The Solution To Too Many Tomatoes Pasta Sauce

Oh my god! I have tomatoes coming out my ears! They are taking over my house! I have been eating tomato sandwiches for days! What do I dooooooo? Why, you make spaghetti sauce!!! I just kind of invented this one but it's gooood.

About six or so medium-large tomatoes, diced
1 can tomato paste
3 garlic cloves, diced
1 medium onion, chopped
2 T olive oil
1 T sugar
1 t salt
some pepper
fresh basil snipped from your garden, to taste
pinch cloves
some oregano (remember, I don't measure things: do to taste.)
some rosemary

In a medium saucepan, heat olive oil over medium and saute the garlic and onion. Then add your diced tomatoes (don't forget to save the seeds from the heirloom tomatoes when you chop them up. They could be worth MONEY someday! At the very least, you can try to regrow them next year), the tomato paste, the sugar, salt, pepper, basil, and spices. Bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally. Taste from time to time (but don't burn your lip) and adjust any spices accordingly. I have no idea how long to simmer for. I'd say 45 minutes at the least but the longer you simmer it, the better it tastes. Sit down, relax, read your Surfer magazine or some Faulkner. When the house smells good, it's good. Serve over pasta of your choice or use in recipes like lasagna, etc. You can also put this in those freezer ziplocs and freeze for later use.

Artichoke Fettucine with Basil-Mint Pesto

My GOD, I am fancy.

8 oz fettucine, cooked and drained
1 large clove garlic
1 c fresh basil
1/2 fresh mint
1/3 c toasted pine nuts
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp epper
1/2 c olive oil
14 oz artichoke hearts, quartered
1/2 c roasted red peppers*
3/4 c grated romano

* I roast my own and it is super easy, but Rachel buys them in jars and really they are quite okay, too.

1. In a food processor (or Amy's magic bullet) combine garlic, basil, mint, pine nuts, salt, and pepper and chop finely. Add oil slowly until blended. Bam, that's pesto.
2. Add pesto to cooked pasta and toss with artichokes and peppers and cheese.

One of the recipes Rachel passed me: simple and crazy-delicious.

Spaghetti Salad

Nate's cousin makes spaghetti salad for all family events. And it is delicious. I think she uses Italian dressing or something, it's basically just like what you'd get at the deli. So this evening when Rachel wanted a side dish, I suggested spaghetti salad - but she had no Italian dressing. I pondered for a moment... and then started rummaging through the cupboards. This is what I came up with, and Steven - if you ever make it to this blog - this is what we had at lunch. Mmm. I did eyeball it, though - in fact, I didn't even really EYEBALL it, I just added stuff until it SMELLED right... heh... so use your best judgement.

Spaghetti, cooked and drained and rinsed under cold water*
Balsamic vinegar
Italian seasoning (maybe 2 tsp?)
Coarsely ground black pepper
Mayonaise (approx. 1/3 c)
Olive oil (a few tbs)
One lemon, juiced
2 tomatoes, diced
4 green onions, diced
1 green pepper, diced small
1 cucumber, cut into small chunks
1/2 jar marinated Antipasto olives, sliced
1 jar artichoke hearts, chopped
1/4 c chopped pepperocinis
Fresh grated romano cheese

* We used waaay too many noodles which diluted the flavor of the dressing, so mind that.

Basically, I just diced the veggies, mixed them in a bowl with the mayonaise, seasoning, olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, etc, and mixed it all together. I added them to the pasta and tossed it, and grated romano cheese over top. Mixed the romano in and then grated some more to dress the salad.

It was freakin' delicious.

Chicken creation

This is what I made for dinner last night. Owing to the tomatoes and the olives in it I guess it's rather puttanesca-esque, but...I don't know. I just went with what I had.

3 or so chicken breasts, diced/cubed
maybe 6 mushrooms, sliced thin
about 1/2 cup of onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 med-large tomato, diced
Fresh snipped basil (I don't know how much, probably almost 1/4 cup? I had about ten leaves), chopped
1 cup of chicken broth
1 can olives, whatever size you like (I had small ones), chopped up
That Wildtree Herbs scampi mix I keep talking about...if you don't have that, you could use some garlic powder and some parsley, or some lemon pepper seasoning perhaps.
Pasta of your choice to serve over (whole wheat=yum!)

Put some olive oil in a saute pan, heat to medium. Saute garlic, onion, mushrooms, tomato, and basil until veggies are tender. Throw in the chicken and saute until it is no longer pink. Sprinkle some of the seasoning over the chicken while it is cooking. When chicken is no longer pink, add the broth as well as the chopped olives. Meanwhile start your pasta water. Bring the chicken mixture to a boil and then simmer on low until pasta is done. After pasta is drained add a bit of olive oil/butter/margarine and mix in a little seasoning. Serve chicken mixture over pasta.

Fettucine Alfredo

One of the few things everyone, including Rayna, will eat in this godforsaken house. In fact, it is what I made for lunch. I am fairly sure that the sun dried tomatoes are not a part of authentic fettucine alfredo, but they make a lovely tangy addition.

Fettucine noodles*

3 tbs butter
3 tbs flour
3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
1 c half-and-half
1/3 c grated parmesan
2 tbs parsley, snipped
1 tbs fresh basil, chopped
1 c sliced white mushrooms
2 green onions, sliced
1 cup broccoli florets, cut into pieces
1 pkg sun-dried tomatoes

*Uh, we have a huge family, full of boys, so we tend to eat a whole BOX at a time. Adjust accordingly.

1. Melt butter in large skillet. Add garlic and green onion and sautee until softened.
2. Stir in flour, cheese, and half-and-half, heat stirring until bubbly and smooth.
3. Add herbs, mushrooms, broccoli, tomatoes and cook stirring occasionally until vegetables are soft and cooked.
4. Serve over pasta. Top with additional grated parm if desired.

Stuffed shells

Growing up I loved stuffed shells when Mama made them. I got my own recipe from the back of a Barilla pasta box but made a few modifications.

1 box (12 oz.) large shells
1 jar of pasta sauce of your choice; I find tomato/basil or marinara is the best.
2 eggs
2 15-oz containers of Ricotta cheese (If you live in RI or New England and can get Supremo brand cheese, yay! If not, others will work.)
4 C shredded mozzarella, divided
1 1/2 C grated parmesan cheese, divided
special seasoning*

*When I started making my own stuffed shells, I added some "scampi mix" spice from Wildtree Herbs (you buy them at a party, not unlike a tupperware party) to the ricotta mixture. Everyone LOVED my shells. I've since run out of the stuff, but info about it can be found here. I've recently emailed the company about getting more scampi mix, but if you are unable to get it, you could add in probably some lemon pepper blend as well as some garlic powder and some parsley. Nothing can ever replicate the scampi mix but it comes close.

Preheat oven to 350. Cook shells according to package directions. Spray the bottom of a 15 X 10 X 2 glass baking dish with Pam or the like. Spread 2 C of the sauce in the bottom of the dish. Beat eggs in a large bowl. Stir in ricotta, 2 C of the mozz, 1 C of the parm and the special seasoning. (My seasoning was added to taste...probably about 1 or 1 1/2 T.) Fill each cooked shell w/ricotta mixture. Put the shells in the baking dish. Top with remaining sauce, mozz, and parm. Bake covered with foil until bubbly, about an hour. Uncover and continue cooking until cheese is melted, about 5 mins. Let stand 5 mins before serving.

Spicy rice balls over pasta

2 cups cooked rice (I use brown but you can use white)
1/2 C quick cooking oats (don't use instant oatmeal)
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
1/4 C dry bread crumbs
1/4 C milk
1 T chopped fresh or 1 t dry basil
2 t chopped fresh or 1/2 t dried oregano
1/4 t ground red/cayenne pepper
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 C wheat germ
1 T veg. oil
2 C spaghetti sauce

Mix rice, oats, onion, bread crumbs, milk, basil, oregano, red pepper and egg. Shape mixture into 12 balls, roll in wheat germ. Heat oil in 10-in skillet on medium. Cook balls in oil about 10 mins, turning occasionally, until golden brown.

Heat spaghetti sauce, serve over pasta of your choice. Sprinkle parm. cheese over if desired.

Carlos loves these and doesn't believe there's no meat in them, ha!

Gnocchi n' cheese

I kind of just invented this recipe so there are no amounts of anything. I am not a big measurer either...I just do everything to taste

1 package of gnocchi, cooked to directions*
grape tomatoes, sliced in half
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
Crumbled cheese of your choice i.e. feta, goat cheese, blue cheese, etc.
A touch of shredded cheese, if desired
Milk and butter/margarine if necessary
Basil, oregano, salt, and pepper to taste. Fresh herbs are the best but dried is fine too!

*Or you could make them yourself! I've found several gnocchi recipes online. They seem to be quite easy to make, easier even than the other pastas I've done.

Cook gnocchi to package directions (basically, when they float, they're done!) Drain gnocchi and return to pan. Immediately mix in desired amount of crumbled cheese; the heat will cause the cheese to melt. If you desire a creamier consistency to your gnocchi n' cheese you may add some shredded cheese i.e. mozzarella, or put in a bit of butter/margarine or milk. Just keep going until it is the consistency you like. Then stir in garlic, tomato, and spices. This is SO good when it is all warm and gooey.

I will also sometimes add chicken to this dish, it's a good use for a leftover whole chicken.

Marinara sauce

(Or, as we call it in RI, gravy!)

2 28-0z cans San Marzano Itialian whole peeled tomatoes*
1/4 C 100% olive oil
2 large cloves garlic, peeled, sliced
1 medium white onion, chopped
1 T sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
Fresh basil

*I've used other brands and it came out fine! This recipe is from a restaurant around here and I assume that is what brand they consistently use.

In heavy saucepan, saute garlic and onion in olive oil until lightly browned. Crush tomatoes with your hand and add to browned garlic-onion mixture. Add salt and pepper to your taste and then add sugar. Cook for 15-20 mins on med-hi heat, covered and stirring occasionally. Then reduce heat to low and let sauce simmer until you achieve the consistency of your liking. Sauce should cook for no more than 30 mins. Top your favorite cooked pasta with this sauce. Add a bit of fresh basil for flavor and presentation. Serves 4.

I've tried making gravy from whole fresh peeled tomatoes before and never succeeded very well. This recipe is really easy and I love the sauce. It also freezes well in ziploc freezer bags for later use.