A simple, yet delicious and satisfying meal: good 'ol angel hair and meatballs. In this recipe, the meatballs have been made a bit healthier by using ground turkey as opposed to ground beef. These mouthwatering meatballs are set on top of angel hair pasta, and topped with my homemade sauce.
Ingredients:
2 pounds ground turkey
1 small onion
1/4 cup unseasoned dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 egg, beaten
2 teaspoons of jarred garlic
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
cooked angel hair pasta (or whatever kind of pasta you prefer)
homemade sauce (Its really not that hard, and it is oh-so-yummy. I suggest making the sauce from the above link minus the meat.)
Steps:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease a 9X13 baking dish with the olive oil.
While the oven is pre-heating, place the greased baking dish into the oven to heat the oil.
Chop the onion into large chunks, and place the chunks into the blender.
Puree the onion. You could just mince the onion if you wish, but I like to puree it because I really don't like to find little bits of onion in my food.
In a large bowl, combine the ground turkey, the pureed (or minced) onion, bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, beaten egg, garlic, oregano, basil, thyme, rosemary, salt, and pepper.
With clean hands, mix throughly.
Form the mixture into 2 inch balls.
Remove the baking dish from the oven, and carefully place the prepared meatballs into the hot dish. Remember the dish will be hot, so be very careful!
Place the dish into the oven.
Bake for 15 minutes, then turn them, and bake for an additional 6 minutes or until slightly browned.
Place the meatballs on top of a bed of freshly cooked angel hair pasta, and smother with tomato sauce (use this recipe, and omit the meat.) Be sure to serve some nice bread to go with your pasta and meatballs.
Roast chicken is such an easy, comforting, and satisfying meal! Simply prepare the chicken the night before, (or the morning of) then pop it in the oven 2-3 hours before dinner time. Seasoned with an array of herbs and garlic, this chicken is tender, juicy, and delicious. This dish is delicious when served with pan fried potatoes and sweet dinner rolls. Plus as a bonus, cooking this meal will make your house smell wonderful!
Ingredients:
Whole roasting chicken
1 tablespoon of olive oil per pound
2 tablespoons dried basil
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon of jarred garlic
2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 small red onion
Steps to prepare the chicken (I like to do this the night before, however it can also be done the morning of):
Slice the purple onion into chunks, and place in a small bowl.
Pour the lemon juice over the onion, and set aside.
Remove the chicken from the plastic packaging.
Remove the gizzards from the inside of the chicken.
With cold water, rinse off the chicken.
Place the rinsed chicken onto a large cutting board.
Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel.
Pour 1/2 of the amount of olive oil that you are going to need into a small bowl, and add 1/2 of the needed amount of the herbs minus the lemon juice.
Mix the herbs and the oil well.
Massage the oil and herbs into the chicken. Make sure to get under the skin, and in the cavity of the chicken as well.
Flip the chicken over and repeat the seasoning process.
Put the garlic, and onion, and lemon juice into the cavity of your chicken.
Place the seasoned chicken into a deep bowl (I used the bowl to my stand Mixer) and cover with either a lid or plastic wrap.
Put the covered chicken into the fridge until it is ready to cook.
Steps for roasting:
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
While the oven is preheating, truss your chicken.
I know trussing sounds like a intimidating process, however simply put to truss means to tie with string in preparation for cooking.
Here is a simple video to help you to truss your bird:
Simple as that!
Place in a roasting pan just as pictured, and place in the pre-heated oven.
Cook your chicken for 20 minutes per pound, then cook for an additional 10 minutes.
Insert a meat thermometer into the meaty part of the thigh.
When the thermometer reads 165 degrees F, the chicken is done.
Cover the pan with aluminum foil and allow the chicken to rest for 15 minutes. Allowing the chicken to rest will re-distribute the juices. If you cut into the chicken before it is allowed to rest, the juices will run out of the chicken.
After the chicken has rested, carve using a sharp knife. The chicken should be very tender, and practically fall off the bone. Be sure to remove the string that you used to truss the chicken before carving.
A wonderful side dish to go with your roast chicken is savory pan fried potatoes.
Ingredients:
6 red potatoes or 4 small russet potatoes
3 teaspoons jarred garlic
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
Steps:
Wash the potatoes and cut them into cubes.
Place the cubed potatoes into a microwave-safe dish with an inch of water.
Cover the pie dish and place it in the microwave.
Cook for 6 minutes or until the cubes are fork-tender.
Heat the garlic in a large sauce pan over medium heat.
Cook the garlic for a few minutes, then add the olive oil, the Italian seasoning, the parsley, lemon juice and the salt to the pan.
When the potatoes are tender, add them to the hot oil.
Stir the potatoes making sure that they get completely covered with the oil and spices.
Serve hot.
Rolls are also a must for this meal.
Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour
1 package of yeast
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 eggs (use 1 whole egg and 1 egg white)
1/8 cup olive oil
1/2 cup warm water
Steps:
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Proof the yeast by mixing 1 teaspoon sugar, the package of yeast, and the warm water and letting it sit for 10-20 minutes. The mixture should get foamy.
Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
Add the eggs, oil, and yeast and water mixture.
Mix until dough is formed.
Gently knead the dough with clean hands for 2-3 minutes.
Form the dough into a ball, and cover with a warm damp cloth in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
After the dough has risen, form the dough into 2 inch balls.
Place the rolls onto a lightly greased cookie sheet.
Place into pre-heated oven, and bake for 10 minutes, or until rolls are golden brown.
If desired, brush the tops of the rolls with butter.
What a perfect meal: juicy roast chicken, Italian pan-fried potatoes, and sweet dinner rolls. There is no better end to a hard work day like a delicious comfort meal.
Onion rings make a perfect companion to go with those savory game day wings! You simply can't go wrong with the good ol' onion ring. They're great along side burgers and hot dogs too. Crispy and crunchy, these onion rings are coated with seasoned flour, then covered in panko bread crumbs, then deliciously fried.
Ingredients:
1 large onion
1 cup panko bread crumbs
1 1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cajun seasoning
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk
Steps:
Slice the onion into 1/2 inch slices.
Separate the rings in each slice.
In a small bowl, mix the egg and the milk together.
In another bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, salt, and cajun seasoning. Make sure to mix well.
Dip each onion ring into the egg-wash.
Then dip into the flour, making sure to completely cover.
Set each floured ring onto a platter until all of the rings are covered in flour.
Pour your bread crumbs into a medium-sized bowl.
Dip each floured ring into the egg-wash again.
After dipping into the egg, completely cover the ring with the panko bread crumbs.
Place on a platter, and set aside.
In a deep fryer, heat oil to 375 degrees F.
When oil is hot, fry the onion rings for 3 minutes or until golden brown.
Allow the onion rings to cool, and eat up!
Its so easy to make these tasty onion rings at home. They are so good too!
Nothing goes better with watching a great game on t.v. quite like some nice and spicy buffalo wings. These fantastic wings are battered with seasoned flour, then fried until they are golden and crispy, then covered in a homemade spicy buffalo sauce.
Ingredients:
3 chicken breasts
1 1/4 cup flour
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (more or less depending on how spicy you like your wings)
1/2 teaspoon jarred garlic
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk
1/4 cup hot sauce (I used Valentina, I found it in the isle with all of the hispanic food, it was nice and inexpensive too. This makes making your own sauce so much more cost-effective than buying pre-made sauce.)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Oil for frying
Steps:
Cut the chicken into strips.
In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, salt, pepper, onion powder, cayenne pepper, and paprika. Using a fork, make sure that all of the spices are mixed well.
In a small bowl, combine the egg, garlic, and milk.
Dip each chicken strip into the egg-wash, then coat it with the flour mixture.
Dip the floured chicken back into the egg-wash, then coat it with the flour again.
Place the battered chicken onto a platter, and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.
In a deep fryer (I would suggest using a large Deep Fryer if you have it, we used a smaller one, and it took us quite some time.) heat oil to 375 degrees F.
Fry the battered chicken for 6 minutes.
Time to make the sauce!
In a small, microwave safe bowl, combine the hot sauce and unsalted butter.
Microwave for 1 minute then stir. If the butter is not completely melted, microwave for an additional 30 seconds.
There ya' have it; wing sauce! So incredibly easy to make!
Coat the fried chicken with the buffalo sauce. I found the best way to do this is to put a few pieces of chicken in a tupperwear Containerwith some wing sauce, and shake until the chicken is evenly coated in sauce.
Place on a platter, and serve.
Serve these during the big game on Sunday, and you will be sure to score big!
if you have it, we used a smaller one, and it took us quite some time.) heat oil to 375 degrees F.
with some wing sauce, and shake until the chicken is evenly coated in sauce.