Whole Wheat Pasta with Roasted Eggplant and Tomatoes

If it’s roasted, I’m in love with it! Try this recipe from Martha Stewart for pasta with roasted eggplant and tomatoes. Park at Hurstbourne, when you serve this up, let us know how it went over with your crowd by commenting below.

Ingredients

Serves 6

* 1 1/2 pounds eggplant, peeled in alternating stripes and cut into 3/4-inch pieces
* 1 large onion, halved and cut into 1/2-inch wedges
* 2 pints (4 cups) cherry tomatoes
* Coarse salt and ground pepper
* 1/4 cup olive oil
* 3/4 pound whole-wheat penne, (or other short, tubular pasta)
* 1/4 cup sliced, pitted Kalamata or oil-cured black olives
* 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a medium (11-by-15-inch) roasting pan, combine eggplant, onion, tomatoes, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and oil; toss well to coat. Roast until tender, tossing mixture halfway through, about 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente, according to package instructions. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water; drain pasta, and return to pot.
3. Add roasted eggplant mixture, olives, and Parmesan. Toss to coat, adding 1/4 to 1/2 cup reserved pasta water, if desired. Serve immediately, sprinkled with more cheese.

A Very Grown Up Milkshake

Even in the cold, this milkshake will definitely bring all the boys to the yard!! Park at Hurstbourne, try this Cocoa Cayenne Milkshake from FineLiving.com and shake it up a bit!

A New Twist – Sun-dried Tomato Dip

Treat your Superbowl partiers to a new taste for the game.  This wonderful Sun dried Tomato Dip from Food Network will leave them wanting more, even after the game is said and done.  Let us know if it was a hit with your crowd by commenting below.

Ingredients

* 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and chopped (8 tomatoes)

* 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

* 1/2 cup sour cream

* 1/2 cup good mayonnaise

* 10 dashes, hot red pepper sauce

* 1 teaspoon kosher salt

* 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

* 2 scallions, thinly sliced (white and green parts)

Directions

Puree the tomatoes, cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, red pepper sauce, salt and pepper in a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Add the scallions and pulse twice. Serve at room temperature

Throw It In and Let It Go – One Pot Meal

Ingredients

• 4 pounds chuck meat, cut into 3- to 4-inch pieces, or 4 pounds precut stew meat
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 bottle dry red wine
• 1 1/2 pounds shallots, peeled
• 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 8 sprigs fresh thyme

Directions

1. Heat oven to 300° F. Season the beef with the salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or ovenproof pot over medium-high heat. Add some of the beef to the pot and brown on all sides. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with the remaining beef.
2. Spoon off and discard all but 1 tablespoon of the drippings. Add the wine and cook, stirring and scraping the bottom, for 3 minutes.
3. Return the beef to the pot along with the shallots and broth. Bring to a boil. Skim any foam. Add the thyme. Cover and transfer to oven until the beef is tender, about 2 hours. Spoon into individual bowls.

For more one pot recipes, click here.

Will They Eat It? Recipes That Every Child Loves

Feeding picky eaters can be a challenge.  Colors, textures, and smells all play a part in whether or not those mashed potatoes get eaten.  But Real Simple has 50 sure fire recipes that have even the most discerning eater diving in.

Bacon Wrapped Dates

Cheesy Goodness

Mmm….grilled cheese. Warm, crunchy, cheesy deliciousness that pairs well with tomato soup or by itself. You can go “old school” and use American singles, jazz it up with pepper jack, add a little meat (which I personally think disqualifies it from being grilled cheese) or tomato, use some fancy bread and truly “have it your way.”

Much like the cult followers of bacon, a community has developed around this hot, yummy sandwich. In fact, a competition called the Grilled Cheese Invitational holds contests in Los Angeles, Northern California, and Austin, Texas to see who can make the best grilled cheese.

Get creative when you make your own grilled cheese sandwich, add new spices or try different cheeses or breads. Here is a delicious-sounding recipe to get your started:

South of the Border Grilled Cheese

1/4 cup tomato-based salsa

2 tablespoons fire-roasted canned, diced green chiles, drained

1 teaspoon taco seasoning

2 tablespoons butter, softened

8 slices hearty artisan jalapeno bread or tomato bread

4 ounces queso quesadilla cheese

1. In a small bowl, combine salsa, chiles and taco seasoning; let stand 5 minutes

2. Butter one side of each slice of bread. spread salsa mixture on non-buttered side of 4 slices of bread; top each side with 1/4 cup of cheese. Cover with remaining 4 slices of bread, buttered side out.

3. Place sandwiches on an electric griddle heated to 275 degrees, or in a preheated skillet over medium heat.

4. cook 4-5 minutes per side, or until the bread is golden brown and the cheese is melted.

How do you make your grilled cheese?

Puppy Goodies

I love my dog, but I don’t think I could bake him dog treats. It’s not that I don’t want to, it’s just I barely cook for myself. If this is the kind of thing you’re into, check out this recipe for Beefy Bacon Biscuits.

Eating Out On A Budget

Sometimes, you don’t feel like bringing your lunch to work or cooking dinner.  Therefore, you rally the troops in your house to figure out an eating out plan that won’t break the bank.

Since the economy has taken a nose-dive, restaurants have taken a big hit. Even fast food places like Burger King can’t get as many people to come in for the dollar menu prices as they could before.

I found an article that tells the top five places to go if you would like to get the most bang for your buck! So, when you want to go out to eat, unless you’re really hungry, you’re almost guaranteed to leave with enough food to take with you for your lunch the next day at work!

Find out which restaurants give you more for your money here.

Ribbon ans Swirl Cookies

Vanilla Dough:

1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1 large egg
1 to 1 1/4 teaspoons mint extract
1 cup unsalted butter, (2 sticks), room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour

Chocolate Dough:

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup natural cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1 cup unsalted butter, (2 sticks) room temperature
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions here

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