Beefy Mac and Cheese

 

 

"If we did all the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves."

 

-Thomas Alva Edison 

 

 

 

This is my husbands kind of food. He eats about 5 different meals over and over again. Sure I tried cooking different varieties of things for him over the years but a long time ago I stopped trying. It was like fighting against the tide.

 

There is a quote that I am reminded of about this, which is:

 

"What is patriotism but the love of the food one ate as a child?" Lin Yutang

 

 

You see all of these meals are nostalgic to him, they make him feel comfortable, like home. So I can respect that. Now I'm accustomed to it. Usually I cook food for him, and something different for myself since we have different tastes. However, I feel completely the opposite. My sister Melanie as well. I've heard her say, "I'll never eat another lunch meat sandwich again for the rest of my life." Since we ate so many of them in our lunches as kids. But my husband? He grew up eating ready made sandwiches out of the fridge, and he still loves them. So we're all different, I guess.

I add a layer of cheese in the middle so it's nice and cheesy

When I saw this recipe from Michael Rhulman on pinterest, (from his blog back in 2010) I was like, "heck yeah!" Now that's a recipe my husband could add to his repertoire. It has all the essential elements, beef and noodles. Many of his favorite meals consist of those elements in different forms, such as spaghetti with meat sauce, homemade macaroni and cheese with ground beef and beef noodles, a version of beef strogonoff with no sour cream, he hates sour cream.

Ready for the oven

I told him, "I have a new meal that you'll like, beefy mac." He said, "I love beefy mac! I'm hungry, can you make it now?"

I did and he loved it.

Thank you Michael Rhulman for posting a simple, heartwarming, easy and well liked recipe. My husband thanks you too.

 

Beefy Mac and Cheese

 

adapted from Michael Rhulman's Macaroni and Beef
 

This makes a lot. Feel free to halve it. It also freezes well. 2 pounds of beef to one pound of macaroni may be a lot for you, it's pretty beefy, (but just right for us) feel free to only use 1 pound. This fills my deep dish 9x13 dish to the top. If you don't have a deep 9x13 pan you may need to use a second pan. I reheated some later in individual ramekins as seen in the above picture, so cooking some up individually is another option.

Ingredients

 

1 large onion, diced

1 tablespoon oil

salt to taste

optional seasonings: black pepper, oregano, cumin, coriander, chopped garlic, hot smoked paprika, chili powder—whatever you’re in the mood for (I just used black pepper and a tsp. of granulated garlic.)

2 - 15 oz cans (850 g. total) diced tomatoes

1 - 15 oz can (425 g.) tomato sauce

2 pounds (907 g.) lean ground beef

1 box (1 lb.) (454 g.) elbow macaroni

4 cups (1 lb.) (454 g.) grated sharp cheddar cheese or you can use a mixture of different cheeses

 

 

Directions

 

Heat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit, 200 degrees Celsius, Gas Mark 6.

 

Cook the macaroni a few minutes less than the package directions; drain and place back in the pan, add the diced tomatoes and the tomato sauce to let the pasta absorb the tomatoes.

 

Heat the oil in a large skillet; add the onion and and saute until soft. Add the ground beef and saute until browned. Add plenty of salt to taste, and pepper and spices if using.

 

Add the ground beef mixture to the macaroni mixture and stir. In a greased deep dish 9x13 inch casserole dish, add about half of the macaroni. Add a layer of cheese, about half, (2 cups.) Add the rest of the macaroni and top with the rest of the cheese. Cover with foil and bake for about 30 minutes. Remove the foil and broil the top for another few minutes so it gets nice and bubbly, brown and melted. Let sit about 10 minutes before serving.

 

Tortellini Salad

 

"The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift."

 

~ Albert Einstein

 

O.K. so it's August 25th. August to me means summer. We have one whole week left of it. Everywhere around me I see pumpkins, and apple pies and Halloween. But hey, it's not really fall yet. I want to say, "take it easy, fall will come soon enough." I'm working on being present, so here now in the moment, it's summer and I want to enjoy it till I can't anymore.

 

I purchased this fresh cheese tortellini at Trader Joe's for about the same price as dried. I liked it.

So, you know, since it is summer, I bring you a great summer salad. Easy to make and full of awesome stuff most people love.

I bought my salami at Trader Joe's too, then cut it in chunks.

I used salami but you can easily leave it out if you have any vegetarians. This salad also has fresh spinach cut into slivers so it sort of disappears when it's tossed with the other ingredients and the dressing. The fresh basil and tomatoes add a burst of freshness.

It's so easy to make too! Just throw it all together. The most difficult thing to do is cook the tortellini and chop a little veg.

May you enjoy these last days of summer, whatever you do. Weather it's eating a cold salad, or enjoying a warm pumpkin pie.

Tortellini Salad


This is an original recipe by me, Melissa, The Alchemist


Ingredients

2 -  9 or 10 oz packages of fresh or dried cheese tortellini - Cooked according to package directions, rinsed and cooled slightly.

A bunch of fresh spinach - about a bag of it. I used some from Paradise Organics fresh picked from the farm, so I didn't measure it.

2/3 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese - or a little more to taste -sorry I didn't weigh this! About a handful.

A dry pint (2 cups) (170 g.) of cherry tomatoes - washed and halved

2 - 2 oz. (a total of 117 g.) cans sliced black olives, drained

8 oz. (227 g.) salami or pepperoni, diced in bite sized chunks

Fresh basil - washed and cut into slivers - to taste, about a small handful of leaves

Italian Salad Dressing to taste - Use something good. I used Paul Newman's Olive oil and Vinegar dressing since it's my husbands favorite - about a cup, maybe a little more, I didn't measure.

Optional -artichoke hearts would not be amiss here, but sadly, I was about to add some, from a can, I opened them and wow, they had no taste at all, so I didn't add them. Next time I might add the type that are marinated in a jar.


Directions

Wash and dry the spinach and cut it into about 1 or 2 inch slices. Add the cooked tortellini to a large bowl and all the rest of the ingredients except the salad dressing. Start with a smaller amount of spinach if you think you may have a lot. Toss it all together. Add salad dressing to coat lightly. Taste it and add salt and pepper to taste. Add more spinach if you think it needs it. If you are going to put it in the fridge for later, I'd do it now with a light coat of dressing so the flavors can marry. If you are going to eat it now, go ahead and more dressing if you think it needs it.

Peanut Sesame Noodles

"The question isn't who is going to let me; it's who is going to stop me."

-Ayn Rand

These noodles are one of my favorite things to put in my mouth. I love it for dinner. It's easy and flexible.You can use any vegetables you like, more than the recipe calls for if you want to pack those veggies into your diet, or I've even made it with no vegetables. Just noodles with peanut sauce, oh yeah. Hot or cold, still hearty, filling, satisfying and really tasty.  It's Vegan too!

mise en place

 A cinch this recipe is. A perfect weeknight dinner. To complete this dish it takes only as long as it does to cook pasta.

everything cooking together makes putting this together a snap

Peanut Sesame Noodles


Ingredients

Serves 4

For the Noodles
 1 1 lb package (454 g) spaghetti- I used Dreamfields, use what you like
2 cups (322 g) sugar snap peas
2 cups (322 g) small broccoli florets
2 red, yellow or orange bell peppers-remove the seeds then thinly slice-I used one yellow and one red this time
2 large onions, halved and thinly sliced
salt for pasta water

For the Sauce

1/2 cup (90g) creamy peanut butter-I used natural pb
2 tablespoons sugar-if you use pb with sugar you may want to omit this
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
5 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons sesame oil
5 garlic cloves, minced
a pinch or up to 1 tsp red pepper flakes, depending on how spicy you want it
salt, to taste

For Topping

chopped or halved peanuts

Directions


Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the spaghetti. 3 minutes before it's done, add all of the vegetables to the pot of pasta. Cook for 3 minutes, then drain, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water.
 Meanwhile, in a large bowl, stir together all of the sauce ingredients breaking up the peanut butter, then whisk the sauce till smooth. Add about 1/2 cup reserved pasta water to the sauce to thin. Add vegetables and pasta to the bowl and toss to coat. Add a little more pasta water if you think it needs more moisture.

Top each individual servings with halved or chopped peanuts, if desired.

Pasta with Peas and Parmesan

"Plant a radish, get a radish, never any doubt. That's why I love vegetables, you know what they're about!"

-Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt

This post is part of a series, Healthy Vegetarian Mains.

This recipe comes from the January 2001 edition of O magazine. How do I know that, you ask? I cut recipes out of magazines I like, and put them in plastic sleeves in a binder to keep them intact. This is one I have gone back to again and again over the years, (10 years to be exact. Yikes.) You couldn't ask for it to be any easier, I usually have the ingredients on hand, and it's creamy, satisfying and delicious.


Is it healthy? Well that depends on how you see it. I use Dreamfields pasta when I'm the only one eating it (over a period of days, mind you.) (I don't think anyone else would mind or be able to tell for that matter if I did serve it to them.) I eat it because it is low in carbs. One could use whole wheat pasta, or rice pasta if you are gluten free. If it were summertime I would make zucchini ribbons to use like pasta, (since I grow it and usually have an abundance) or sometimes I use spaghetti squash like it were pasta. If you did that, this dish would be solid vegetables. Now that, I say, would certainly be good for you!

The original recipe comes from Manhattans Po restaurant. The chef, (in 2001) John Baron says, "it's the perfect dish for a January night. The sauce has a bright, straightforward flavor. It is a simple recipe that relies on the quality of the ingredients. So keep in mind that all olive oil is not created equal and walk that extra block for the grainy, buttery, sharp tang of true Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. The result will be a bowl full of pasta that's nothing short of bliss."

I couldn't agree more. And if the great taste isn't enough to make it a fabulous recipe, or the fact that it only has 5 ingredients, get a load of this. You can whip up this sauce in less time it takes than to cook the pasta. No joke, this recipe seriously rules.



I've changed the recipe a bit over the years, one being the original calls for 1/3 cup olive oil. I don't think it needs that much, just a few tablespoons is plenty for me. I also add a bit more peas, to use up a whole 1 lb package. For convienience and I like my pasta to have plenty of sauce.

Pasta With Peas and Parmesan

Ingredients

1 lb pasta your choice. Fettuccine or Pappardelle are good choices, or use whatever you like, I used Dreamfields spaghetti this time

1 lb bag frozen peas (divided)

1 cup chopped onion (one small onion) red is good, tonight I only had a white one, that was good as well

3 tablespoons good quality olive oil (divided)

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon salt

fresh ground pepper (1/4 to 1/2 tsp)

Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, or if I don't have that (like today), I use a good quality Parmesan cheese

1/2 to 3/4 cup water

.

Directions

Put a pot of water on the stove to cook the pasta. When it boils cook the pasta, and drain, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water. Set aside.

.

Use one tablespoon of the olive oil and cook the onion, salt, sugar and pepper in a skillet over medium heat. When onion is soft, add 2 1/2 cups of the frozen peas. (frozen or defrosted, it doesn't matter.) Cook for 2 or 3 minutes, until the peas are hot. Heat up the remaining peas, and set aside.

.

Transfer the mixture to a blender and puree with 1/2 to 3/4 cup water along with 2 tablespoons olive oil. (you can add more oil if you'd like a silkier sauce, up to 1/3 cup.) Taste it and see if it needs more salt.

Add the pea puree to the cooked pasta and toss. Add a little pasta water if you think it needs it. Use the remaining whole peas for garnish or stir them in the pasta.

Top and serve with lots of freshly grated cheese.