It’s been a challenge these days even for someone like me who loves to cook. Cooking every night is one thing but coming up with ideas of what to cook is quite another. Hopefully I have helped you with this a little. Everyone needs a little inspiration now and then and this is definitely one of those times.
This is a super easy recipe with very few ingredients . Hopefully you’re all getting what you need from the supermarkets. Add along these easy ingredients and you’ll have a delicious meal.
Stay Safe and Keep Cooking at Home along with me.
Pasta with Garlic and Olive Oil
INGREDIENTS:
1 box spaghetti (16 oz.)
1/3 cup olive oil
8 large garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup fresh parsley, minced
Kosher salt
1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese (plus extra for serving)
DIRECTIONS:
Cook pasta according to directions on package. Save about 2 cups of the pasta water before you drain the pasta.
Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large pot (large enough to hold the pasta; a large sauté pan is perfect.) Add the garlic and cook for a few minutes, stirring frequently without burning the garlic (be careful!). Add the red pepper flakes. Add the reserved cooking water from pasta to the garlic and oil and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, add 1 tsp kosher salt and simmer for about 5-10 minutes until liquid is reduced by about a third.
Reserve a cup of the pasta water and set aside in the event you’ll need some liquid for the pasta. Add the drained pasta to the garlic sauce and give it a good toss. Remove from the heat, add the parsley and parmesan and toss to coat well. Allow the pasta to sit for a few minutes or until the sauce is absorbed. Taste for seasonings and serve with additional parmesan cheese on the side. If pasta looks dry add a little of the pasta water and mix well till pasta absorbs the water.
*If I use shrimp in this, which I sometimes do, I just sauté the shrimp in garlic and oil and skip the parmesan cheese. (About 1/4 lb shrimp per person.) For me and Joel, I use approx 1/2 lb raw shrimp. For 4 people, I use a pound. You can also add broccoli and keep it vegetarian.
- real deal meatballs/prep
I’ve been on the subject of comforting foods a lot lately and this recipe is one of my all-time favorite comfort foods. When I was a young girl, nothing made me happier than to know that my mother was preparing meatballs and spaghetti for dinner and it is still one of my most favorite meals, of which I have the fondest of memories. I hope you like my recipe and are not put off by the amount of ingredients required. I promise you it’s worth it. The sauce and meatballs are perfect for freezing and I usually make enough for at least one extra meal. This tomato sauce has onions and a few different ingredients from my other tomato sauce. This is one suggestions for these meatballs but you can use any sauce that you like. The last time I made these meatballs I actually used the Dreamy Creamy Vodka Sauce. Enjoy!
INGREDIENTS:
Spaghetti (any type you like) cooked according to directions on package
Freshly grated parmesan
Meatballs:
1/2 lb. ground veal
1/2 lb. ground pork
1 lb. ground beef
1 cup fresh bread crumbs (I never cheat on this one. I use 4 slices–5 for thinner bread–of whole wheat bread and make the crumbs in a food processor with a steel blade. It’s fast and easy but you can use whatever you have in the house.)
1/4 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs (Italian style)
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese (you can cheat here, if you must)
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tbsp fresh, flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 extra large egg, beaten (start with a room temp egg)
Sauce:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cup (one medium) yellow onion, chopped
1 1/2 tsp garlic, minced
1 cup red wine
2 28 oz cans of crushed tomatoes (or you can puree chopped plum tomatoes)
1 tbsp fresh, flat-leaf parsley, chopped (this is optional but it adds delicious flavor)
1 1/4 tsp kosher salt (taste to check if you need more than this)
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 small can tomato paste
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (use at your own discretion)
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Place the ground meats, both types of bread crumbs, parmesan, parsley, salt, pepper, nutmeg, egg and 3/4 cup warm water in a large bowl. Combine all ingredients with a fork. Next, I use my washed hands and lightly form the mixture into small (2 inch) meatballs. You should have about 20-25 meatballs. I don’t fry my balls; I bake them at400 degrees for approx. 30 – 40 minutes on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. If you prefer to fry the balls, use a combination of vegetable and olive oils. (This is up to you.) The meatballs will continue to cook in the sauce so don’t worry if they are not fully cooked through as well as they should be at first.
Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the onion and saute over medium heat until onions are translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the wine and while cooking sauce on high heat, deglaze the pan by scraping up from the bottom with a wooden spoon. Do this until almost all of the liquid evaporates. Stir in the tomatoes, parsley, salt, oregano, pepper, parsley, crushed red pepper, and tomato paste. Let it cook for approx. 1 hour. If sauce is too thick, add a little water at a time until you get to the consistency you like. Return the meatballs to the sauce, cover and simmer on the lowest possible heat for about another 1/2 hour, until the meatballs are immersed in the sauce and cooked through. Serve hot on cooked spaghetti with freshly grated parmesan cheese. I plate individually so I can freeze left over sauce with meatballs for another meal.
Cooking with Candi 