When did my schedule get so full? WHY did it get so full?! I kid you not, our evenings have been full of doing things, and getting home at 9 at night, rushing the baby into bed, and then passing out ourselves. *If* we've eaten dinner it has been Chick-Fil-A salads and wraps (hey...its probably the healthiest fast food), or whatever in the fridge hasn't grown a full head of hair yet. Plus, I was out of town a couple of days, so had to squeeze in grocery shopping during the week too! Whew....I'm loving my Challenge shakes, because if it weren't for them, I wouldn't have the energy to make it through! Haha.
Well, as I said, we have been able to actually be home a few nights, and Hubby is often all for relaxing and eating leftovers. But I (possibly because there's a smidge of insanity in there somewhere) absolutely have to cook some nights! I love cooking, I actually find it therapeutic, and it helps calm and center me. Plus, Hubby always thinks it was delicious. I apologize that there are no pictures for these. Hubby didn't prematurely eat the meal, the pics didn't get lost....I just completely spaced out taking any!! My bad.
I bring to you:
Chicken Parmesan Sliders (Makes 12)
Ingredients:
12 ( 2 oz) square ciabatta rolls, toasted (I ate just the sliders, not on buns)
2 lbs. ground chicken breast
2 C. marinara sauce, divided
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. crushed red pepper
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
1 C. part-skim shredded mozzarella
¼ C. Parmesan cheese, grated
Directions:
Combine chicken with 1 C. marinara, thyme, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper. Form into 12 small burgers.
Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray. Cook burgers most of the way through on first side. Flip and cook another few minutes, until starting to feel firm. Top with mozzarella, reduce heat, cover until cheese melts.
Toast ciabatta rolls in an oven heated to 350 degrees (or on a medium heat grill). Cut rolls open, place burgers on each roll, top with remaining marinara and Parmesan cheese.
Then I was still on an Italian kick apparently, because I wanted lasagna. I love lasagna. In my opinion you just cannot go wrong with pasta, spicy sausage, and copious amounts of gooey melted cheese. Which is why I am still a bit (though not as much as before) of a fatass :-) Plus...lasagna takes *forever* to cook! And I don't have that kind of time, nor patience when I am starving at the end of a long day.
So....how to make this quick, easy, and a little healthier.....
Skillet Lasagna
Ingredients:
1 1/2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 C mushrooms, chopped (I had some beautiful portabellas from the farmer's market, so mine was a bit more mushroom-y than average)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb. spicy Italian sausage, ground
2 (14.5 oz) cans Italian diced tomatoes, drained
1/4 C tomato sauce
3 fresh basil leaves, chopped
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 C skim ricotta cheese
1/2 C part skim mozzarella cheese
3 Tbsp Parmesan cheese
About 6 oz lasagna noodles, broken into thirds & fully cooked (I used Gluten Free noodles from Tinkyada)
2 Tbsp parsley (dried or fresh)
Directions:
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and sausage and cook until browned. Add garlic and mushrooms and cook about one minute.
Add in diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, basil, salt and pepper. Cook mixture until it thickens up a bit, around 5 minutes.
Add noodles to skillet and stir into the mixture well. Add scoops of ricotta cheese over the noodles; add in mozzarella and Parmesan. Stir in parsley. Cook about 2 more minutes, or until mixture is thick.
Serve immediately with additional basil or parsley.
Note: When you've added the cheeses and stirred to combine, you could pop this in the oven for a few minutes to crisp up the top if you so desired!
Stuffed Zucchini
Ingredients:
2 large zucchinis (or 1 gargantuan zucchini like mine)
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 Italian Sausage (casings removed), I like mine hot!
1 small onion (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
2 Tbsp tomatoes (diced)
1/2 tsp oregano
salt and pepper to taste
1 Tbsp basil (chopped)
1/2 C mozzarella (grated)
1/4 C parmigiano reggiano (grated)
Directions:
Cut the zucchini in half lengthwise and scoop out the middle.
Chop the zucchini that was scooped out and set aside.
Heat the oil in a pan.
Add the sausage and brown.
Add the onion and saute until tender.
Add the garlic and saute until fragrant.
Add the wine and deglaze the bottom of the pan.
Add the chopped zucchini, tomato, oregano, salt and pepper and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated.
Remove from the heat and stir in the basil.
Let the stuffing cool.
Mix in half of the cheese.
Stuff the zucchinis with the stuffing and top with the remaining cheese.
Bake in a preheated 400F oven until the zucchinis are tender and the cheese is golden brown, about 20 minutes.
Zucchini Feta Balls/Patties
Ingredients:
4 C zucchini, grated and squeezed
1/2 C of feta, crumbled
1 splash ouzo (optional)
2 clove garlic, chopped
4 green onions, sliced
1 handful herbs (such as mint, dill and parsley), chopped
2 egg, lightly beaten
salt and pepper to taste
~1 C flour (I used whole wheat)
~3/4 C ground flax meal (or breadcrumbs if you must)
oil for frying
Directions:
Mix the zucchini, feta, ouzo, garlic, green onion, herbs and egg and season with salt and pepper.
Mix in enough flour and breadcrumbs that you can work with the mixture to form balls.
Form the mixture into balls and dust in flour.
Fry in oil until golden brown and set aside to cool.
Top with a drizzle of plain Greek yogurt.
Even my picky Pixie ate these!!
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