Pasta Bolognese: Daddy's Favorite

I am once again up way to early.  I have a camp field trip today to a waterpark and then I have people coming over to celebrate the 4th and go to the fireworks! All my friends are putting together a little potluck and I can't wait to share what I am making for it! I am going to make a Veggie Flatbread, but I haven't worked out all the details yet.  Please, I have until 5...

I am also planning on running this fine morning before I get ready for camp.  We will see how that goes since my knee has been feeling a little stiff.  When I am running it feels okay but after I run it stiffens up!  I have been stretching/resting as much as I can so I am hoping that this will just go away.

Today I wanted to tell you about the Bolognese Sauce that I made for a special Dad's dinner.  I wasn't able to see my dad for actual Father's Day so I made him his favorite dinner for another night! Pasta Bolognese!  It was super delicious and you should definitely give this recipe a try.  However, make sure you allow plenty of time to make it or make it the day before since it takes so freaking long!

Pasta Bolognese (adapted from the Food Network)

Ingredients:
1 large white onion, roughly chopped
3 medium carrots, chopped
3 ribs celery, chopped
5 cloves garlic
olive oil
salt
3 pounds ground chuck
2 cups tomato paste
3 cups red wine
3 bay leaves
a bundle of thyme (tied together with string)
1 lb. spaghetti
fresh parmesan

Directions:
1. In a food processor, process the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic until you have a smooth paste.
2. Place paste in a large pan coated with oil over medium heat and stir until it reduces and begins to brown, about 20 minutes.  Season with salt.
3. Add the beef and continue to cook until browned, another 20 minutes.  Season with salt.
4.  Pour mixture into a large pot over medium heat and add in the tomato paste.  Cook for another 5 minutes.  Add in the wine and cook for 5 minutes.
6. Add water to the pot until it is about 1/2 inch above the beef.  Add in the bay leaves and thyme and stir to combine.  Bring mixture to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.  Let simmer for 4 hours and add water, about 2-3 cups at a time, when mixture reduces and looks thirsty.  I added water two more times after the first addition.  Season with salt.
7.  Store the bolognese sauce until ready to use or prepare your spaghetti to al dente and drain.  Serve spaghetti with a generous topping of bolognese and garnish generously with freshly shaved parmesan cheese.

Enjoy :)

Boeuf Bourguignon

I was crazy excited when Chris suggested the main course for The Dinner Party to me during our planning.  She suggested a Boeuf Bourguignon and I freaked out because that was the first Daring Cooks Challenge that I participated in! In the challenge, I made the vegetarian version because Bri was coming over for dinner.  For this party, we did the for-real, meaty version.  Chris brought over her giant dutch oven and we got to work.  We started the Boeuf around 3 and it was all ready to be served at 6:30...perfection! The dinner guests, mom/dad, Auntie Diane/Uncle Terry, Brad/Bonnie, Zack, Michael, me and Chris all loved it! Katie and Brian opted for the vegetarian main-course option (coming to you soon).  This dish takes a long time, but the meat is so tender and juicy that it is totally worth it.

Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon

Ingredients:
6 oz pancetta
extra virgin olive oil
3 lbs lean pot roast, cut into 2-3 inch chunks and dried on paper towels
3 cups of a full bodied young red wine
2 cups beef bouillon
1 tbsp tomato paste
2-3 cloves mashed garlic
1/2 tsp fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste
1 lb fresh mushrooms
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp butter
1/4 tsp salt
18-24 pearl onions
1 tbsp butter
1/2 tsp salt
water
3 tbsp softened butter
3 tbsp flour

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
1. Dice the pancetta. Brown the pancetta in the bottom of the dutch oven with a little oil to render out the fat.  Remove the pancetta and either save to add later, or take out completely (we chose to take out completely). Add a little oil to coat the bottom of the pan.  Once smoking, over medium-high heat, brown the beef, a few pieces at a time, so that each side is browned.  Place browned beef on a pan.  Continue until all the beef is browned.  Place all the beef, and juices, into the dutch oven pot.  Pour in the red wine and scrape off all the sides and bottoms of the dutch oven so that you get all the flavorful bits off the pot.  Add enough beef bouillon to cover the beef.  Stir in the tomato paste, garlic, thyme, bay leaf, and salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, cover the casserole and place in the lower 1/3 of the oven for 2 1/2-3 hours.  Beef should be tender.
2. While the beef is simmering, trim the mushroom stems and wash and dry the mushrooms.  Cut the tops into quarters.  Heat the oil and butter in a skillet until the butter foam begins to subside, add the mushrooms, and toss over high heat for 3-4 minutes.  Mushrooms should be lightly browned.  Remove to a side dish and toss with salt.
3. Drop the onions into boiling water, bring rapidly back to a boil and boil for several seconds to loosen the skins.  Drain.  Peel the onions carefully and cut a 1/4 in cut into the ends to keep them from bursting.  Place in one layer in a saucepan.  Add butter and salt and enough water to come halfway up. Cover and simmer very slowly for 20-30 minutes.  Set aside, save the cooking liquid.
4. Cream the softened butter and flour in a small bowl with a spatula.  When the beef is done, drain the cooking liquid into a saucepan.  You should have about 2 1/2 cups.  If you need more, add a little beef bouillon.  Skim of the fat, bring the liquid to a simmer, and add salt and pepper to taste.  Pour several spoonfuls of the beef-cooking liquid into the butter and flour paste and whisk.  Then, pour this mixture back into the cooking liquid.  Pour in the onion cooking juices and bring to a simmer, stirring, this is now your sauce.  Add the mushrooms and onions to the beef pot and pour on the sauce.  Simmer for 5 minutes.  It's time to serve!!!

Enjoy :)

Taco Cupcakes

It's Monday again.  Today is actually pretty exciting since it's the first day of camp! The campers are coming today and I couldn't be more excited.  I can't wait to get this summer off to a great start.  This week's theme is Opening Ceremonies (fitting in with the Olympic Summer Theme) and we are going to be playing all sorts of games and doing tons of art.  Plus, we get to go on a field trip to a water park on Wednesday.  It's going to be a blast.  Being the first week, it's also going to be crazy hectic and so I am awake far to early trying to make sure I am completely ready to go.

Also on this Monday, I am happy to update my Half-Marathon Monday news.  As of now, the longest run I have completed has been 8 miles.  I felt great afterwards.  This week I have two 3 mile runs, a 5 mile run, and then a 10 mile run.  I'm also planning on doing some Pilates and Zumba somewhere between those.  Plus, I'll have camp every day with 60 9, 10, and 11 year-olds.  This week should be interesting...I'm wondering if I'll be too tired, but I'm hoping to push through and stay positive.

My 8 mile run was completed Saturday morning and then following that, I helped my family get ready for the huge open-house graduation party for my little brother.  I was in charge of appetizers.  I made mini mac and cheese cupcakes, pizza puff bites, and taco cupcakes.  Also, I had enough supplies to make about 100 of each of the appetizers.  Everything was great, but now we have a ton of leftovers and I'm pretty sure I am going to be eating mac and cheese, tacos, and pizza puffs for a while...good thing they turned out so well and good thing I'm working out so much :)

So much food

Taco Cupcakes (adapted from The Girl Who Ate Everything)

Ingredients:
3 lbs. lean ground beef
3 packets of taco seasoning
2 16 oz cans of refried beans
about 96 tortilla chips
96 won ton wrappers
3-4 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
1. In a large pan, brown the beef, drain the fat, and then add the seasoning and the water required for the seasoning.  Let simmer for about 5-6 minutes and set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 375 and lightly grease cupcake pans (you will make 48 cupcakes with this recipe).
3. Place a won ton wrapper into each cupcake well, top with a spoonful of refried beans, 1 crushed tortilla chip, a spoonful of beef, and then a couple pinches of cheese.  Place another won ton wrapper on top and push down to press the bottom layers together.  Top this won ton again with refried beans, then the tortilla chip, beef, and then the cheese.  Place in the oven for 15-18 minutes, or until the won ton is lightly browned and the cheese is melted.  Serve immediately, or place in the fridge to store.  To re-heat, simply place the tacos in a pan in the oven at 350 for about 10 minutes.
Enjoy :)

LC2 Ladies Night

It's Ladies Night! Tonight all the beautiful women of learning community two are getting together for a good ol' pajama party.  There are about fifteen of us and we are all future secondary education teachers.  Each subject area was assigned a different dish to bring.  English is dessert, Science is appetizers, and Social Studies/Math is Main Course/Salad.

I am Math so I had to come up with some sort of main dish or salad.  I'm thinking about making a dessert as well just for kicks.  This event reminded me of Progressive Dinner with my coworkers at VIP.  I thought about what people brought for the main course for that and remembered the amazing quiche that Leigh put together.  I decided that I would make a similar one because it is a great dish and pretty healthy!

Cheesy Spinach and Tomato Quiche

Ingredients:

1 russet potato, peeled and thinly sliced

8 eggs

1/4 cup milk

1 tsp italian seasoning

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

3 cups packed baby spinach

2 large roma tomatoes, sliced

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/2 cup low-fat, mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease a 9 inch pie pan.

2. Peel, wash and slice the potato into slices about 1/4 inch thick.  Place potatoes on the bottom and sides of the pie pan. Bake for about 10 minutes or until potatoes are translucent. Set aside.

3. Beat eggs and milk until well combined.  Mix in seasonings.

4. Place the spinach on top of the potato crust and sprinkle the feta cheese on top of the spinach.  Pour the egg mixture over everything.  Finally, place the tomatoes on the top.

5. Bake quiche for 30-40 minutes or until it is no longer jiggly.  During the last 10 minutes or so, sprinkle the mozzarella on top of the quiche and let it continue to bake.

Enjoy :)

This event is super cute and I can't wait for tonight.  Of course, I am also going to share everyone else's dishes! I think that all teachers should have opportunities to have events such as this one.  It requires very little work to put together as everyone brings a dish and it helps everyone get to know each other and get closer to each other.  I am so excited to spend tonight with these ladies.  

Learning Community 2 has become a huge part of my life.  We take almost all of our classes together in the School of Education and we get to share our teaching experiences with each other.  You can learn a lot from hearing other's experiences and we have gotten very close through this process.

I hope you enjoy everyone's recipes!

Appetizers:

Meat and Cheese Tray

By: Kristin

Ingredients:
Cheddar Cheese Squares
Crackers
Pepperoni

I also brought cole slaw...all from Target (great store)

Caprese Salad Sticks

By: Courtney

1. Cut your own ke-bob sticks or use tooth picks
2. Place 1 cherry tomato, 1 basil leaf, and a slice of mozzarella cheese (I used string cheese!) on each stick.
Enjoy :)

Chips and Salsa
By: Shannon

I got Donkey chips and Frontera Salsa
Enjoy :)


Main Course:

Cheesy Spinach and Tomato Quiche (See above)

Baked Mostaccioli
By: Lauren

Ingredients:
2 cups spaghetti sauce
Ground beef, cooked
3 cups mostaccioli noodles, cooked according to box
1 cup mozzarella cheese, grated, plus more for the topping
Parmesan cheese, grated

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 13 x 9 inch pan.
2.  Mix in the cooked ground beef to the spaghetti sauce. Mix sauce/meat with the mostaccioli and 1 cup of mozzarella.  Pour into the prepared pan.  Top with more mozzarella and parmesan (as much as you would like)
3. Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese is brown and sauce is bubbling.
Enjoy :)

Emily's Pasta Salad

Ingredients:
1 red pepper, diced
1 ball of mozzarella, cubed
1 summer sausage, cut into small pieces
1 box of Bowtie Pasta
Your favorite Balsamic Vinaigrette, to taste

Directions:
1. Make pasta according to the directions on the box.  Drain and let cool.
2. Place pasta in a large bowl and toss with the rest of the ingredients.  Top with your favorite balsamic dressing.
Enjoy :)

Tamara's Pasta Salad (adapted from Multiply Delicious)

Ingredients:
1 20 oz package of cheese tortellini
1/2 cup (or so) of your favorite Balsamic Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
1 tsp Dijon mustard
salt and pepper
2 cups firmly packed baby spinach, chopped
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped
1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced

Directions:
1. In a small bowl, whisk the dressing and mustard together. Set aside
2.  Cook pasta according to directions, drain, and place in a large bowl.  Drizzle with a little olive oil and let cool for about 10 minutes.
3. Toss the pasta with the spinach, basil, tomatoes, and peppers.  Toss with the dressing.  Serve immediately or let chill in the fridge before serving.
Enjoy :)


Jenny's Salad with Raspberry Poppyseed Dressing (also known as: Northern Light Garden Salad)

Ingredients:
For the salad:
8-12 oz fresh baby spinach, washed and dried
2 cups strawberries, halved
8 oz Brie, cut into small pieces
For the dressing:
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup raspberry vinegar
1/2 cup canola oil
2 tbsp poppyseeds
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp paprika
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1 tsp minced onion

Directions: 
1. Prepare the dressing: in a small saucepan, whisk the sugar and vinegar over low heat until the sugar dissolves.  Remove from heat and whisk in the oil.  Whisk in the remaining dressing ingredients. Place in fridge until ready to use.
2. Toss salad ingredients in a large bowl and drizzle dressing over everything.
Enjoy :)

Dessert:

Cake Batter Cookies (adapted from Six Sisters' Stuff)
By: Tamara

Ingredients:
1 18.25 oz box yellow cake mix
1 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
sprinkles

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a few baking sheets.
2. In a medium bowl, stir the cake mix and baking powder.  Add eggs and oil and mix until blended.
3. Stir in chocolate chips and sprinkles. Drop by spoonfuls on the cookie sheets. Top with more sprinkles if desired.
4. Bake for 10 minutes.  Allow cookies to cool completely.
Enjoy :)

Peanut Butter Cookies

By: Natalie

Ingredients:
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Blend all ingredients together in a medium bowl.
3. Drop tablespoons of dough onto a cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes. (Makes about 15 cookies).
Enjoy :)

Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Cookies

By: Hillary

Ingredients:
2/3 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups dried cranberries
2/3 cup white chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add in eggs, mixing well.
3. In a medium bowl combine oats, flour, baking soda, and salt.  Add to the butter mixture in several additions, mixing until just combined.  Stir in dried cranberries and white chocolate chips.
4.  Drop by rounded tablespoons onto an ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes. Makes about 2 1/2 dozen cookies.
Enjoy :)

Puppy Chow

By: Heather

Ingredients:
9 cups chex cereal
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 1/2ish cups milk chocolate chips
2 tsp vanilla
2 ish cups powdered sugar


Directions:
1. Microwave butter, peanut butter, and chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl for about a minute.  Stir to melt completely and add in vanilla.
2. Place chex in a large bowl and pour in chocolate mixture.  Stir with a wooden spoon.
3. Once the cereal is coated completely (you might want to add in more chocolate/peanut butter mixture), place it in a plastic bag with the powdered sugar and shake the bag to coat the cereal with the sugar.  Again, you might want to add in more sugar.
Enjoy :) ...and try your best not to eat it all at once (like I did...)