Tortellini with Peas and Prosciutto!

I just recently got a new cookbook in the mail. Its called, Food Network Magazine~Great Easy Meals!! The BEST thing about this cookbook is that it has a picture of EVERY recipe which I absolutely LOVE!

I have to also say that lately I have been using a lot more fresh products than usual (fresh herbs, and whole garlic cloves instead of minced garlic from the fridge) and I am really enjoying the extra Oomph it seems to be giving to my cooking!

So here is tonights dinner. I hope you enjoy! And remember if you end up trying it...let me know what you think!! :)

Tortellini with Peas and Prosciutto

Ingredients

• Kosher salt
• 1 pound meat-filled tortellini
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 ounces prosciutto or pancetta, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 
  

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the tortellini and cook as the label directs.

Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil and prosciutto and cook until crisp, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the garlic and tomato paste and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Ladle in about 1 cup of the pasta cooking water and simmer until reduced by about half, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the cream and simmer until slightly thickened, 2 to 3 minutes.

About 2 minutes before the tortellini are done, add the peas to the boiling water and cook until just tender. Drain the tortellini and peas and add to the skillet, tossing to coat with the sauce. Stir in the parsley. Sprinkle with the parmesan cheese.

Here is my final plate! I served it with biscuits drizzled with honey. Very flavorful...I was stuffed full by the end of the meal! :)

P.S. on a little side note...I couldn't find meat filled tortellini so I just got the ones filled with cheese and it was still delicious! I mean, pasta and cheese....how bad can that be??

Baked Ziti

Last night we had my two cousins over for dinner. One of my favorite go to dinners for company is my recipe for baked ziti cause I can make an assemble the whole thing early in the day, put it in the fridge and then pop it in the oven before company gets here. That way I have time to visit with everyone PLUS the mess I made making the ziti can all be cleaned up so my kitchen isn't a disaster area! :)

So here it is:

BAKED ZITI

Ingredients

• 1 pound dry ziti pasta
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 2 (26 ounce) jars spaghetti sauce
• 6 ounces provolone cheese, sliced
• 1 1/2 cups sour cream
• 6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 
  

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add ziti pasta, and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes; drain.
2. In a large skillet, brown onion and ground beef over medium heat. Add spaghetti sauce, and simmer 15 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer as follows: 1/2 of the ziti, Provolone cheese, sour cream, 1/2 sauce mixture, remaining ziti, mozzarella cheese and remaining sauce mixture. Top with grated Parmesan cheese.
4. Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until cheeses are melted.

AND...here is the finished product!! I served it with a side salad and garlic toast. I loved it but boy did I have heartburn today. BTW...totally worth it! :)

A few side notes about the dish. Both the sliced provolone and shredded mozzarella come in 8oz packages not 6oz like the recipe calls for so I just add the whole thing of both bags. Can't ever have TOO much cheese!! :)

Also, when I make the recipe ahead of time and put it in the fridge for later I double the cooking time. So I bake it for an hour with it covered in tin foil and then after the hour of cooking I take the foil off and put it back in the oven for like 5-10 minutes to make sure the cheese on top is nice and melted and gets a little browned on top.

Another thing I do different is when the pasta and sauce are done cooking instead of layering it in the 13x9 pan I mix them together THEN put it in the pan! So it goes pasta mixture, provolone slices, sour cream, the rest of the pasta mixture and then shredded mozzarella.

I hope you enjoy and again if you end up trying this meal, let me know what you think!! :)

Lemon Chicken Breast w/ Roasted Broccolini and Green Beans!

These are two recipes that I have seen on TV a few times being made and finally I was like..ok they look too delicious so I am gonna print out the recipes and make them for dinner one night!!

The Roasted Broccolini and Green Beans is a Rachel Ray Recipe and the Lemon Chicken Breast comes from Ina Garten aka The Barefoot Contessa! I watch both shows everyday (just ask Danny he now HATES the Food Network!! LOL) and love most everything they make!

So here are the recipes!! I hope you enjoy them as much as I did...and if you end up trying them please come back and let me know what you thought too! :)

Roasted Broccolini and Green Beans

Ingredients

• 2 bundles broccolini, trim off ends
• 1 pound string beans, trimmed
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Heat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Arrange broccolini and beans on a cookie sheet. Coat the vegetables in oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast 15 to 18 minutes, until nutty and crispy at edges.

Lemon Chicken Breast

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup good olive oil
• 3 tablespoons minced garlic (9 cloves)
• 1/3 cup dry white wine
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 boneless chicken breasts, skin on (6 to 8 ounces each)
• 1 lemon

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Warm the olive oil in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, add the garlic, and cook for just 1 minute but don't allow the garlic to turn brown. Off the heat, add the white wine, lemon zest, lemon juice,oregano, thyme, and 1 teaspoon salt and pour into a 9 by 12-inch baking dish.

Pat the chicken breasts dry and place them skin side up over the sauce. Brush the chicken breasts with olive oil and sprinkle them liberally with salt and pepper. Cut the lemon in 8 wedges and tuck it among the pieces of chicken.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken breasts, until the chicken is done and the skin is lightly browned. If the chicken isn't browned enough, put it under the broiler for 2 minutes. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and serve hot with the pan juices.

And....this is my finished plate! To go along with the Chicken and Vegetables I just made a herb/butter rice side dish that came out of a packet. I wanna say it was the Lipton Rice Side! The whole meal had tons of flavor and the chicken was very juicy!! Now get cooking and enjoy!! :)

P.S. I forgot to mention if you can't find chicken breast with the skin on and no bone (like me) just take it up to the meat guy behind the counter at your local grocery store and ask him to do it!! They will be happy to! :)

rATG and things..

I know I said I would update up all once my 5 day treatment was over...but once I got home I still had the body aches and slight itchiness that went alone with the drug. So I was in no mood to type an entry. Plus I was on a temporary "house arrest" since the rATG completely wiped out my immune system so I was told to stay aways from large crowds for a while!

I go back up to Gainesville on the 22nd of August to do another bronch and hope that all the rejection is gone! ***Everyone cross fingers***

Then at 1:45 I have an appointment with the vascular surgeons who worked on my leg...I have been having some swelling in my left foot and I just want to make sure everything is all good. So at 1:45 I have a ABIS test done to measure the pressures in my leg and then tuesday morning and 9:20 we have an actual appt with the dr who will go over the test results....and then we will be heading them!! :)

The last couple of weeks have been kind of boring for me being locked in the house and everything but its over now so I am a happy camper! I am eager to get back to the gym couldn't do that the last 2 weeks either so I am sure all the soreness I worked through all ready is gonna be back in full force!! Ouch...

The only other new thing I have been doing is seeing a massage lady once a month to work on my leg/foot pain and the pain I get in my lower back....it seems to be going good. I figure since I have the numbness in my foot/ankle/leg sometimes that the massage is good to getting the circulation moving around those ares again and I am hoping the feeling comes back!

Also, I used to write on this blog all the time because that's all i did was write about things that were going wrong with me. Well now that that has faded I think I am gonna try and change my format a little. I will still update on my health cause u know we all still have our ups and downs there just not as frequent!

So since I LOVE to cook every night and my friends are always asking for the recipes I figured every night after dinner (or lets be honest maybe the next morning) I will post the pictures of what we ate plus the corresponding recipe to that picture! Plus I am in the middle of re-doing some of our rooms so I will post pre and post of those projects as well!!

Well what do you think would you read a semi health/semi cooking/semi decorating blog from me?? Let me know what ya'll think!! :)

Bronch Results

Hi all!

Last week (Tuesday to be exact) I had a bronch done up in Gainesville. I had a regular check-up scheduled for that Wednesday but had been coughing a little bit so I called and had a bronch scheduled just to be on the safe side. On a side note Danny had been sick for like 3 days with coughing/runny nose so I was just hoping I didn't get anything from him. We took precautions and had him sleep downstairs and all but still you never know...

Well I just got the call from my coordinator and I have Acute Rejection! So they are admitting me on Monday and they said plan on being there for 5 days for treatment! :(

I am not looking forward to being admitted...but hopefully whatever my wonderful doctor does will nip this rejection in the bud and I can go back home feeling great!

I will update while I am there also to let you all know how I am doing...talk to you soon!

XoxoX

p.s. any good movies or whole seasons of shows u suggest that I could bring with me??