Sneaky Spaghetti Sauce

When I hear people say that if you prepare vegetables well enough and often enough, then your child will eat them and love them, I automatically think one of two things.  First, they are incredibly lucky to have a child who apparently isn't a picky eater.  Or secondly, they don't have kids.  These naysayers also judge those parents who choose to 'hide' vegetables in the food they prepare their children.  "I mean, by hiding vegetables in food, how will the poor child ever learn to eat and appreciate vegetables on their own?!?"

I used to be one of these people.  Being somewhat of a foodie, I naively believed that by offering Finley the same foods I prepared for Andrew and myself, she would naturally develop a sophisticated palate.  And compared to most kids her age, maybe she has.  But she's still only two and a half and will choose a (veggie, organic) chicken nugget over broccolini any day of the week.

But here's what I've learned through my short years of motherhood.  Most kids are fickle eaters and they go through phases (usually fairly quickly!) of what they like and don't like.  For instance, one night Finley ate 10 spears of asparagus with her dinner.  I was so proud, pretty much ecstatic really, that I had a toddler who loved a green veggie besides canned green beans!  I marched to Costco the next day and bought the 6-lb bag of asparagus only to come home to a toddler who adamantly refused to eat. a. single. bite. of. asparagus. ever. again.

And this is why I am a firm believer of offering tasty, fresh vegetables at every meal (because sometimes Fin surprises me and eats her carrots or broccoli) BUT also hiding vegetables in meals wherever I can.  I mean, really what is the harm in packing more vegetables into a meal?  It's healthier all the way around!  This is a spaghetti sauce recipe I created when Fin was going through her 'I-only-want-to-eat-pasta-and-ice-cream' phase.  We enjoy the sauce so much, it's now the only meat sauce I ever make anymore.  It's jam packed with vegetables (onion, tomatoes, bell pepper, mushrooms, carrots, celery, zucchini and squash) so it's healthy and tasty.  When I make this spaghetti, I can rest easy because if Finley refuses to eat any of her vegetable side dishes that night, I don't have to worry since she ate some of the dreaded veggies without even knowing it.  And that makes me happy :-)

This recipe makes enough for about 10-12 servings.  I always make the full recipe - I serve it for dinner and then divide the leftovers into two or three large ziplock bags and throw them in the freezer for another night. Also, if you need to clean out your veggie drawer, feel free to throw in any other vegetables too!

Sneaky Spaghetti Sauce
a Baking and Eggs original

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 white onion, chopped
2 large carrots, finely chopped
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
4-8 oz fresh mushrooms, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 zucchini, shredded
1 yellow squash, shredded
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
1 teaspoon fennel seed
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon rosemary
1/2 cup red wine (or substitute with more beef stock)
1/2 beef stock
1 lb Italian sausage or Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
1 lb ground beef or ground bison
2 29-oz cans tomato sauce (not spaghetti sauce)
1 14.5-oz fire-roasted diced tomatoes with garlic, drained
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan, plus more for serving (omit if you're dairy free)
2 bay leaves
salt and pepper, to taste
1 small can tomato paste
cooked spaghetti noodles, for serving

In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat.  Add bell pepper, onion, carrots, and celery.  Cook, stirring often, until onion becomes translucent.  Add mushrooms, garlic, zucchini, squash, basil, fennel seed, oregano and rosemary and cook for another 2-3 minutes.  Stir in wine and beef stock and let simmer while the meat cooks.

Meanwhile, in a large saute pan cook Italian sausage and ground beef over medium heat, breaking up any big lumps, until meat is browned.  Drain fat.  Add meat to vegetable mixture.

Add tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, parmesan cheese, bay leaves, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper.  Stir well to combine.  Cover and lower heat to medium-low.  Cook, stirring every 10 minutes or so, for at least one hour.  Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.  About 20 minutes before serving, stir in tomato paste if the sauce is too watery.  Continue to cook sauce over medium-low heat until ready to eat.  Serve over cooked noodles and sprinkle with extra parmesan.

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Party Sandwiches

These sandwiches are a fabulous mix of sweet and savory and just so darn tasty.  I love these sandwiches, which helps explains why I ate them three nights in a row for dinner last week :-)  The sweet butter rolls combine deliciously with the salty deli meats and melted cheese-y goodness, but what really puts it all over the top is the tangy onion-mustard sauce.  The combination really is fantastic!  But you have to watch out because it can be hard to stop eating these!  They have become a party staple at our house for good reason - the sandwiches come together really quickly and the topping is so flavorful that you don't have to mess with needing to offer mayonnaise or mustard.

Party Sandwiches
adapted from All Recipes

2 packages Hawaiian sweet dinner rolls (24 rolls total)
1/2 lb turkey meat, thinly sliced
1/2 lb ham, thinly sliced
1/3 lb Swiss cheese, thinly sliced
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1-2 tablespoons onion, minced
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon herbs of choice (poppy seeds, fennel seeds, sesame seeds, caraway seeds, etc.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cover a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper.  Place rolls on baking sheet.  Being careful not to separate the individual rolls, use a serrated knife to split rolls in half lengthwise.  On the bottom of the rolls, top with turkey, ham and cheese.  Cover sandwiches with the tops of the rolls.

In a small dish, melt butter in microwave.  Stir in mustard, onion and Worcestershire sauce.  Brush sauce over top of rolls.  Sprinkle with herbs.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the rolls are lightly browned and the cheese has melted.  Carefully cut the rolls into individual sandwiches and transfer to a platter.

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Lasagna Soup

I made this for dinner last night and was really looking forward to it.  Yesterday ended up being such a dreary day with overcast skies and a misty rain, so it was perfect soup weather.  This soup had all the goodness of lasagna, but with a much faster prep and cook time!  The broth was so wonderfully flavorful that I ended up not even needing to add any salt to it.  Even though the cooking time is rather short, the soup tastes like you've been simmering it all day.

If you're not feeding a crowd, then you'll probably have a lot of leftovers, which is why you don't want to add the noodles to the soup.  The noodles will continue to soak up the broth and retain a mushy texture.  I only cooked 4 oz of noodles and made a half recipe of the cheese mixture (rather than the full amounts that the recipe calls for) because I anticipated we'd have leftovers.  I froze the soup leftovers to eat at a later time, at which point I'll mix up additional cheesy goodness and cook more noodles.


Lasagna Soup
adapted from A Farmgirl's Dabbles

for the soup:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 lb Italian seasoned ground turkey
12 white onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
4-8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon fennel seed
1/2 teaspoon rosemary
1/4 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
2 14-oz fire-roasted diced tomatoes
2 cups chicken broth
2 cup fresh spinach, roughly chopped
8 oz. fusilli pasta
salt and pepper, to taste

for the cheesy goodness:
8 oz. part skim ricotta cheese
1/4 cup grated parmesan
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella
2 pinches ground nutmeg
salt and pepper, to taste

for garnish:
8-10 fresh basil leaves, chopped
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated or shredded

In a large pot over medium heat, add olive oil.  Once oil is heated, add turkey, onions and mushrooms and cook until turkey is browned.  Add oregano, fennel, rosemary, red pepper and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds to one minute.  Add one can of diced tomatoes.  Using an immersion blender (or food processor or stand blender), puree the second can of tomatoes.  Stir into the soup.  Add chicken broth and spinach.  Simmer, covered, for 20 - 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a separate pot, cook noodles according to package directions.  Drain and set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, parmesan, mozzarella, nutmeg, salt and pepper and mix well.

To serve, place a generous dollop of the cheese mixture in the bottom of each bowl.  Top with a scoop of noodles and pour soup over noodles.  Sprinkle with parmesan and chopped basil.

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Thai Turkey Lettuce Wraps

This was a meal that I picked out when I was feeling the need for a healthy, light meal. Of course this meal got pushed to the end of the week because it just didn't sound quite as good as some of the other meals. But I was wrong because this meal was fantastic! Andrew and I both loved the flavors of the meatballs and the sauce and they were healthy to boot. Healthy meatballs, who'd have thunk it?!? This was one of those meals that I can't wait to make again because it was just that good!

Thai Turkey Lettuce Wraps

adapted from Kalyn's Kitchen

for the meatballs

1lb ground turkey

1/2 red bell pepper, roughly chopped

1 carrot, roughly chopped

1/2 small white onion, roughly chopped

1-inch piece of ginger, roughly chopped

1 garlic clove, roughly chopped

1/3 cup cilantro leaves

3 sprigs of mint leaves

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon sesame oil

2 tablespoons hoisin sauce

for the sauce

3 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 tablespoon soy sauce

2 teaspoons sesame oil

for serving

lettuce leaves

finely chopped cucumber

shredded carrots

cilantro

mint leaves

In a food processor, add bell pepper, carrots, onion, ginger, garlic, cilantro and mint leaves. Pulse several times, or until everything is finely chopped (not pureed!). Spoon mixture into a large bowl and add turkey, soy sauce and sesame oil. Mix well with your hands. Form into one-inch meatballs and place meatballs on a greased or nonstick baking sheet. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine all sauce ingredients and let flavors marry while meatballs are resting.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush meatballs liberally with the hoisin sauce. Bake meatballs for 20-25 minutes. Transfer them to a paper towel-lined plate to get rid of any grease. Serve with the sauce, lettuce leaves, cucumbers, carrots, cilantro and/or mint leaves.

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My Favorite Sandwich

I love sandwiches. I don't know why but I just do. And this sandwich was great. It combined a subtle sweetness from the Hawaiian bread, the potent tang of fresh pesto, the smoky flavor of good deli meats and the creaminess of cheese. Delish! We had it for dinner and again for lunch the next day. And I'd eat it again today if I hadn't have run out of meat and cheese!

My Favorite Sandwich

recipe from Recipes to Run On

Hawaiian bread

Pesto - fresh or store bought

Mayonnaise

Good quality deli turkey, thinly sliced

Good quality deli ham, thinly sliced

Good quality provolone cheese, thinly sliced

Spread a light layer of mayo on the bottom piece of bread. Top with ham, turkey, and cheese. On the top piece of bread, spread a healthy dollop of pesto and place bread over the meats and cheese. Cut sandwich in half and enjoy.

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Quick Quesadillas

Usually I prepare Finley's lunch during her nap so that it's ready to go when she wakes up. Her first word after waking up is almost always "eat!" Well today she woke up early and I hadn't had any time to plan, much less prepare, her lunch. So I was in need of a quick lunch for Finley and me. I looked at the odds and ends that we already had in the fridge and decided on quesadillas - and they turned out great! I can't wait to make them again tomorrow for lunch! What makes this quesadilla so scrumptious is the flavor of the onion and chive cream cheese, so don't skip it. All in all, a great easy lunch - almost no prep time, quick cooking, got some veggies in and I already had every ingredient.

Quick Quesadilla

butter

flour tortillas

onion and chive cream cheese

sliced or shredded cheese (I used muenster)

deli meat (I used smoked turkey)

spinach (or another green - arugula, romaine, kale, etc.)

In a pan over medium heat, melt butter. Let it get good and hot before you start cooking the quesadilla or else the tortilla won't get very crispy. Spread a tortilla with a thin layer of cream cheese. Over half of the tortilla, top with cheese, meat and spinach. Fold over to create a "sandwich" and carefully slip into the pan. Cook for 1-2 minutes, or until cheese has started to melt and flip over. Continue cooking for another 1-2 minutes and remove from pan. Cut into wedges and let cool slightly before eating.

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Yummy Turkey Wraps

I was craving something different than a regular old turkey sandwich so I decided to spice things up a bit. And I loved the result! I based the recipe on a wrap sandwich I used to get in college at a restaurant called Roly-Poly. The combination of the sweet mango chutney and the spicy peppercorn ranch dressing perfectly spices up this sandwich! (I didn't include quantities here because it seems like everyone likes their sandwiches a little different.)

Yummy Turkey Wraps

whole wheat or spinach sandwich wrap or tortillas

peppercorn ranch dressing

shaved deli turkey

colby jack cheese slices

romaine lettuce, shredded

cucumber, peeled and very thinly sliced

salt and pepper

mango chutney

Spread the sandwich wrap out on a large plate. Spread a light smattering of ranch dressing over half the wrap. Top the ranch with turkey, cheese, lettuce and cucumber. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper over the cucumber slices. Spread a smattering (a little more than you did the ranch) of chutney on the other half of the wrap. Roll up, cut in half and enjoy your lunch!

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Pantry Chili

My regular chili recipe has about a gazillion ingredients. Don't get me wrong, it's delicious and worth the time and expense to make...BUT this Pantry Chili recipe is wonderful to make when you need something hearty, quick to prepare and with few ingredients. We've all had one of those days when you look at the clock, realize it's 5:30 and you have no idea what you're going to make for dinner. This recipe can come to your rescue!

Pantry Chili

1 lb ground turkey or beef

2 T chili powder

1 can corn, drained

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 can white beans, drained and rinsed

2 cans Ro-Tel or diced tomatoes (do NOT drain these)

2-3 T tomato paste

Shredded cheddar cheese, for serving

In a pot over medium heat, add ground meat and cook until browned. Drain fat. Sprinkle chili powder over meat and stir. Add all the canned veggies and stir well. Lower heat to medium-low and let simmer for about 30 minutes. A few minutes before you want to eat, stir in the tomato paste to thicken the broth. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and serve!

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Southwestern Turkey Burgers

I was craving a burger recently, but I wanted something a little healthier than the average beef burger. I invited my parents over for dinner and I tried a new Rachael Ray recipe for Southwest Turkey Burgers and everyone enjoyed them. The patties were moist (which can sometimes be a problem with turkey since it's such a lean meat), flavor-packed and the pepper jack cheese really added a spicy zing. I think next time I might leave off the bacon and add mashed avocado. Overall, I really good burger and it's a recipe I'll definitely make again. Oh, and I served the burgers with homemade sweet potato fries and fresh fruit salad.

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