Beef and Cheese Manicotti

Beef and Cheese Manicotti

This recipe was great. It comes from a recipe by Giada de Laurentis on FoodNetwork.com. I find myself getting most of my online recipes from Food Network. There are many great recipe sites, but this is just the site I am comfortable with. 

4 t Olive Oil

1 medium Onion, coarsely chopped

1 lb Ground Beef

Salt and freshly ground Black Pepper

14 (8oz package) Manicotti

1 (15 oz) container Whole-Milk Ricotta

3 cups shredded Mozzarella

1 cup grated Parmesan

2 T chopped fresh Italian Parsley Leaves

2 Garlic Cloves, minced

3 cups Marinara Sauce

2 T Butter, cut into pieces

Heat a heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1 t of the olive oil, onion, and ground beef. Season with salt and pepper. Saute until the meat browns and the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, and cool.

Brush 1 t of oil over a large baking sheet. Cook the manicotti in a large pot of boiling salted water until slightly softened, but still very firm to the bite, about 4 to 6 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to the manicotti from the pot to the oiled baking sheet and cool. 

Meanwhile, combine the ricotta, 1 1/2 to 2 cups mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup Parmesan, and parsley. Add the garlic, salt, and pepper to taste, and mix. Stir the cooled meat mixture into the cheese mixture.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Brush the remaining 2 t oil over a 13 by 9 2-in glass baking dish. Spoon 1 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce over the bottom of the prepared dish. Fill the manicotti with the cheese-meat mixture. Arrange the stuffed pasta in a single layer int he prepared baking dish and spoon the remaining sauce over.

Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese, then the remaining 1/2 cup of Parmesan over the stuffed pasta. Dot entire dish with the butter pieces. Bake the manicotti uncovered until heated through and the sauce bubbles on the sides of the dish, about 30 to 35 minutes. Let the manicotti stand 5 minutes and serve.

Fresh Mozzarella, Prosciutto, Arugula Pizzettas

FRESH MOZZARELLA, PROSCIUTTO, AND ARUGULA PIZZETTAS

With grilling seasoning nearing its end, I decided to back away from my traditional pepperoni and cheese grilled pizzas. Lettuce on a pizza may not sound extremely appealing, but  arugula adds a peppery flavor, a fresh taste, and crunchy texture to a pizza. Any topping can be used, but if you want a unique pizza for a special dinner, this is a great option.

Fresh Mozzarella, Prosciutto, and Arugula Pizzettas

Rhodes frozen roll dough balls, thawed

Olive oil

Tomato-based sauce (we use Traditional Sweet Basil from Classico, but any pizza or pasta sauce should work)

Mozzarella, sliced thin or shredded

Fresh Basil, chopped, optional

Tomato, sliced thin

Prosciutto 

Arugula 

Directions: 

1. Preheat grill, then lower to medium heat. Preheat oven to 450 F.

2. Thaw rhodes rolls according to directions (or any homemade or store-bought pizza dough). Stretch and flatten each dough ball to approximately 4-5 inches diameter. 

3. Lightly coat both sides of the dough with olive oil to add flavor and keep the dough from sticking to the grill. 

4. Place flattened dough onto grill. Check every minute to see if the dough if the down-facing side is cooked well enough. Then, turn and grill the other side.

5. Pull cooked pizza rounds off the grill and place on an oven-proof baking sheet.

6. Place toppings on the pizza, except arugula. We did it in this order: sauce (small amount), tomato slice, mozzarella, fresh basil, prosciutto.

7. Bake in the oven until the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes (baking times may vary).

8. Serve immediately with a small handful of arugula on top.

Tortilla Bowl Taco Salad

So, this is the first real meal I've cooked in a long time. AKA not pasta, pizza, or grilled cheese.

My mother-in-law gave us these pans a couple months ago and I honestly thought they were the actual taco bowls, not pans to bake taco bowls in. I figured out the truth when I was cleaning my pantry this past weekend and took a closer look. 

First, I thawed and trimmed a frozen boneless skinless chicken breast.

I am pretty picky with my chicken (along with most of the Schows), so I ended up cutting it into little chunks for quicker cooking and to clear all veins and fat.

I greased the pan with spritzes of olive oil and seasoned the chicken with Johnny's seasoning. 

You can use butter or oil to keep the meat from sticking to the pan and you can use whatever seasoning you prefer.

While the chicken cooked, I diced a small tomato and 1/4 of a white onion.

I cooked the onion in a small pan with olive oil. Craig and I aren't big raw onion fans, so I generally cook them.

I used raw tortillas, so they needed to be slightly cooked in a pan before I placed them into the shaped pans. I cooked the tortillas in the oven at 400 F for 7 minutes so they would hold their shape.

For the whole assembly: tortilla bowl, iceberg lettuce, chicken, tomatoes, cooked onions, sour cream, and salsa.

I ended up throwing some ranch dressing on top for a little extra flavor and moisture. Then I dipped the extra tortilla in the salsa and sour cream.
Overall I was very happy with the tastes and textures. One thing to put it over the top is to sprinkle the tortilla with shredded cheese before baking it.

Tortilla-Bowl Taco Salad

Serves: 4

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 10 minutes

1 Chicken Breast, cut into 1" chunks

1 T Olive or Canola Oil

1/4 White Onion, diced

1 Tomato, diced

1 Head Iceberg, sliced

4 Tortillas

Seasoning for Chicken (taco seasoning, Johnny's, salt & pepper)

Salad Dressing, optional 

Sour Cream, optional

Salsa, optional

Shredded cheese, optional

1. Trim chicken and cut into bite-sized pieces. Cook in a pan with oil and seasoning.

2. Dice onion. Cook in pan with a little oil.

3. Dice tomato and slice lettuce. Place in fridge to keep cool until all ingredients are assembled.

4. Warm tortillas. If you have tortilla bowl pans, follow instructions.

5. Place tortilla in a bowl and top with lettuce, tomato, onion, and cheese (optional).

6. Serve with dressing, sour cream, and/or salsa. 

Do any of you have different ingredients you like to add into taco salad??