Creamy Lemon and Garlic Pasta with Artichoke Hearts

i needed dinner in a hurry last night. i had 2 children otherwise engaged (thank you finding Nemo) and about 15 min.

pasta! lemons! artichoke hearts! garlic! oh yay!
here's what i came up with:


yum, right? i concur.

Creamy Lemon & Garlic Pasta with Artichoke Hearts
You Need:
1/2 box angel hair pasta
1 lemon (zested & cut in 1/2)
10 artichoke hearts (chopped)
1 3/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup grated Parmesean Cheese
1 tblsp minced garlic
2 tblsp butter
salt & pepper (to taste)
fresh basil (to taste- you can also use dry if you have no fresh on hand)

Directions: Salt a pot of water & put it on to boil (add a splash of EVVO as well). Cook the angel hair according to directions & drain.
Using the same pot: Melt the butter over medium heat. Toss in the garlic, lemon zest, the juice of the lemon, the artichoke hearts, salt & the pepper. Saute for a few minutes (don't let the garlic burn!)
Stir in the sour cream, parmesean & basil.
Allow the mixture to cook or a minute or so- once heated through, add the pasta & toss to coat.
Sprinkle with some basil & eat up.

Enjoy!

This was also good the next day for lunch. I simply re-heated in the micro & added a little cream to moisten.

Baked Eggs

thanks to evil Pinterest i HAD to make some baked eggs.
there are so many variations that my head almost exploded with ideas.

finally i had to simply just throw a bunch of ingredients in the ramakin & hope for the best.



Baked Eggs:
You Need (per ramakin)
2 eggs
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 tblsp butter
1/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese
rosemary (to taste)
thyme (to taste)
salt & pepper (to taste)
1/3 cup chopped turkey (or ham or bacon or veggies or whatever)

Directions: Pre heat oven to 375 & butter ramakins.
Crack the eggs directly into the ramakin (don't break the yolks!) Sprinkle in the cheese. Toss in the meat (or veggies) Pour in the cream. Add the rosemary, thyme, saly & pepper (to taste)

Pop them into the oven for 10 - 15 min (depending on how you want your yolks)
Remove & serve immediately.

These were awesome. I actually cooked them for 20 min (because i am so very wary of runny egg whites) but this meant my yolks were fully cooked (which was fine) However next time i'm going to go with 15 minutes in the hopes for fully done whites & nice, runny yolks.

We ate the with some toast & we were happy.

Nutella Cupcakes

i think the world of Nutella. i eat it for breakfast (with toast). i eat it for lunch (with peanut butter). i eat it for dinner (with...pasta?)

in fact, i find reasons to eat it all the time. i justify & make excuses & feel no guilt or shame. because it's that awesome.

you know what else i do all of the above with? cupcakes.

so...cupcakes + Nutella. omg. ::head explodes::

Nutella Frosted Cupcakes (adapted from Baking Bites)

10 tbsp butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups sifted all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
Nutella, 12 teaspoons. (1 teaspoon for each cupcakes- give or take give)

Preheat oven to 325° Line 12 muffin tins with paper liners.

Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy,about 2 minutes. Add in eggs one at a time, until fully incorporated. (Worry not if the batter isn't smooth) Add vanilla.

Sift together flour, salt and baking powder & add to wet mixture. Stir until batter is uniform and no flour remains.

Using an ice cream scoop or spoon , fill each muffin liner with batter. They should be 3/4 full. Top each cake with 1 heaping teaspoon of Nutella (i also used my cookie scoop for this part- made it much easier). Swirl Nutella in with a toothpick, making sure to fold a bit of batter up over the Nutella.

Bake for 20 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.

Remove to a wire rack to cool.

Makes 12 delectable cupcakes. (p.s. i doubled the recipe because more = better)

Try not to eat them all at once. You'll make yourself sick. Not sick of Nutella, because that's not even possible, just legit sick because of so much win.

Chewy Oatmeal Cookies with Reese's Pieces

my husband would probably divorce me & marry Reese's Pieces if that were at all possible. his love for Reese's gives E.T.'s a run for it's money.

me, on the other hand only find them to be so-so. like, i'll eat them, but i'm not going to rave about them.

but i do rave over oatmeal cookies. without raisins (gag). and since i had plenty of oatmeal & a bag of Mini Reese's Pieces in the cupboard- i decided to make us both happy.

Chewy Oatmeal Cookies with Reese's Pieces (adapted from The Girl Who Ate Everything)
You Need:

2 cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup butter, melted (1½ sticks)
1 cup packed brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 ½ cups old-fashioned oats
2 cups mini Reese's Pieces (or whatever you want)

Directions: Preheat the oven to 325° Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Melt butter and let cool slightly.

Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.

In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended. Beat in the cinnamon, vanilla, egg, and egg yolk for 2-3 minutes until light and creamy. Mix in the flour mixture until just blended. Add the Reese's Pieces. Mix until just blended.

Place tblsp sized balls of dough (i used a cookie scoop) onto parchment lined cookie sheet, flatten slightly, and bake for 14-16 minutes. Do not overbake. The edges should look brown and the centers still slightly soft. Let the cookies rest on the cookie sheet for a couple of minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.


Feel free to eat them all & justify it by reminding yourself that they're chock full of oatmeal.

Creamy Sausage & Pasta Skillet with Balsamic Reduction

Creamy Sausage & Pasta Skillet with Balsamic Reduction

You Need:

3 sweet sausage links

3/4 box pasta (ziti pref)

2 cups beef broth

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1 cup sour cream

1/4 red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp fennel seeds

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp white pepper

cornstarch mixed into a little water

Directions: Cook the pasta according to directions on box. Drain. While the pasta is cooking- prepare the rest.

Remove the sausage from the casings & crumble into a skillet. Add the fennel seeds & brown on medium heat. Add the broth, balsamic, white pepper, onion powder & red pepper flakes & simmer on medium heat until reduced by 1/2.

Once reduced, stir in the sour cream. Simmer for another 3-5 min & stream in cornstarch (to preferred thickness).

Stir until thickened. Add the pasta & mix well.

This is super easy & comes together really quickly. It's something i like to make on Sunday & save for a meal during the week. I simply cook it all in one skillet & pop the skillet in the fridge. Then i can simply re-heat it on the stove (and if it's a little dry i add about 1/4 cup cream)

Bon appetite.

Creamy Lemon Gemelli

quick, easy, spring/summer- yum. lemon & pasta are always a good combo- add some cream cheese & you've got something light with a little bit of extra rich.

Creamy Lemon Gemelli (Kraft)

You Need:

4 cups uncooked gemelli pasta

2 tblsp butter

4 oz (1/2 package) Philly cream cheese (cubed)

1 cup whole milk

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (divided)

1 tblsp lemon zest

1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Directions: Cook the pasta according to directions on box. Drain & set aside.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan on medium heat- once melted, stir in the milk & cream cheese. Stir until the ream cheese is completely melted & the sauce is well mixed (whisk constantly) Stir in 2 tblsp parmesan.

Add the pasta & the lemon zest- stir until evenly coated. Top with the remaining parmesan & black pepper.

This turned out awesome- nice & lemony & not too heavy. I added a few squeezes of lemon juice as well. It also re-heats really well- if it's a little dry simply stir in a little whole milk or cream.

Nom.