Recipes to Share

This recipe is a new one for me. I often make Pasta Puttanesca because it’s so quick and easy to make. I wanted to try this recipe because it doesn’t use anchovies and I wanted to see how it would taste w/o them. I found it in the July 2007 issue of Martha Stewart Living. This is delicious and will definitely be made again!

Notes:
~My grocery store didn’t have bucatini pasta so I used whole wheat spaghetti.
~I used olives from the olive bar at the grocery store. The green ones took forever to pit!
~I used one quart of home canned tomatoes from last summer.
~I only cooked the sauce 15 min and I added a lot more basil to it.

Bucatini Puttanesca

1 1/2 T EVOO
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 c black olives, thinly sliced
1/2 c green olives, thinly sliced
3 T capers
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
28 oz tomatoes, roughly crushed
1 sprig fresh basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
Course salt
1 lb bucatini pasta
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

2. Place olive oil and garlic in a large saucepan. Heat over medium heat until the garlic begins to sizzle but not brown, about 30 seconds. Add olives, caper, and 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes. Add crushed tomatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 15 min. Add the basil sprig, the remaining 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes, and the oregano, and cook for an additional 10 min.

3. Meanwhile, salt the boiling water. Add the pasta, and cook until tender but still firm. Drain the pasta, and toss with the sauce. Serve with additional red pepper flakes, grated Parmesan cheese, and freshly torn basil leaves.

My friend, Pat, shared the recipe for Crescent Lasagna with me. We loved this! I used one lb of grounded sirloin instead of a mix of sausage and ground beef.

CRESCENT LASAGNA

MEAT: (Brown meats, drain & then saute all the rest together; add tom. paste at end)
1/2 lb. ground sausage
1/2 lb. ground beef
3/4 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp. parsley flakes
1/2 tsp. leaf basil
1/2 tsp. leaf oregano
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 6-oz. can tomato paste

CHEESE: (Stir all together)
1 cup cottage cheese
1 egg
1/4 cup grated Parmesan

CRUST:
2 cans crescent rolls
2 7×4″ slices Mozzarella
1 tbsp. milk
1 tbsp. sesame seeds

Let meat filling cool for a bit. Open crescent roll cans and press individual rolls and perforations together horizontally over a cookie sheet so that you have a single sheet of dough that’s about 14″ long x 26″ or so wide. (You want the cookie sheet facing you vertically and the dough spread over it horizontally and lapping over the long sides) Spread half the meat mixture down the middle about 8″ wide and leave about 2 1/2″ to 3″ of dough at top and bottom uncovered. Top with cheese mixture, then the rest of the meat and then the mozzarella.

Bring top & bottom pieces up and over, then fold left and right sides up and over. Turn over the touching opposites sides together once and lay down over the center top. Or just overlap, but brush with water so they’ll stick. Pinch together any perforations that may have separated. Brush with milk and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Bake at 375 for 20 minutes. OR…..refrigerate 2-3 hours and bake for 25-30 minutes.

This next recipe is going to sound really disgusting to some of you, but I promise you that they are really delicious. I’ve been making this recipe for years and we love it.

Spinach Burgers

2 (10 oz) pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed
1 (4 oz) pkg crumbled Blue Cheese
1 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
1 medium sweet onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
Hamburger Buns (I like to use Potato Rolls)

1. Drain spinach well, squeeze between layers of paper towels.
2. Combine spinach, cheese, breadcrumbs, onion, garlic, egg, salt, and pepper. (I use my hands like I’m making meat loaf.)
3. Cook in a skillet until brown on both sides
4. Serve on buns with spicy mustard.

I usually make these ahead of time and refrigerate them so they will stick together better. Here they are before cooking.

I forgot to take pictures of them after I cooked them!