What is Baked Ziti? Traditionally, Baked Ziti is an Italian casserole dish, cooked with tomato sauce and cheese. After searching my pantry, I discovered I did not have any Ziti, nor Penne pasta, both used interchangeably in this classic recipe. Because Ziti and Penne are tubular pasta, why couldn’t I use elbow macaroni, of which I had plenty of? This dish turned out to be a “use up what is in the fridge” dish, which us home cooks – LOVE! Legend notes upon being served a dish of macaroni, an early Italian sovereign exclaimed, “Macaroni!” Which means “how very dear.” This semolina and water-based pasta do not usually contain eggs…
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Setting Up a Breading Station for Pork Chops
I did not have a clue what I was going to make for dinner, so I thumbed through a great cookbook, The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook: 650 Recipes for Everything You’ll Ever Want to Make This cookbook has come in handy since Doug and I became empty-nesters. With appropriate portion sizes and accurate ingredient lists, every recipe has been a winner so far. Last night, it was Crispy Pan-Fried Pork Chops. The recipe calls for cornflakes; however, neither Doug, nor I like cereal, so the leftover cornflakes would have been a waste. But we LOVE RITZ crackers; therefore, I made my crust mixture using RITZ and it was…
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Breakfast Brunch Scramble
I love scramble recipes. I consider a “scramble,” as any dish that includes scrambled eggs, combined with meat, starch, and vegetables, cooked in a cast-iron skillet with very little fat. So, Sunday around lunchtime, I wanted some kielbasa and eggs. Well, what best way to combine these, as to make a scramble. After searching for some simple recipes, to no avail…I made up my own. Let me know if you try it and what you think. Ingredients Vegetable oil 2 cups frozen cubed hash brown potatoes, thawed 16 oz kielbasa sausage, or beef sausage 10 oz bag of frozen tri-medley mix, thawed (contains onions, celery, peppers) 6 eggs…
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Spaghetti with Carbonara Sauce
As one of my FAVORITE dishes ever, a good Spaghetti with Carbonara Sauce can be very difficult to make. I have tried at least a dozen different ways and although this particular recipe cannot be classified as EASY, it is not difficult – just takes patience and preparation. That being said, make sure you have all your hardware and ingredients prepared before you get started, for a smoother cooking experience. Because there is so few ingredients, it is especially critical to use good quality items. Their flavor will be amplified in this dish. INGREDIENTS: Kosher salt 1 pound dried spaghetti…
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Tips for Cooking Ham For Easter
A beautifully cooked ham is a traditional centerpiece for an Easter family dinner. Roasting a ham is not difficult if you follow some simple steps. The following are some good tips on thawing, preparing and cooking your holiday ham. There are several types of ham, most common is the precooked ham. The key to preparing a ham is to NOT overcook the ham. Proper cooking temperatures for all types of ham are as follows: FRESH HAM – 145º to 155º WHOLE OR HALF LEG – 145º to 155º SMOKED HOLE OR HALF LEG – 145º SMOKED OR FULLY COOKED – 130º to 140º THAWING If you buy your ham…
