Slow Cooker Chickpea and Garden Vegetable Pasta sauce

Prep Time: 23 minutes
Cook Time: 9 hours + 30 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes
 
Recipe Source: Slow Cooker Revolution

(I found a copy of the recipe online here.)

I made this over the summer, and am finally posting about it. This was really good. The sauce was very tasty on pasta and would probably be good on its own as well. If you like chickpeas this is a good one to try.

It froze pretty well. The zucchini got a little soft, but was acceptable.

I used canned diced tomatoes which made it is a little easier to prepare.

Make Ahead Spinach Manicotti

Prep Time: 35 minutes
Freezer Time: 1 hour before wrapping
Finish Time: 50 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Make Ahead Cook (book) 

This was pretty good. I love the technique in this one, using lasagna noodles and rolling them up. It might make the meal more "carb-heavy" than some people want. I wonder if it would be possible to cut noodles in half and roll them up that way. Hmmm, I might try that sometime.

Honestly, you could change this recipe in many ways. There is a lot of cheese in here, and I'm sure you could use less and add other ingredients to increase the volume. (Vegetables, beans, meat, etc.) I will probably experiment with this one some more because it worked out really well.

The biggest pain of the recipe is freezing them individually and then wrapping up into meal size packets. But that really wasn't too hard. It is worth it to get the 2-4 meals for two people from about 40 minutes total work. The individual wrapping is great since you take out how many you want to make for dinner, and I really love that flexibility.

Breakfast Strata

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Rest Time: 1-24 hours
Cook Time: 50-55 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Comfort Food Makeovers

Recipe is available from americatestkitchenfeed.com which is a great place to watch for free access to their recipes and videos.

I make stratas all the time, most often a skillet strata as a way to use up leftovers. They can be done without the resting time. But this is a nice one if you have the time to rest the strata, because the assembly is easier. Plus it is nice to get something done ahead of time.

They say to use whole milk and not substitute. I make stratas enough that I know I am fine with the lower fat milk. I still found this rich enough. In fact I like it better this way. It was very good. Leftovers were still good. I even froze a serving and had that later, and that was good too. I will definitely use this recipe again.

Pepperoni Pasta Bake

Prep Time: 27 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes
  
Recipe Source: Everyday Food (October 2012)

I liked this recipe because I made it ahead and then was able to put in the oven later. Also, I happened to have some leftover pepperoni and ricotta that needed to be used up, so this was perfect.

It was relatively simple to make considering I thought filling the shells would be a pain. I could probably make this quicker if I started boiling water sooner.

I used only 15oz ricotta which was plenty to fill the shells. I also used frozen spinach instead of the zucchini. It all worked well. I didn't have fresh basil, which would have been nice.

It got a thumbs up from my picky eater. He didn't realize that there was spinach in the shell filling.

Chicken Barley Soup

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Everyday Food (October 2011) 

This is a a super quick and easy recipe. I think it is one of the fastest soups I've ever made. It can be made quickly because it uses quick cooking barley. You add spinach the last minute, which I really liked. However, the soup is good without the spinach too. I will definitely be making this soup again because it was so simple. 

Spaghetti Fritatta

Total Time: 25 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes
  
Recipe Source: Everyday Food (September 2004)

This recipe was inspired by the EF Sept 2004 Cooking for One article. The actual recipe called for Jarlsberg cheese and peas, but I used up what I had on hand, and it was delicious. I also used Healthy Harvest Spaghetti which I liked in there. I didn't have leftover pasta, which is the idea for this recipe, but it cooked while I prepped and cooked the spinach so the timing was fine.

I will definitely make this again. It is nice to have one serving only and I like the added carbs to eggs from the spaghetti. It makes it more substantial and filling. 

Spaghetti Fritatta

• 2oz spaghetti cooked
• 3 oz baby spinach, chopped
• 1-2T minced onion
• 1 t. olive oil
• 2 T shredded cheese (I used Pepper Jack) 
• 2 eggs
• 2 T milk
• salt and pepper

1. Turn on broiler to high. 
2. Start your water boiling for the pasta if you don't have leftovers. I broke pasta in half so I could cook in a smaller pan and heat up less water to save time.
3. Heat oil in an 8" ovensafe skillet and saute onions for a few minutes. 
4. Add spinach and saute until wilted and moisture dries up a bit. You may need to add it in batches because of lack of room.
5. Wish eggs and milk in a medium bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add grated cheese. Add pasta and stir to combine. 
6. When spinach is cooked, add egg mixture to pan, and stir well to combine. Cook for 5-7 minutes until eggs start to set, but are still runny on top.
7. Put pan in broiler and broil up to 4 minutes till eggs are cooked through. 

Serves 1. 

Chicken Florentine (Light)

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 55 minutes
Grade: B+
Make Again: Maybe
Recipe Source: Light and Healthy 2010

It may not look all that appetizing, but this was pretty good. The sauce was very tasty. I wish it was quicker though. I could have done more prep while things were cooking, but when I have time I like to prep first because it is less stressful.

One annoying thing about this recipe is that is calls for 2T of heavy cream. When trying to cook lighter, that isn't an ingredient I'm going to use up a lot. I will have to try to figure out a way to use up the rest.

I only put spinach on half, because I was cooking for someone who doesn't like his spinach cooked. It was good though. The sauce mixed with the spinach is a good lighter sub for creamed spinach. 

Skillet Ramen with Beef and Spinach

Total Time: 19 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: The Best Skillet Recipes

I don't have The Best Skillet Recipes, and those recipes are not online.  But I do have the Best of America's Test Kitchen 2010, and this is one of the featured recipes.

I loved it.  So simple and fast.  It just happens that I found a small piece of flank steak in my freezer (single serving size) and I had one package of ramen noodles, so I cut the recipe in 1/4. It worked out perfectly (although it did involve more math than I wanted while cooking.)

I skipped the Shiitake mushrooms, since I don't like them, and that was fine.  The broth made from garlic, ginger, chicken broth, sherry and soy sauce was very flavorful. (You throw away the seasoning packet.)  I wasn't sure about having baby spinach wilted in the broth (I don't love it wilted) but it tasted good.

I will definitely have to purchase some more ramen noodles and cut up some flank steak into smaller pieces and freeze so I can make this quick dinner when I am eating along and short on time.

Savory Bread Pudding with Spinach and Feta

Prep Time: 17 minutes
Rest Time: 20 - 30 minutes
Cook Time: 60 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Maybe

Recipe Source: Best of 2010


This was in The Best of America's Test Kitchen 2010 book, and appears to originally come from The Best Slow and Easy Recipes cookbook.

This is definitely an easy recipe with very little effort.  I'm not exactly sure what the difference is between a strata and a bread pudding.  I guess bread puddings are a little richer.  You only use yolks, and the recipe called for 3c. heavy cream and 2c. whole milk.  I usually make my stratas with low-fat milk.  There was no way I was making this with all that cream - too heavy for me.  I ended up using whole milk and about 1/3 c. cream (for a half recipe) instead.  It still was plenty rich.


I did really like this, but guess I will probably just stick to making stratas which I do quite often.  They are lighter and I can basically make them from memory with whatever leftovers I have on hand.

Baked Pasta with Spinach Ricotta and Prosciutto

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes

Grade: B+

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Everyday Food (2004)

This isn't my favorite baked pasta dish, and it can get a little dry if you aren't careful. However, I do make it occasionally for two reasons. 1) It uses up milk, which I often have too much of, and 2) it is very, very simple to make. The only real prep needed is to cook the pasta, grate the parm and dice the proscuitto. Other than that it is just mixing everything up and putting in the pan to bake.

The most important ingredient is the proscuitto. It is what flavors the dish, so if you like that, you may like this too.

Baked Pasta with Chicken Sausage

Prep Time: 38 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Everyday Food

This may not look that appetizing, but it is a very delicious baked pasta dish. The recipe makes two casseroles, one for eating tonight, and one for freezing, which is nice. It does use a little cream, which adds a nice richness, but overall, this is not a very heavy dish, considering it is a baked pasta dish.

I like that is included spinach, but I would probably chop it up a little first, because it got a little bit stringy. Otherwise, this works great as is.

Tomato and Sausage Risotto

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Everyday Food

This was good comfort food for our first real cold spell. I liked the flavor of this a lot, and although it did require stirring, otherwise is a very easy recipe. I made lighter, by using only 1 t. oil and 1 T of butter, and using Turkey sausage (and only 2 links, instead of 3). Overall, a pretty healthy and nice one-pot meal, since you get vegetables, protein and rice combined.

I happened to make this with rice that said "best by March 2005". But it was fine. I will probably make this again, if I can remember to do so.

Apple and Chicken Sausage Salad

Total Time: 25 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Best Light Recipe

I only make this about once a year, but it is really, really good. It was one of the completely brand new (as far as I know) recipes from the Best Light Recipe. (Many of the recipes were reworked from original CI recipes.)

I used an Apple Chicken sausage from Trader Joes with a little bit of maple flavoring and they worked really well with this salad. I skipped the walnuts, because I don't like them, and there was plenty of flavor, crunch and interest in this salad without them.

Miraculous Spinach Quiche

Prep Time: 21 minutes
Cook Time: 45-55 minutes
Rest Time: 10-20 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Baker's Banter Blog

This is supposed to be like one of those recipes where you mix everything together, but the crust ends up on the bottom. This did not happen for me, and I didn't expect it too. The mixture was too thick for this to happen. But it didn't really matter. It still was easy to slice and serve. It was filling and good, so I would probably make again.

I didn't put the topping on, and I used a 16 oz bag of frozen spinach instead of a 10oz box. That worked well, and I think it was better that way.

Roasted Chicken and Bread Salad

Prep Time: 19 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes

Grade: A+

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: The Best Chicken Recipe

I normally wouldn't give a recipe an A+ until I had made it a few times, but I know this one is a real winner for me. It was incredibly easy to make, and delicious.

My bread did overcook just a bit, but that was because my chicken took longer than expected and the pieces were not all under the chicken. I used a demi-baguette from Trader Joe's which had lots of crust. It might work better from a larger loaf with less crust.

My only wish is that I could find a way to make this on the grill, because I won't want to be roasting chicken too much this summer. The beauty of this recipe is cooking the chicken on top of the bread, so I'm not sure how that would work.

The recipe was inspired from Zuni Cafe Cookbook's (I'll try to remember to post the link later to that recipe when I can find it.)

I do think I could skip the pine nuts altogether. I love pine nuts, but they seemed to get lost in the salad and I didn't notice them. So I'm not sure they are worth the calories. I forgot to add the shaved parmesan, and I think that is the addition that is probably worth it.

I will definitely be making this one again!

Skillet Penne with Chicken Sausage

Total Time: 40 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: The Best Chicken Recipe

This was good. I've tried a lot of the skillet pasta recipes don't always like them. Actually, I usually like them, but feel like they are more effort than I want. This one is pretty easy. The total time is not all work, and entire dish probably could be made in less than 30 minutes if you were quick. (I bet this recipe is in the Best 30-Minute cookbook too, or at least something VERY similar.)

I loved that this had spinach in it, so it truly is a one-pot meal. I might add more spinach next time (just because I like it!) I felt like the Pine nuts were kind of lost in this dish, so I may just skip them next time.

Chicken with Orzo Spinach and Feta

Total Time: 40 minutes

Grade: B

Make Again: Maybe

Recipe Source: The Best Chicken Recipe

This was in the Cooking for Two chapter (or something like that). It was fine, but not my favorite. I thought the lemon flavor was too strong (even though I used a little less than called for) and it covered up other flavors. I might make again if I have the ingredients handy, just because it was a nice one pan meal that wasn't too complicated to make.

Update: I realized later that I forgot to toast the Orzo first and instead added it with the broth. Also, I used Vegetable broth since I didn't have Chicken on hand. Both these things probably affected the flavor, so my review is possibly not fair. If I make again, I will use less lemon.

Crisp Goat Cheese Salad

Prep Time: 20 minutes (without potatoes)

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Everyday Food (March 2003)

I love goat cheese, and I really like this salad. CI has a goat cheese salad recipe too, but it is more complicated, and I'm not sure it is worth the extra effort.

This recipe calls for red potatoes, to make more hearty, I guess, but I don't always include them. I usually put it on baby spinach, which is my favorite for salads.

As usual, I made this a little lighter with less oil - less for brushing on cheese disks and less in the dressing. I use about half the oil in the dressing and usually use some water instead, to cut the dressing otherwise it is too strong.

Skillet Spinach Strata

Prep Time: 23 minutes
Cook Time: 12-15 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Best 30-Minute Recipes

Actually, this took me 40 minutes, and I still was not sure that the insides were cooked through. However, my oven was not at the specified 425, because it takes so long to preheat. Next time, I must start preheating before I start the recipe. That would save 5 minutes. The rest of the time overage came from spilling and cleanup, and possibly just being slower than the ATK cooks! I took more than the 3 minutes to toast the bread, because my pan was overflowing. I used 4 slices of a wide pan bread instead of 5 of regular, and maybe that was still too much.

Anyway, this recipe was excellent. I reduced the butter from 4 T to 2 T and it worked just fine. There was still a buttery taste to the final product. The only complaint I had was that a few bites had too much garlic. It was hard to distrubute evenly with the bread, so I will have to do that with more care next time.

Spinach Dip

Prep Time: minutes
Cook Time: minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (May 2002)

This is a pretty good dip recipe and it works to use lower fat sour cream and mayo. It is more green than the usual recipe which I like.