The Husband’s Pasta Dish

 

Husband-Tested  in Alice’s Kitchen

Makes 2 generous servings

The hubster’s cooking repertoire consists of his steel cut oats breakfast, his lunchtime peanut butter sandwich, popcorn, Instant Pot cashew yogurt and blueberry snack and this pasta dish.  When I’m too tired to cook or I’ve had a unusually busy day, he’ll make this for our dinner. It’s quite tasty and full of healthful ingredients.  If I wasn’t around, he’d eat all of the above every single day.  I like more variety in my diet (Ha!) He’s very proud of his pasta dish and so he should be. This is how he makes it…

Ingredients: (per serving)

Whole wheat pasta

Kosher salt or sea salt for the pasta water

½ cup Rao’s Marinara Sauce or Arrabiata Sauce or your favorite spaghetti sauce

1-2 Tablespoons Trader Joe’s Kale Pesto or your favorite pesto

1-2 canned sardines (This would add not only protein and Omega 3, but also calcium, however, it is totally optional and would not be vegan.)

½ cup Edamame (frozen is fine, no need to thaw)

1 cup Kale or spinach (fresh or frozen, no need to thaw) 

¼ of a Bell Pepper (any color but green)

1 cup Broccoli (fresh or frozen, no need to thaw)

1 cup of any other favorite vegetables you may have: mushrooms, Brussels sprouts, carrots, green beans, peas, asparagus, zucchini, sugar snap peas, yellow squash, are all good options, just mix and match, pick and choose one or two  

1 Tablespoon Vegan Parmesan Cheese, grated (optional)

Instructions:  

1. Fill a large pot with water.  Bring to a boil. 

2. Put a large sieve in the sink for draining the pasta.

3. While the water is heating up, prepare the vegetables you plan to include in your meal and have them ready near the pot of water.  (Chop the bell peppers, cut broccoli into bite-sized pieces, slice mushrooms, cut Brussels sprouts into quarters, chop the carrots, cut the green beans into bite-sized pieces, cut the asparagus into bite-sized pieces, slice the zucchini and/or yellow squash, cut sugar snap peas into bite-sized pieces)

4. When the water comes to a boil, add some salt.  Add the pasta and cook according to the package directions.  

5. Set a timer for 3 minutes before the pasta should be done.

6. When the time beeps, add the vegetables to the pasta pot.

7. During the 3 minutes that the vegetables and pasta are cooking, add about ½ cup of sauce in a bowl for each serving. 

8. Add about 2 Tablespoons to the sauce.

9. If using sardines, add them to the sauce/pesto mixture and use a fork to mash the sardines really well.  

10. When the 3-minute timer beeps, carefully take the pot to the sink and pour the pasta and vegetables into the sieve to drain.  

11. Using tongs, grab some of the pasta and vegetables and put them in the bowl(s) with the sauce, pesto and sardines, if using.

12. Toss until the pasta and vegetables are coated with the sauce/pesto.  

13. Sprinkle over some grated Parmesan cheese, if desired.

Spaghetti Squash Tomato Cheese Bake

Husband-Tested Recipe from Alice's Kitchen

Serves 4

I made this up with a spaghetti squash that a friend had given to me.  I had some cheese and a partial jar of marinara sauce and put this together.  It’s simple, tasty comfort food without the pasta.  Spaghetti squash is a good source of niacin, vitamin B6, potassium, fiber and vitamin C.  Serve this with a crisp salad and a piece of fruit for a very nice Meatless Monday meal.

1 large spaghetti squash

Kosher salt, to taste

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Olive oil spray

2 cups or so marinara sauce (I used Local FolksTomato & Herb Marinara Pasta Sauce.)

8 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese

2 fresh tomatoes, sliced thinly

¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 F. With a fork, pierce the spaghetti squash all over.  Place on a baking sheet; bake, turning the squash once, until easily pierced with the tip of a knife, 45 to 60 minutes.  (You can also microwave the pierced squash on high for 10 to 15 minutes.)

When it is cool enough to handle, halve the squash lengthwise; scoop out the seeds and discard them.  Working over the baking dish, use a fork to gently scrape flesh to release the strands from the squash.  (This can be done in advance.  Store the spaghetti squash strands in an airtight container in the fridge for a couple of days.)

Lower the oven temperature to 350 F.  Spray the bottom and sides of a 2½-quart casserole dish with the olive oil spray.  Mix the marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese with the spaghetti squash strands.  Cover the bottom of the casserole dish with half of the spaghetti squash mixture.  Place the tomato slices over the entire top of the spaghetti squash mixture.  Cover with the remaining spaghetti squash mixture.  Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese.  Bake uncovered for about 25 minutes or so until heated through and the cheese has melted.

Note:  I think you could easily add other veggies to this dish such as blanched broccoli pieces or even chopped baby spinach and mushroom slices.

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Italian Style Baked Tofu

Makes 4 Generous Servings

Recipe by Nicole Cline of SeasonlyCreations.com

Adapted & Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

We really liked this meatless dish.  It was tasty and very filling.  I prepared the recipe in the morning and then baked it at dinnertime.  Served with a crisp green salad, this makes a really nice dinner good enough for guests.  I did not use all the original listed measurements because of what I had in my pantry and fridge, but the recipe is pretty forgiving and so I’ve included what I used when I made it.

20 ounces plain extra-firm tofu (I used about 1½ packages.)  Cut into 16 (¼”-inch) rectangular slices.  Press between clean kitchen towels or paper towels to remove the moisture.

2 cups or so marinara sauce (I used about ½ jar of Local Folks Marinara Sauce.)

1 cup or so shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup breadcrumbs

½ cup yellow cornmeal (I thought this added great texture.)

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

2 teaspoons pizza or Italian seasoning

Approximately ¼ cup oil (for skillet)

1 large egg

¼ cup milk

Preheat oven to 400 F.  Whisk together the milk and egg in a small bowl.  Combine the breadcrumbs, cornmeal, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning in another bowl.  Coat each piece of tofu with the egg wash.  Then dip each piece of tofu in the dry mixture to coat.  Heat the oil over medium heat until the oil is hot.  Add the coated tofu, cooking until brown and crisp.  Flip to the other side and cook the same way.  While the tofu is cooking, add about 1-cup of the marinara sauce to a 9” X 9”-inch baking dish.  Once the tofu is done cooking, place half of them over the sauce in the baking dish.  Turn to coat.  Pour the remaining 1-cup of the marinara sauce over the first layer of tofu.  Top with the remaining tofu, turning the pieces to coat.  Sprinkle the top with the mozzarella cheese.  Bake for 25 minutes.  Serve immediately.  (It reheats well, so leftovers are still yummy.)

Quinoa (KEEN-wah) Pizza Bites

Quinoa Pizza Bites packed up for the fridge 

to add to my lunchbox throughout the week.

Makes 24 Quinoa Pizza Bites

Recipe from jessicainthekitchen.com 

Husband-Tested in Alice’s Kitchen

These are just fun and easy to make and quite tasty too.  They make a great appetizer or snack for a casual party.  I make them to have on hand for my lunchbox.  Did you know that you can freeze cooked quinoa?  Cook up a couple of batches of quinoa on the weekend and once the quinoa is cool, pack it in 1- or 2-cup freezer containers and pop them in the freezer. Then, when you are ready to make Quinoa Pizza Bites or Sriracha Quinoa Bites, just thaw the quinoa in the fridge and mix in the remaining ingredients.

2 cups cooked quinoa** (Recipe follows.)

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

2 large eggs

½ teaspoon salt, or to taste

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

6 Tablespoons marinara or pizza sauce

1 teaspoon garlic powder

6 teaspoons Italian seasoning

¼ to ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

4 Tablespoons shredded mozzarella cheese (optional)

Cooking spray for greasing muffin pan

Preheat oven to 400F.  Grease mini muffin pan(s) with cooking spray.  Mix all the ingredients together (except the 4 Tablespoons cheese.)  Put a Tablespoon of the mixture into each muffin tin, packing it in a bit.  Bake for 12-15 minutes.  Remove from the oven and top with the remaining 4 Tablespoons cheese, if using.  Broil for 1 minute, watching carefully so they don’t burn.  After broiling, remove the pan from the oven and allow them to cool on a wire rack for about 15 minutes.  Remove the pizza bites from the pan.  Serve or store for later.

**How to Prepare Quinoa

Cooked quinoa will keep for three or four days in the refrigerator. You can also freeze cooked quinoa. Just 1 cup of uncooked quinoa will yield almost 4 cups cooked.

1 cup uncooked quinoa

2 cups water for cooking

Place 1 cup of uncooked quinoa in a sieve (strainer.) Quinoa has a bitter coating that must be rinsed off.  An effective method for rinsing off the bitter coating is to place the quinoa seeds in a fine-meshed strainer and run cold water over the quinoa while gently rubbing the seeds together in your hands. Place the rinsed quinoa in a saucepan and add 2 cups water. Bring the cooking liquid to a rolling boil. Turn down the heat to a simmer. Place a tight-fitting lid on the saucepan. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes. (Set a kitchen timer to 15 minutes so you won't forget to check for doneness.)  Fluff the cooked quinoa with a fork.