Delicioso Spaghetti Sauce, from Kris

Spaghetti sauce:

Onion, small dice
garlic like 6 - 8 cloves, finely diced
ground meat of choice (4% beef or turkey breast for us)
petite diced tomatos in juice
tomato sauce
fresh sliced mushrooms (sauteed prior to entering party)
s&p
oregano to taste (about 1 - 1/2 tsp dried)
basil a good heaping TBSP dried from the beginning or 1/4 cup fresh at the end
any other Italian herbs you want - marjoram, rosemary etc...

Simmer away for hours until reduced, thickened and delicioso.

Easy Peasy Chicken Parm, Sans Breading, from Kris

-Boneless skinless chicken boobs
- 2 jars Classico "Florentine" style spaghetti sauce (or favorite tomato based sauce)
- fresh slices mozzarella cheese (or shredded if you prefer)
- fresh shredded parm cheese
- cooked spaghetti noodles

Over medium high heat, sear chicken boobs in small amount of olive oil until brown on each side (about 3 - 4 min/side). Using jarred sauce, cover chicken and put in oven on 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Cover each chicken piece with slice fresh mozzarella and some shredded parm. Bake an additional 5 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink in the middle.

I serve on some spaghetti noodles, covered with the sauce. The jarred spaghetti sauce condenses down (which is why I use 2 jars!) a lot and concentrates the flavor really well. As the chicken is baking in the sauce, it adds extra flavor as well. It's really good and a fantastic quick go to meal when it's not too hot to turn on the oven.

Baked Chicken Parm, suggested by Sarah

From "Simply Recipes"

Parmesan chicken is traditionally made with boneless, skinless chicken breasts. We use breasts, but thighs too, if we are starting with a whole chicken.

Ingredients

Sauce:

• 2 medium garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes (we use Muir-Glen)
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon sugar
• Salt and ground black pepper

Chicken:

• 3 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 Tbsp white-wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 4 (5-oz) skinless boneless chicken breast halves (or deboned thighs)
• 3/4 cup of breadcrumbs (we make our breadcrumbs from old French bread)
• 1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 3 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

Method

1 Prepare the sauce. In a large saucepan, heat the garlic and oil together over medium high heat until the garlic starts to sizzle. Stir in the tomatoes, basil, oregano, sugar, a pinch of salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer. Continue to simmer until sauce thickens a bit and flavors meld, about 10-12 minutes. Taste sauce, adjust seasoning if necessary, cover and keep warm.

2 Preheat oven to 450°F. Cut each chicken breast half in half for smaller pieces. With a meat pounder, pound the chicken pieces to flatten them to an even thickness - between 1/4 - 1/2 inch. You might find it easier to put the chicken between layers of plastic wrap before pounding.

3 Whisk together mustard, vinegar, salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper in a large bowl, add the chicken pieces, tossing to coat well.

4 In another bowl, mix together the bread crumbs, grated cheese, and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper. Mix well and add in the melted butter. Transfer to a shallow plate. Dredge the chicken pieces 1 piece at a time in the crumb mixture, coating completely. Press the crumbs in gently to adhere and transfer to a stick-free baking sheet. Bake in the middle of the oven until golden brown and cooked through, about 15 minutes.

Serve with a side of rice or pasta. Ladle sauce over the chicken.

Serves 4.

Creamy Ham and Peas Pasta, from Stacy

1 small onion, finely chopped
a few Tbsp. olive oil
1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 15 oz. can tomato sauce
1 small carton (very small, like individual serving of milk) heavy cream
1/2 lb. ham (cut into small squares)
3/4 cup frozen peas (defrosted)

*All measurements are approximations.

Saute onions in olive oil until soft (a few mins.). Throw everything else in the pan and heat through. I added some garlic salt as well. Serve over your choice of pasta. Yummy!

Pseudo Chicken Parmigiana, and idea from Kimberly

Wheat rotini went in the bottom of the pan. On top of that, I poured some of the tomato sauce I'd made the other day. Then I put in a layer of Morningstar chicken patties. A layer of mozzarella topped it all off, and then I baked it until it was brown and yummalicious.

Penne a la Betsy, suggested by Shauna

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/....nne_a_la_betsy/

Cheap Asshole Chili, from Michelle

Turkey chili can stretch like a mo fo.

I use ground turkey. If you use two pounds, you can add one or two cans each of black beans and red kidney beans, a 28-oz can of diced tomatoes, chili powder to taste, cumin to taste, and a small can (4oz? 5oz?) of tomato sauce. Throw some chicken stock (or water if it's really cheap asshole time) in it if it's too thick. I've been eating plain old chili all week (over tortillas or a handful of Fritos with a dollop of fat free sour cream).

You can turn leftovers into burrito filling by mixing about 2 c of the chili w/ some shredded cheese (and sneak more cheap veggies in if you want--a cup of succotash (corn and baby lima beans), then put the filling in some flour tortillas, cover w/ more shredded cheese, bake at 400 for about 30 mins (if the chili was previously refrigerated). I like to mix prepared chili sauce w/ sour cream and serve hot.

Stuffed Shells, an idea from Rachael

I use half a box of jumbo pasta shells. I stuff those with half a package of JD Italian sausage, half a container of Ricotta cheese, lots of parm, lots of asiago, lots of Romano, basil, oregano, garlic, fresh whole milk Mozzarella, fresh ground pepper, one egg and some sea salt. Cover with a jar of sauce and some more fresh Mozzarella. Bake about 30 mins. This is obviously not helping me get fit, but it is such a comfort food.

Fake Mexican Rice, from Dani

Last night I made a fake mexican rice to have with our tacos, because we were out of refried beans, and I'm trying to use up some of the stuff in my cabinets before I go shopping again.

1.5c instant brown rice
1.25c water
About 1tsp of hot sauce (I used valentina's, it's in the mexican food aisle)
About 1/4c tomato sauce
2tsp paprika

Just cook the rice like the package directions say, only with a little less water, and then add the paprika, hot sauce and tomato sauce, and cook a little longer (I did mine in the microwave) and then fluff with a fork. Mine tasted almost just like real mexican rice.

Cincinnati Chili, from Betsy

Cincinnati Chili

1 tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 14.5-oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 16-oz. can tomato sauce
1 6-oz. can tomato paste
1 cup water
2 cans red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 lb. spaghetti
shredded Cheddar cheese for topping

In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium-high heat and saute the onion until golden. Add garlic and saute a minute longer.

Stir in Tomatoes with juice, tomato sauce, tomato paste, water, kidney beans, chili powder, sugar, and cinnamon. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside, keeping warm.

Serve chili over spaghetti; sprinkle with Cheddar cheese.

(adapted from Saving Dinner, by Leanne Ely. The original recipe also calls for diced green bell pepper, which I omit.)

Eggplant Parmesan, by Allison

1eggplant
a couple cups tomato sauce like for pasta (I made my own, if you use jarred sauce, go ahead and use that)
4 oz mozzarella, grated
some fresh basil
2 oz Parmesan, grated
salt and pepper

Slice the eggplant, salt the slices and let them sit for half an hour or so. Then wipe them off and spray both sides with oil. Shove them under the broiler for 5 minutes, then flip and broil for another 5 minutes. Salt and pepper them to taste.Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Put about a third of the sauce in a casserole dish, layer half the eggplant on top, cover with the mozzarella, basil leaves, and Parmesan, the rest of the eggplant, and then the rest of the tomato sauce. Cook for half an hour.

Not-Chicken Not-Parmesan, by Katey

Feeds 2, double as needed
Morningstar Farms Chik Patties
1 large can Hunt's Marinara (Garlic & Herbs for a preference)
1/4 to 1/2 Cup 2% Mozzarella Cheese (shredded)
Spaghetti noodles (or fettucini, angel hair, whatever)
Green veggies (we usually just crack a can of green beans)

Preheat oven to 375. Put water on for pasta. When oven is hot, put patties in and set timer for 8 minutes. At 8 minutes, turn patties over. Spoon about 1 TBSP marinara over each pattie. Add about 1/8 cup of Mozz. Cheese (You could use Parm if you have it on hand, but then it wouldn't be not-parmesan, would it? Really any cheese will work in a pinch) to each pattie. Put back in oven for additional 8 minutes. Cook Pasta. Cook Veggies. Heat about half the can of sauce.Throw noodles and veggies on plates, add sauce, patties can go on top or on the side.

Inspired Sauce, by Dani

You guys have inspired me. I'm making my own pasta sauce
So far, in the pot, I have:
2 quart jars of home grown tomatos
4 forkfulls of diced garlic(the stuff in the jar at the store)
Italian spices
Cayanne pepper
Salt
Black pepper
One lrg onion.

Later: I did it! I actually made pasta sauce. And DH LOVED it. The man who hates all things tomato based LOVED it. He even got seconds.

Faboo Turkey Meatloaf, by Carolyn

Faboo Turkey Meatloaf

1 lb ground turkey
1/2-1 small onion, diced or chopped
2 slices of bread (about 1/2 cup), broken into crumbs
1 egg
1 15-oz can of tomato sauce
garlic powder (or fresh chopped garlic)
parsley
Italian seasoning
pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix turkey, onion, bread, egg, and 1/2 can of tomato sauce in a loaf pan. Add seasonings as desired. Pour remaining tomato sauce on top of loaf and sprinkle with additional seasonings as desired. Bake in 350 degree oven for about an hour.

A tip I'll add that I use whenever I make meatloaf is this: Before adding sauce to the top, I make little channels in one or more corners to collect oils from the meat. I just stick a finger down along the corner of the pan so that none of the meatloaf mixture is touching the actual corner. Then when I pour the tomato sauce on top I am careful not to pour any down the channel(s). When it cooks, all the grease collects in the corners, and you can drain it off.

I'm in the mood for broccoli with my meatloaf, but I suspect we'll also be having some peas and carrots, since my daughter hasn't been touching broccoli lately.

Pastitsio, from Nastia

My big fat Greek Pastitsio recipe

(imperial measures are editor's estimates)

500gr (16oz) of really big pasta (Spaghetti No 1 or penne) I prefer Penne because it’s easier to cut

¾ kilos (1.65lbs, or 1lb 10oz) Minced meat, one quarter kilo (1/2 lb) of pork and half a kilo (1 lb) of beef (No lamb)

About 350 gr (12oz) tomato sauce (if you can make it yourself from fresh tomatoes even better.

Two large onions finely chopped

Two tablespoons of margarine and some olive oil

For Beschamel Cream

Two fresh eggs

About four full tablespoons of flour

500 gr (about 18oz, a little over a pint) fresh milk

One tablespoon of margarine

Salt

Pepper

Cinnamon

Bay leaves

Some hard cheese to put on top

Cooking

Boil the spaghetti in salty water until al dente put a table spoon of olive oil in, strain spaghetti but keep moist separate in half.

Put the margarine and onions in a pot stir fry until they get brownish, add mincemeat and stir fry until there are no clots (must look almost cooked) add tomato, salt, pepper, some cinnamon, two bay leaves and a glass of water and cook until there is more mince than water (cooking time differs) Remove the bay leaves.

On a medium size pan put half of the spaghetti at the bottom, then all the mince and then the other half

In a small pot put margarine to melt and then add flour cook a little and then add milk start stirring at the same direction until it gets creamy (must be a little thick ) take off the stove and put the eggs in a plate mixing well.

Add a table spoon of the cream to the eggs, stir a little and then put the mix back in the cream. Stir until it becomes a soft and nice cream.

Put the cream on top of the spaghetti and add some cheese crumbs on top. Prefer a hard cheese such as parmesan. Bake until the top gets brown and enjoy. (Not very hot oven about 180C (350F))

We like red wine along and tomato salad with feta cheese and olives.

Stuffed Shells, an idea from Stephanie

Half cook the shells, stuff with ricotta, egg, and parmesan mixture (w/parsley) and cover in sauce, then mozzarella cheese, and bake for a while.