Chicken Udon Stir-Fry

Chicken Udon Stir-Fry

Ingredients:

• 1 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast or two Thighs, cut into thin strips
• 3 Green Onions, chopped
• 1 Onion, diced
• 1 Carrot, julienned
• 1 Bell Pepper, sliced
• 4 Mushrooms, chopped
• Vegetable Oil
• 1/3 Cup Soy Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons Honey
• 2 Clove Garlic, minced
• 2 Teaspoons Gochujang or Sriacha 
• Black Pepper
• 2 Servings Udon Noodles

Instructions:

1. In a medium bowl combine soy sauce, garlic, honey, gochujang and season with pepper.
2. Add the sliced chicken, and stir to evenly coat chicken all over. Marinate chicken for about 30 minutes before cooking.
3. Bring a medium sized pot of salted water to boil. and cook the udon noodles according to package direction. Set aside once cooked
4. Heat a large wok or high sided skillet over medium heat, add about 1 tablespoon vegetable oil.
5. Stir fry onions until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes.
6. Add the chicken and marinade, and stir fry cook until the chicken is no longer pink, and is cooked through.
7. Transfer cooked chicken, sauce, and onions to a clean bowl for now.
8. Add another tablespoon of oil to the skillet.
9. Add the carrot and bell pepper and stir fry cook for about 5 minutes.
10. Add the mushroom and cook until mushroom just begins to cook, about 3 minutes.
11. Return the chicken, sauce and onions to the skillet and stir fry cook until everything is coated in sauce, hot, and well blended. Turn off heat.
12. Add the udon noodles to the skillet and toss to bring everything together.
13. Serve hot, in bowls and garnish with the sliced green onion.

Enjoy!

Notes:
This dish could easily be made vegetarian by subbing tofu for the chicken, or you could change it up and use beef or pork strips easily as well. Basically whatever meat and whatever veg you have on hand can be used in this dish without hurting the final results. The key feature of this recipe is the marinade/sauce which has all the salty savory notes typical in Chinese cooking, but with a spicy Korean kick from the gochujang paste.

If you don't have access to gochujang or siracha you could just about between 1/2-1 teaspoon of crushed chili flakes depending on how spicy you like things.

Stove Top Mac n' Cheese

Stove Top Mac n' Cheese

Ingredients:

• 1 Pound Elbow Pasta, or other small pasta shape
• 1 Cup Milk
• 1/2 Cup Butter, divided into 8 cubes
• 5 ounces Cheese
• Salt and Pepper

Instructions:

1.  Cook pasta according to package directions. Reserve at least 1 cup of the pasta water, drain the pasta, and set aside for now.
2. In a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, pulse the cheese into a fine crumb, or finely shred it. I like to use about 2 ounces of Parm and 3 of a sharp cheddar for this recipe, but any cheese will work.
3. Heat 1 of the butter cubes in a medium sauce pan over medium heat, until it is melted, and foamy, about 5 minutes.
4. Add the milk and whisk to blend in the melted butter.
5. Continuing over medium heat, whisk the milk and butter, add one cube of butter and whisk until completely melted and incorporated into the milk sauce. Only add the next butter cube when the previous one has been fully emulsified. Repeat with remaining butter cubes.
6. Season sauce with salt and pepper.
7. Pour the cooked pasta into the milk sauce, add the cheese and about 1/4 cup of the pasta water.
8. Stir to melt the cheese, and coat the pasta. If it seems dry, add another little bit of the reserved pasta water to help the sauce reach your desired consistency.
9. The mac n' cheese is ready to eat, or you can pour it into a casserole dish, top with more melted cheese and bake for a more traditional macaroni and cheese.

Enjoy!

Pasta e Fagioli

Takes a few ingredients to pull this one together, but it is so worth it

Ingredients:

• 4 Scrubbed Carrots
• 1 Medium Onion
• 3 Celery Stalks
• 6 Good Sized Garlic Cloves
• Olive oil
• Salt and Pepper
• 1 Can Crushed Tomatoes(28oz), without tomato concentrate or puree
• 8 Ounces small or medium dry white beans
• Chicken stock
• 8-10 Ounces Chopped Spinach Leaves
• 8 Ounces small dried pasta shapes
• Parm Rind (optional)
• 2-3 Bay Leaves
• Pork hock
• 2 Slices Bacon, uncooked
• Fresh Parmesan to serve

Instructions:

1. The night before planning to make soup, set the beans to soak in a large bowl. Cover beans with at least one inch of water, set in fridge and soak overnight.
2. To start the soup, scrub the carrots and roughly chop, peel the garlic, roughly chop the Celery and onion. In the bowl of a very large food processor, or in batches, pulse all the vegetables until they are fine chopped but not a puree.
3. Heat a large stock pot over medium low heat, and heat about 1/3 cup olive oil. Add the finely chopped garlic, carrots, onion and Celery, season well with salt and pepper. Slowly cook the veg down, without adding color. If things are cooking too quickly turn down the heat and continue to cook. The goal is to sweat down the veg until they are soft, juicy and reducing in volume without browning yet. Cooking the veggies down should take 20-30 minutes.
4. Once the veg base is looking good, add the ham hock. Roughly chop the raw bacon and also add it to the pot. Continue cooking an additional 10-20 minutes until it seems like the veg has reduced in volume by half.
5. Add the beans and their soaking liquid to the pot along with the crushed tomatoes and at least four cups of chicken stock. Add more stock or water to ensure that the beans are always fully submerged.
6. Bring everything to a boil, add the bay leaves and the Parmesan rind if using. Reduce heat to a gentle simmer and cook for 1-2 hours. Add in the spinach and stir well.
7. Cook pasta in a separate pot of well salted boiling water, 1-3 minutes less than package instructions indicate. The pasta should be slightly toothsome as it will continue to cook a bit in the soup.
8. Pull the pork hock out if the soup and shred any available meat off the bone. Discard skin, bones and fat chunks. Return usable shredded meat to the soup. Fish out the parm rind and bay leaves and discard.
9. Once the pasta is cooked to desired doneness, drain the pasta and stir into the soup.
10. Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish with fresh shredded parm and a drizzle of olive oil. Goes excellent with a bit of crusty toasty bread.

Enjoy!

Notes:

Holy goodness, this soup was so tasty! The veg base that we start with is called a sofritto and that is the ticket to flavor town in this recipe.

This soup is amazingly rich, hearty and so comforting on a cold winters night. Plus since it is so veg heavy, with beans it'll fill up hungry tummies so well and keep them full!

* update, froze some, added some extra chicken stock as the pasta had taken in more liquid while cooking and it was just as delicious reheated after being frozen, still had lots of flavor.

Homemade Tomato Sauce

Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:

• Roughly 2 pounds fresh Roma Tomatoes
• 1 Large Onion
• 1 Tablespoon Sugar
• Salt
• Pepper
• Olive Oil
• 10 Basil Leaves (Optional)

Instructions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil.
2. Wash the basil leaves and tomatoes.
3. Slice the root and top off the onion, and peel the papery outer layer off the onion. Slice an X shape into the top and bottom of the onion about 1/2 inch deep, into the ends that are now flat from having the roots and tip sliced off. Set aside.
4. Bring a large pot of water to boil.
5. Remove the eye from each tomato, and slice and X into the end opposite the eye of each tomato.
6. Once the pot of water is boiling, add the tomatoes and blanch for 3-5 minutes, until the skins just start to peel away. Remove from water with a slotted spoon, to a colander and allow to cool several minutes.
7. Drain water from the large pot.
8. Once tomatoes are cool enough to touch, peel the skin from each tomato, slice each tomato into quarters, scraping away the seeds and pulpy watery middles and discarding.
9. Return the large pot to the stove and heat for 5 minutes over medium heat.
10. Roughly chop the cleaned tomato quarters into smaller bits.
11. Add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the large pot. Add the onion we prepared earlier, as well as the chopped tomatoes.
12. Cover and cook the tomatoes and onion for 10 minutes.
13. Uncover, stir in sugar. Stir and mash the tomatoes well, cover and cook an additional 15 minutes.
14. After 15 minutes, taste the sauce, adjust salt as needed. Season well with pepper. Cook an additional 5 minutes uncovered.
15. Finely chop the basil leaves and stir into the sauce.
16. If desired the sauce can be made really smooth by removing the onion, transferring cooked tomatoes to a blender and pulsing several times.
17. The sauce is now ready to be used.
18. Can be used as is for pasta, seasoned for pizza sauce. used in recipes calling for a tin of tomato sauce etc.

Enjoy!

Notes:

Other places:

What was cooking one year ago?

Steamed Pork Buns

What was cooking two years ago?

Parsnip Chips

Three Meat Ravioli Filling

Three Meat Ravioli Filling

Ingredients:

• 1 Pound Ground Beef/ Pork (2/3 lb Beef 1/3 lb Pork or Sausage)
• 6-8 Slices Bacon
• 2/3 Cup Ricotta Cheese
• 1 Tablespoon Fresh Chopped Basil
• 1/2 Tablespoon Dried Thyme
• 1/2 Tablespoon Dried Oregano
• Salt and Pepper
• Pasta Dough, rolled into thin sheets

Special Tools:

Ravioli Press, or cutter.

Instructions:

1. In a  large skillet scramble cook the ground meat until cooked through, drain fat and set aside. Cook the bacon slices crisp and finely crumble.
2. In a large bowl mix together the cooked meat, crumbled bacon, ricotta cheese (or cream cheese, or any soft cheese of your choice really) and the herbs and spices. Taste the mixture when everything is fully combined. Remember the meats are all cooked through so this is totally safe at this point. Adjust the seasonings as needed.
3. To assemble ravioli, have an egg white, or water wash ready on the side and a pastry brush. 
4. Lay the rolled pasta dough on the ravioli press, and brush the whole surface with the egg or water wash. 
5. Fill the small pockets in the ravioli press, lay a second sheet of rolled pasta dough on top and roll over the whole press firmly with a rolling pin to set the dough. 
6. Repeat until all the pasta sheets have been used, or you run out of filling. This is a general guideline your ravioli press/ cutter might have different instructions for preparing the ravioli.
7. To serve, cook prepared ravioli in boiling salted water until the float, about 2-3 minutes. Drain from water and toss lightly with a sauce of your choice.

Enjoy!

Notes:

Miss Busy Bee became Mrs. Busy Bee, bought a house, got a dog, a job promotion and purchased her very first car in the past year. Times are good but busy!

Other Places:

What was cooking one year ago?

Roasted Tomato Basil Soup

What was cooking two years ago?

Korean BBQ Sauce

Spaetzle

Spaetzel

The German solution to pasta night

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup Flour
• 1/4 Cup Milk
• 2 Eggs
• 1/2 Teaspoon Nutmeg
• Salt and Pepper
• Large Pot salted Boiling water
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• Lemon wedges and parsley to garnish

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl sift together the flour and nutmeg and season well with salt and pepper.
2. Whisk the eggs together.
3. Whisk the eggs and milk alternatively into the flour mixture until smooth and evenly blended.
4. Bring a skillet to heat over medium.
5. Force and push the "dough" through a sieve with large holes, at least 1/2 cm diameter into boiling water. Cook for 5-8 minutes, when the little bits are floating and feel like a cooked pasta. Strain Spaetzel from water
6. Melt butter in the heated skillet, add the drained spaetzel and saute for 3-5 minutes, until golden.
7. Transfer to a serving plate, with lemon wedges and fresh chopped parsley.

Enjoy!

Notes:

Never forget the nutmeg! It is a key flavor in so many things.

Seriously.

Add Nutmeg

Roasted Tomato Garlic and Basil Soup

Roasted Tomato Soup

Ingredients:

• 4-6 Large Tomatoes
• 4-5 Cloves Fresh Garlic
• Olive Oil
• Salt
• Pepper
• About 2-3 Tablespoons shredded fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 Cup Stock or water

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
3. Slice the tomatoes about 1 centimeter thick, and arrange on the baking sheet. Peel the garlic and place on the sheet with the tomatoes.
4. Lightly season with salt and drizzle with olive oil. If you want you can turn and toss the tomato slices and garlic on the pan a bit to coat them better in the olive oil.
5. Roast in heated oven for 20-30 minutes, until browned and slightly reduced in size.
6. Allow everything to cool for about 10 minutes.
7. Transfer everything to a blender, scraping everything off the pan.
8. Pour a couple tablespoons of the stock onto the pan, and scrape off any well browned bits, and "deglaze" the pan. Transfer everything possible to the blender.
9. Add the fresh basil, and season with salt and pepper. Pulse several times in the blender with the lid securely on until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed, or if the consistency isn't right add more stock to thin it out and pulse again, or add a few breadcrumbs to thicken the soup if it gets too thin.
10. Serve hot or cold or freeze for later.

Enjoy!

Sesame Chicken and Mushroom Noodle Bowl

Leave out the Chicken and or the mushrooms to just make a quick simple side for a meal.

Sesame Chicken and Mushroom Noodle Bowl

Ingredients:

• 2-4 Servings Ramen Noodles
• 1/4 Cup Soy Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons Mirin or Sugar
• 4 Cloves Garlic, minced finely
• 2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar
• 3 Tablespoons Sesame Seed Oil
• 1-3 Teaspoons Sriracha
• 1/4 Cup Sliced Green Onions
• 1/2-1 Cup Shredded Cooked Chicken
• 1/2-1 Cup Diced Mushrooms, I used Enoki and Shiitaki

Instructions:

1. Ahead of time in a small bowl mix together the soy sauce, mirin, minced garlic cloves, rice vinegar, sesame seed oil and sriracha (to taste). Mix together and let it sit for a bit so the flavors can blend.
2. Bring a large pot of water to boil.
3. Very lightly oil a large skillet, and lightly cook the mushrooms and chicken together. 5-10 minutes.
4. Cook the ramen noodles according to package directions. Drain and add to the skillet.
5. Pour the sauce we made at the start over top of the noodles and toss everything together until noodles are coated evenly and the mushrooms and chicken are mixed throughout the noodles.
6. Turn skillet to very low to keep noodles warm until ready to serve. Re-toss the noodles occasionally to keep everything warm and to prevent burning.

Enjoy!

Notes:

If you just make the sauce you can make plain sesame noodles, or you can add different meats or vegetables to suit what ever you like.

Other Places:

What was cooking one year ago? One of my favorites for sure!

Garlic Fingers

Spicy Pepperoni Pasta

Spicy Pepperoni Pasta

Ingredients:

• 2 Cups Dried Pasta, I used Bow Tie
• About 1 Cup thinly sliced Pepperoni, Spicyness is up to you
• 1 Green Bell Pepper
• 1 Red Bell Pepper (2 Two other bell peppers, color is up to you)
• 2-4 Cloves Garlic
• 1 Small onion
• 1 Small can Tomato Paste
• 1 Can Diced Tomatoes, Undrained
• 1/2 Cup Green Onions, sliced thinly
• Oil for cooking
• 1 Tablespoon Paprika (or more)
• 1-2 Tablespoons Oregano
• 1-2 Tablespoons Basil
• 1 Teaspoon Cayenne or Crushed Red Chilies, Optional
• Pepper
• Shredded Cheese to serve

Instructions:

1. Heat a large skillet or wok over medium heat and add a small amount of cooking oil.
2. Set a large pot of water to boil.
3. Mince the garlic and onion.
4. Cook the onion and garlic together for about 5 minutes in preheated skillet, push to one side.
5. Add the pepperoni slices to the skillet in a single layer. Season well with pepper and the paprika. Cook for 1-2 minutes, until oil starts to come up from the pepperoni. Stir fry cook the pepperoni and onions together.
6. Dice the two bell peppers, and add to skillet, cook an additional 10 minutes. The water should be boiling, so cook the pasta according to package, and drain.
7. Add the canned tomatoes and tomato paste to the skillet and stir well to create a sauce. Toss in the cooked noodles and sliced green onions and gently stir to blend.
8. Serve in bowls, garnished with shredded cheese on top.

Enjoy!

Notes:

Great for kids, call it pepperoni pizza pasta and use less paprika.

Other Places:

Would go great with some Fresh Bread.

Puttanesca Sauce

Puttanesca Sauce

Pictured with Meatballs and Fresh Pasta

Ingredients:

• 4 Tomatoes
• 2-3 Cloves Garlic
• 1/4 Cup Capers, Drained of liquid
• 2 Teaspoons Thyme
• 2-4 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
• 1/2 Teaspoon Hot Crushed Chili Powder

Optional:

• 2-3 Tablespoons Olives, chopped
• Anchovies, whole or chopped
• Parmesan Cheese, shredded, garnish

Instructions:

1. Either in a food processor with a blade attachment or with an immersion blender, pulverize all the ingredients, except for the anchovies, if you are using them.
2. Bring sauce to a gentle simmer over medium heat for about 20 minutes, stir in anchovies if using.
3. Use over pasta, as a sauce with fried fish, or make a puttanesca pizza on a nice crusty slice of bread or baguette slices.

Enjoy!

Notes:

Had this for dinner under a fried snapper fillet, was delightful in every way! Tomorrow's lunch will include a puttanesca pasta for me!

Other Places:

Something for a party:

Boozey Blueberry Jello Shots 

Lemon Tomato Chicken Piccata

Lemon Tomato Chicken Piccata

Also pictured, herb roasted potatoes.

Ingredients:

• 2-3 Cloves Garlic
• 1 Cup Chicken Broth/stock
• 1 Lemon, whole
• 1/4 Cup Lemon Juice
• 1 Tablespoon Flour or Corn Starch
• 2 Tablespoons Capers
• 1/2-2/3 Cup diced tomatoes
• 2-3 Tablespoons Butter
• 2 Tablespoons Parsley, Chopped
• 1/2 Cup Flour
• Salt and Pepper
• Oil for frying
• 3-4 Chicken Breasts, boneless/skinless

Instructions:

1. Zest the lemon rind into a small bowl. Finely mince or grate the garlic and add to the bowl, set aside.
2. Peel the lemon so there is no white pith left around the outside. The white part of the rind will become very bitter if cooked in the sauce.
3. Chop the peeled lemon into thin slices and then quarter sections.
4. Pound the chicken breasts flat to about 1/2 inch thick or less. Try and flatten the breast evenly so it will cook evenly.
5. Season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper, dredge or coat the chicken in the flour and set aside.
6. Bring a  skillet with oil to medium heat.
7. Set an oven to warm, or about 200°F. Place a serving platter in the oven
8. Season both sides of the chicken again.
9. Fry the chicken in batches, being careful not to crowd the pan. Fry for about 3-4 minutes a side until cooked through. Transfer cooked chicken to the platter in the warmed oven for the time being.
10. Once all the chicken is cooked through, carefully drain most of the oil from the skillet, leaving a thin layer just coating the bottom. Return skillet to stove top over medium heat.
11. Add the lemon rind and minced garlic to the skillet. Stir and cook for about 1-2 minutes.
12. Add the chicken broth and sliced lemon to the skillet, stir and bring to a boil. Cook while stirring for 5-8 minutes.
13. Add the lemon juice and flour/corn starch, whisk well to blend in. Stir in the capers and tomatoes. Cook for another 5 minutes.
14. Add butter to the skillet and gently stir in until melted.
15. Stir in parsley.
16. To finish either pour the sauce over the chicken when plated, or the chicken breasts can be placed in the sauce in the skillet and simmered gently together to meld the flavors.
17. Serve over pasta or with Roasted Potatoes.

Enjoy!

Notes:

Served at a dinner party, came together easily and was very much enjoyed by all. Great success!

Other Places:

What was cooking last year?

Rustic Pasta Sauce

Fried Rice

Fried Rice

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup Long Grain White Rice, cooked
• 1 Egg
• 1/4 Cup Soy Sauce
• 1/4 Cup Chopped Green Onion
• Salt and Pepper
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 3-5 Stalks Green Onion, sliced thin
• Roughly 1-1 1/2 Cups Chopped Vegetables- I usually use:
• 4-6 Button Mushrooms
• 2-3 Stalks Celery
• 1/4 Cup Shelled Edamame
• But please feel free to change up the vegetables to better suit your taste, like peppers, or peas and corn, or an all mushroom medley

Also optional if you want to try and add some protein, add one of the following:

• 1-2 Chicken breasts, cubed
• 1-2 Pork Chops, cubed
• 1/2-1 Cup Diced or whole Shrimp

Instructions:

1. Precook the rice and allow it to cool in the completely or at least 10 minutes before starting to cook the fried rice. Or reuse leftover white rice.
2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
3. Dice/prepare all the ingredients you plan to add to the rice, like the vegetables, and/or protein.
4. In a small bowl whisk the egg with the soy sauce, set aside.
5. Cook tough vegetables and any proteins first (Tough vegetables include onions, peppers and celery, soft ones are mushrooms, green onions). 
6. Cook any proteins through entirely.
7. In a large bowl gently toss the precooked rice with the egg and soy sauce mixture. Stir well to evenly mix, but do no over mix or crush the rice. (Alternatively, if you feel like you can fold the rice and egg quickly you can add the rice all at once to the skillet, and pour the egg and soy sauce mixture over top and fold it through. 
8. If you are slow or the skillet is too hot you can end up with some eggy bits in the final rice, some people like this some people do not.)
9. Add the rice mixture to the skillet, carefully fold in the rice with the vegetables, once again being careful not to crush the rice.  (If you folded the rice with the egg and soy sauce mixture in the skillet you have already completed this step)
10. Careful when folding and stirring the rice, over stirring can lead to mushy rice, under stirring leads to burnt crunchy bits on the bottom mixed with runny eggy bits in the middle.
11. Allow the rice to fry cook for about 4-5 minutes without stirring. Then, carefully fold and flip the rice in the skillet. Allow to cook undisturbed another 4-5 minutes. Continue this process until all the runny egg has cooked and rice is fluffy and maybe just starting to get some nice dark crusty bits on the bottom.
12. Serve right away as a meal or as a side.

Enjoy!

Other Places:

Something different:

Buffalo Sauce

Lasagna

This is truly one of the ultimate recipes in my collection. I haven't posted it here because I have known this recipe inside out for well over 10 years. This recipe has pretty much never failed me. Plus there are some options when it comes to preparation with this recipe so you can make it work to suit the needs of your day.

To make recipe in Slowcooker:

Follow the instructions for preparing the sauce. Then instead of assembling the lasagna in a deep baking dish you will assemble it in the slowcooker following the order until you have enough layers. Leave the final cheese layer off.  This much can be done the night before, and chilled overnight.

To prepare place insert into slowcooker, turn onto low for up to 6-7 hours, or high or about 3-4 hours.

To finish turn oven onto a high heat and sprinkle final cheese layer over top of the lasagna. Bake uncovered in oven until cheese is melted and golden brown. Let stand 10 minutes on a heat safe surface. Carefully cut and serve.

Freezing:

This recipe can be prepared using disposable tin roasting pans and frozen for up to 3 months. With or without the final cheese layer on top. Just don't forget to add it if you leave it off when freezing!

To prepare, take the frozen lasagna out of the freezer the night before and move to fridge overnight.

Increase cooking time to 2 hours, checking after 1 hour, and every 20 minutes there after. It is heated through when sauce is bubbling around edges and cheese has a toasted look.

You can double check the internal temperature by inserting a butter knife into the center, counting to five and then either touching it with your finger or popping it in your mouth. If it feels warm/hot enough to eat, then it is. A very scientific method I assure you.

Make Ahead:

Follow the instructions for freezing or the whole meal can be prepared up to two days in advance, if carefully wrapped in fridge.

This recipe makes 1-2 family sized lasagnas, or like 4-5 mini sized ones for two-three people, I use a bread pan sometimes to make those.

Queen B's Lasagna 

Ingredients:

• 1 Can diced Tomatoes
• 1 Can plain Tomato Sauce
• 1 Small can of Tomato Paste(About 3 ounces)
• 1 Large white Onion, finely diced
• 3-4 Cloves Garlic finely minced
• 1 Green pepper
• 1 Red pepper
•  2 Teaspoons Black Pepper or more
• 2 Teaspoons Salt or more
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 2-3 Tablespoons Basil
• 1-2 Tablespoons Oregano
• 1 Teaspoon Thyme
• 1 Teaspoon Garlic powder
• 1 Teaspoon Onion powder
• 2 Tablespoons Parsley
• 2 Tablespoons Parmesan cheese
• 1/2- 1 Tablespoon Brown Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Mustard
• 1 Pound ground beef
• 2 Cups Cottage or Ricotta Cheese
• 1/2 Cup shredded Parmesan Cheese
• 1/2 Cup Mozzarella
• 1/2 Cup Mixed other Cheeses (Swiss, white cheddar, Asiago, Provolone etc)
• 1 Box Lasagna Noodles

Plus if you want. . .

• 4-6 white/button Mushrooms diced
• 1-2 cups fresh Spinach OR  about 5 ounces frozen chopped spinach
• 1/4 pound ground Pork or Sausage
• 2 Whole dried Bay Leaves*

* If using bay leaves to season the sauce while it cooks don't forget to remove them before assembling the lasagna. Bay leaves do not break down and soften while cooking, which means they stay sharp and can pose a choking hazard if left in completed dishes.

Instructions:

1. Get a large stock pot on the stove over medium heat, add the olive oil.
2. While the olive oil heats, dice the onion and mince the garlic. Add onions and garlic to pot, season with salt and pepper and saute for 10 minutes. 
3. Add ground beef (and if desired, ground pork or sausage) to the pot with the onions. Season with salt and pepper. Scramble cook until cooked through, trying to ensure beef cooks down into even sized pieces. Once cooked through, drain away excess fat and return to stove.
4. Finely dice or pulse in a food processor the green and red bell pepper. 
5. Add the bell pepper puree to the pot. Cover and cook 5 minutes.
6. Drain liquid from can of diced tomatoes, add diced tomatoes to the pot. Add the can of plain tomato sauce and tomato paste to the pot as well. Stir well to evenly blend. 
7. Stir in the basil, oregano, thyme, garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, Parmesan cheese, brown sugar, and mustard. If you are planning on using any of the remaining optional ingredients, add them now as well. Reduce heat to low. Cover and allow sauce to simmer at least 15 minutes. Taste after 10 and adjust anything as needed.
8. While sauce is simmering, cook lasagna noodles according to package instructions. When cooked, drain, rinse under cold water, and toss with a little olive oil. Set aside to cool a bit.

To assemble:

1. I usually use a 9X13 Deep dish brownie style pan for this, but a tin foil roaster of a comparable size or a large slow cooker insert are all workable.
2. Lightly oil baking dish with cooking spray. Especially the edges.
3. Shred all the cheeses and get the cottage or ricotta cheese ready to go.
4. Begin by adding enough sauce to the pan to coat the entire bottom in a thin layer. 
5. Place noodle on top of sauce, across or lengthwise doesn't really matter, and use kitchen shears to cut the noodles to size if needed. Layer the noodles so they just barely overlap to create an even layer of noodle over the sauce.
6. Carefully spoon more sauce over the noodle layer to coat. 
7. Sprinkle about 1/2 tablespoon of Parmesan over top of the sauce. 
8. Arrange some cottage/ ricotta cheese sparsely over top. The cottage and ricotta layer shouldn't be a solid white layer, the sauce should still be very apparent and showing through.
9. Repeat steps 5-8 until you are out of noodles or the pan is full. 
10. To finish the lasagna, spread a thick layer of sauce all over the top of either a final noodle layer, or cheese layer. (You can wrap it up and freeze it now).
11. To cook, sprinkle the shredded cheeses over top of the lasagna evenly, garnish with some parsley if desired and bake in an oven between 375 and 400°F for about 1 hour, or until sauce is bubbly around edges and cheese is a golden toasty color.
12. If cheese begins to get too dark before lasagna is cooked through, cover with tin foil.
13. To serve, let cooked lasagna stand at room temperature at least 10 minutes.
14. Use a sharp knife separate the lasagna from the edges of the pan all the way around. Carefully and making sure to cut down through all the noodle layer cut out desired portions. Use a wide spatula to life the lasagna out of pan and onto plates. Be firm and confident or else the lasagna is likely to try and make an escape attempt before it goes to the plate and will cause a large mess. 

Enjoy!

Other Places:

Something Mexican instead?

Guacamole

Quick Italian One-Pot Noodle Bowl

I made this quickly and easily for dinner the other night and even the pasta "disliking" man in my life was thrilled with it.

One-Pot Italian Noodle Bowl

Ingredients:

• About 6 Cups Dried Egg Noodles
• 4-6 Cups Vegetable Stock
• Salt and Pepper
• 1 Tablespoon Olive oil
• 1 Onion
• 2-3 Cloves Garlic
• 1 Tablespoon Basil
• 1 Tablespoon Oregano
• 1 Tablespoon Pesto (Optional)
• 6-12 Ounces Frozen Chopped Spinach, thawed
• 1-2 Bell Peppers
• 1/2 Cup Fresh diced tomatoes
• 1 Can Diced Tomatoes, undrained
• Parmesan Cheese
• Fresh Parsley Leaves
• Shredded cooked Chicken, or Turkey or Meatballs (Optional)

Instructions:

1. Place a large stock pot on the stove over medium heat and add the olive oil to the pot. Let the olive oil heat for about a minute.
2. Dice or mince the onion and garlic. Add to heated pot, season with salt and pepper and saute for about 10 minutes until soft but not overly browned.
3. Dice the bell peppers and tomatoes.
4. Once onions are soft and slightly translucent, add the bell peppers, fresh tomatoes, canned tomatoes and juice, chopped spinach, vegetable stock, basil, oregano, and pesto. Turn heat up to high and cover with a lid.
5. Allow the pot to come to a slow boil, about 5-10 minutes. 
6. Remove lid, add dried egg noodles and stir so the egg noodles are submerged. Replace pot lid and continue to heat over medium high for 10-15 minutes until noodles are cooked through.
7. If desired add shredded cooked chicken or turkey, or premade meat balls during last 3 minutes of cook time to heat through.
8. Once noodles are cooked to desired doneness, ladle a serving into a warmed bowl, garnish with shredded Parmesan cheese and parsley.
9. Goes great with some fresh bread or buns.

Enjoy!

Notes:

This is a supper that can go from not being started to done in about 30 minutes. Great for nights after work. If you are really pressed for time you can skip the step of sauteing the onion and garlic before everything else, to do this simply add all of the ingredients except the garnish, meat and noodles to the pot, bring to a boil and then follow the recipe from there. I only saute the onions before everything else because I am not a huge fan of raw to lightly cooked onion. Something about the texture of it just gets to me. So I like to really cook my onions down in things I plan to eat but if you aren't bothered by raw onion texture then go ahead and skip that step and get dinner on the table even faster.

Other Places:

Something traditional:

Sweet and Sour Sauce

Chinese Noodle Bowl

Chinese Noodle Bowl

I know, I served it on a plate but I am still going to call it a noodle bowl

Ingredients:

Sauce:

• 1/3 Cup Soy Sauce
• 3 Teaspoons Sesame Seed Oil
• 1 Teaspoon Olive oil
• 3 Cloves Garlic
• 1-2 Tablespoons Ginger Root
• 1 Lime, zest and juice
• Salt

Other Ingredients:

• 1-2 Teaspoons Chinese Five Spice Powder
• 2 Teaspoons fresh cracked Black Pepper
• Salt
• 1 Onion
• 1 Green Bell Pepper
• 1 Cup fresh Spinach Leaves
• 3 Chicken Breasts, bone, skin and excess fat removed
• 2-3 Tablespoons Sesame Seeds
• Green Onions
• Lemon wedges
• 4 Servings of Chinese egg noodles, or plain ramen style noodles
• Cooking oil

Special Tools:

I always use my big red cast iron wok when doing any sort of Asian meal. . . but I am certain a normal skillet would also work. A big normal skillet.

Instructions:

1. To prepare the sauce measure out the soy sauce, sesame oil, and olive oil into a small bowl. 
2. Peel and grate the ginger, finely dice the garlic cloves and zest the lime. 
3. In a stone mortar with a pestle smash and mash the grated ginger, diced garlic cloves and lime zest with about 1 teaspoon of salt until it is a fine paste. Add the juice from the lime and mix well. 
4. Add the paste mix to the small bowl and gently whisk until evenly combined.
5. Slice the chicken into finger sized strips, or however you like to dice your chicken.
6.  In a large stainless steel bowl add 1/3 Cup of the sauce and the sliced chicken breasts. Turn the chicken breasts in the bowl to coat them with the marinade. 
7. Allow chicken to marinate for at least 15 minutes, but can be marinated over night as well.The longer it marinates the stronger the flavor will be in the chicken.
8.  Set aside the remaining sauce.
9. Finely mince the onion and chop the green bell pepper, if desired shred or chop the spinach as well. 
10. In a dry large skillet over medium heat, toast the sesame seeds, shaking/stirring occasionally until they are lightly golden and very fragrant. 
11. Once sesame seeds are toasted transfer to a small bowl and set aside.
12. Return the skillet to the stove and lightly oil it. Allow the oil to heat for about 5 minutes.
13. Set a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat.
14. Add the onion to the heated skillet, season with salt, pepper and about 1/2 teaspoon of the five spice blend. Saute the onion until translucent and beginning to soften. 
15. Add the chicken to the skillet, no need to drain off the marinade. Season the chicken with salt, pepper, and more of the five spice blend if desired. 
16. Stir fry cook the chicken until cooked through and no longer pink inside. This takes between 8-15 minutes at most.
17. Once chicken is cooked through, drain any excess water that might have collected in the skillet.
18. Add the bell pepper and spinach. Cover and steam cook the vegetables for about 5 minutes. 
19. By now the pot of water should be boiling, add the noodles and cook according to package directions. 
20. Add the remaining sauce to the skillet. Add the cooked noodles and using kitchen tongs, gently turn the noodles over to coat them in the sauce and distribute the chicken and vegetables.
21. Finely slice the green onions.
22. To serve, transfer desired portion into a bowl, garnish with toasted sesame seeds, sliced green onions and a lemon wedge.

Enjoy!

Other Places:

Something for a party:

Cheese Ball

Recipe Test - Italian Wonder Pot

Time for another recipe test! This one just seemed like it was too easy and good to be true. . . 

Original Recipe from a Buzzfeed article: Affordable Wonder Pot

Which was apparently based on a recipe from Martha Stewart, but I didn't see that one.

Recipe claims:

 Throw the magical list of ingredients into a pot, cover, bring to a boil, uncover and simmer for 15-20 minutes. . . and that's it, dinner is ready. Garnish with some crumbled feta cheese on top.

I don't know about you but I like the idea of a recipe I can literally throw everything  into a pot and have dinner ready in about 30 minutes. Also one pot anything is pretty awesome in my books (Who actually likes washing dishes anyways?).

Original Recipe Ingredients:

4 Cups Vegetable Broth
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
12 ounces Fettuccine
8 ounces Frozen Chopped Spinach
1 (28 Ounce) can Diced Tomatoes
1 Onion
4 Cloves Garlic
1/2 Tablespoon dried Basil
1/2 Tablespoon dried Oregano
1/2 Teaspoon red pepper flakes
Fresh cracked pepper
2 Ounces Feta Cheese

Changes I made:

• I used half spinach fettuccine and half smart pasta noodles

• My package of frozen spinach was 12 ounces so I used the whole thing

• I increased the basil and oregano to about 1 tablespoon each, and omitted the red pepper flakes

• I also added 3 home made sundried tomato sausages I had on hand, cooked and chopped into small bits.

Instructions:

Prepare all the ingredients, finely mince the onion and garlic, and get everything else together. Break the fettuccine noodles in half to make stirring easier later. Add everything to a large pot, including the juice from the canned tomatoes, only leave out the feta cheese.

Place lid over pot and over medium high heat bring to a full roiling boil. Uncover, reduce heat to medium and simmer 15-20 minutes until noodles are al dente. Stir occasionally to help noodles cook evenly, but be careful not to over stir as the noodles can get gluey I am told.

Ladle into warmed serving bowls, garnish with crumbled feta and serve with bread or salad.

Conclusions:

This recipe is a magical success story! Came together perfectly, was delicious and reheated well the next day for lunch. I seriously loved this recipe and plan to make it again! Though I might half it next time or some other smaller fraction somehow, I made this when it was only me and man-friend at home for supper. I had an awful lot of leftovers. The original recipe said it served six people but I think eight of my people could have eaten that no problem. 

Other Places:

Instead of something healthy how about something deep fried?

Perfect Fries

Lemon and Wine Scallop Fettucini

This was seriously my first time cooking scallops or eating them. A surprise success!

Lemon and Wine Scallop Fettucini

Ingredients:

• 1 Pound Dried Pasta
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil + Extra to season cast iron if you use it.
• 1 Tablespoon Butter
• 3 Cloves Garlic, finely minced
• 1 Cup White Wine (Dry*)
• Zest of one lemon
• Juice of 1/2 Lemon
• 1/4 Cup Green onion, finely sliced
• 1 Can of Diced Tomatoes, Drained in a strainer and seeds rinsed away under running water
• Parsley
• Parmesan Cheese, fresh, shredded

Instructions:

1. Get a large pot of well salted water boiling on the stove.
2. Preheat either a stainless steel or cast iron skillet to a medium temperature. Season with oil lightly.
3. Remove scallops from their packaging and place on kitchen paper towels to dry off for a minute.
4. Once pot of water is almost boiling and skillet is well heated, melt the butter in the skillet, and season the scallops with salt and pepper while still on the kitchen paper towels. 
5. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the skillet.
6. If that pot of water is boiling, add the pasta around now and let cook for about 8-9 minutes till done, or follow the package/recipe instructions for your pasta.
7. Place the scallops seasoned side down, without crowding the skillet, and sear for about 1 minute until there is a nice golden sear on the bottom and the bottom third of the scallops look cooked. 
8. Season tops of scallops with salt and pepper, and turn over. Sear once more for about a minute. Transfer cooked scallops to a clean plate.
9. Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the skillet and add the minced garlic. 
10. Saute for 2 minutes till just golden. 
11. Add the wine, lemon juice, and lemon zest, bring to a simmer and de-glaze the bottom of the skillet. 
12. Simmer wine sauce for about 2-3 minutes. 
13. Add the green onion and diced tomatoes. Stir well, reduce heat, place scallops over top of sauce and continue to simmer until pasta is cooked.
14. Drain cooked pasta and return to pot. Add contents of skillet to pot, toss/stir well to coat the pasta in the sauce.
15. Divide the pasta onto four warmed plates. Try and get the scallops divided evenly between plates, garnish plates with fresh Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley. Serve right away.

Enjoy!

Notes:

*Dry Wine means that it isn't a sweet wine.

Only buy fresh scallops from a local fish market/monger. Or from the seafood counter at your local grocery store. Fresh scallops (and all seafood really) shouldn't smell fishy when you buy it. It should smell clean and maybe lightly salty. Like ocean water. A strong fishy smell means the seafood is about ready to go off.

I rinsed the can of tomatoes in a strainer under running water just to get rid of the seeds and make the final pasta even prettier.

Scallops must be cooked in stainless steel or cast iron. A nonstick pan wont give you a nice sear and they will likely end up rubbery. Also the trick to a good sear is a hot pan, and not moving the protein until its time to flip. Plus only flip once! Once Seared the scallops should release easily from the pan without sticking.

This recipe would also work well with an equal weight of small bay scallops instead of the full sized scallops. Same rules apply just half the searing time for the small delicate bay scallops.

Other Places:

Something baked and sweet instead:

Pumpkin Spice Muffins

Spaghetti alla Carbonara

A simple pasta dish with a creamy egg based sauce. Made even more delicious by the addition of salty pancetta.

Spaghetti alla Carbonara

Ingredients:

• 1 Pound Spaghetti, dried or fresh
• 4 Eggs
• 1/4 Cup Milk or Cream
• 1/4 Cup shredded fresh Parmesan Cheese
• Salt
• Pepper
• Fresh Parsley, roughly chopped
• About 500 grams Pancetta or 8-10 slices Bacon

Instructions:

1. If you are making fresh pasta get that all done and then pasta rolled out ready to be cut before starting the sauce.
2. Preheat oven to about 200°F , or the warming setting.  Place 4-6 bowls in to warm up.
3. This is an easy recipe but you must listen to my words or else you will end up with scrambled eggs and pasta.
4.  It is also impressive for a dinner party if you have the pasta ready to be cut, and have all the ingredients pre-measured in cute bowls on the counter and then whip it up in about 10 minutes. People love it.
5. Get a large pot of well salted water on the stove and on a pretty high heat to get it to a rolling boil.
6. In a large skillet or sauce pan, Cook the pancetta or bacon until the fat renders and is slightly crisp. 
7. Drain the fat from the skillet. Chop up the bacon if not already done. 
8. In a small bowl gently whisk the eggs and milk/cream. Season well with salt and pepper.  
9. Fold in the Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley.
10. The large pot we set to boiling should be ready to go by now.
11. Add the noodles and cook according to their package or recipe. If you are using fresh pasta it's cooked when it floats and only takes a minute. Turn off the burner.
12. Once pasta is cooked, quickly drain the pasta and return it to the pot. 
13. Add the cooked pancetta to the pot and the whisked egg mixture. 
14. Using a large wooden spoon, gently turn the pasta or cover the pot with a lid and gently toss the pasta to coat the pasta in the egg sauce. Continue to stir/toss the pasta while moving it on and off the hot burner until the pasta looks glossy and there isn't much runny egg mixture left on the bottom.
15. Serve immediately in the pre-warmed bowls we set up at the beginning, garnish with some extra Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley.

Enjoy!

Other Places:

Something Asian instead:

Tonkatsu 

Classic Mac n' Cheese

Know why this one took too long? Because Miss Busy Bee is not a patient woman and always screwed up making the cheese sauce. But Finally got those kinks worked out!

Classic Mac n' Cheese

Ingredients:

• About 2 Cups dry pasta
• 1 Cup shredded Cheddar
• 1/2 Cup shredded other cheese (Mozza, Gouda, Swiss. . . )
• Pepper
• Salt
• 1/2 Cup Milk
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 1-2 Tablespoons Flour

Optional:

Bread crumbs or extra cheese to bake over top.
A spice blend of;
1 Teaspoon Garlic powder
1 Teaspoon Onion powder
1 Teaspoon Paprika
1 Teaspoon Turmeric
Can help make the color Kraft Dinner Orange and add extra cheesy flavor to the final meal.

Instructions:

1. In a large pot, bring well salted water to a boil and cook the macaroni according to package directions. 
2. Drain, return to empty pot and set aside. Or cook the pasta  while making the cheese sauce if you can handle multi-tasking.
3. In a large skillet over medium heat melt the butter until it is all melted but not quite browning yet. 
4. This is an art and takes a keen eye and attention. 
5. Once butter is melted and just beginning to maybe bubble sprinkle 1 tablespoon of flour over the melted butter evenly. Whisk the melted butter and the flour together over heat. 
6. If the butter is still very very runny add another tablespoon of flour. 
7. Continue to whisk and reduce heat to medium-low for about 5 minutes. 
8. Or until you have a nice even paste in the pan and it doesn't smell like raw flour.
9. Season with salt and pepper.
10. Pour the milk slowly into the skillet, while still whisking. 
11. Continue to whisk for what might seem like forever (10-15 minutes) until everything is smooth, no lumps or bumps and the sauce is beginning to bubble and thicken.
12. Allow the sauce to continue to thicken for a few minutes. (2-3 minutes)
13. Add the shredded cheeses and continue to whisk until the sauce is smooth and all the cheese has melted.
14. Pour the cheese sauce into the pot with the cooked pasta. 
15. Stir well to evenly mix everything.
16. Lightly oil a casserole dish or the stoneware from a slowcooker with cooking spray.
17. Pour the prepared mac n' cheese into the baking dish.
18. If using this recipe to make ahead, cover the stoneware or casserole and refrigerate until about 1 hour before serving time or a casserole or 3-4 hours for slowcooker. Then remove from fridge and let stand about 20 minutes on counter to warm up.
19. If desired, top mac n' cheese with shredded cheese or bread crumbs.
20. For oven, preheat oven to 350°F, and bake room temp casserole for 30-40 minutes until heated through.
21. For slowcooker, place insert into slowcooker and turn to high for about 3-4 hours. Or until bubbly and warmed through.

Enjoy!

Notes:

Ps: Do your kids only like the boxed and processed mac and cheese? Try adding roughly:

1/2 Teaspoon Garlic powder
1/2 Teaspoon Onion powder
1/2 Teaspoon Paprika
1/2 Teaspoon Turmeric

These were the spices I used in my cheese crackers and I found it gave them that extra tang that processed cheese snacks have, without adding any chemicals or processing. I highly recommend it.

Other Places:

Something easy and sweet:

Berry Sauce

Spaghetti and Meatball Dinner (Three recipes, one awesome dinner)

Super easy and everyone loves spaghetti and meatballs!

You could also be adventurous and make your own pasta!

Basic Tomato Sauce:

Serves Four

Ingredients:

• 1 Can Diced, whole or crushed tomatoes
• 1 Tablespoon Olive oil
• 4 Cloves Garlic
• 1 Onion
• 1 Tablespoon Oregano
• 1 Tablespoon Basil
• Salt and Pepper
• 2-3 Bay Leaves

Special Tools:

Immersion Blender, or a blender/food processor safe for use with hot sauces.

You could also make the sauce ahead of time, and then cool it and puree it later. Then the sauce would just need to be reheated when you needed it. Or if you want a chunkier sauce you can just mash the tomatoes a bit with a spoon. The choice is yours.

Instructions:

1. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. 
2. Finely dice the onion and cloves garlic, or pulse in a food processor until fine.
3. Once oil is heated, add the onion and garlic. Season with salt and pepper and stir fry until onions are soft and beginning to cook down. About 10 minutes of cooking. 
4. Add the can of tomatoes, basil, oregano and bay leaves. Season again with sat and pepper. Stir well.
5. Reduce heat and simmer the pot for about 5 minutes.
6. Taste the sauce. Adjust seasonings as needed. If it's too bitter more basil, maybe a little brown sugar (1/2 tablespoon), too sweet, more pepper and oregano. If it's just bland more salt. Tomatoes need a bit of salt before they really shine.
7. Cover and continue simmering on low for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
8. Remove bay leaves from the sauce and Blend smooth with an immersion blender*.
9. Serve hot over noodles. 

Enjoy!

Beef Meatballs:

Ingredients:

• 1 pound Ground Beef
• 1/2 Cup fresh bread crumbs
• 1 small Onion
• 2 Cloves garlic
• 1 Egg, lightly beaten
• 2 Tablespoons fresh chopped Parsley
• 1 Tablespoon Oregano
• Salt and Pepper
• 1 Teaspoon nutmeg, or a bit more if you like nutmeg.

Instructions:

1. Let the ground beef stand in a large stainless steel bowl on the counter for about 10 minutes. This just makes it less cold when it comes time to work it into balls.
2. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with Tin foil.
3. Finely dice or pulse in a food processor the onion and garlic. 
4. Add the diced vegetables, parsley, oregano and nutmeg to the ground beef. 
5. Season well with salt and pepper. Mix well. 
6. Add in the bread crumbs and egg and mix everything really well with your hands until evenly blended and balls retain shape when rolled to shape. 
7. Roll out the meatballs in your hands and place on the prepared baking sheet, close together but not touching. 
8. Once all the meat mixture have been rolled, bake meatballs for about 20-25 minutes, until cooked through. Remove from oven.
9. Serve hot as a cocktail snack, in a sandwich or wrap, or with a sauce on pasta.

Enjoy!

Basic Pasta Recipe

Ingredients:

For three to four people

• 1/2 Cup Semolina Flour
• 1/2 Cup White Flour
• Generous pinch salt
• 1 Egg
• 1 Egg Yolk
• 1/2 Tablespoon Olive Oil

Special Tools:

Pasta roller and cutter

Instructions:

1. On a clean dry work surface, sift together the semolina flour, white flour and salt until evenly mixed. 
2. In a small bowl gently whisk the egg, egg yolk and olive oil together to just break the yolks up a bit. 
3. Pile the flour mixture up on your work surface. Create a well in the center. You should now have what looks like a child's volcano project on your surface made from the flour, and a bowl of yellow "lava" waiting on the side. 
4. Another analogy is that the pile of flour mixture should look kind of like a doughnut. 
5. Pour the egg and oil mixture into the center of your volcano or doughnut of flour. use a fork to gently begin to whisk the flour mixture into the egg mixture, slowly expanding the well in the center until a dough begins to form, continue to mix in more flour with the fork until it becomes to stiff. 
6. Knead the dough with your hands, working in more of the flour mixture as your go. 
7. If things remain too sticky once all the flour is incorporated, add a little bit more semolina flour. 
8. If it is still too sticky a little bit more white flour. 
9. The dough should be smooth and dense when it is done. 
10. If it is too sticky or too dry it wont roll/cut right.
11. When dough is ready, roll it into a ball, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and let the dough rest at room temperature for about 20 minutes. 
12. This is a very important step. DO not skip it.
13. After the dough has rested, divide the dough into four equal chunks. 
14. Working with one chunk at a time, roll out slightly with a rolling pin, and then feed through a pasta roller until desired thinness is reached. 
15. I have a Kitchenaid stand mixer attachment set of pasta rollers, and I have been finding about a 5 on the roller is good for spaghetti, it's a little finer than box spaghetti but I like it.
16. Get a large pot of well salted water on the stove over medium high heat. Get it to a boil and keep it there.
17. Ok so here is when life will get complicated. Pasta sheets will dry out in the air, and then you wont be able to cut them later. They also like to stick together and become unworkable. Since I was not raised with an Italian Grandma to help me out I learned with trial and error. What I do is get out my giant cookie platter usual reserved for Christmas parties, and after rolling out the sheets, i place them along the try in a single layer and then cover with plastic wrap, and then layer more pasta sheets on top and repeat until all my pasta is rolled. The bonus of this method is when it comes time to cut the pasta I can lift up the layers of plastic wrap and start cutting the pasta sheets that I rolled first. Then flip the layers of pasta and plastic wrap and continue cutting pasta that was rolled first. Kitchen prep rule 101: first in means first out!
18. After rolling out all the pasta, switch to the cutter, or if you are truly ambitious cut it by hand. Cut the pasta sheets into workable lengths, and place the freshly cut pasta on a clean tea towel laid out as straight as possible and in a single layer if possible. You can also use plastic wrap to separate layers of pasta. We are trying to prevent the pasta from clumping back together before we get a chance to cook it. 
19. Once all the pasta is cut. Dump it all into the pot of boiling water. Stir gently. Pasta will be cooked in about a literal minute. Once cooked, drain from water and serve hot with desired sauce or topping.

Enjoy!

Notes:

To pull this off easily as a dinner for a guests, I would start by getting the pasta ready and letting it rest. Then start on the sauce, once the sauce is simmering, prepare the meatballs.

Once meatballs are cooking, roll and cut the pasta as desired. 

Once meatballs are cooked, add them to the fully cooked sauce after it has been blended smooth. Simmer meatballs for about 5 minutes.

While meatballs and sauce come together, finish cutting the pasta, cook the pasta and now everything is ready to serve.

Serve on warmed plates with salad and maybe some bread.

Other Places:

Something for dessert:

Avocado Loaf