It’s MAR10 Day!
It’s become a tradition to have Italian on 3/10…this year, I made marinara sauce for spaghetti (but the meatballs and garlic bread were store-bought.):
For dessert, I tried a new recipe for a cannoli tart, since I didn’t have time to make cannolis. It captured the flavor well, even without the shells!
This is just the beginning of a week of themed meals…we have Chicago Day (3/12) and STL Day (3/14) coming up, plus an early St. Patrick’s Day dinner on Saturday!
You may have noticed that I like to take a theme and run with it, whether the celebration is big or small. MAR10 Day is no exception, and I had a fun time coming up with something special for our dinner on Friday. Last year, MAR10 Day fell during our “Markel Family Tour di Pizza,” but in previous years, I’ve chosen something Italian for dinner. I decided to do that again this year, but I wanted to make something new, so I found a recipe for beef ragu with pappardelle. It was excellent, and I will definitely make it again. I also found clementine Italian soda to serve with it.
For dessert, Ladybug and I made an Italian lemon cream cake, which was amazing:
I love finding fun reasons to prepare special meals!
Today started with Conversation Hearts and flowers:
I made bolognese sauce to go with my new favorite bucatini noodles for dinner:
And Ladybug and I tried a new brownie recipe that used avocado oil for dessert:
I don’t know which was the most delicious part of the day!
It’s been so long since I made linguine with clam sauce, I had to start from scratch on the recipe. I’m really happy with how it turned out, and I’ll definitely be making it again!
Melt 1/2 cup butter in skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and mushrooms and sauté until golden. Stir in salt and pepper, then deglaze the pan with white wine. Add clams and juice and cook until heated through. Add parsley, remaining 1 Tbsp. of butter, and lemon juice and cook until butter is melted. Serve over linguine and top with parmesan cheese.
I wanted to make pasta on Mother’s Day, and I wanted that pasta to include artichokes somehow. This is what I came up with, and to my great surprise, it was a huge hit! You could also add some cooked, shredded chicken to the sauce if you want a heartier meal.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta in boiling water until al dente; drain.
While pasta is cooking, heat oil in a large, deep skillet over medium heat. Cook sausage and pepper flakes until sausage is evenly brown. Stir in onion and garlic, and cook until onion is tender. Deglaze pan with white wine. Stir in tomatoes, cream, Italian seasoning, and salt. Simmer until mixture thickens, 8 to 10 minutes.Stir cooked pasta into sauce, and heat through.
Lent means fish sales. I especially love it when salmon goes on sale, because I love to bake it will a little lemon juice and olive oil. I love it even more when I have salmon leftovers, because then I get to make one of my very favorite pasta dishes! If you don’t love capers as much as I do, feel free to reduce the amount in the recipe.
Cook pasta according to package directions.
In a large skillet, heat butter; add garlic and cook for one minute. Stir in cream and lemon juice. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer two to three minutes until thickened, stirring constantly. Add salmon, artichokes, salt, and pepper.
Drain pasta and add to skillet. Stir in cheese, basil, capers, and lemon zest. Serve when heated through.
This dinner is a family favorite, and makes enough that we can have a second meal with the leftovers!
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
In a large saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Stir in the package of dressing mix. Blend in wine and golden mushroom soup. Mix in cream cheese, and stir until smooth. Heat through, but do not boil.
Arrange chicken breasts in a single layer in a greased 9×13 inch baking dish. Pour sauce over. Bake for 60 minutes in the preheated oven.
Twenty minutes before the chicken is done, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a rolling boil. Cook pasta until al dente, according to box directions. Drain.
Chop up chicken and serve with sauce over pasta.