugar
• 5  teaspoons  extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1  (9-ounce) package refrigerated linguine
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  bottled minced garlic
• 3  cups  chopped zucchini (about 1 pound)
• 3/4  cup  fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 3  tablespoons  chopped fresh mint, divided
• 1/3  cup  (1 1/2 ounces) grated fresh pecorino Romano cheese
• 3  tablespoons  sliced almonds, toasted

Directions:

1. Combine first 7 ingredients in a medium bowl. Add 2 teaspoons oil, tossing to coat.
2. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain well.
3. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to pan, swirling to coat. Add garlic to pan; sauté 30 seconds. Add zucchini; sauté 3 minutes or until crisp-tender. Add broth; bring to a simmer. Stir in pasta and 1 1/2 tablespoons mint; toss well. Remove from heat; stir in tomato mixture. Place 1 1/2 cups pasta mixture in each of 4 bowls; top evenly with remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons mint. Sprinkle each serving with 4 teaspoons cheese and 2 teaspoons almonds.
Olive tapenade breadsticks: Combine 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic, 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, and 15 finely chopped pitted kalamata olives in a small bowl. Spread olive mixture over 1 (11-ounce) can refrigerated breadsticks dough. Twist each breadstick; bake at 375° for 15 minutes or until browned.

Nutritional Information:

Calories: 344

Fat: 12.7g (sat 3.1g,mono 6.6g,poly 2g)

Protein: 14g

Carbohydrate: 45.5g

Fiber: 5.3g

Cholesterol: 58mg

Iron: 3.4mg

Sodium: 601mg

Calcium: 163mg

 

Recipe from Cooking Light

Penne Caprese

This recipe is a really easy one to mix up last minute and tastes great. It can be served warm or once it has cooled.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. penne pasta
• 1 large can (28 oz.) diced tomatoes
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1/3 cup fresh chopped basil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan
• 8 oz. fresh mozzarella (cut in 1/2" pieces)

Cook Pasta as directed. Drain tomatoes. Mix next 5 ingredients in a measuring cup. Drain pasta. In a large bowl toss pasta with tomatoes and dressing. Add cheeses and toss again.