Cream of Carrot Soup

1 cup finely chopped onion
2 tbsps butter
4 1/2 cups carrots (peeled thinly sliced)
1 potato (peeled and cubed)
29 ozs chicken broth
1 tsp powdered ginger
2 cups heavy cream
1 tsp dried rosemary (crushed)
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper or to taste


1) In a large stockpot, melt butter and saute onion until soft and tender, about 5 minutes or so.

2) Add carrots, potatoes, chicken broth, and ginger.

3) Cover and cook on medium heat 30 minutes or until veggies are very tender.

4) Remove from heat and let cool 15 minutes.

5) Using a stick blender, puree the soup right in the pot (or pour some into a blender and puree- you'll have to do this in batches though).

6) Return to heat and add milk, rosemary, salt, and pepper.

7) Cook over low heat until heated through, maybe 5 minutes or so.

Asian Noodle Salad

Asian Noodle Salad
adapted from Jamie Oliver (by The Pioneer Woman Cooks!)

SALAD INGREDIENTS:

1 packages linguine noodles, cooked, rinsed, and cooled

1/2 to 1 head sliced Napa cabbage
1/2 to 1 head sliced purple cabbage
1/2 to 1 bag baby spinach
1 red bell pepper, sliced thin
1 yellow bell pepper, sliced thin
1 orange bell pepper, sliced thin (if available)
1 small bag bean sprouts (also called “mung bean sprouts”)
3 sliced scallions
3 peeled, sliced cucumbers (I didn’t have a cucumber for the photos above, but they’re yummy in the salad)
LOTS of chopped cilantro—up to one bunch
1 can whole cashews, lightly toasted in skillet (again, I didn’t have them for the photos, but have used them before and they’re…sublime.)

DRESSING:

Juice of 1 lime
8 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons sesame oil
6 tablespoons soy sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons fresh ginger, chopped
2 cloves chopped garlic
2 hot peppers or jalapeños, chopped
More chopped cilantro—LOTS

Mix together salad ingredients. Whisk together dressing ingredients and pour over salad. Mix with tongs or hands and serve on platter.
*Dressing keeps up to three days before serving, WITHOUT cilantro.

Angel Hair Pasta

2 T olive oil
2 T minced garlic
3 lbs tomatoes, very ripe, coarsely chopped, liquid reserved
1/2 cup fresh basil (chiffonade)
3 T red wine vinegar
Dash salt
1 lb angel hair pasta
black pepper
parmesan

Heat 1 T olive oil in small heavy skillet over medium/low heat. Add garlic and saute for 3 minutes- do not brown. Transfer to large non-aluminum bowl. Mix in tomatoes and liquid, remaining oil, basil and vinegar. Add dash of salt and pepper to taste. Let stand 6 hours or overnight.

Cook pasta al dente, toss with sauce and top with parmesan.

In-a-Hurry Pasta Sauce

1 red pepper, diced
1/2 large onion, diced
olive oil
4 roma tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, run through garlic press
oregano or italian seasoning
salt and pepper

Dice the tomatoes and let sit in a colander over the sink to drain.

Saute pepper, onion and garlic in oil until soft. Add tomatoes and let simmer 5 minutes. Season to taste.

Serve over pasta with parmesan on top.

Texas Caviar

1/2 onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, chopped (remove seeds and veins to control heat)
1 T minced garlic
1 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 8-oz bottle zesty italian salad dressing (Ken's is good)
1 15-oz can black beans, drained
1 15-oz can black-eyed peas, drained
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1 bunch chopped fresh cilantro

In a large bowl, mix everything together except the cilantro. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Toss with desired amount of fresh cilantro to serve.

Sue P's Lasagna Roll-Ups

8 lasagna noodles
1 T. olive oil
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 10-oz. pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
1 cup ricotta
1 tsp salt
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1 14-oz. jar spaghetti sauce

Cook noodles, drain and lay flat. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat and saute garlic for 2 minutes or just until tender. In medium bowl, combine spinach, ricotta, salt, garlic and half of the mozzarella. Spread each noodle with 1/4 cup of the mixture and roll up firmly. Pour the spaghetti sauce into a skillet and place rolls seam-side down. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.

Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella, re-cover and simmer 3-5 minutes longer.

Mediterranean Pasta

1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
sliced mushrooms
1 can diced tomatoes
1 small can black olives, sliced
spinach, julienned
Italian seasoning
crushed red pepper
olive oil
feta cheese

Saute all except feta cheese. Serve over spaghetti, and sprinkle with feta before serving.

Macaroni and Cheese (from Disney World)

3 T. unsalted butter
3 1/2 T. flour
1/2 tsp paprika
3 cups milk
1 tsp salt
3/4 lb. Rotelle (wagon wheel pasta)
1 T. Worcestershire Sauce
10 oz. extra sharp cheddar, coarsely shredded
1 cup coarse bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and butter a 2 qt. baking dish.
In a heavy pan, melt butter over medium-low heat and stir in flour and paprika. Cook this roux, whisking, for 3 minutes, then whisk in milk and salt. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 3 minutes, whisking occasionally. Remove from heat.

Cook pasta to al dente. Drain, then mix pasta, sauce, Worcestershire sauce and 3/4 of cheddar. Transfer to baking dish. Toss the remaining cheddar with bread crumbs and sprinkle on top.

Bake 25-30 minutes and let stand for 10 minutes before serving.