Baked Ziti

Baked Ziti is one of my all time favorites. I think the love of this entree originated from my cousin Nicole and Aunt Jo making it for one of the family game night we always had. I also remember making this with my mom at home which will always be some of my favorite memories. I decided to make it a bit different this time and use no meat. My wife is a vegetarian when its convenient and I decided to be convenient. I though did not succumb to meatlessness, I just decided to be caring and thoughtful...OKAY! I still love the meats.

In this recipe I eyeballed it quite a bit. So, please feel free to create a new interpretation of this recipe. Evolve it to best suite you and your family, then share it with us. I have had it with Italian Sausage, ground beef, mushrooms, all amazing! In my recipe I used a medley of black and green olives.

First of all, to be totally honest.. our local grocery store did not have Ziti, so I settled for large penne. Which is no biggie.

Ingredients-

• 10 oz Box of Ziti (or alike pasta noodles)
• 8 oz fresh or packaged mozzarella
• homemade or bottled tomato sauce (we used Prego because of time management, I suggest a homemade tomato sauce.. live alittle)
• 7 oz Ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese (optional)
• 1/2 Tsbp Italian Seasoning
• pinch of Paprika

• Optional Olives, ground beef, italian sauce, chicken, etc.

Pre-heat oven to 400. Take a 9" X 13" ceramic or glass dish.  Boil pasta in salted water and olive oil.
Mix some* of the mozzarella (leaving enough to cover pasta later on), the ricotta which is about 1 3/4 cup, and the parmesan. Also, add the italian seasoning.
Coat bottom of the dish with sauce about a 1/4 cup of sauce.
Take drained pasta and add half to top the sauce.
Then take the cheeses and spread over the pasta evenly. At this point you can take the olives, sausage, or ground meat and mix it with the rest of the pasta sauce.
Distribute the rest of the pasta and then top with the rest of the tomato sauce and olives. Last of all top with the rest* of the mozzarella and a pinch of paprika.
Cook for about 24-27 mins and serve with something good.

Wednesday Dinner w/ Jordan

Coming soon.. as I find my cord for the camera haha
Baked Ziti
Homemade Pop-tarts
Blooming onion
Orange Julius

Easy as 1-2-3.... Pain Au Chocolat!!!

While in France every morning Kayla would get 2 or 3 of these croissants filled with chocolate. They were amazing. I tried to duplicate them and it was REALLY easy! They weren't exactly the same but for cutting out the 3 centuries of history and experience most of the bakeries have there, it does the trick.

Chocolate Crossants

• 1 package of Pillsbury Butter Flake Croissants
• 7-9 Tbsp Nutella 

Thats it!
Take the croissant dough, unroll. Add a tbsp of the Nutella onto the wide side of the dough and roll.
Follow the instructions on the packaging of the croissants.....and walla!

SoMe nEw ReCiPeS

It has been forever since I have added anything to this thing. We misplaced our camera since our move and I was planning to put a bunch of things up but couldn't take any pic of the recipes. Here are a couple good ones that we have tried...

Panko Crusted Salmon

1. teaspoons olive oil
2. 4 pieces thickly cut, boneless salmon(each 6 oz)
3. salt and pepper to taste
4. 2 Tbsp honey mustard
5. 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
6. 2/3 cup panko bread crumbs (I prefer Progresso brand by General Mills haha)
7. 2 Tbsp chopped Italian Parsley
8. 1/2 teaspoon hungarian sweet paprika.. This is quiet expensive for such a small item, substitute cayenne pepper

Notes: Paprika is made from special kinds of sweet red peppers, which are dried and ground. Varieties include the highly regarded and sweet Hungarian paprika = rose paprika = sweet paprika = Hungarian pepper and the cheaper and more pungent Spanish paprika = Spanish pepper = pimentón = pimenton. Cookbooks that call for paprika are usually referring to Hungarian paprika. Substitutes: cayenne pepper (much hotter)

Directions-
1. Preheat the oven to 400°F (convection or regular). Set the salmon on a foil-lined baking sheet skin side down. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
2. In a small bowl, combine the honey mustard and 1 teaspoon of the thyme. In another small bowl, mix the panko with the remaining 1 teaspoon of thyme, 4 teaspoons of olive oil, parsley, and paprika. Add salt and pepper (a light sprinkle).
3. Using a small spoon, spread the mustard mixture on the salmon; top with the bread crumb mixture.
4. Roast the salmon for 12-14 minutes (test at 10) or until it is almost completely firm to the touch and flakes when poked with a fork. I always bake it longer, so more like 16-18. Serve at once


We served this up with garlic potatoes.. that was too strong to go with this meal. The salmon is very flavorful so I suggest something light as a side like a salad.