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Simple Recipe: Roasted Fresh Tomato Pasta Sauce


Enjoy the bounty of your summer garden (or tomato sale at the grocery!) with this simple and flavorful Roasted Grape Tomato Pasta Sauce!

Ingredients:

2 pints grape tomatoes, rinsed (dry with paper towels) – Note: you CAN use cherry tomatoes, or Roma tomatoes, just slice the Romas in half before cooking.

3-4  large whole cloves fresh garlic, peeled

4 Tbs. olive oil

1/2 cup onion, chopped

2-3 Tbs. fresh sweet basil, rinsed & dried with paper towel, then rough chopped

3/4 cup  chicken broth (or 1/4 cup white wine with 1/2 cup chicken broth)

Salt and pepper to taste

Optional: For spicy flavor, add 1/4 t. red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper.

 

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cover a baking sheet (preferably a jelly roll pan that has low sides) with tin foil.

In a large bowl, place tomatoes, garlic cloves and 2 Tbs olive oil. Mix so ingredients are covered with olive oil. Turn out mixture on to the baking sheet. Place on center rack in preheated oven for 20-30 minutes, until roasted (I like to get a slightly charred look on the skin, but don’t over cook/dry out the tomatoes!).

While the tomatoes & garlic are cooking, cook the onions in the remaining 2 Tbs. olive oil in a large pan. Set aside.

Once tomatoes and garlic are done, remove from oven and place into at food processor or powerful blender. Blend for a couple of pulses, until it is a rough/chunky look (and the garlic is chopped!). Pour blended mixture into pan with onions.

Cook the tomato/garlic/onion mixture for 15-20 minutes. In last 5 minutes of cooking, add the fresh chopped basil and salt and pepper to taste. (if including optional pepper flakes, add them at this time.) Makes a chunky, thick sauce that is light – not your regular, bottled sauce!

Serve over favorite pasta with fresh parmesan cheese!

 

 

Cooking With The Kids: Taco Cupcakes

Taco Cupcakes from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
Taco Cupcakes from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.

Ingredients:

1 lb. extra lean ground beef
1 packet taco seasoning
2/3 cup water
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
36 wonton wrappers
your favorite taco toppings – salsa, cheese, sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, etc.
cooking spray

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375.

Brown the meat in a skillet and drain off fat. Return the meat to the skillet; add the taco seasoning, water and black beans.  Mix and simmer for 5-10 minutes, until water is absorbed.

Spray 18 regular muffin pan cups with cooking spray.  Place one wonton wrapper in each muffin cup.  Divide half of the taco meat between muffin cups.  Sprinkle half of the cheese over the cupcakes.  Repeat layers – wonton, taco meat and cheese.  Bake at 375 for 20 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly.  Top with your favorite taco toppings.

Enjoy!

Simple Recipe: “Get Your Greens” Smoothie

The “Get Your Greens” Smoothie is the perfect way to incorporate stealth nutrition into your diet (and your kids’!).  Kale and spinach are “hidden” in plain sight, and are masked by the flavors of mango, pineapple, and banana.  You can name this smoothie whatever you want to call it to get your kids to eat it!

Suggestion: Using baby spinach and baby kale greens adds a little sweeter flavor to the smoothie.

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup ice
  • 1 ripe banana
  • 1 cup pineapple
  • 1 whole, fresh mango peeled and cubed  (or 1 cup frozen)
  • 1 handful of fresh washed spinach
  • 1 handful fresh washed kale
  • 1 cup apple juice
  • splash or two of almond milk
  • 1 tablespoon turbinado sugar (optional)

Feel free to add flax seed or other ingredients to add your own take on this smoothie!

Preparation:

Add all ingredients into blender (add ice first).  Blend until smoothie is the consistency you want. Enjoy!

 

If you are looking for the OXO Mango Splitter, Click Here: OXO Good Grips Mango Splitter

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