Northern Italian Spaghetti in Rice Cooker

My heritage is Italian.  When I tell people that, they picture pasta, lasagna, lots of meatballs, lots of seafood and spice.  Not in my family!  The truth is, I am northern Italian. 

Picture the Italian landscape and right away you might notice that there is no where in northern Italy for grazing cows; therefore there is not much beef.  The cows that exist in northern Italy are milking cows for the plethora of cheeses that come from that area. Also, with no flat lands there is little room for large farms of wheat.  Therefore, not much pasta either!

My grandmother was a great cook.  We ate lots of pork, veal and chicken.  We ate quite a bit of fresh vegetables.  Pasta, when it was served, was a side dish like potatoes or rice.  OH!  RICE!  Yes, we ate lots of risotto too!  The flavors of porcini mushrooms and spicy sausage (from the aforementioned pigs) permeated the air, along with lots of cheese.  I didn't even taste lasagna until I was 16 years old.  And, the tomato gravies that are well known in most Italian, read southern Italian, kitchens and restaurants were only an occasional gravy.   Butter and cheese sauces along with herbs like basil were the sauces of choice.

Ahh, the word sauce!  Well, in my family if it has meat in it, or flavoring it or is served with meat, it is a GRAVY!

So, this leads me to my recipe today.

1 pound bulk Italian sausage meat; hot or spicy or a mixture
1 onion, diced

6 ounce can tomato paste
1 tablespoon dried oregano
3 garlic cloves, minced

handful of dried porcini mushrooms

4 cups water
1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
1 pound spaghetti

In a skillet, or the browning setting of rice cooker, brown the sausage meat with the onion until onion is translucent and sausage is granular.

If using a skillet, pour the entire amount into the rice cooker.  Add the tomato paste, oregano and garlic and stir to coat everything with the tomato paste.  Crush the porcini mushrooms and add to the rice cooker.  Add the water and tomato sauce and stir well. 

Break up the spaghetti into three and add to the rice cooker.   Stir to separate the pasta and close cooker.  Cook on white rice setting.  Open cooker and stir to keep pasta from sticking 2-3 times during the cooking time.

Serve with plenty of Parmesan cheese.

Menu 5/24 - 6/1

Thu 5/24 - Chicken Caesar Salad
Fri 5/25  -  Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato Pasta Salad
Sat 5/26 -  Out
Sun 5/27 - Snake Alley Shrimp and Noodles*
Mon 5/28 - Franks and Beans
Tue 5/29 - Greek Pasta Salad
Wed 5/30 - Golden Chicken and Rice**
Thu 5/31  - Pork Enchilada Casserole
Fri 6/1  -   Pasta Amatriciana 

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* SNAKE ALLEY NOODLES

12 oz. uncooked spaghetti
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 TBSP dry sherry
4 tsp. cornstarch
1 pound ground pork
1 tsp minced, fresh ginger root
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
3/4 cup chopped green onions, tops included
1/2 pound cooked baby shrimp

Cook the spaghetti according to package directions; drain and keep warm. Combine soy sauce, sherry and cornstarch; set aside.  In a large skillet or wok, stir fry pork over high heat with ginger, garlic and red pepper until pork is cooked thoroughly.  Add green onions and cook for another minute, then add soy sauce mixture and cook until mixture boils and thickens somewhat.  Add the shrimp and heat through.  Place the spaghetti in a large bowl or plate; pour the sauce over the noodles and toss to combine.

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**Golden Chicken with Rice
Serves: 4

Ingredients:
1 package (6 ounces) long grain and wild rice mix
1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of celery soup, undiluted
1 -1/2 cups water
4 chicken leg quarters
1 envelope onion soup mix

Instructions:

In a large bowl, combine the rice, contents of seasoning packet, cream soups and water. Spread into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Top with chicken; sprinkle with onion soup mix.
Cover and bake at 350° for 2 hours or until a meat thermometer reads 180° and rice is tender.
Yield: 4 servings.

Nacho Ravioli Bake

Ok, what does that mean??  Nachos and Ravioli???  YES!  It has many good reasons for being a great dish.  First, it adds variety to ravioli.  Second, it allows you to make a full meal in one pan, veggies and all!  And third, it allows you to cut back on the white pasta carbs.

Here is how you do it:

Ingredients:

2 28 ounce bags frozen ravioli
2 cans fat free refried beans.  (If you like it spicy, use the spicy variety.)
1 large can tomato puree
2 large cans diced tomatoes
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
3 cups black beans or any beans you like (Canned beans are fine; I make dried beans and freeze in 1 cup portions.)

Preheat oven to 350F

I use a very large roasting pan/lasagne pan size.  But this can be made in any size casserole

In a large casserole dish pour half of the tomato puree.  Place one layer of the ravioli (still frozen) and then begin layering the refried beans (spreading with a spatula), the black beans, the cheddar cheese and the diced tomatoes.  Depending on the size of your casserole you will have at least 3 layers.  So plan accordingly and only use 1/3 of your ingredients at a time.

When you reach the top layer, end with the cheese and pour the last half of the tomato puree over the top.  Be sure all the ravioli is submerged in the liquid.  The secret to being able to cook the ravioli from the frozen state is to keep them under the liquid.  Cover with foil

Bake covered for 45 minutes.  Remove foil and bake additional 15 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.  Let stand 10 minutes before serving to allow the liquid to cool enough so it won't swim on your plate.

Not much of a menu this week

We are eating what is there this week.  Some is leftovers, some is just what we feel like at the moment and some is going out for the holidays.

Tonight, I am making one of my favorite short cut meals.  It is a ravioli bake.  Take a baking dish and cover the bottom liberally with your favorite tomato sauce; homemade or jarred is OK.  Layer frozen ravioli putting grated Parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese and more sauce in between the layers.  End with more sauce and cheese and be sure that the edges of the ravs are covered with sauce.  Cover with foil and bake in a preheated 350F oven for about 40 minutes or until bubbly.

I sometimes add spinach or kale in the layers or thinly sliced zucchini or eggplant works too.   If you want to add sliced cooked hot or sweet sausage or small already cooked meatballs, that would work too.
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Menu 9/12/11 - 9/18/11

9/12 - Mon - Pizza
9/13 - Tue - Rice Cooker Sausage Lasagna**
9/14 - Wed - Chinese Take-out
9/15 - Thu - Kielbasa and Red Cabbage Braised in Slow Cooker
9/16 - Fri - Granny's Chicken Stew with Polenta
9/17 - Sat - Chili and Corn Bread
9/18 - Sun - Ravioli Amatriciana

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**
Rice Cooker Sausage Lasagna

1 pounds (dry - uncooked) lasagna noodles, broken into pieces (or any pasta, I always use whole wheat)
1 pound loose hot Italian sausage, out of casing, browned
16 ounce container ricotta cheese
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 cups mozzarella cheese
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1 28 ounce can tomato puree or diced tomatoes
2 1/2 cups marinara sauce (I always have home made, but store bought is fine)
1 cup warm water

Brush inside of rice cooker pan with olive oil.

Brown sausage in a skillet. Use wooden spoon or potato masher to break up into smaller clumps.

Mix together the ricotta cheese, garlic, oregano 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese and half cup of the Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese in a bowl.

Cover the bottom of the rice cooker pan with 1/2 of the can of tomato puree. Place one third of lasagna or pasta on top. Add half of the sausage. Using a tablespoon or ice cream scoop place dollops of the ricotta cheese mixture (using up half)on top of sausage. Repeat with the tomato puree, pasta, sausage and cheese. Top with the last third of pasta.

Add warm water, then 2 1/2 cups of marinara sauce and top with the remaining cup of mozzarella and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

Place pan in rice cooker, and close cooker. Cook on mixture setting (or white setting if you don't have a mix setting) until done.

Thanksgiving Dinner in a Rice Cooker

OK, to some people this might seem extreme. But, it is a great way to use up the leftovers from your Thanksgiving feast without having to work as hard as you did when you originally made it. And, it is a great way to have Thanksgiving dinner any time you want.

3 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups wild rice
1 cups diced celery
1 onion, diced

2 cups leftover cooked turkey or 2 cups ground turkey, browned and crumbled
2 cups crumbled corn bread or 2 cups corn bread stuffing mix
1 cup frozen or fresh chopped broccoli

1 1/2 cups turkey gravy, homemade or from a jar/can
1 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 tablespoon fresh
1 teaspoon dried sage or 1 tablespoon fresh
1 tablespoon freshly ground pepper
1 can cream of celery soup
2 cups chicken broth or water

In rice cooker on rice setting or a browning setting if you have one, melt the butter and add wild rice, celery and onion. Stir to coat the wild rice and let the celery and onion soften a bit.

Add turkey, corn bread and broccoli to rice cooker. Stir to mix.

In a bowl mix up the rest of the ingredients and pour over the mixture in rice cooker. Cook on white rice or mixture setting until rice cooker turns off.

Serve with fresh cranberry sauce if desired.

Note: I add no salt to most of the things I cook. In this recipe even people who love salt will probably not have to add any especially if you use canned chicken broth, cream of celery soup, gravy and cornbread stuffing mix. But, if you find the need, salt to your preference.

Hot Sausage Pasta

Right now I have a hot sausage and pasta dinner cooking away in my rice cooker.

1 1/2 pounds of HOT turkey sausage
1 1/2 boxes of whole grain spaghetti, broken into 2 inch pieces
4 garlic cloves minced
4 cups water
1 28 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 onion, diced
1 teaspoon oregano

1-2 cups of your favorite homemade or jarred tomato gravy (sauce to most Americans)

Put everything except the tomato gravy in rice cooker. Set to mix or white rice setting. Press start. When rice cooker turns to keep warm, check to see if it needs more gravy and add as necessary. Serve with grated Parmesan cheese.

Diane's Chili Mac in Slow Cooker

I am sure many people cook chili in their slow cooker. This is my version. It makes enough for 6 people.

2 lbs ground beef (a mixture of beef and pork also works)
1 29 ounce can tomato sauce
1 29 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 29 ounce can black beans (I often use a mixture of different beans - kidney, white, garbonzo - whatever you prefer)
2 large onions, diced
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons minced garlic (approximately 6 cloves)
2 tablespoons cumin
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1-3 teaspoons cayenne pepper or 2-3 diced fresh jalapenos
1/2 pound sturdy whole wheat pasta (like rigatoni, shells, rotini, elbows etc)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Brown ground meat in skillet, breaking up chunks.

While meat is browning put the rest of the ingredients in a slow cooker except the pasta and cheese. When meat is browned add it to slow cooker and stir to combine. Cook on medium for 8-9 hours. One hour before it's done, turn to high and stir in pasta. When done, stir in cheese. Pass hot sauce if not spicy enough.

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Diane's Menu 5/2/2011 - 5/11/2011

Diane's Menu 5/2/2011 - 5/11/2011

This is a celebration week! Cinco de Maya and our anniversary!

Mon 5/2 - Pizza
Tue 5/3 - Out for anniversary dinner
Wed 5/4 - Pork Cutlets and veggies with Quinoa in Rice Cooker
Thu 5/5 - Mexican Corn Cakes (filled with chorizo, jalapenos, corn, black beans and spices)
Fri 5/6 - Chicken Chili with White Beans and Spinach with Brown Rice in Rice Cooker
Sat 5/7 - Whole Wheat Pasta with Hot Sausage
Sun 5/8 - Spanish Chicken and Yellow Rice in Rice Cooker
Mon 5/9 - Pizza
Tue 5/10 - Short Ribs Stew in Slow Cooker
Wed 5/11 - Kielbasa Stew with Sauerkraut and Apples

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Adjustments to last Menu - 2/5/2011 -

Due to changes in diet and availability of food delivered and on sale, I have changed our menu.

2/5 - Sat - Green Chili Chicken (Weight Watchers in 20 minutes Cookbook)
2/6 - Sun - Vindaloo Beef (Aarti Party)
2/7 - Mon - Apricot Chicken
2/8 - Tue - Left over Vindaloo Beef
2/9 - Wed - Slow Cooker Chicken and Grits
2/10 - Thu - Ravioli Lasagna
2/11 - Fri - Out with friends
2/12 - Sat - Ham and Beans

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Snow storm changes meal schedules

Well here in the Northeast we are just recovering from a major blizzard. While I love snow and even blizzards, I know this is a hardship for many. I also decided that this was a good time to write about flexibility in my menu.

While I do keep a menu all the time, and use it every day, I know that there will be days when I just can't make the item on the list. There are many genuine reasons for changing your plans and some are just plain "cause I just don't feel like that today".

This week I changed a few of my days plans because of the storm. I normally bring home pizza on Monday nights after work. The local pizza place has a special on Mondays of a large plain pizza for $6.95 and I can't even start my oven for that, so it has become a standard. Well, my work place was closed and I never got out Monday so no pizza. In its place, we had giant ham sandwiches from the leftover ham on Sunday. I didn't want to make ham 3 days in a row, so we had franks and beans on Tuesday night. I always have franks and beans in the pantry.

Anyhow, all that to tell you that things got pushed around and today is our Short Rib Chili. It is in the slow cooker right now and smells so good!!

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Diane's Menu 12/26/2010 - 1/3/2011

Diane's Menu 12/26/2010 - 1/3/2011


Sun 12/26 - Ham, Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Salad
Mon 12/27 - Pizza
Tue 12/28 - Mac and Cheese with Ham and Spinach in Rice Cooker
Wed 12/29 - Short Rib Chili in Slow Cooker
Thu 12/30 - Shrimp and Sausage Jambalaya in Rice Cooker
Fri 12/31 - NEW YEARS EVE PARTY!!!
Sat 1/01 - Ham Strata
Sun 1/02 - Pasta in Marinara Sauce, Salad
Mon 1/03 - Pizza

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Diane's Cuban Style Pork Stew (in the Rice Cooker!!!)

Diane's Cuban Style Pork Stew (in the Rice Cooker!!!)


You can make really great food quickly with a little help from the super market for this warm and satisfying winter meal.

1 large box of Goya Yellow Spanish style rice
1 pound pork loin, cut into large chunks
1 14 ounce can black beans
1 14 ounce can corn niblets or 1 1/2 cups frozen corn
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 small can chopped chilis
1 onion diced
3 1/2 cups of water

Put everything in the rice cooker including all the liquids from the canned veggies. Set on rice mix or white rice if your machine doesn't have a "mix" setting.

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OMG - These Short Ribs are awesome!!!

I love good beef. I love a steak and prime rib and roast beef. I have to have it rare, or black and blue. If it's even a smidge past medium rare, I won't eat it. For this reason, I obviously don't eat beef stew. It is well done and I can't stomach that.

For that reason, it shocked me that I even wanted to try short ribs. I have been watching chefs make them for years. They always looked awesome, but knowing that it was well done beef, made me shake my head and say not for me.

Well, we are on a very tight budget right now. The company that delivers my groceries had short ribs on sale for a price that made me sit back and say "wow, I wish I liked them." I looked up some recipes and in one of them there was a comment about how this is the only beef that the reader would eat well done. So, I decided to try it.

I found a recipe that suited our tastes and tried it today. I AM HOOKED!! I am going to try them in many different styles now. See the recipe posted with the menu for this week.

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Diane's Menu 11/13 - 11/19/2010

Diane's Menu 11/13 - 11/19/2010

Saturday 11/13 Curried Chicken in Slow Cooker over Rice
Sunday 11/14 Turkey, Garlic Smashed Potatoes, Broccoli
Monday 11/15 Pizza
Tuesday 11/16 BBQ Turkey Quesidillas
Wednesday 11/17 Roast Pork with Chutney Glaze, Sweet Potatoes, Corn
Thursday 11/18 Turkey Pot Pie
Friday 11/19 Pasta and Peas in garlic sauce

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Diane's Menu November 4-November 12

Diane's Menu 11/5/2010 - 11/12/2010


Thursday 11/4 - Chicken Pot Pie
Friday 11/5 - Grilled Garlic Steak Caesar Salad
Saturday 11/6 - Pasta Amatriciana
Sunday 11/7 - Pork Chops, Sweet Potatoes and Sauteed Spinach
Monday 11/8 - Pizza
Tuesday 11/9 - Burgers, Cole Slaw
Wednesday 11/10 - Hot Sausage, Rice, Broccoli and Cheese Pie
Thursday 11/11 - Out with friends
Friday 11/12 - Rib eye Steak, Baked Potato, Salad

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Diane's Menu 6/29/2010 - 7/7/2010

Diane's Menu 6/28/2010 - 7/7/2010

6/28 Monday - Take-out pizza
6/29 Tuesday - Pasta Marinara and Salad
6/30 Wednesday - Caesar Salad with Grilled Shrimp and Chicken
7/1 Thursday - Hot Dogs and Beans
7/2 Friday - Spaghetti Amatriciana
7/3 Saturday - Kielbasa and Bean Stew in Rice Cooker
7/4 Sunday - Steak, Sweet Potato Salad, Corn on the Cob
7/5 Monday - Take-out pizza
7/6 Tuesday - Grilled Hot Sausage Grinders, String Bean Salad
7/7 Wednesday - Spinach Ravioli Florentine

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Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Warm Chutney Dressing

Recipe courtesy Devon Delaney

A blend of traditional and fanciful holiday flavors, this side dish is really delicious, all my favorite holiday flavors. I invented this recipe to bring to my in-laws at Thanksgiving time because they needed a new way to serve sweet potatoes. No overly-sweet marshmallows in this! We love it!

Prep Time:
20 min
Inactive Prep Time:
--
Cook Time:
35 min

Level:
Intermediate

Serves:
8 servings

Ingredients
Salad:

* 4 medium-sized sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
* 5 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
* 1 teaspoon salt, plus more as needed
* 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
* 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
* 1 cup raw green pumpkin seeds (also known as pepitas)
* 1 cup dried cranberries
* 1 cup chopped scallions (green and white)
* 1 cup julienned roasted red pepper

Dressing:

* 6 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
* 1/3 cup mango chutney
* 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
* 2 tablespoons honey
* 2 garlic cloves, minced
* 1/4 cup olive oil

Directions

Make the Salad: Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

In a roasting pan, combine the potatoes, 3 tablespoons of the olive oil, rosemary, salt, pepper, cumin and ginger. Stir to combine and bake until the potatoes are fork-tender and golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pumpkin seeds and cook, stirring, until toasted. Transfer the seeds to a plate and season with salt and pepper. In a small bowl, combine the cranberries, scallions, and red pepper and set aside.

Make the Dressing: Prepare the dressing by combining all the ingredients (except for the olive oil) in a small saucepan and heat. Remove from heat and whisk in the olive oil.

Assemble salad by gently tossing the roasted potatoes with the red pepper mixture. Add enough of the dressing to coat and garnish with toasted pumpkin seeds. Serve with extra dressing on the side.

Menu 10-5-2009 to 10-11-2009

Monday 10-5 - Pizza
Tuesday 10-6 - Roasted Chicken, Quinoa and Spinach Pilaf
Wednesday 10-7 - Strip Steak, Grilled Potato Salad, Broccoli
Thursday 10-8 - Chicken Sorrentino over Spinach and Rice Pilaf
Friday 10-9 - dinner sized Shrimp Cocktail, Salad
Saturday 10-10 - Indian Almond Curry Lamb **
Sunday 10-11 - Pulled Pork, Cole Slaw, Corn Bread

** from Glorious One-Pot Meals Cookbook recipes and review to follow.

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Another Recipe from Glorious One-Pot Meals: Argentinian Beef

For those of you who haven't followed my previous posts about Infusion Cooking in the past few days here are some of the rules:

Measurements are to be nearly exact

Cast Iron Dutch Oven - 2-3 quarts - no bigger unless you double the recipe

Layering as directed and don't mix up the food until you serve it.

This particular recipe made with my changes in () is totally Simply Filling, with a whole grain, lean meat, 4 servings of vegetables. It is VERY filling! Could easily be 3 servings instead of 2. If you eat 1/2 of it, it is 10 points. If you eat 1/2 of it, it is 7 points.

We had this for dinner today. Our dinner is mid afternoon. My husband didn't like it. Next time I make this I will add quite a bit of garlic. I found it a bit bland even with the amount of cumin that I used.

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Argentinian Beef

Feel free to make this recipe using ground turkey or pork instead of beef, or even meat-substitute crumbles. You could also use a tenderloin cut of meat. Look for peeled and chopped butternut squash in your supermarket vegetable aisle. Serves 2

2 teaspoons olive oil

1/2 medium onion, minced

1/2 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and minced

8-10 cremini mushrooms, sliced

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin (I used 2 teaspoons or 4x the amount)

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper (I didn't use salt at all, but LOTS of pepper)

3/4 pound ground meat (I used 7% fat or 93% fat free)

1 cup white rice (or any grain, I used brown rice that had been soaked for 30 minutes)

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon broth (preferably beef) or water (I used fat free beef broth)

2 cups peeled, cubed butternut squash (I used a single block package of already cooked and frozen butternut squash. I put it in frozen.)

1/2 head broccoli, cut into florets (about 2 cups)

Preheat oven to 450° F.

Brush inside and lid of a 2 quart cast-iron Dutch oven with olive oil.

In a large bowl, mix the onion, bell pepper, mushrooms, cumin, salt and pepper. Add the meat to the bowl and mix well. Set aside. If using tenderloins rather than ground meat, set the onion-spice mixture aside and simply spoon over the steaks in step 5.

Rinse the rice in a strainer until the water runs clear. Tip the rice into the pot, add the liquid and stir to make an even layer.

Drop ragged forkfuls of the meat mixture into the pot. If using tenderloins, arrange them in the pot and blanket with the onion-spice mixture.

Arrange the squash in a layer, then load in the broccoli until the pot is full.

Cover and bake for about 45 minutes, or until 3 minutes after the aroma of a fully cooked meal escapes the oven.

Serve immediately.

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Diane's Menu September 21 - 27, 2009

Diane's Menu September 21 - 27, 2009

Monday 9/21 Adobe Pork (one pot meal with pork, rice, corn, chilli's, spices and green bell pepper)
Tuesday 9/22 Red Curry Chicken (one pot meal with chicken, brown rice, coconut milk, carrots, chickpeas, and spinach)
Wednesday 9/23 Argentinian Beef (one pot meal with ground beef, butternut squash, broccoli, and brown rice)
Thursday 9/24 Chicken Sorrentino
Friday 9/25 Hot Sausage over Polenta with peppers and spinach
Saturday 9/26 Moroccan Chicken with many spices, mushrooms and sugar snap peas, over whole wheat couscous.
Sunday 9/27 Football fare - Chicken Strips buffalo style, vegetable crudites

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I have a new cookbook called Glorious One-Pot Meals by Elizabeth Yarnell. All of the one pot meals listed come from her book. Feel free to ask for the recipes if you would like them. I would highly recommend the book.




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