easy meal Archives - The Tasty Fork

Chicken Tinga Tacos – Mexican Street Food at Home

May 2, 2013 by admin · 14 Comments

For a girl who loves tacos and Mexican food as much as I do, you’d think all this week I’d be having a Cinco de Mayo party on the blog. I have no idea how I missed this Mexican holiday. Is anyone else shocked by how fast May snuck up on us??!! In my own defense, I do have a lot of taco recipes on the blog and I’ve linked a few options for you at the bottom of the post. But this post is all about Chicken Tinga Tacos.

This spicy taco filling is found at every street-food stand in Mexico City. The sauce is like a Mexican marinara, filled with a lot of the same things you would use in an Italian marinara sauce – onion, garlic, tomatoes – but with the addition of chipotle peppers in adobo takes these tacos right to fiesta time.

You won’t believe how easy it is to get such an authentic (and cheap!) meal at home. By using chicken thighs, you’re going to be getting a lot of flavor and this cut of meat is impossible to over cook. Chicken first needs to seared and browned in a skillet, just for 10 minutes and then put aside. Then you’ll make the tinga sauce and let it simmer for 20 minutes. Pour sauce over chicken in a large casserole dish and bake. (Or if you want to cook at a later date, store in the fridge, all ready for the oven. Just be sure to remove the casserole dish from the fridge 15 minutes before you’re ready to bake the chicken.)

Garnish for these Chicken Tinga Tacos are super easy. No fancy salsas or lots of chopping of ingredients. All you need are some green onions, cilantro and crumbled Cotija cheese. So easy!

I’ve made and eaten a lot of tacos in my day.. heck, try just this year! Tacos are one of my favorite food groups. These Chicken Tinga Tacos are spicy and smokey. The chicken was tender and shredded so easily. I loved the easiness and freshness of the taco garnish. These tacos really are no fuss and truly something you would get in Mexico. It’s nice to know I can make these Chicken Tinga Tacos at home and not have to wait until my next Mexico vacation.

Chicken Tinga Tacos – Mexican Street Food at Home

Ingredients

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 1/2 pounds trimmed, skinless, bone-in chicken thighs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large onion, thinly sliced
3 large garlic cloves, minced
One 28-ounce can diced tomatoes, including liquid
2-3 chipotle peppers in adobo, coarsely chopped
1 cup chicken broth
24 corn tortillas
2 ounces Cotija cheese, crumbled
Sliced scallions and chopped cilantro, for garnish

Instructions

Heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet. Season the chicken all over with salt and pepper, add it to the skillet and cook over moderately high heat, turning once, until browned, about 10 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish and pour off the fat in the skillet.
Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil to the skillet & the onion. Cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 2 minutes. Add canned tomatoes, chipotle peppers and broth; bring to a boil. Simmer over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until thickened and slightly reduced, 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350°. Transfer sauce to a food processor and let cool for 15 minutes. Puree until smooth and season with salt and pepper. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Bake the chicken uncovered in the center of the oven for about 45-55 minutes. The meat should be tender, sauce thickened and browning around the edges of the baking dish. Warm corn tortillas in the oven or over a gas stove.
Remove the chicken and shred meat; discard the bones. Return the chicken meat to the sauce; combine well. Spoon about 3 tablespoons of chicken onto each tortilla and sprinkle with the Cotija cheese. Garnish tacos with the scallions and chopped cilantro. Serve immediately.

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Recipe inspired by Food & Wine.

Double Decker Beef Tacos

Salmon Tacos with Slaw & Mango Slaw

Crock Pot Tacos al Pastor

Filed Under: Chicken, Entree, Healthy · Tagged With: Authentic Mexican Meal, Chicken Taco Recipe, Chicken Tacos, Cinco de Mayo, easy meal, healthy recipe, healthy taco, Spicy Chicken, taco, Taco recipe, Taco Recipes, tacos

Bacon, Pear & Smoked Gouda Panini

April 29, 2013 by admin · 12 Comments

There aren’t too many things that make me excited for a Monday. After the beautiful weather and fun weekend I had, the Monday morning alarm came too quickly. Especially since the only grocery store trip I made was to pick up ingredients to make brownies for my Monthly Pinterest Party. So there wasn’t much in the fridge Sunday evening when I was trying to come up with dinner.

I took a peek into my fridge and wondered, “What in the world can I eat right now??” I’m rummaging through the shelves and just when I think I’ll have to eat carrots and cheese, I came across bacon. Angels start singing. How did I not remember using bacon earlier in the week?? How did I not use all of it in one meal? Bacon hardly lasts more than one day in our house.

Working with what I have in my kitchen, I scanned the area to find good matches for my bacon. Of course, EVERYTHING goes well with bacon, so at least I was off to a good start. I had some pears which finally ripened, a bag of baby arugula and some leftover ciabatta bread from the bakery. And then there was the smoked Gouda cheese I had bought just because there are times in my life when I want cheese, crackers & wine for dinner. Looks like I had all of the ingredients to make a Bacon, Pear & Smoked Gouda Panini.

I love a good sandwich but I wanted to take this panini up a notch. Have you ever made flavored oils? I LOVE to mince up some garlic, add it to warm olive oil and let it seep for a few minutes. Brush the garlic oil all over the inside of your sandwich bread – it’s a sure way to get extra flavor depth into a super easy meal.

Easy & tasty – that’s how I like my recipes. This panini falls into that category. The bacon and smoked gouda are the savory stars of the sandwich. I like how the pear adds a sweet flavor and lightens up the meal. Arugula is a peppery green and works well with the savory & sweet elements in this sandwich. Some kind of rustic, crusty bread is required for a panini. I had ciabatta on hand, but use whatever kind of bread you like…just make sure it’s “strong” enough to keep the panini together.

I hope you guys liked my on the fly panini. I truly believe in making recipes your own. So if you don’t have pears, use apples. Or if you’re looking for a lower calorie option, dismiss the bacon and use deli turkey instead. Feel free to make substitutes to fit what you like!

So why was I looking forward to Monday?? Because I’m totally making this sandwich again for lunch…and maybe even dinner.

Bacon, Pear & Smoked Gouda Panini

Ingredients

(Makes 2 hearty sandwiches)
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 slices of your favorite artisan bread, such as ciabatta
8 slices of bacon, cooked
1 pear, thinly sliced
¼ cup shredded smoked gouda
½ cup baby arugula

Instructions

To make Garlic Oil – In a small sauce pan, add olive oil & garlic. Bring it up to a boil and remove from heat. Let the garlic sit for 10 minutes. The garlic can be strained or just leave it. It’s up to you!
On the ciabatta bread, spread the garlic oil on both sides. Start to layer the sandwich by adding bacon, pear slices, smoked gouda and baby arugula. Top with the other piece of bread and place in a preheated skillet or grill pan. (Or a panini machine if you have one!) I put my cast iron skillet on top of the sandwich so it would press the sandwich.
On a medium-low heat, cook the sandwich until cheese is fully melted; 3 to 5 minutes per side. Serve immediately while cheese is still warm.

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Portobello Sandwich with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce. Recipe at The Tasty Fork #vegetarian

Portobello Sandiwch with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

mediterranean-turkey-sandwich-the-tasty-fork

Mediterranean Turkey Sandwich

Five Ingredient Slow Cooker Ranch Seasoned Beef I thetastyfork.com #5ingredients #slowcooker #dinner

5 Ingredient Slow Cooker Ranch Seasoned Beef

Filed Under: Entree, Pork, Sandwich · Tagged With: bacon recipes, dinner, easy meal, easy recipe, easy recipes, recipe, sandwich

Bacon, Spinach and Gnocchi Casserole #CountryCrockStars

April 24, 2013 by admin · 3 Comments

Thank you Country Crock for sponsoring this post.

Things have been busy in our home the last few weeks. And for me, that means I’m rushing to get dinner on the table. Why is it once 5pm hits, there is always a laundry list of things to do??!!!

When time isn’t on my side around dinner time, I love making casseroles. Casseroles have such a retro vibe, but this recipe I created for Country Crock is nothing like what your Mom used to make. (Not that there is ANYTHING wrong with the casseroles your Mom makes:) )

I came up with a Bacon, Spinach and Gnocchi Casserole on a night when I was racing againist the clock. I was wanting a comforting meal with a lot of flavor. This casserole is very easy to put together and it spends only 10 minutes in the oven. Plus, it’s loaded with cheese. YUM! I’m sure your family will love this meal as much as we did. If I was the type person who planned ahead, this casserole could be prepared in advance and then baked sometime that week.

Do you love casseroles as much as I do? If you do be sure to enter the Country Crock Stars contest. Its easy [like a casserole] just “Share a photo of your favorite casserole, and share in 100 words how you demonstrate creativity and resourcefulness in the kitchen.” 3 finalists will win $5000 and a trip to New York City! 12 semi-finalists will win cookware! All great prizes – you can enter your best casserole recipe by clicking here.

Bacon, Spinach and Gnocchi Casserole

Ingredients

1 tbsp Country Crock
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 bacon strips, diced into pieces
1/2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup water
One 17.5-ounce package potato gnocchi
1/4 cup low sodium cream of mushroom soup
1 cup baby spinach
A dash of red pepper flakes
Ground pepper & salt, to taste
1 cup shredded Cheddar Gruyere cheese, divided

Instructions

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a casserole dish with cooking spray.
In a large skillet, melt Country Crock over a medium heat. Add onions, garlic and bacon. Cook and stir for 6 minutes. Stir in thyme; cook for 2 more minutes. Pour in chicken broth and water; bring to a simmer. Stir in gnocchi. Cover and cook until the gnocchi is slightly tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add cream of mushroom soup, spinach and red pepper flakes. Stir and taste. Add Salt & Pepper, if needed. Fold in 1/2 cup of cheese.
Pour gnocchi into baking dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Serve immediately.

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I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective, and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Filed Under: Entree, Pasta, Recipes · Tagged With: casserole, contest, Country Crock, Country Crock Stars, easy meal, easy recipe, pasta, quick recipe

Mini Chile Relleno Casserole & Spicy Breakfast Potatoes

April 17, 2013 by admin · 21 Comments

I was never much of a breakfast person. As a child, my Mom would offer to make me a hot breakfast every morning. I was dumb and grabbed a pop tart instead. So dumb I used to be….

My husband’s favorite meal of the day is breakfast. So much so that he would go out to breakfast all by himself on those random bank holidays that no one else off but finance people. I can’t even go to a movie by myself, never less have a meal. He was the one who got me to come around to breakfast food. He inspired me to make one of my most popular recipes on this blog.

I usually cook things that I want, but for this meal, I thought I’d make the hubby happy and have breakfast for dinner. I came across a Mini Chile Relleno Casserole Recipe on Kitchen Daily and I LOVED the individual serving option by cooking the casserole in ramekins. Plus, chile rellenos is one of my favorite Mexican meals! Have you tried it? It’s a deep fried pasilla chile stuffed with rice, beans and meat. Not the most figure friendly meal, but this chile relleno casserole recipe is a much healthier option — Eggs, chilies, corn, sourdough bread, skim milk and low-fat cheese. Baking the eggs in a water bath makes the casserole texture super fluffy. I’m loving this new take on chile rellenos!

To round out the meal, I made a side of Spicy Breakfast Potatoes. YUM! I can not tell you how much I love diced potatoes from the freezer section. I HATE chopping potatoes…especially trying to make every potato exactly the same size. Thank you, Grocery Store, for doing this mundane task for me. I had some extra corn and a red pepper on hand, so I added those items to the potatoes, but feel free to add anything your family likes.

Breakfast for dinner is something I need to do more often! What are your favorite breakfast for dinner meals? Would you love to take a picture of your breakfast for dinner meal with this new camera??

Mini Chile Relleno Casserole & Spicy Breakfast Potatoes

Ingredients

For the Casseroles:

2 can 4-ounce diced green chiles, drained and patted dry
¾ cup frozen corn, thawed and patted dry
4 scallions, thinly sliced
1 cup sourdough bread, cut into cubes (can be stale)
1 cup shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese
1 ½ cup non-fat milk
6 large egg whites
4 large egg
¼ tsp salt

For the Spicy Breakfast Potatoes:

1 Bag (16 oz) Frozen Diced Potatoes
1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 1/4 tsp Sea Salt
1 tbsp Dijon Mustard
1 1/4 tsp Cumin
1 tsp Black Pepper Coarse
1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1/4 cup Green Chiles Mild, Canned
1/4 cup Red Pepper, chopped
1/4 cup Frozen Corn
1/4 cup Green Onions, for garnish

Instructions

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Coat 4 ramekins with cooking spray. Fill a large casserole dish with a few cups of water to make a water bath. Set aside. In each ramekin, equally divide green chiles, corn, scallions and bread. Top each with cheese. Whisk milk, egg whites, eggs and salt in a medium bowl until combined. Divide the egg mixture evenly among the ramekins. Place ramekins in a large baking dish. The water in the baking dish should come up half way on each ramekin. If there is too much water, remove it.
Bake mini casseroles for 25 to 35 minutes or until the tops begin to brown and the eggs are set. Be careful removing casseroles from oven. Stay steady and don't spill the hot water. Use tongs to remove ramekins from the water bath.
For the potatoes - heat a cast iron skillet to a medium heat. Mix together all ingredients except the green onions. Add to skillet and cook for 12-15 minutes. Garish with green onions.

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Mini Chile Relleno Casserole inspired by Kitchen Daily.

Filed Under: Breakfast, Entree, Healthy, Recipes, Vegetarian · Tagged With: breakfast casserole, breakfast for dinner, brunch recipe, easy breakfast, easy meal, healthy breakfast, Mexican breakfast, recipe, spicy potatoes

Salmon Tacos with Slaw & Mango Salsa

April 10, 2013 by admin · 20 Comments

The other day I noticed The Tasty Fork Fan page on Facebook hit over 1300 likes! I couldn’t believe it!!! Facebook is a great way to interact with my readers and I’m so happy there are 1300 people who care what I have to say. LOL.

Things are starting to warm up where I live. How about you?? I’ve been able to grill out a few times and take the dog for long walks. You want to know where else things were getting hot? In my fridge. We got a new refrigerator in January because our last one died. So imagine my surprise when I open the fridge on Sunday morning to get out all of the food I made for a wedding shower only to find my fridge smelled like death. There was NO way I could serve the things I made. I was flustered and pretty annoyed especially since the shower started in just a few hours.

The repair man couldn’t come out to fix it until Monday. He said to wait 24 hours before loading it up with food again just to make sure it would be cold enough. I was pissed we had to throw away so much food and condiment essentials. Here is a tip I learned – If you’re trying to get rid of a rancid odor in your fridge, DO NOT spray Febreeze. It totally doesn’t work the same like it does in an open air space. Ooops. I now have 2 baking soda boxes just hanging out in the fridge. I guess that’s why opening a box of baking soda is classic method of removing odors because it works.

Since my fridge is fiiiinally cold enough to store food, I’m sharing with you Salmon Tacos. Fish tacos totally make me think of summer! I feel like it’s a bit “lighter” than the everyday meat tacos we eat and I’ve changed it up a bit by adding two fun garnishes; Greek Yogurt Slaw and Mango Avocado Salsa. Two 6 ounce salmon fillets were enough for 6 loaded tacos. The Mango Avocado Salsa recipe has been doubled so I could serve some on the side with corn tortilla chips. It rounds out to be a restaurant quality meal!

What meals make YOU think of summer??

Salmon Tacos with Greek Yogurt Slaw & Mango Avocado Salsa

Ingredients

For the Salw & Fish:

1 (16-ounce) package coleslaw mix
1/2 cup Greek yogurt
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
2 tablespoons salt-free Mexican seasoning blend, divided
2 (6 oz each) salmon fillets
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 corn tortillas

For the Mango Avocado Salsa:

2 cups finely diced mango
1/4 cup finely diced red onion
3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 large avocado, diced
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Salt & Pepper
Tortilla Chips (optional)

Instructions

To make the slaw - combine the first 7 ingredients and 1 tablespoon of the Mexican seasoning. Stir and set aside.
Sprinkle fish with remaining 1 tablespoon seasoning blend. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add fish, and cook 4 to 5 minutes on each side or until done. Break fish into small pieces. Serve in warmed corn tortillas, topped with slaw and salsa.
For the salsa - Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl. This recipe has been doubled so it can be served with chips.

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Filed Under: Fish, Recipes · Tagged With: easy meal, easy recipe, fish recipe, fish tacos, salmon recipe

Asian Style Sloppy Joes

March 18, 2013 by admin · 11 Comments

Who doesn’t like an easy dinner meal?? Who doesn’t like sloppy joes?? Well my friends, today you’ve stopped by the right blog. I’m sharing with you Asian Style Sloppy Joes.

At least 5 days a week, I’m in the kitchen making dinner. There are days when I don’t mind cooking and can spend hours creating a meal. But most days are not like that. Making dinner as quick as possible is a usual goal for me after a long day.

I’m sure you have a sloppy joe recipe which is popular with your family. Soooo I wanted to switch things up a bit. Use different flavors than your everyday sloppy joe. I’ve picked out my favorite Asian flavors to create a delicious sauce for the sandwiches. This is a quick, easy & tasty meal your family will love!

So get out your hoisin sauce and ginger, it’s time for some Asian Style Sloppy Joes for dinner!

Asian Style Sloppy Joes

Ingredients

2 tablespoons canola oil
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 cup finely chopped celery
3 tablespoons Sriracha
2 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 lb ground chicken
1 lb ground pork
1 cup hoisin sauce
1 cup drained canned diced tomatoes
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
8 hamburger buns
Spicy pickles (optional)

Instructions

In a large, deep skillet, heat the canola oil. Add the onions, celery, Sriracha, garlic & ginger. Stir occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, about 8 minutes. Season with salt & pepper.
Add the ground chicken and pork and cook, until no pink remains. Stir in hoisin, tomatoes and lime juice and bring to a boil. Simmer over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Serve on hamburger buns. Top with pickles if using.

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Recipe from Food & Wine.

Filed Under: Recipes, Sandwich · Tagged With: easy dinner, easy meal, easy recipe, quick & easy, sloppy joes

Brown Sugar Crock Pot Pork

December 13, 2012 by Miss Tasty · 18 Comments

Brown Sugar Crock Pot Pork The Tasty Fork

I only post recipes I love. And in this case I really really LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE this pork recipe. There isn’t much to it. Excluding the pork, all of the ingredients I had on hand and you should too.

I’ve made it pretty clear how much I love using my crock pot. It makes my life so much easier. I like to put the meal together the night before so it hangs out in the fridge over night. In the morning after I walk the dog and make my coffee, it’s time to grab the crock pot and turn it on. I’m out of the house for the day but dinner will be ready when I get home.

crock pot brown sugar pork via The Tasty Fork

The first thing I do when I come home from work is take a deep breath — the smell coming from the crock pot fills the whole house. When I walked in on Tuesday, I was happily overwhelmed by the smell of brown sugar pork. I ran to the kitchen and took a little bite. I seriously almost melted. The pork was so tender! And the sauce, oh my… it’s a combination of brown sugar, balsamic vinegar and Dijon mustard. All pantry items and it made the most divine tasting sauce. It’s sweet with a touch of acidity. Perfection!

To round out the meal, I whipped up some sweet potato mash. It’s super easy — peel and dice a couple sweet potatoes, boil for 15 minutes and drain, add some butter and brown sugar and skim milk, mash until you get the right consistency. This was an easy week night meal, but I’d make this any day of the week! It’s a great recipe to use if you have guests coming over for the holidays. It makes a lot and leftovers taste better the next day.

I really wanted to name this recipe “OMG Pork.” It’s all I could say when I was eating it. I hope you’ll love love love it as much as me.

Brown Sugar Crock Pot Pork

Brown Sugar Crock Pot Pork

4 lb pork loin (or your favorite cut of pork for a crock pot)
Salt & Pepper
1 onion, sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1.5 cups brown sugar
2-3 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Equal part cornstarch and cold water (slurry)

Directions

Remove excess fat from pork. Using a fork, stab/make holes through out the pork. Season with salt & pepper. Spray crock pot with cooking spray and add onions. Place pork on top.
In a bowl, combine garlic, brown sugar, mustard and vinegar. It will be a paste like consistency. Spread all over pork. Cook on low for 8 hours.
When the pork is done cooking, take out of the slow cooker and let it rest for 10 minutes. (cover pork with foil) Strain the liquid in the slow cooker into a sauce pan. Save onions. On a medium heat, cook and stir in slurry. The slurry will thicken up the sauce. You may need to repeat this step a few times to get the consistency you want.
Place onions on top of pork and cut into pieces. Serve with sauce drizzled on pork pieces.

Filed Under: Crock Pot, My Kitchen, Pork, Slow Cooker · Tagged With: brown sugar pork, crock pot, crock pot pork, dinner, easy meal, food blog, Holiday food, pork, recipe, slow cooker, The Tasty Fork

Tomato Based Vegetable Soup

December 12, 2012 by Miss Tasty · 3 Comments

Tomato Based Vegetable Soup

Christmas is less than two weeks away and I’m already entering sugar coma status. Holiday lattes start off my morning. Everyday seems like a cookie swap party at work…and it’s rude to turn away treats people have baked, right?? And for the past few nights, I’ve been having these as dessert – they’re sooo addicting. I know I’ll have to make more once they’re gone.

Since I’m eating so much sugar, I’m really trying to balance out my diet with some healthy meals like this soup. It’s filled with vegetables and has a rich tomato base. If you like tomato soup, you’ll want to try this! By blending a can of diced tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes and basil, each bite you take is full of flavor. Not even a pinch of salt went into the soup!

If you’re a sugar addict like me, make this soup so you can enjoy all the holiday treats the season has to offer.

Tomato Based Vegetable Soup

2 Tbs. olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp. red pepper flakes
1 medium onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, sliced
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 small zucchini, sliced
½ tsp. chopped fresh thyme
2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
2 15-oz. cans diced tomatoes
1 15-oz. can small white beans or cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup sun-dried tomatoes. Get the ones that aren’t packed in oil. They come packaged in a resealable bag, can be found in the produce section.
8 basil leaves, torn plus more for garnish
8 oz bag baby spinach

Directions

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and red pepper flakes, and cook 1 minute, or until garlic is fragrant. Stir in onion, carrots, celery, zucchini, and thyme. Cook 10 to 15 minutes, or until onions are soft.
Add broth, 1 can tomatoes, and beans. In a blender, add remaining can of tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, torn basil leaves and 1/2 soup liquid. Purée until smooth. Add more soup liquid to get the consistency you want. Stir mixture into soup, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Simmer 10 minutes.
Add baby spinach and simmer 1 minute more. Remove pan from heat, and stir in basil garnish.

Filed Under: My Kitchen, Soup/Chili, Vegetarian · Tagged With: easy meal, food, food blog, recipe, soup, The Tasty Fork, vegan soup, vegetable soup, vegetables, Vegetarian

New Recipe: Full Flavor Pasta Sauce – Vegetarian Meal

July 26, 2012 by Miss Tasty · Leave a Comment

I’ve taken “Meatless Monday” to “Let’s eat meat free till the weekend.”

It’s summer time. Produce in the mid-west is at it’s very best…. so why not take advantage of it. Instead of making the typical tomato sauce for pasta, I decided to change it up a bit. I made a Roasted Red Pepper & Sun-Dried Tomato sauce for my whole wheat spaghetti. SO GOOD!!

If you have a picky eater or kids in your home, an easy way to sneak in veggies is to puree them into a sauce or soup. Besides roasted red peppers & sun-dried tomatoes, I added carrots, onions, basil and garlic to the blender to make a full flavor pasta sauce. Once it’s pureed, it will be a little thick. You can thin it out with stock or some of the water your pasta cooked in.

To add some “meat” to this pasta meal, I sautéed sliced mushrooms and tomatoes. Add it to the cooked pasta and throw in some spinach. The heat from the warm pasta and mushroom mixture will slighty wilt the spinach but it will still maintain some crunch.

Another great thing about this recipe, it’s on the table in 30 minutes. Very quick & easy with depths of flavor. It’s a tasty mid-week meal!

Roasted Red Pepper & sun-dried Tomato Sauce with Whole Wheat spaghetti, serves 4 to 6

1 lb (uncooked) Whole wheat spaghetti
1 medium onion, diced and divided
3 garlic cloves, minced and divided
2 carrots, chopped
1 12oz jar of roasted red peppers, drained
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes
5 -8 basil leaves
splash of cream
2 cups sliced mushrooms
2 tomatoes, diced
2 cups baby spinach
basil for garnish

Directions:

Cook spaghetti according to directions. Reminder — You might want to save some of the pasta water to thin out the sauce if you don’t have stock on hand.
Saute half of the diced onions & garlic with olive oil. Add carrots and cook until onions are translucent. Add to blender along with roasted red peppers, sun-dried tomatoes & basil. Puree until smooth. Add water or stock until you get the consistency you like. Finish sauce by adding a splash of cream.
In a saute pan, pour in a splash of olive oil and add the rest of the onions and garlic. Toss in sliced mushrooms and tomatoes. Cook until the liquid from the tomatoes have evaporated. Add this mixture to cooked spaghetti. Fold in spinach — it will wilt but not overly cook it.
Pour pasta sauce into the noodle mixture. When you’re ready to serve, garnish with torn basil leaves.