Spinach Pasta with Bolognese Sauce

Yummy note: I feel that cooking is about having fun, trying new things, and getting your hands hands a little messy along the way. Sometimes I get in that never try anything new rut, and forget how exciting it is when you try a brand new recipe. That is why I love our Secret Recipe Club. This month I had Manu's Menu.  Manu's site has a wide variety of recipes on her site, ranging from regional Italian dishes, to cake pops and cookies, to her daughter's adorable birthday party treats. My favorite parts of Manu's site are in the techniques and tips sections. Seriously check her site out and bookmark it for later! You will want to make your own pasta after you see how easy it is; it is just one of those things you should do once in a while. 

My daughter and I had a free afternoon and it was perfectly open for making pasta. The weather could have cooperated a bit more with us, as it was a tad humid out, which seemed to take longer for our pasta to dry. Eh, either way, we had fun "squishing the dough" and "making noodles."  We let it dry out a bit before using it for supper and it worked, plus it gave us time to start our sauce for it. This Spinach Pasta with Bolognese Sauce was a hit. Everyone, yes, all 4 of us in our family, ate it and enjoyed it. I think part of it was due to the kids enjoyed having a hand in making the noodles for our supper and it was a "cool"-ness factor I think for making green noodles. This dish had great color! Then we topped these noodles with an amazing rich bolognese sauce as well. These recipes resulted in a double win-win!  I loved the chopped carrots in the bolognese as it added a slight sweetness to the dish, while the wine added more flavor depth than I have tried in some of my previous sauces.

Spinach Pasta with Bolognese Sauce

Spinach Pasta 
http://www.manusmenu.com/tips/techniques/pasta-and-gnocchi
under the Green Egg Pasta Dough portion

Ingredients:
5.25 ounces of fresh spinach
salt for seasoning
2-3 eggs (depending on how much moisture is in the dough)
10.5 ounces of flour (roughly about 2 or so cups)

Directions: 

Either follow Manu's directions here, or I happened to mix mine up in a blender. You need to wilt your spinach; all I did was throw it into a sauce pan with a little bit of salt and water and warmed it up for a few minutes, until it started to wilt. Cool the wilted spinach and squeeze out the water, getting out as much water as possible. Put the flour, wilted spinach, and eggs in a blender or food processor and mix. Once all ingredients are incorporated and looks crumbly, dump it out onto a floured surface and knead the pasta dough. It will take a few minutes, and you might need to adjust the consistency of the dough and add more flour, as the moisture from the spinach begins to incorporate into the dough. Do this process until you get a nice smooth dough and the spinach green color is prominent.  Roll into a ball and cover it with cling wrap and let it rest for 10-15 minutes. After the rest, roll out the dough and cut into smaller rectangular sheets to begin the passes through the pasta machine. NOTE: Manu has wonderful instructions here on how to prepare your dough and how to use it with your pasta machine, so I would check her site out here for instructions if you are new to pasta making. Once you have your thin sheets of pasta, send it through again to cut to desired noodles. Place cut noodles and gently separate into piles to dry.   

In the meantime you could begin your sauce for the noodles. I picked this awesome bolognese recipe from Manu's site to pair it with. However, if you don't care for red sauces, or your are looking for something quick with your pasta, check out this fairly simple dish using a tuna and ricotta. 

Bolognese Sauce 

http://www.manusmenu.com/tagliatelle-alla-bolognese

Ingredients: 

1 pound of ground beef 

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 onion, finely chopped

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/3 glass of good red wine

1 can of diced tomatoes (I happened to use a combination can of tomato and green chilies as that is what my kids and I accidentally opened and it still tasted great!)  

Salt and Pepper for seasoning

3 cups of water

Directions: 

In a large saucepan, drizzle in the olive oil and toss in the finely diced onion, carrot, and celery. Once they begin to soften a little, add in the ground beef. Stir well and continue to brown the meat.  Once the meat is brown, add the red wine and scrap off any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan and turn the heat up some to burn off the alcohol, leaving the flavor behind. Add the salt, pepper, can of tomatoes, and water.  Cover sauce and cook on low for about an hour. Keep the sauce simmering throughout this time. Stir occasionally. If it begins to thicken up too quick, you can turn the heat even lower and add in a little more water. Towards the end of your sauce time, you should start cooking your pasta, which didn't seem to take very long. Once again, Manu has a wonderful area set aside to just this, preparing pasta al dente. Spoon over your favorite pasta and top with a little cheese, if desired.   

Manu, thank you so much for sharing this recipe. Really, your nonna had to have been an amazing woman and cook, as this recipe took me to a little place of Italy without even leaving my kitchen! 

Dry Rub for Pork

Yummy note: Summer is all about the grilling at our place, we love to grill, and try to grill out several times a week or as many times really that our schedule allows. We've been enjoying ribs and pork tenderloins more this summer since I've recently figured out how not to mess up pork and make it overly dry and yucky. Keeping pork moist is sometimes tricky, but I've found out that by using a dry rub on it, it helps keep the moisture in and adds lots of flavor. The kids have even liked this dry rub on the pork, as it is not too spicy, but has a nice, almost, sweeter barbecued flavor. 

Dry Rub for Pork

Ingredients: 
2 tablespoons of paprika
1 tablespoon of fresh ground pepper
1 tablespoon of garlic powder
1 tablespoon of onion powder
1/2 tablespoon to 1 tablespoon of chili powder, depending on how much heat you want to add
2 tablespoons of coarse salt
2 tablespoons of brown sugar or white sugar

Directions: 
Mix all of the above ingredients together in a bowl, mixing thoroughly. Store in a container until ready to use. This recipe can be easily doubled for larger batches of ribs or pork roasts. This recipe covers about 2-3 lbs of meat. To use, just liberally coat the meat of your choice. Then grill or bake in the oven until you've reached desired temperature. Check out this great reference link from Pork Be Inspired for grilling/cooking time for various cuts of pork. 

Pork Tenderloin with Dry Rub 

Juicy pork on the inside, with a nice caramelized brown crust.

Dry Rub on BBQ Ribs

This dry rub makes great flavorful coated pork for tacos or burritos.

Peanut Butter Fudge

Yummy note: Peanut butter, oh how I love thee. It is kind of like a bad word though around my house, as my daughter has a nut allergy. Luckily it is not so severe, that we can still have peanut butter in our house, whew, I can still get my peanut butter fix. So when I saw this Peanut Butter Fudge recipe on my Secret Recipe Club friend's site this month, I had to try it. Fudge consistency is huge for me, I really don't care for the super creamy fudges, so when Veronica from My Catholic Kitchen described it as "This fudge is like the inside of those eggs you get for Easter." I knew this recipe might just be what I was looking for... Actually I think it tastes very similar to that of a another recipe I almost made of Veronica's here called a buckeye. Both equally delicious, thanks Veronica. Make sure you stop by My Catholic Kitchen's blog for some inspiration and wonderful recipes. 

Peanut Butter Fudge 

Ingredients:

5 ounces of unsalted butter

2/3 cup smooth peanut butter

1/2 teaspoon salt

(Don't leave this out! It adds to the nice nutty flavor)

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

2 1/4 cups powdered sugar

Directions: 

In a small pan, melt butter and peanut butter together and then bring to a boil on high. (Alternatively, I also made this in the microwave too! In a microwaveable bowl, place butter and peanut butter and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave on high for about 1 1/2- 2 minutes.  Next stir mixture and microwave another 2 minutes, mixture will be hot and bubbly!) 

Remove pan from the heat after mixture starts boiling. Add in vanilla and salt. 

Stir in powdered sugar until smooth. Note the mixture starts to get really thick here! So stir it with some muscle to incorporate the powdered sugar well. ;-)  

Put the fudge into a 9 x 9 pan lined with parchment paper for easier removal. Allow to cool and store in the refrigerator until to cut into pieces and enjoy. 

 

 

Note: So I must admit, I tried this recipe out using a different type of peanut butter first. Like I said before I love peanut butter, so I have several types always in my cabinet. I have this one called PB2, which is a powdered peanut butter. It truly has a great fresh taste when you prepare the peanut butter, however it's make up is a bit different, it has less fat than the regular peanut butter, so the fudge did not turn out with the best consistency. However, it tasted really good, so I couldn't let it go to waste... so I dipped it in chocolate and made some chocolate covered peanut butter treats out of them instead. :) 

Have fun checking out the others in the Secret Recipe Club group C as they make some amazing culinary treats! 

Lemon Meringue Bars

Yummy note:

The other night I was hungry for lemon meringue pie, but really didn't want to make a whole big pie. For some reason, no one else really would probably eat the pie with me in my house and I'd have to eat the entire thing! So I opted to make a different variety of the lemon meringue pie by converting it into bars. I had the same flavors as if it was in the pie format-- a graham cracker buttery crust, tart lemony pie filling, and of course, ooey, gooey roasted marshmallow meringue-like topping. The bar format wasn't exactly portable, as I had to use a fork for a few of the times I ate them, but it was still really tasty, not to mention easy to throw together. So Lemon Meringue Bars were born. This was one of those late night creations I made, so I unfortunately didn't have a ton of pictures to go. Enjoy this summery treat. 

Lemon Meringue Bars 

Ingredients:

Crust: 

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

6 tablespoons butter, melted

4 tablespoons sugar

Filling: 

1 can of Lemon Pie Filling

Topping: 

about 2-3 cups of mini marshmallows 

(or enough to just give it a nice even single layer across the pie filling)

Directions:

Mix crust ingredients together and press in the bottom of an 8x8 inch pan that has been sprayed or lined with parchment paper for easy removal of the bars.  Bake at 350 for maybe 5-8 minutes just enough to start to set up the graham cracker crust. Pour over the can of lemon pie filling and place marshmallows on top to completely cover the lemon filling. Bake again for another 10-15 minutes or until marshmallows start to get a golden brown color. If the oven is not turning it to the golden brown you'd like, you could also put it in the boiler for a few minutes to speed up the process. Next, set aside and chill the lemon meringue bars before cutting. 

Sangria

Yummy note: It has been a long time since I've posted a drink recipe on my blog here, so I thought for this month's Secret Recipe Club, a drink would be perfect. We just had a little dose of the warmer summer weather here, so a cool fruity drink would hit the spot! I saw that Eliot's Eats had several drink recipes that were appealing to just that...Rosemary Lemonade, Blackberry Margaritas, and Sangria, oh boy, they all sound fantastic. A few weeks ago, my husband and I celebrated his birthday at a local winery and they had amazing sangria, so this was my try at recreating a similar drink. I've never made a Sangria before and that sounded like a good recipe to try out. Thanks Debra from Eliot's Eats for such a great tasting recipe!

Sangria

Recipe adapted from Eliot's Eats 

Ingredients:

1 bottle Moscato
1/4 c. limoncello

1/4 c. Amaretto

1/4 c. agave nectar

club soda (to taste)

1 cup frozen mixed berries

2 apples, cored and chopped (leave the peels on)

Directions:

Use a big pitcher or a jug that would fit into the refrigerator. Pour the Moscato wine in your designated container. Add limoncello, Amaretto, and agave nectar and stir the liquids to combine. Add the frozen fruit and cut up apples. Set in the refrigerator for at least on hour to let the flavors combine and chill. Before serving add in the club soda. Serve chilled and enjoy. 

 

A big ole jug of Sangria ready for chillin'!

 

 Don't forget to add some fruit in your glass...in my opinion, that is my favorite part of this, and the addition of the club soda, which makes it nice and fizzy refreshing. 

 

Check out all of the wonderful other bloggers this month in the Secret Recipe Club below.

Jello Knox Blox

Yummy note: My kids love these Jello Knox Blox. It doesn't matter if they are little squares, hearts, or egg-shaped Jello pieces, they are all created equally, haha.. they all get gobbled up! These are much more friendlier for little hands than regular jigglers, which often are a bit more wiggly and end up on the floor :( This Knox Blox recipe was from my mom and now it always seems that my kids anticipate these Jello cubes from Grandma! 

Jello Knox Blox

Ingredients: 
4 envelopes of Knox unflavored gelatin
3 small boxes of Jello flavored gelatin*
4 cups of boiling water
*Note- 3 small boxes of sugar-free Jello works well for this recipe too.





















Directions: 
Combine flavored gelatin and unflavored gelatin in a bowl. Pour the boiling water into the gelatin and stir until well combined and dissolved. Pour into pans and chill. We use an 8x8 pan if we want a thicker Knox Blox, or use a 9x13 pan if a thinner Knox Blox is desired. *Note, sometimes we will just mix the gelatin and boiling water right in the same pan we are refrigerating it in.

Mommy, I can help stir! 

Dress up the Knox Blox with a little whipped cream and fruit!

cadbury egg blonde brownies

Yummy note: Eeny meeny miny moe... How to choose this month's Secret Recipe Club recipe was about like that. I've never been so torn on what to feature! Julie's blog, Julie's Eats and Treats was awesome. So many easy and delicious-looking dishes to pick from, and what I loved even more about it was her stories. I found that Julie's fear of using yeast in many bread recipes was similar to mine over here, as it is soo finicky that I often mess something up with it as well! So, I have this recipe for homemade English muffin bread saved for later, as I really want to make this. We had just gone to Chili's over the weekend, so I had this vividly in my mind and thought about maybe making this salsa. However, I didn't have jalapenos on hand, and I was stuck at home without a trip to the grocery store any time soon, as it felt like the plague, aka stomach flu, had hit us all, so homebound we were...  Comfort food, dessert, yeah.. that's what the doctor ordered here, blonde brownies. This recipe came from Julie's grandmother, how fitting, as it always seems that it is those old recipes that I tend to get drawn to when feeling a little under the weather. I had some leftover Easter candy here, and I'm not a big fan of white chocolate by itself, so I added it into the brownies, like Julie suggested in this Cadbury Egg brownie version! Julie's Eats and Treats tag line is soo true-- Simple, easy but delicious food! 

Cadbury Egg Blonde Brownies

Ingredients:

1 cup of butter, softened - *I used a soy margarine here so it would be dairy-free to accommodate allergies
3 cups of brown sugar
4 eggs
3 cups of flour
2 tsp. of vanilla
1 tsp. of baking powder
1 tsp. of salt
1 bag of Cadbury Mini Eggs - *I used a half bag of Hershey's white chocolate coated candy eggs and a 1/2 bag of dairy-free mini chocolate chips here instead 

Directions:

In a big bowl, mix all of ingredients together, except for the chocolates. Mix well until they are all creamed together. Then spread into a 10x15 jelly roll pan. I wasn't sure on if it was a prepared greased pan, so I took precautionary measures and used some parchment paper on the bottom. *Note, it worked great. Then sprinkle the chocolates on top of the batter. They will sink into the dough as they bake, so if you want to reserve some of the chocolate for the end, you could so it makes a nice topping! *Great tip from Julie here! Bake brownie bars for about 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees until golden brown and done. Wait until they are cool and cut to enjoy!

I made mine with half white chocolate Easter candy eggs and dairy-free chocolate chips to make it allergen-friendly for our whole family.

What a yummy and easy treat! These blonde brownies remind me of soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies! Thanks Julie and your grandmother for such a wonderful recipe! 

Look at all of the amazing recipes for the April SRC post!