Bisquick Lasagna

Ingredients:
3 lbs. ground beef
2 lbs. Part-Skim Ricotta Cheese
1 cup Grated Mozzarella Cheese
1 – 10 oz. package frozen chopped spinach
5 cloves garlic – chopped
2 ½ cups milk
6 eggs
2 cups Original Bisquick

Quick Marinara Sauce:
1 – 29 oz. can crushed tomatoes
5 cloves of garlic – chopped
1 medium yellow onion – sliced
Dashes of fresh ground black pepper
Dashes of sea salt
Pinch of sugar
Olive oil – for drizzling

Prepare the marinara. In a medium sauce pan drizzle a little olive oil and add the garlic and onion. Sauté until the onion is clear. Add the crushed tomatoes and the seasonings. Simmer on low for about 10 minutes.

Preheat Oven 350 degrees:

In a large frying pan drizzle a little olive oil and cook the beef and drain.

In a smaller frying pan drizzle a little olive oil, add the chopped garlic and sauté until the garlic is slightly golden. Add the chopped spinach and sauté until the spinach is cooked. Combine the spinach with the cooked chopped meat.

Place the ricotta cheese in a bowl and add about a ½ cup of grated Romano cheese and two or three tablespoons of marinara sauce, a tsp. of sugar and mix.

In a medium sized bowl add the milk, eggs, Bisquick and mix.

Grease the bottom of a large baking dish. Spread the spinach and beef combo in the baking dish. Top with the ricotta cheese mixture and then the marinara sauce. Pour the Bisquick the marinara sauce and finish off with the shredded mozzarella cheese.

Bake about 25-30 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean. This meal serves about 8 people.

This is well worth the time to make. It will bring smiles to the faces you love.

Enjoy with Love,

Catherine

Bisquick Lasagna

Baked Chicken Legs & Thighs with Sun Dried Tomato & Bread Crumbs

Ingredients:

6 – Chicken legs & thighs

Sun Dried Tomato & Bread Crumb Topping:

4 - Vine ripe tomatoes

4 sun dried tomatoes

5 – Cloves of garlic

Healthy handful of fresh cilantro

Juice of ½ fresh lemon

½ cup of fresh chopped unseasoned bread crumbs

Dashes of fresh ground black pepper

Dash of sea salt

Drizzles of olive oil

Romano cheese - for grating

Preheat Oven to 350 degrees:

Clean the chicken and pat dry with a paper towel. Drizzle a little olive oil at the bottom of a baking dish and place the chicken in the baking dish.

In a food processor place of the ingredients for the sun dried tomato topping, EXCEPT the bread crumbs and give a few chops, leave it slightly chunky. Do Not turn it into soup! Remove the topping from the food processor and add the fresh bread crumbs to the topping.

Place the sun dried tomato and bread crumb topping on the chicken and grate a generous amount of Romano cheese on top. Drizzle a little olive oil over all of this and place in the oven.

Bake for about 45 – 50 minutes. Serves about 4

This is a tasty and delicious chicken dish; serve with a colorful side salad and a crusty loaf of Italian bread.

Enjoy with Much Love,

Catherine

Baked Chicken Legs & Thighs with Sun Dried Tomato & Bread Crumbs

Marinated Grilled Pork with Sautéed Cabbage

I would like to thank my dear daughter for a wonderful combination of flavors that inspired her to prepare this delicious marinade.

Ingredients:

3 lb. boneless pork loin (sliced thin)

Marinade:

Dashes of red pepper flakes

Dashes of fresh ground black pepper

2 tablespoons Soy sauce

2 tablespoons Teriyaki sauce

2 tablespoons Oyster Sauce

Tablespoon of pickled ginger – plus 1 tablespoon of pickled juice

½ tsp fresh ground chili paste

Combine all of the ingredients for the marinade and place slices of pork in the marinade. Refrigerate the pork for 1 hour or up to overnight.

Heat griddle and place the slices of pork on the heated griddle. Grill for 3-4 minutes on each side, depending on how thin the pork is sliced.

Sautéed Cabbage

1 medium head of cabbage – sliced

1 medium onion – sliced

2 vine ripe tomatoes – chopped

4 cloves of garlic – crushed and chopped

1 large handful of Italian parsley – chopped

Dressing:

Juice of 1 lemon

1 tablespoon of sugar

Dashes of ground cumin

Dash of sea salt

Dashes of fresh ground black pepper

Drizzles of olive oil

Heat a large frying pan with a drizzle of olive oil and place the cabbage, onion and garlic. Sauté until the onion is clear and the cabbage is wilted. Add the parsley and the tomatoes and continue to sauté for another minute or two.

Combine all of the ingredients for the dressing and pour over the cabbage and toss.

Serve warm.

This grilled pork and cabbage dish makes a wonderful combination for a quick and delicious meal.

Enjoy with Lots of Love,

Catherine

Marinated Grilled Pork with Sautéed Cabbage

Simple Yellow Cupcakes

Ingredients:

1 box of yellow cake mix

1 cup of all-purpose flour – sifted

1/2 tsp baking powder

3 eggs

1 ¼ cup of milk

½ cup of sour cream

½ cup of applesauce

½ tsp vanilla

4 pats of butter

Preheat oven 350 degrees:

Combine all of the above ingredients in a bowl and mix with an electric mixer.

Fill cup cake tins half-way and place in oven for about 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the cupcake.

This batter will make about 24 medium size cakes of love.

These little cupcakes are so delightful to have on hand when you have a nice hot cup of coffee or tea and need to just sit and ponder. Life is short, go ahead ...have a cupcake.

Enjoy with Lots of Love,

Catherine

Stuffed Bell Peppers

Ingredients:

3 large bell peppers
1 cup of cooked rice
1 cup of fresh unseasoned breadcrumbs
1 healthy handful of Italian parsley – chopped
4 cloves of garlic – crushed and chopped
1 bunch of scallions – chopped
½ yellow onion – chopped
¼ cup of grated Romano cheese
½ Jalapeño – chopped (with seeds)
½ cup of boiled deli ham – chopped
Dashes of fresh ground black pepper
Dash of sea salt
1 cup of chicken broth
Olive oil – for drizzling

Cut the tops of the peppers off and save them. Take out the seeds and ribs of the inside of the peppers and set the peppers aside.

Preheat the Oven to 325 degrees:

Heat a large frying pan with a few drizzles of olive oil and add the parsley, garlic, scallions, yellow onion and Jalapeño and sauté until the onion is clear. Add the rice, breadcrumbs, seasonings and the ham and another drizzle of olive oil and continue to sauté for another minute.

Stuff the peppers to the top with the mixture and secure the tops with a toothpick. Place the peppers in a sauce pan and add the broth to the bottom of the pan. Drizzle olive oil over the peppers.

Bake in oven for 45 minutes.

These peppers make a wonderful light meal with a colorful side salad.

Enjoy with Love,

Catherine

Stuffed Bell Peppers

Spinach Calzones with Homemade Marinara Sauce

There are a variety of things you can make with pizza dough, (other than pizza of course). One of those variations is calzones. A calzone is just a pizza turned over.

However, like pizza, there are many ways you can prepare calzones.

In my opinion, nothing is better than a calzone stuffed with spinach, ricotta cheese, and ham. Well, maybe there is one thing better- A HOMEMADE spinach, ricotta cheese, and ham calzone.

In my family, we never buy pizza. We buy pizza dough and make our own. It has brought some of the fondest memories in our kitchen.
~
Friday night was pizza night. I made the calzones, and Mama made the marinara sauce.

Today I’m guest posting on Living the Gourmet.

Yes, Lady Gourmet taught Little Gourmet Girl well! ;)
NOTE: This recipe made two calzones.
Prep Time: 12 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes (or until golden)

Easy Spinach Calzones
(By Tammy)

2 prepared pizza doughs
2 packages of spinach (10 ounces each)
1 medium-large onion, finely chopped
5 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 cup ricotta cheese
½ cup parmesan cheese, grated
½ cup mozzarella, shredded
About 8-10 slices of deli ham, cut into long strips
Salt & Pepper to taste
Approximately 4 tablespoons Olive Oil
Dashes of Living the Gourmet Dry Herb Rub

In an large skillet on medium low heat, drizzle about 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
Add onion and sauté until tender and golden. Then add garlic and spinach, sautéing until large clumps are broken up. Add the dashes of salt and pepper.

Transfer to a medium bowl and let cool. Once cool enough, stir in ricotta, parmesan, mozzarella, and ham.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare 2 cookie sheets by lining them with parchment paper and sprinkling the paper with cornmeal. Set aside.

Flour the pizza dough and work the dough using your fists into a large circle, do not roll the dough out, about 12 inch circles. Fill one half side with spinach mixture and fold over. Press the edges with a fork to seal the calzone.

Transfer the dough onto the cookie sheets. Rub each calzone with a tablespoon of olive oil and bake for 25 minutes or until golden.

While calzones are baking, prepare marinara sauce, which my Mom shall now tell you how to prepare!

xx,
Tammy
Homemade Marinara Sauce
(By Catherine)

Ingredients:

29 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
5 cloves of garlic – chopped
1 yellow onion – sliced
Healthy handful of fresh basil
Dashes of fresh ground black pepper
Pinch of sugar
Dashes of sea salt
Dashes of oregano
Drizzles of Olive Oil

Heat a large frying pan with a drizzle of olive oil and add the basil, garlic and sliced onions. Heat until the onion is clear. Add the crushed tomato and the spices and the pinch of sugar. Simmer on low for about 25-30 minutes.

This is a quick and easy to make sauce and so delicious!

With love & blessings,
Catherine

Spinach Calzones with Homemade Marinara Sauce

Pork Roast

Ingredients:

1 – 8 lb pork rib roast

Dressing and Marinade:

1 – Large handful of fresh cilantro – chopped

1 – Large handful of fresh parsley – chopped

4 cloves of garlic – chopped

1 tsp. of instant coffee

1 tablespoon of honey

1 tsp of brown sugar

Dashes of ground cumin

Dashes of cinnamon

Dashes of sea salt

Dashes of fresh ground black pepper

Juice of ¼ of a lemon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees:

Combine all of the ingredients for the dressing in a small bowl and mix.

In the pork roast loosen between the seam of the meat so that you make a pocket in the meat, stuff the dressing in the pocket. The remaining bit of dressing left in the bowl rub on the outside of the pork.

Place the pork in a baking pan and bake for about 20 minutes per pound, about 2 ½ hours for this pork roast. Do not overcook your roast. It will be dry and unenjoyable.

This serves about 6 people.

This combo of flavors turned out great. I hope you will give it a try.

Enjoy with Lots of Love,

Catherine

Spaghetti with a “Light Mushroom & Scallion Alfredo”

Ingredients:

1 box of your favorite spaghetti
1 bunch of scallions – cut in medium pieces
4 cloves of garlic – chopped
1 quart of button mushrooms – sliced
1 bunch of Italian parsley – chopped
Olive oil

Sauce:

3 cloves of garlic – chopped
4 pats of butter
½ cup of milk
½ cup of grated Romano cheese
Dashes of fresh ground black pepper

Heat the griddle and place mushrooms, scallions, parsley and garlic on the griddle with a drizzle of olive oil. Grill until they are golden.

While the veggies are grilling prepare the spaghetti as directed. Place the spagheti in a large bowl and top with the grilled veggies and a drizzle of olive oil and toss.

In a small saucepan place the butter to melt along with the garlic. When the butter is melted add the milk and the Romano cheese and the dashes of black pepper.

Top the spaghetti with the sauce, pour another drizzle of olive oil, a few more dashes of black pepper and a little more grated cheese, toss and serve.

This will serve 5-6 people or just have some delicious leftovers.

This dish is easy, delicious and looks beautiful.

Enjoy with Much Love,

Catherine

Spaghetti with a “Light Mushroom & Scallion Alfredo”

Polish Rugelach

(Adapted from cooksrecipes.com)

Dough:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

½ cup sugar

2 ¾ all purpose flour

Filling:

¾ cup sugar

2/3 cup dried cranberries and raisins mixed

2/3 cup chopped toasted walnuts or almonds

½ cup unsalted butter, melted

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

For dough: Beat butter and cream cheese in large bowl until light. Add sugar; beat until fluffy. Mix in flour. Gather dough into ball and gently knead until smooth. Gather into ball and flatten wrap in plastic wrap and chill 1 hour. When ready, divide dough into four pieces.

For filling: Combine ¾ cup sugar, cranberries walnuts, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg and cocoa powder in food processor and give it a few good chops. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place 1 dough piece on floured work surface. Roll out dough to about 1/8 inch thickness. Spread 3 tablespoons filling over round, leaving ½ - inch border. Cut round into 1/8 in. wedges. Starting at wide end of each wedge, roll up tightly and completely to tip.

Place cookies, tip pointing down, on ungreased baking sheet and form into crescents. Repeat with 3 more dough disks and filling. Bake until golden, about 20 minutes. Repeat with remaining 4 disks.

Makes approximately 64 cookies.

I hope you enjoy these delightful little pleasures as much as my family and I have! Serve with tea or a good cup of coffee !

Enjoy with so much love!

Catherine

P. S...This post is being featured on my daughter's baking blog, Il Dolce Bacio how much fun is that!

Polish Rugelach

Grilled Asparagus Soup

Ingredients:

1 bunch of asparagus
8 cloves of garlic – chopped
1 bunch of Italian parsley – chopped with stems
½ cup of potato buds-plus ½ cup of water
3 cups of chicken broth
Dashes of fresh ground black pepper
Dashes of sea salt
Dash or two of ground cloves
¼ pound of bacon cut into 1 inch pieces
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
Olive oil

Cut the hard stems off of the asparagus and simmer the asparagus in about 3 cups of water for about 2 minutes. Do not over simmer them. Remove the asparagus from the water and reserve that asparagus water for later.

Heat the griddle with a drizzle of olive oil and place the asparagus on the heated griddle to grill until they get a beautiful grilled look. Slightly charred.

Cut the asparagus in half, setting aside the tops.

Grill the bacon and set aside in a paper towel.

Heat a saucepan with a drizzle of olive and add the chopped garlic and parsley. Sauté until the garlic becomes slightly golden.

Add the reserved asparagus broth and the chicken broth and simmer on low for about 5 minutes.

Gently lift out the garlic and parsley and place them in a food processor with the ends of the asparagus and give a few good chops and return to the broth.

Combine the ½ cup of potato buds with the ½ cup of water and stir and add to the soup, along with the lemon juice. Add the dashes of sea salt, black pepper and the dash or two of ground cloves.

Garnish with the asparagus tops and bacon and a lemon quarter of desired. This soup is elegant and so good you might have seconds!

Enjoy with Much Love,

Catherine

Grilled Asparagus Soup

Recipe Buzz

I would like to thank Recipe Buzz for their kind review of my blog.

Recipe Buzz is "a site that mainly focuses on food and recipes."

Recipe Buzz hosts a directory page that links cooking blogs together, where you can find new foodie bloggers.

To read their review on Living the Gourmet follow this link.

ENJOY!

Grilled Chicken with Grilled Eggplant

Ingredients:

Eggplant:

3 medium sized eggplants – quartered

8 cloves of garlic – chopped

Healthy handful of Italian parsley – chopped (not finely chopped)

1 large yellow onion – sliced

Olive oil

Juice of ½ lemon

Dashes of Sea Salt

Dashes of Fresh Ground Black Pepper

Chicken:

3 lbs. of boneless chicken breast

Marinade:

Healthy handful of Italian parsley – chopped (not finely)

3 cloves of garlic – chopped

Dashes of Curry powder

Dashes of Paprika

Dashes of Fresh Ground Black Pepper

Dashes of Cumin

Dashes of Sea Salt

1 tablespoon of Brown Sugar

Juice of ½ lemon

¼ cup of olive oil

Marinade to pour over the finished dish:

Juice of 1 lemon

¼ cup olive oil

Dash of Sea Salt

Dashes of Fresh Ground Black Pepper

Quarter the eggplant lengthwise and slice, combine with the chopped garlic, parsley and onion and drizzle a little olive oil over the veggies. Season this with salt and pepper and grill.

Combine the ingredients for the marinade and pour over the chicken. Let this sit in refrigerator for and hour or so, or overnight or overnight if you wish.

Heat a griddle with a drizzle of olive oil and place the chunks of eggplant, slices of onion, garlic and parsley on the griddle. Grill until the veggies turn golden on both sides.

Place on platter and cover to keep warm while you grill the chicken.

Place the marinated chicken on the griddle and grill until one side turns golden, then flip and continue to grill on the other side, until the chicken turns golden and the juices run clear.

Tip: The chicken will turn firm to the touch when it is done, but do not let it become hard to the touch otherwise it will be dry and you will not enjoy it.

Combine the ingredients the lemon, olive oil and seasonings to pour over the finished dish and serve.

This dish goes great with a crusty loaf of bread and a side salad.

Enjoy with Love,

Catherine

I am submitting this to Valentine's Day Food Festival over at my dear friend, Sutapa's blog, Tips for Healthy & Delicious Cooking!

Grilled Chicken with Grilled Eggplant

Macaroni with Grilled Veggies and Chicken

Ingredients:

1 box of your favorite macaroni

½ lb. of boneless chicken breast –sliced (left over or fresh)

1 bunch of scallions - chopped into large pieces

8 sun dried tomatoes – sliced

8 cloves of garlic – chopped

1 healthy handful of parsley – coarsely chopped

1 handful of cilantro – coarsely chopped

¼ cup of craisins – (cranberry raisins)

4 oz. jar of marinated artichoke hearts (drained) – reserve the marinade

1 cup of coarsely chopped fresh breadcrumbs or coarsely chopped croutons

Juice of ½ lemon

Olive oil

Fresh Grated Romano Cheese

Dashes of Fresh black pepper

Heat a griddle or large frying pan and drizzle a little olive oil. Place the scallions, sun dried tomatoes, garlic, parsley, cilantro and sauté or grill for a minute - Do Not Over Cook and wilt everything! Add the craisins, artichoke hearts toss and remove the veggies from the heat.

Grill the sliced chicken breast with a drizzle of olive oil, until golden and beautiful and remove from heat.

In a small bowl combine the reserved artichoke marinade, ¼ cup of olive oil, the lemon juice and stir.

In a large frying pan or on a griddle drizzle a little olive oil and add the coarse bread crumbs with an extra clove or two of chopped garlic and sauté until the bread crumbs are golden. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Prepare the macaroni as directed on the box. (Al-dente!)

Combine the macaroni with the veggies add the sliced chicken, the bread crumbs and toss.

Drizzle the marinade over the macaroni and grate the Romano cheese. Grind fresh black pepper over the macaroni and toss.

This dish will transport you to Italy without the plane!

Enjoy with Lots of Love,

Catherine

P.S. I just wanted to thank Candace over at Mi Chiamo Candace. She has a delightful blog and shares wonderful recipes. Recently, Candace posted my own Eggplant and Mushroom Parmesan. I was so pleased to read the rave reviews! Thank you Candace! I am so happy to hear you enjoyed it! Please head over and read Candace's post here.

Macaroni with Grilled Veggies and Chicken

Il Dolce Bacio

When you visited Living the Gourmet, you may have noticed something different on the left sidebar.

Perhaps the word 'contributors' stood out to you. I am so happy and proud to announce that my daughter has started her own baking blog, Il Dolce Bacio.

I hope you enjoy and visit often. I will be contributing to her site and she shall also contribute to mine.

Enjoy!

Roasted Oven Stuffer Chicken

Ingredients:

Stuffing:

1 -10 lb. oven stuffer chicken

Handful of Italian parsley - chopped

Handful of cilantro – chopped

5 cloves of garlic – chopped

1- Tablespoon of capers – plus tablespoon of caper juice

1 cup of pepper and sea salt croutons – crushed coarsely (or your preferred flavor)

¼ cup of olive oil

Rub for top of skin:

¼ cup of olive oil

Dashes of paprika

Dash o f chili powder

1 tsp of dried oregano

Dashes of black pepper

Juice of ½ lemon

Preheat oven to 350:

Wash bird inside and out and pat dry.

Combine all of the ingredients for the stuffing and mix well. Gently separate the skin from the meat of the chicken and stuff the mixture under the skin.

Combine the ingredients for the rub and smooth the rub all over the skin of the chicken.

Place in a baking dish and bake until the skin is golden and the juices run clear. About 15-20 minutes per pound.

This is an easy and elegant dish to place on your table.

Enjoy and Love a lot,

Catherine

Roasted Oven Stuffer Chicken

Copanata II

Ingredients:

1 medium size eggplant – sliced

6 cloves of garlic – chopped

1 can - pitted black olives

1 – 29 oz. can - crushed tomatoes

1 pint of grape tomatoes – halved

½ Spanish onion – sliced

4 stalks celery – chopped

1 healthy handful – Italian parsley - chopped

1 handful – cilantro –chopped

1 tablespoon capers - plus 1 tablespoon caper juice

2 bell peppers – sliced

1 Jalapeño pepper – sliced with seeds

½ cup of raisins

Dash of sea salt

Dash of black pepper

1 Tablespoon of dried oregano

2 tablespoons of honey

1 tablespoon – balsamic vinegar

Olive oil

Romano cheese for grating

Heat the griddle and place the eggplant and peppers to grill with a drizzle of olive oil over them. Let them become golden and slightly charred.

Heat a large frying pan with a drizzle of olive oil and place the onion, parsley, cilantro and celery and let them sauté until the onion is clear. Place the tomato halves and the raisins continue to sauté. Add the eggplant, peppers, crushed tomatoes, capers and olives and continue to simmer on low. Add the seasonings to taste.

Just before serving combine the honey and the vinegar and add to the caponata.

Drizzle a little more olive oil, grate some Romano cheese and serve.

This dish is delicious served warm or cold with a crusty loaf of Italian bread and some good Italian cheese.

Enjoy with Lots of Love,

Catherine

Caponata