Cheesy Baked Ravioli Skillet

Cheese ravioli swimming in an easy Tuscan beef sauce and smothered in 2 different kinds of cheese, brings a Taste of Italy to the dinner table in under 30 minutes! This Cheesy Baked Ravioli in a Skillet is a deliciously easy recipe the whole family will love!

Grilled Steak with Arugula Salad

I made this delicious Grilled Steak with Arugula Salad, photographed it, edited the photos, and I still had time to sit down and enjoy a leisurely lunch all while vacuuming my floors at the same time!! No, I don't have a twin, a clone, or 10 arms either! Wanna know my secret??

Roasted Parmesan Garlic Cauliflower

Roasted Parmesan Garlic Cauliflower are tasty little bites chock full of good-for-you-stuff and delicious fresh out of the oven or even as a cold snack. They are very garlicky, so keep that in mind if you have a hot date...

Chicken Parmigiana

Chicken Parmigiana is a Southern Italian dish consisting of breaded chicken smothered in tomato sauce and cheese. It is delicious, of course, but it kind of gets a bad rap from busy cooks who feel it is too messy and time consuming to make.  It can definitely be messy and time consuming - no argument there, but with a little organization it is quite easy and well worth a little extra effort.

I like to make my own bread crumbs for this dish. You can add any kind of herb you want and it really takes the dish to a new level.  Of course, if you don't have that kind of time you can always use store bought Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs. In addition to homemade bread crumbs, I also like to use my Red Sauce recipe. Typically, I will make the red sauce to use with spaghetti and meatballs and save the leftovers for Chicken Parm. The sauce freezes well too, so it's nice to set 3-4 cups aside for when you want to make this. Once again, you can use your favorite jarred sauce for this to save time.

Homemade Dried Bread Crumbs - Ingredients

3-4 slices Italian Bread

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 - 2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning

Olive Oil

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Start with 3-4 slices of day old Italian Bread. I leave the crusts on, but you can cut them off if you prefer. I used this to coat 3 large chicken breasts. If you are making more, be sure to use more bread slices accordingly

Cut it into strips...

Place bread strips into a food processor or a blender...

and blend until finely chopped. Remove from blender and spread onto a baking sheet in a single layer

Season with 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and 1 - 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning and then drizzle with olive oil. I like to drizzle in a zig zag fashion from one end of the tray to the other. Then use a spoon to mix it well. Be sure to coat all the bread crumbs with seasoning and oil and spread them out into a single layer again.  Bake in a preheated 300 degree F. oven for about 20 mins.

While the bread crumbs are baking, you can start to assemble what you need for coating the chicken. I like to assemble all my ingredients and make an assembly line to coat the chicken and then put it right into the prepared baking dish.

Chicken Parmigiana Ingredients

2 lbs chicken breasts

1/3 cup all purpose flour

2 eggs, lightly beaten

Homemade Bread Crumbs or 

1 1/2 cups store bought Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs

3-4 slices Mozzarella Cheese

3-4 cups Red Sauce

or your favorite jarred marinara sauce

Prepare your chicken by laying it on a cutting board with the bottom side up...

Using your hands, open the breast up where both sides come together, so it lays more flat...

sorry for the blurry photos - my old eyes fail me sometimes ;)

Continue to spread it apart until it is all the way open, and looks like a heart shape... sort of

Now turn the chicken over, so the top side is up, and flatten the largest side with the palm of your hand. You don't want to mutilate it, just flatten it so it will cook evenly. Do this for each piece of chicken you are breading.

Set up your assembly line like so....

Measure out 1/3 cup flour into one dish (paper plates work well for this too and make for an easier clean-up), 2 eggs slightly beaten into the next dish, and your home made bread crumbs into the last dish (or 1.5 cups store bought bread crumbs). Spray your baking tray with cooking spray and put that next to the bread crumbs. I've found that this helps to keep things clean and makes quick work of breading the chicken.

Working with one piece of chicken at a time, dip it into the flour, being sure to coat both sides well...

The flour helps the egg stick to the chicken. Then dip that same piece of chicken into the egg. Again, coat both sides well...

Finish by dipping that same piece of chicken into the bread crumbs, coating both sides well. I like to press down on the crumbs to ensure they get a good stick.  Then place that piece of chicken into the baking dish and repeat with remaining chicken pieces until all are coated and ready to go in the oven. I use a 13x9" baking dish. Be sure to discard any unused flour, egg, and bread crumbs.

You can make this ahead of time up to this point and freeze the chicken for later use.  Sometimes I like to double the recipe and put some in the freezer for the next time, but I prefer to eat it fresh for the best flavor and texture.

If I am making this to freeze, I put the chicken on a parchment lined baking sheet and then put in the freezer for about an hour or two. Then I remove from the freezer and put in a Ziploc freezer bag to store and save space in my freezer. This will keep in your freezer for a couple months and you can bake as normal when ready to use.

When ready to bake, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Place baking dish in oven and bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes.  Next, pour sauce over chicken evenly and continue baking for 10 minutes more or until an instant-read thermometer reads 160 degrees F. when inserted into thickest part of chicken. Place a slice of cheese on top of each piece of chicken and bake until melted. Serve with a salad or some spaghetti noodles and enjoy!

This recipe is inspired by allrecipes.com Chicken Parmigiana

Roasted Sundried Tomato Sausage & Vegetables over Parmesan Orzo

I have been volunteering with allrecipes.com for over a year now as an Allstar Brand Ambassador. As an Allstar I am tasked with activities each month. Sometimes the Allstars are asked to work with certain brands, as was the case this month, we were asked to work with al Fresco All Natural Chicken Sausage. I am not compensated for doing this, but I did receive a coupon for free sausage. With coupon in hand, I headed to the grocery to get inspired! We don't have a lot of choices around here for the al Fresco brand, but right away the Sundried Tomato Sausage caught my eye! It sounded delish, and you know what...it is delish! We really enjoyed it. I'm not a huge sausage eater, but this stuff was yummy and easy! A good combo!!

Because it is "all natural" chicken sausage, I wanted to keep my dish somewhat on the healthy side. I picked up some summer veges and some orzo pasta and got to work. The name of my original recipe is

Roasted Sundried Tomato Sausage & Vegetables over Parmesan Orzo

  

  It's a mouthful for sure, but I figure if I am going to create my own original recipe then I'm going to give it a NAME! A good strong and long name! HA! I think I accomplished that heehee  Don't let the name fool you though - it is much easier to make than it is to say <smile>

Ingredients

1 package fully cooked al Fresco Sundried Tomato Chicken Sausage, sliced

1 zucchini, sliced

• 1 summer squash, sliced
• 1 red onion, cut into chunks
• 1 pound portobello mushrooms, sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pinch white sugar
• salt and black pepper to taste
• 1 teaspoon chicken base
• 1/2 cup Sake or dry white wine (I really like the Sake flavor in this dish)
• 1 1/4 cups water
• 8 ounces orzo pasta
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. While the oven is pre-heating, slice all your veges and mince your garlic. Place zucchini, squash, onions, mushrooms and sausage on a foil lined baking sheet. Top with garlic, olive oil, and sugar and toss gently to coat sausage and veges. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and make sure contents are in a single layer on baking sheet. Roast until veges are tender - about 20-25 mins.

While the veges are roasting, melt butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Stir in orzo and saute until lightly browned. Mix the water, chicken base, and wine and slowly add to the orzo; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until orzo is tender and liquid is absorbed - about 15-20 mins.. Mix in roasted veges and Parmesan cheese.  Be sure to taste and adjust seasonings as needed. ENJOY!

If you love roasted vegetables you need to head on over to see Shelby at Grumpy's Honey Bunch for her Roasted Garlic Artichoke recipe!!

Mushroom and Spinach Ravioli with Chive Butter Sauce

This was my first time ever making pasta from scratch! As a result, I see a pasta roller in my future (hint hint to the hubs - and, BONUS, I have lots of those 20% off coupons too!)

These little raviolis were so good, but they were sooooo labor intensive! Rolling out pasta dough is a workout! I think I worked off enough calories to eat two servings!! Which is a good thing, because I'm pretty sure I ate at least 2 servings!

It's so cute!

 The Chive Butter Sauce was good, but these little guys can stand alone.  The one thing I wouldn't do is put a red sauce on them. I think that would take away from the delicious flavors combined in the filling.

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons water (or more as needed)
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups all-purpose flour (or more as needed)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 chopped onion
• 1 (8 ounce) package fresh mushrooms, chopped
• 4 ounces cream cheese softened
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1/2 cup Mozzarella Cheese
• 1/2 cup frozen spinach, thawed and drained
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 egg white beaten
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh chives

Directions

1. Whisk together 1 teaspoon olive oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons water, and 2 eggs until combined; set aside. In a separate large bowl, combine flour and salt and make a well in the center. Pour the egg mixture into the well and stir until just combined. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, adding more flour or water as needed. This should take about 5-10 minutes. Wrap dough tightly with plastic rest and set aside.
2. Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add 1/2 cup chopped onion and 1 clove minced garlic and stir until onion softens. Add 8 ounces of fresh chopped mushrooms and continue cooking and stirring until the veggies are soft and the liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
3. Beat 4 ounces of cream cheese in a bowl until smooth, stir in the cooled veggie mixture, 1/3 cup Parmesan Cheese, 1/2 cup Mozzarella Cheese, 1/2 cup spinach, 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives, 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon of ground cayenne pepper. Mix to combine and season with salt and pepper to taste.\
4. Roll the pasta dough out very thin, about 1/16". Using a large 3-4" cookie cutter or tart cutter cut circles out of the dough. Roll each circle out as thin as possible. Working with one circle at a time, brush the pasta lightly with the beaten egg white and top with 1 heaping tablespoon full of the filling right onto the center of the pasta. Top with another piece of pasta and pinch edges to seal. Use your cookie cutter or tart mold to cut the pasta once more to form a uniform shape. Reserve the finished ravioli on a floured baking sheet and repeat with the remaining pasta and filling.
5. Fill a large pot about 2/3 full with water and bring to a boil. Salt the water using about 1/2 to 1 tablespoon of sea salt. Once the water is boiling, stir in the ravioli and return to a boil. Cook about 3-4 minutes or until the pasta floats to the top. Drain.
6. Begin making the sauce while you are waiting for the water to boil, but keep and eye on it! Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a skillet over mid-high heat, cooking and stirring until browned (about 5-7 minutes). Stir in 1 1/2 teaspoons chives and serve over hot ravioli. Enjoy!

recipe source: allrecipes.com Mushroom & Spinach Ravioli with Chive Butter Sauce

Roasted Vegetable Orzo

Allrecipes.com Roasted Vegetable Orzo

With a dish like this there is hope for me being a vegetarian someday!  This was so yummy! I made some changes to the recipe mainly because asparagus was $5.99/lb, and I just could NOT bring myself to pay that. As much as I LOVE asparagus, I really felt this dish would still be great without it...definitely more cost effective for sure!

I served this with Roasted Chicken Breasts and it made for a great pairing! Honestly, I think this would go nicely with just about anything or even on its own!  Here is how I made this dish:

Ingredients

• 1 zucchini, sliced
• 1 summer squash, sliced
• 1 red onion, cut into chunks
• 1 pound portobello mushrooms, sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pinch white sugar
• salt and black pepper to taste
• 1 teaspoon chicken base
• 1/2 cup Sake or dry white wine
• 1 1/4 cups water
• 8 ounces orzo pasta
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

Place the zucchini, squash, onion, and mushrooms on a foil lined baking sheet; add in garlic, olive oil and sugar, and stir gently to coat vegetables. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Roast vegetables until tender, 20 to 25 minutes  

Meanwhile, melt butter in heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in orzo and saute until lightly browned.

Mix the water, chicken base, and wine and slowly add to the orzo; bring to boil. Cover. Reduce heat and simmer until orzo is tender and liquid is absorbed, about 15 - 20 minutes.

Mix in roasted vegetables and Parmesan cheese. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve warm. 

Be sure you taste this before adding salt. The Parmesan cheese will add salt and the veges have already been salted, so give it a taste to make sure you need to add more.

I really liked the Sake added to this dish - it really gave it a nice flavor, however, you can change up the liquid to suit your tastes. As long as you add 1 3/4 cups liquid in the end it can be the liquid of your choosing.  If you don't think the wine is going to be to your liking try reducing it to 1/4 cup and add 1 1/2 cups water (with the chicken base). If you prefer to use chicken stock instead of water and base - that is fine too. You can even try a vegetable base with water or vegetable stock.  Make it your own and enjoy! 

Another yummy al fresco All Natural Sausage recipe.  As with all the other recipes we have tried, this one is easy and economical.  I used a red wine I had on hand, and spent under $10 for the remaining ingredients.

I added sliced mushrooms to the recipe because I love them <<smile>>

Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage with Tomato Cream Sauce Over Linguine

By Life Tastes Good
Published 04/24/2012

Ingredients

• 1 (12 ounce) package al fresco All Natural Pre-Cooked Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage, sliced
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 1 tablespoon freshly minced garlic
• 3/4 cup dry red wine
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes with Italian herbs, with juices
• 1 teaspoon fresh oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper (or to taste)
• 1/2 cup light cream
• 1/2 pound uncooked linguine
• 2 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese
• Fresh oregano leaves for garnish (optional)

Instructions

1. Begin cooking linguine in boiling salted water according to package directions. Cook until al dente. Drain.
2. While linguine is cooking, heat 2 teaspoons olive oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add 1 cup chopped onions and 1 cup sliced mushrooms. Saute for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 1 tablespoon minced garlic and cook, just until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add 3/4 cup dry red wine, 1 can diced tomatoes, sliced sausage, 1 teaspoon fresh oregano and 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper. Boil until reduced a bit. I recommend doing this to taste. When it tastes right to you then you can reduce the heat and add 1/2 cup cream and cook for one minute.
3. Portion cooked linguine onto 4 warm plates or pasta bowls. Spoon sausage/sauce over pasta. Sprinkle each with Parmesan and garnish with fresh oregano if desired.

Yield: 4 Servings
Prep Time: 15 mins.

Cook time: 15 mins.
Total time: 30 mins.

Tags: Italian, Sausage, Chicken, Cream Sauce, Tomato, Pasta, allrecipes.com, al fresco chicken sausage

recipe inspired by allrecipes.com Grilled Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage with Tomato Cream Sauce over Linguini