Vegetable Risotto

A brown rice dish chocked full of veggies.  

Sounds like a healthy dinner to me!  We greatly enjoyed this recipe; using brown rice in place of the traditional Arborio rice used in risotto {because, hey, that's all we had in the pantry}.  

When we make it again, I'll either (a) increase the liquids and cooking time, (b) use Minute brown rice {as I do in my other risotto recipe}, or (c) actually use the recommended Arborio rice.  These simple changes will help to make sure that the rice is gooey and not still crunchy.     

Vegetable Risotto - Inspired by Pioneer Woman

6 C chicken broth*
1 C water*
1 T olive oil
1 T butter
1 C chopped carrots
1 C chopped broccoli
1 C chopped cauliflower
1 medium zucchini, chopped
1 T minced onion flakes
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 C brown rice {Minute or Arborio Rice recommended}
1/2 C dry white cooking wine
1 C frozen peas
1/2 C Parmesan cheese
Sea salt, to taste


Begin by melting the butter in a large skillet. Add olive oil.

Add in the chopped carrots and cook about 5 minutes.

Add to the mix all the other yummy chopped veggies. I chopped these all in my food processor.

Cook for about 5 minutes, until zucchini is crisp-tender. Then, set the veggies aside {cover them to keep warm}.

In the same skillet, add in the risotto.

I used brown rice because that's what we had... and you can use it too, just know the cooking time is much longer than with risotto. *If you use risotto, use 5 C broth. If brown rice, up that to 6 C chicken broth + 1 C water.

Add in the white wine and cook rice over med-low heat until the wine is absorbed.

Meanwhile, bring the broth and water to a simmer in a saucepan.

Using a ladle, add in hot broth to the rice in the skillet and cook until almost all the liquid is absorbed... then add in about 1 more cup of broth.

This is a time consuming process -- taking about 1 hour to fully cook with brown rice -- but it's well worth it. If you wish, speed up the process by using mintue brown rice.

When the rice is just about done, add the veggies back into the pan.
Add in the peas, cooking until warmed throughout.

Mmmm.

Sprinkle on and stir in the Parmesan cheese.

Allow the heat from the dish to melt the cheese. Trust me, it's better that way.

Season with salt and pepper.  Serve warm.

We enjoyed this as a stand-alone dish, but it would accompany grilled chicken wonderfully too.

Mexican Bake

If you've been a long time reader of Finding Joy in My Kitchen, you know that we don't eat very many Mexican recipes.  I love south-of-the-boarder dishes, but, Frog prince isn't a big fan.  I decided to give this dish a try because it was covered in cheese.  Frog Prince can't resist cheese!  

The original recipe is freezer-friendly and can easily be made in bulk.  I paired down the recipe to serve two, and also reduced the amount of meat in the dish.  We often reduce the meat in a recipe, allowing us to stretch our meat across more than one meal.  And, honestly, we didn't miss the extra half-pound of ground beef in the recipe.  It was a great recipe we both enjoyed.      

Mexican Bake - Adapted from Ecomomical Me

1/2 pound ground beef
1 T minced onion
1 (15-16 oz) tomato sauce
1 (16 oz) jar of salsa {spiciness of your choosing}
1 (14.5 oz) whole wheat rotini pasta
6 oz. cheddar jack cheese
~1 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. cumin
1/8 tsp. coriander
1/4 tsp. oregano
salt, to taste

Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the rotini until done.  Drain.

Meanwhile, brown the ground beef in a large skillet; as you do - season with salt, pepper and minced onion.  Drain excess grease, if necessary.

Add in the tomato sauce and salsa to the ground beef.  Simmer for ~5 minutes.

Add in the seasoning, and simmer for 2-3 minutes.

Then, add in the pasta and stir to combine.

Pour the pasta mixture into a lightly greased 9x9 glass baking dish.

Sprinkle with cheese.

Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes until warmed throughout and cheese is melted.

Enjoy!

Linked to: Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday, Totally Tasty Tuesday, Kitchen Tip Tuesday, What's On Your Plate? Works for Me Wednesday, Your Recipe, My Kitchen

Ham and Broccoli Pockets

Ever since we had success with our pizza pockets, my mind has been swirling.  Breakfast pockets.  And, now -- ham and cheese pockets.

Whole wheat dough, a filling made with ham and green veggies, and a sauce with great flavor from extra sharp cheddar cheese made creamy from flour and milk!  

The original recipes uses a filling that combines mild cheddar cheese and butter.  I've found that you can eliminate the butter and still get a nice thick sauce.  And, if you use extra sharp cheddar cheese, the flavor is much greater and therefore you can use less cheese.  Just a little healthier... but every little bit helps, right?

Ham and Broccoli Pockets - Inspired by Good Life Eats
Makes 8-10 pockets

Dough
1 C really warm water
1 tsp. honey
1 T yeast
1 tsp. salt
1 T olive oil
1 1/2 C whole wheat flour
1 C white whole wheat flour

Filling
1 1/2 C diced ham
1 1/2 C broccoli florets, chopped
1 C peas
4 oz. extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 1/2 C milk*
1/8 C chicken broth
3 T flour
1/4 tsp. pepper


Prepare dough by dissolving the yeast in the warm water.  Allow this mixture to sit for ~1 minute.  Then, add in the honey, salt and olive oil.  Using your mixer, mix in the flour.  Knead about 5 minutes until smooth.  Allow the dough to rest for 5 minutes while you prepare the filling ingredients. 

Place the frozen veggies (or fresh -- I ended up using frozen) in a large bowl.  

Add the diced ham.  

Saute the veggies and ham together until warmed.  Then, set aside.  

Combine the chicken broth and flour in a measuring up.  Stir until flour and broth are smoothly mixed together.  

Add the broth and flour mixture to a saucepan.  Heat over medium heat, stirring until mixture just begins to thicken.  Then, add in the milk.  Season with pepper.  

Stir until mixture thickens.  Then, remove from the heat.  Add in the cheese.  

As the heat from the dish melts the cheese, you may need to add a bit more milk to increase the liquid nature of the sauce.  I ended up adding between 1/8-1/4 C.  

At this point, divide the dough into 8-10 pieces, and roll/press each out into a circle.  

Place ~1- 1 1/2 C filling on half of the dough circle.  

Using a pastry brush, lightly wet the outer edge of the dough.  Then fold the dough over the filling and use a fork to seal.  

Bake in a preheated oven at 400 for 10-12 minutes until pockets are lightly browned.  

Cool for 3-4 minutes before cutting and serving.  Filling will be hot!  

Linked to: Ingredient Spotlight, What's on Your Plate? Your Recipe, My Kitchen, Melt in Your Mouth Monday, Mangia Monday, Hunk of Meat Monday  

Rigatoni with Stewed Veggies

Friday night Frog Prince and I were hungry.  We had intended to grill -- but the weather system that brought us a dusting of snow changed our plans.  In an effort to clean out the freezer, I pulled out some frozen spinach, and frozen browned ground Italian turkey sausage.

What started out as a quick spaghetti transitioned to a whole new creation.  I had no idea if it would be any good at all, so I hardly took any photos!

After we took one bite, we knew this recipe would be a keeper.  It's too good not to share.


Rigatoni with Stewed Veggies


1/2 box, rigatoni
1/2 lb. Italian turkey sausage, browned
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 can stewed tomatoes, undrained
8 oz. tomato sauce
1 T minced onion
~2 C spinach
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp. basil
1/4 tsp. oregano
1/4 C Italian shredded cheeses {parm, mozzarella, provolone}

Begin by warming the browned turkey sausage in a large skillet.  If you don't already have pre-browned turkey sausage in your freezer, brown it in the skillet at this step.  Add in minced onion while you do the browning.

Meanwhile, begin a pot of water to boil and cook the rigatoni until done.  Drain when the pasta is done.

Once warmed, add in the green bell peppers and saute until slightly tender.  Then, add in the stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, spinach, and seasonings.

Simmer for 5 minutes until the sauce thickens up.

Stir in the cooked and drained pasta.

Then, sprinkle the cheese over the top.

Serve warm.  

Linked to: Full Plate Thursday

Make-Ahead Spinach Pasta Bake

This pasta dish is a new fav -- and I'm pretty sure it will be at your house too.  

I put this dish together the night before, using uncooked pasta to make the prep even easier.  Then, the next evening, we baked it for ~45 minutes at 350 until it was lightly browned and bubbly.  

Make-Ahead Spinach Pasta Bake


1 lb. whole wheat penne pasta
8 oz tomato paste
2 C tomato or spaghetti sauce* (either crockpot or quick)
1 C pureed carrots
2 tsp. dried oregano
~5 C fresh spinach, rinsed and trimmed
3 C cottage cheese
1 C Italian blend shredded cheese, or mozzarella

*If you use tomato sauce rather than spaghetti, add in some onion too for extra flavor.

Begin by combining the tomato paste with the pureed carrots, and spices.

Then, mix in the spaghetti sauce.

Spread 1-2 large ladle-sized scoops of the tomato-carrot mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 9x13 glass baking dish.  

Place 1/2 of the whole wheat pasta noodles, uncooked, over the spaghetti sauce mixture.  Then, spread ~2 1/2 C of fresh spinach over the pasta.    

Spread 1/2 of the cottage cheese over the spinach leaves.  

Top with another 2 ladles of sauce.  

Scatter the remaining half the noodles over the sauce layer.  

Repeat the spinach and cottage cheese layers.  

Spread sauce over the top.  Ideally, you'll have just a bit more sauce on the top than in the photo.    

Cover, and refrigerate over night.  

The following evening, remove the pasta dish from the fridge, and uncover.  

Sprinkle with shredded cheddar cheese.  Ours was a mix of Parm, Asiago, Provolone and Mozzarella.  

Bake at 350 for ~45 minutes.  For the first 20ish minutes, cover with a cookie sheet to keep the moisture in the dish.  After 20 minutes, uncover and cook an additional 20 minutes until cheese is lightly browned.

Allow the pasta bake to sit for ~5 minutes before serving.  We recommend serving it with Olive Garden Bread Sticks.

Enjoy!!

Linked to: Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday, What's on Your Plate? Works for Me Wednesday, What's Cooking Thursday, Full Plate Thursday, Things I Love Thursday. Melt in Your Mouth Monday, Mouthwatering Monday, Mangia Monday, Ingredient Spotlight.