Easy One Pot Tomato Basil Pasta

 

Okay, everyone has been posting this easy one pot recipe on Facebook and pinning it on Pinterest so I HAD to try it. I had to do it for my readers. We needed to see what was so great about this and if it was as easy as it looked. Well, I’m here to tell you....it was all those things! Super easy and pretty darn tasty too. It’s awesome that everything goes in one pot, even the uncooked pasta. What an genius idea! It’s so awesome,  I have to share it with you guys. This is perfect for a quick meal after a long day at work. Throw in some chicken or shrimp and you really have a great meal. Here’s what you need to make this yummy dish.

 

Ingredients:

12	ounces pasta (I used thin spaghetti because I like it best)
1	can (15 ounces) diced tomatoes with liquid ( I used Italian style)
1	large sweet onion, cut in julienne strips
4	cloves garlic, thinly sliced
½	teaspoon red pepper flakes
2	teaspoons dried oregano leaves
2	large sprigs basil (about 10 leaves), chopped
4½	cups vegetable or chicken broth (I used about 1 cup of white wine and the rest homemade chicken broth for better flavor). Can also use water.
2	tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
	Parmesan or feta cheese for garnish (or whatever cheese tickles your fancy) Directions: Place pasta, tomatoes, onion, garlic, basil, in a large stock pot. Pour in vegetable or chicken broth. Sprinkle on top the pepper flakes and oregano. Drizzle top with oil. Cover pot and bring to a boil. How easy is that? Reduce to a low simmer and keep covered and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes or so. Cook until almost all liquid has evaporated. Season to taste with salt and pepper , stirring pasta several times to distribute the liquid in the bottom of the pot. Serve garnished with Feta or Parmesan cheese and maybe a fresh sprig of basil. Everything is better with feta, right??

Sirloin Tips w/Mushrooms

For those of you that know me, you know the hubby and I (and Eli & Henry) are moving back to Atlanta! We are so excited, but it’s a stressful time. David is already working and living in Atlanta and comes home on weekends. When he comes home, I want to cook him some delicious meals. He eats Subway all week for dinner and that’s just not acceptable! I found some beef tips in the freezer and decided I needed to make something with them. I found this recipe on allrecipes.com. I’m going to tell you one change I would make up front. The liquid was a little thin and I would prefer it to be more of a gravy. The next time I make it, I will flour the meat prior to browning it so it will make a thicker sauce. Since it wasn’t thick this time, I whipped up a little cornstarch and liquid mixture and added it back to the pan. That helped. So my recommendation is flour the meat first. Got it? Okay, let’s move on with this recipe. Here’s what you need to get started.

Ingredients:

3 Tablespoons

3 cloves garlic, minced
1.5 pounds beef sirloin
1 – 16 oz can mushroom slices, with liquid
1 – 8 oz  can tomato sauce
salt and pepper to taste
3/4 cup red wine

Directions:

 

Cut beef into cubes and lightly flour. In a large skillet over medium/high heat, heat the olive oil and brown beef cubes with the garlic.

 

 

 

Add mushrooms with liquid, tomato sauce, salt, pepper and red wine. Cook for 30 minutes or until beef cubes are tender. Add a little more wine while cooking if desired.

 

Of course, you'll want to serve this with some rice (or other yummy starch) so you can enjoy more of the liquid/gravy!

Shrimp with Garlic & Parsley

We recently found out that we are relocating to Atlanta. Yes, we are moving back home! It's very exciting and overwhelming at the same time. Since we've been a little busy, I've been looking for quick and easy recipes. You can't eat out for every meal, right? Well, I guess you could, but you might be as big as the side of a house! No comments please. I need to find time to cook at home and make it worth our while. This is a great recipe I found on Pinterest. Quick, easy to prepare and full of flavor! I think you'll like it too. I served this with rice so I'd have a starch to soak up the sauce. You should definitely serve with rice or pasta.....and my rosemary sea salt rolls won't hurt either!

Ingredients:

• 4 to 5 Tbs. olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp. sweet paprika
• 1 lb. medium shrimp, peeled and deveined (I used my large frozen Costco shrimp)
• 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 3 Tablespoons dry white wine
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 Tbs. chopped fresh parsley

Directions:

In a sauté pan over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the garlic, red pepper flakes and paprika and sauté for 1 minute until fragrant.

 

Increase the heat to high, add the shrimp, lemon juice and dry white wine, stir well, and sauté until the shrimp turn pink and are opaque throughout, about 3-5 minutes.

 

Season with salt and black pepper, sprinkle with the parsley, serve and enjoy!