Pretending to be a Chef

This week I was feeling particularly lazy and did not want to go to the store to get ingredients so I was bound and determined to find some way to make something edible for Jer and I for dinner. One of my favorite cooking blogs is called cjaneinthekitchen.blogspot.com. I remembered a yummy, easy recipe I had tried before so I looked it up. I realized I didn't quite have all the ingredients I needed so I looked up another pasta recipe she had and combined the two.

Here's the clincher: Both recipes called for Italian sausage which I did not have, of course. I DID however, have ground turkey (which we are trying to convert to from ground beef.) Thanks to google, I found out what seasonings are added to ground sausage to make it "Italian" and make some make-shift "Italian ground turkey."

Man I was really scraping right?

It gets better.

While we were eating dinner Jer said, "Wow, I really like this Italian sausage!" Woo hoo! My laziness worked to my benefit...this time. :o)

So, here are the recipes, which are really quite similar and can be scaled down and substituted like crazy, but the general gist helps give guidance.

Cheese and Sausage Bowties

This is quite easy to make and my family loves it. I don't use Romano very often, it has a bit of a different taste so I didn't know if the kids would like it or not but they loved it. It was even better the second day.

Cheese and Sausage Bowties

1 large can diced tomatoes

1 lb. bow ties

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 1/2 cups milk

1 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella

1 1/3 cup grated Romano

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan

1/2 cup minced fresh parsely
1 pound sausage
1 small onion, chopped

Cook pasta, while it boils drain the tomatoes and RESERVE THE JUICE. Next, cook sausage with onion, drain fat and set aside.

In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in flour, salt and pepper until smooth. Gradually add milk and reserved tomato juice. Bring to a boil and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat.

In a 9x13 pan combine the pasta, sauce, tomatoes and sausage. Stir in cheese and toss in parsely.

Cook uncovered at 375 for 30-35 minutes.

 

Sausage tomato penne

My whole family went to my sisters cabin a few weeks ago and this is what my sister in law suggested we make for the meal we were in charge of. Delicious!! It is so easy and perfect for summer since it is all done in the skillet. A new favorite at our house.

Sausage Tomato Pasta

1 package penne, cooked according to package
1 pound mild italian sausage
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 large can diced tomatoes with italian seasonings
1/2 onion, chopped
2 TBS olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced

1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
italian seasoning

Cook onion, sausage, and garlic with olive oil. Drain fat. Add heavy cream and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add can of tomatoes and italian seasoning to taste. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, heat and toss with pasta.

  

For your info: I DID use heavy whipping cream, I did NOT use butter. It tasted delicious. They are both fattening but I decided to choose one and not the other. I also scaled this down by half. 

Go check out that blog, it is seriously the bomb.

If any of you wanted an update on us, here goes:

Jer and I are still livin' the high life here in Orem/Provo enjoying our last semester as students. My car finally breathed its last breath a couple weeks ago and so Jer and I have been sharing a car, which has become a blessing in disguise. We have been able to spend a few extra minutes together everyday and we find we are more productive because we always go to campus with whoever has to be there earliest.

Jer is working really hard with his internship and being very successful. He also has a lot going on with his charity group Half the Sky, raising money for orphans in China. They are having a "powerside" this Friday to raise awareness and funds. They plan to do a race at the end of the semester. 

If any of you were wondering, I'm loving my Blendtec and have been able to have Green Smoothies most every week day for lunch. We have also made DELICIOUS milkshakes and word on the street is you can make hummus too?

We are headed to St. George next weekend for some shows and are going to be able to stay with Grandma and Grandpa Pendleton at their condo for the weekend. We are excited to stay with family, as wonderful as host families are. :o)