Penne with tomato sauce and cobbler !!!

Hey Bloggers Kara here, I have been looking for some great recipes to make for dinner and also some desert ideas. I have this South Beach diet cookbook and I found two great recipes. First, I made Penne with tomato sauce. This is spouse to be a side dish for chicken, but I decided to make it solo. I also made this delicious Blueberry Blackberry cobbler this recipe called for just blueberries but I wanted to make them different. Below are the two recipes, with a little difference between the book and what I made.

Penne with homemade tomato sauce:
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, but I used 3.
1 medium onion, finely chopped, but I used one half.
3 cloves of garlic, minced, but I used 2.
2 teaspoons dried basil.
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, but I left these out.
3 cans of unsalted tomatoes, but I used 1.
1/2 teaspoon of salt and ground black pepper.
1 package (16 ounce) of whole wheat Penne pasta.

You need to bring to boil a pot of water for the noodles, while you make your sauce.
Then, you combine the oil, onions garlic, basil, and pepper flakes. Simmer this on medium to low heat for about five to seven minutes to garlic and onions are softened. Add your tomatoes and salt and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low, stirring occasionally for twenty minutes. While sauce is cooking add the pasta to boiling water and cook according to the package. Drain and toss with the sauce.

Blueberry Blackberry Cobbler:
4 pints of blueberries frozen or thawed, I added blackberries.
1/4  cup plus 2 tablespoons of granular sugar, I used organic sugar.
2 cups of whole grain pastry flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons trans free margarine, chilled. I used the spray butter.
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons 1% milk, I used soy milk.

Preheat oven to 375. Combine the blueberries with 1/4 cup of sugar in a large bowl, add mixture to 9X13 backing dish. Combine flour with the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar, baking powder and cinnamon. Add the margarine and using a blender or 2 knives cut in until mixture resembles course meal. Stir in 3/4 cup of the milk to make it sticky. Drop the dough by large spoonfuls over the fruit, covering most of it. Brush dough with the other 2 tablespoons of milk. Bake until topping is golden brown and berries are hot, 35 to 40 minutes. Serve warm.

I hope that you have fun cooking these dishes as much as I did. Remember that you can mix up recipes and add your own twist, that is what makes cooking so fun ! So have fun with it and happy cooking !!!

The New Kitchen!

Finally, after 3 months, we have the kitchen put together!

Above Doors

The Stove and Counter tops
(Steamer, Pasta, Cinnamon Liquor, Marsala, Olive Oil, Balsamic, Spoons, Knives, Food Processor, Rice, and Beans)  

Spice Table and Basket 

The Chef Wall

Chicken Marsala.... VEGAN!

I bought some Morning Star Chik'n Strips without really knowing what I was going to make with them. While Kara and I were out running around we passed Olive Garden and I said, "Oh, I want some Chicken Marsala." It's my favorite thing at Olive Garden. Then it dawned on me! Make Chicken Marsala with the Chik'n Strips. It's super easy and GOOD!

1 Pack of Morning Star Chik'n Strips

3/4 Cups of Marsala Cooking Wine

1/4 Cups of Water

1 Table Spoon of Flour

2 Table Spoons of Vegan Butter

Saute the chik'n in the butter until you have reached 140 degree internal temperature. Then add the Marsala, Water, and sprinkle the flour (keep it moving to keep from clumping). Let that simmer, reduce, and thicken. (Mushrooms go good with it too, but Kara doesn't like 'shrooms so I didn't add those.)

We had it with Mashed Potatoes and it was GREAT!

Watermelon Spritz!

I actually forgot about this one until I started going through my phone and found the pic!

It's a Watermelon Spritz. 

We took some chunked seedless watermelon and a carrot blended it with a little Apple Juice and poured it over Pierre Sparkling Water! 

It's great!