Guests for dinner on Wed.

What's a good italian dish to make? I am sick of pasta & chicken parm. What else is somewhat simple & yummy?

recipes too please

Eggplant Parmesan

This recipe is both filling and low fat, using a few tricks to adapt the traditional heavier recipe into one even the most health conscious would enjoy. I always grill or broil my eggplant instead of frying in oil, which greatly reduces the fat intake.

: Serves 6

Although the recipe calls for reduced fat cheese, you could take it one step further and use the completely fat-free ricotta with very good results. I also peel my eggplant, which you may or may not choose to do, but I do prefer a smoother textured dish than you would have with the peels intact. Try to choose firm, shiny skinned small to medium sized eggplants. The larger ones are full of seeds and can be bitter tasting. This recipe has a wonderful layer of creamy cheeses running through the center, which contrasts nicely with the spicy tomato sauce.


Sauce:

4 Cups of Chopped Canned Tomatoes

3 Cloves of Garlic, Minced

1/2 Medium Onion, Finely Chopped

2 Tablespoons Chopped Fresh Basil

Salt & Pepper

Pinch of Red Pepper Flakes (Optional)


Other Ingredients:

3 Pounds Small to Medium Eggplants

Cooking Oil Spray (Such as Pam)

1 Pound Reduced Fat Ricotta Cheese

1 Cup Reduced Fat Mozzarella Cheese

1 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese

1 Medium Egg (or Egg Substitute)

2 Tablespoons Minced Fresh Basil


Peel the eggplant, and cut into 1/2 inch slices lengthwise. Sprinkle with salt, and layer the slices in a colander to drain, placing a plate and a weight (such as a few cans of tomatoes) on top. Leave to drain for about an hour.

While the eggplant is purging, begin the sauce by heating the oil in a medium saucepan. Add the onions and cook until they are translucent. Add the garlic and cook another minute and then add the tomatoes. Season with the chopped basil and other seasonings, and let simmer for about 40 minutes.

Rinse the eggplant slices and pat dry. Either broil or grill the eggplant, first spraying lightly with the oil spray to prevent sticking. Cook until golden on either side. In a separate bowl, mix together the ricotta, mozzarella and 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese. Add the egg, basil and season to taste. In an 8 X 12 inch baking dish, spread about 1/2 cup of the sauce along the bottom. Add a couple of spoonfuls of water, mixing lightly. Place a layer of the eggplant slices on this sauce, overlapping slightly. Spoon over enough sauce to cover lightly, and then sprinkle with about 1/4 cup of the parmesan cheese. Repeat with another layer of the eggplant slices and the sauce. Spread the ricotta mixture over this, and finish with the last layer of the eggplant and sauce. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese, and bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for about 30 minutes or until bubbly and golden. Let rest 15 minutes before serving.

Spaghetti Carbonara

This quick and easy pasta recipe is so tasty it can be served to guests. The addition of a little cream keeps the eggs from separating.

: Serves 4
4 oz. Pancetta, Chopped

3 Garlic Cloves, Finely Chopped

1/4 Cup White Wine

1/3 Cup Heavy Cream

1 Large Egg

1 Egg Yolk

2/3 Cup Parmesan Cheese, Grated

Salt & Pepper

3 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley, Finely Chopped

1 Pound Spaghetti


Cook the pancetta and garlic over medium heat until golden. Add wine to skillet and cook until it has almost evaporated. Remove from the heat and add the cream. Cook the pasta till al dente. Whisk together the eggs, parsley and cheese. Pour the bacon and cream mixture over cooked pasta and mix thoroughly. Add the egg mixture salt and pepper to taste, mixing well. Serve, offering additional cheese as desired.

Hope I Helped.

I Love Eggplant.

thank you! that spaghetti sounds really good. I love eggplant too.. Vin hates it. I may make a small size for myself

I looove this Giada recipe...
Rigatoni with Sausage, Peppers, and Onions

4 to 6 servings
Stroll through any Italian American street fair and you'll smell this classic combo. But while sausage and peppers are great in a sandwich, I think they're even better tossed with rigatoni. Using turkey sausages instead of the more traditional pork also makes it a little lighter.

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 pound sweet Italian turkey sausages
2 red bell peppers, cored, seeded, and sliced
2 yellow onions, sliced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup Marsala wine
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, with juice
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1 pound rigatoni pasta
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for garnish

Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the sausages and cook until brown on all sides, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove the sausages from the pan.

Keeping the pan over medium heat, add the bell peppers, onions, salt, and pepper and cook until golden, 5 minutes. Add the garlic, oregano, and basil and cook for 2 minutes. Add the tomato paste and stir until incorporated, then add the Marsala, tomatoes with their juice, and red pepper flakes, if using. Stir to combine, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to release all the brown bits. Bring to a simmer.

Cut the sausages into 4 to 6 pieces each. Return the sausages to the pan. Simmer uncovered until the sauce has thickened, about 20 minutes.

While the sauce simmers, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the pasta and add to the thickened sauce; toss to combine. Spoon into individual bowls and sprinkle each serving with Parmesan cheese.

I just posted a good recipe in a new thread!

My trusty italian dish is baked ziti with homemade garlic bread and mixed salad. I just had friends over last week and they enjoyed it and we had my DH's PICKKKKKY cousin's husband over and we had literally NOTHING left over even though usually it feeds 6-8 and there were only 4 of us.

Baked ziti is literally the easiest thing to make - boil pasta. Mix the cooked pasta in a large bowl - with a small tub or ricotta cheese, a bottle of marinara sauce, and about a cup of shredded mozzarella. Place in rectantular baking dish (I spray with Pam so it never sticks). Put more mozzarella cheese all over the top, cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Take off aluminum foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes.

Voila!

I was going to say baked ziti too!! one of my favorites -- can go wrong with it.

This is the recipe I always use -- thanks to Ronzoni

BAKED ZITI
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Start to Finish: 1 hr 10 minutes
Ingredients:
6 cups (16 oz.) RONZONI Ziti, uncooked
3 cups (about 26-oz. jar) spaghetti sauce, divided
1-3/4 cups (15 oz.) ricotta cheese
2 cups (8 oz.) shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley or 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
1 egg
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions:
Heat oven to 375°F.
Cook pasta according to package directions for 9 minutes; drain.
In large bowl, stir together hot pasta, 1-1/2 cups spaghetti sauce, ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, parsley, egg, oregano, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
In 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish, spoon pasta mixture; top with remaining 1-1/2 cups sauce.
Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese; cover with foil.
Bake 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
10 servings (1 cup each).

Thanks ladies, keep the recipes coming.. I'm bookmarking.


Thank goodness I jar &/or freeze my own sauce each sunday- dont laugh, its like therapy. Theres a lot of recipes on our threads calling for straight up guinea sauce.

I'm just going to make penne a la vodka from scratch and garlic vegetables. Vin is making the garlic bread. Guests are bringing the wine.. i'm set! Dessert is last on the agenda

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Posted by soon2bmrsVPT

Thanks ladies, keep the recipes coming.. I'm bookmarking.


Thank goodness I jar &/or freeze my own sauce each sunday- dont laugh, its like therapy. Theres a lot of recipes on our threads calling for straight up guinea sauce.

I'm just going to make penne a la vodka from scratch and garlic vegetables. Vin is making the garlic bread. Guests are bringing the wine.. i'm set! Dessert is last on the agenda

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Can you post your recipe for penne ala vodka? DH & I LOVE PENNE ALA VODKA!!! But we always order it from the pizzeria. I would LOVE to lesrn how o make it! TIA!

I am going to save this Page.

Hey Heather, you got some Good Ideas here.

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Posted by soon2bmrsVPT

Thanks ladies, keep the recipes coming.. I'm bookmarking.


Thank goodness I jar &/or freeze my own sauce each sunday- dont laugh, its like therapy. Theres a lot of recipes on our threads calling for straight up guinea sauce.

I'm just going to make penne a la vodka from scratch and garlic vegetables. Vin is making the garlic bread. Guests are bringing the wine.. i'm set! Dessert is last on the agenda

---

Would you post your recipe for your sauce ?
As a German gal, I don't really know how to make my own sauce, so I rely on the jarred stuff.
San Marzano is a good one, but really hard to find.

Chicken Francaise? Chicken Marsala? Both really easy....


I make this a lot too & Its awesome. You'll have to double (or triple) the recipe

Tagliatelle Nicola (serves two)
Sauce
First, add 1 tab of butter, a splash of extra virgin olive oil, a pinch of salt, and a pinch of garlic to a sauté pan. Heat until butter melts. Second, add a handful of frozen peas and heat shortly. Third, add heavy cream (until peas are submerged), fresh cracked black pepper, a pinch of freshly cut parsley, and a big handful of Regiano cheese. Sauté and reduce to a semi-thick texture. Garnish sauce with Regiano cheese.

Tagliatelle
Cook Tagliatelle pasta till Al dente. Toss with reduced sauce.

The recommended wines for Tagliatelle Nicola are...

Red... Beaulieu Vineyard Coastal Pinot Noir
White... Maso Canali Pinot Grigio

Spinach Rolls!! I've never had someone not like this dish, even if they didn't like spinach, they loved it.

Super easy- you need:

Lasagna noodles
frozen spinach
garlic
olive oil
Rigotta
1 egg
Marinara sauce
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Boil the noodles, rinse in cold water put to the side.

saute garlic in olive oil and add spinach to it. I usually add garlic powder and a little salt too.

Then I add 1 egg, salt and garlic powder to the rigotta cheee and mix together until creamy.

Drain any liquid from spinach and mix with rigotta cheese.

Lay cooked lasagna noodles down and spread rigotta/spinach mixture over noodle, then roll and put in baking pan. They sort of look like pinwheels.

When your done rolling all the noodles, top with marinara sauce and shredded mozz cheese and bake at 350 for about 15 minutes or so.

I usually serve it with a Caesar salas and some garlic bread and YUMMM!!!

Baked ziti is one of my favorites too but I add ground beef or turkey to mine.

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Posted by Dani731

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Posted by soon2bmrsVPT

Thanks ladies, keep the recipes coming.. I'm bookmarking.


Thank goodness I jar &/or freeze my own sauce each sunday- dont laugh, its like therapy. Theres a lot of recipes on our threads calling for straight up guinea sauce.

I'm just going to make penne a la vodka from scratch and garlic vegetables. Vin is making the garlic bread. Guests are bringing the wine.. i'm set! Dessert is last on the agenda

---

Can you post your recipe for penne ala vodka? DH & I LOVE PENNE ALA VODKA!!! But we always order it from the pizzeria. I would LOVE to lesrn how o make it! TIA!

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Don't know how to make Vodka Sauce from scratch, but I buy Victorio's Vodka Sauce and it's REALLY good!!

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Posted by thelastresort

I have a great recipe for linguine with clam sauce. FM me if you want it.

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Um, I want it. My recipe s ucks. No flavor.

Chicken Scarpiella (I made this for my parents on Saturday night! It was a hit)

Chicken Scarpiella Recipe- click here!

Changes I made-

I used regular sausage (instead of chicken) because the supermarket didn't have either sundried tomato or italian style chicken. So I used 3 spicy italian and 3 sweet italian pork sausages. I also added a little extra of all the veggies since DH and my dad are big eaters!

Bad change- I used thin cut chicken cutlets because it was all they had- the chicken was kinda dry. Next time I will use thicker cutlets and use more chicken broth.

Also- next time I will leave some of the seeds in the cherry peppers- I like it spicy

I served this with caesar salad, italian bread and rigatoni with marinara sauce as a side dish.

Oh! And plenty of fresh grated parm!

Then Apple crumb pie with vanilla ice cream for dessert.

Yum!