Spaghetti and Meatballs with Homemade Sauce

Step it up a notch next time you fix spaghetti for dinner. Make homemade sauce with fresh ripe Roma tomatoes... and let the sauce cook for a good couple of hours. Roma tomatoes produce a nice thick sauce and have less seeds than most other tomatoes. It'll turn your traditional spaghetti dinner into a feast ;o)

Serves 8

Sauce Ingredients:

• 2 pounds Roma tomatoes
• 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 green pepper, finely chopped
• 3 stalks celery, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
• 1 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 2 bay leaves
• Meatballs (see recipe below)
• 1 pound spaghetti
• Freshly grated parmesan cheese, for topping

Directions or Sauce:

1. Remove stems and roughly chop tomatoes. (Peel or blanche to remove skins, if desired; I prefer to keep them to maximize the health benefit.) Place tomatoes in a blender and puree until smooth.
2. Heat oil in large saucepan over medium high heat. Add onion, green pepper and celery and cook about 5 minutes; move some of the vegetables over to free up a small portion of the pan and add garlic; cook an additional minute.
3. Add pureed tomatoes, Italian seasoning, salt, red pepper flakes and bay leaves and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for two hours, or until thick.
4. Add meatballs and cook an additional 30 minutes.
5. Cook spaghetti, per package instructions.
6. Serve sauce and meatballs over spaghetti; top with freshly grated Parmesan Cheese. 

Meatballs Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground sirloin (or ground meat of choice)
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1/4 dry whole wheat bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 1 small yellow onion, minced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Directions for Meatballs:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients together until fully combined.
3. Roll into 1 inch balls.
4. Bake on foil-lined baking sheet in preheated oven for 25 minutes, or until cooked through and nicely browned.

Roasted Beets and Quinoa Salad with Blue Cheese and Roasted Pecans

My sister and I love Panera's Roasted Beets, Quinoa and Citrus Salad ~ it's both hardy and healthy.  This simplified version is good too ~ and a lot less expensive! It makes 4 full size salads and the cost for ingredients is less than one salad at Panera ($9 per salad ;o)

Serves 4 (as main entrees)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup dry tri-color quinoa (or any kind)
• 4 beets, cleaned and peeled
• 8 cups Kale, roughly chopped
• 1 cup Radicchio, roughly chopped
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup blue cheese
• 1/4 cup pecan halves, toasted
• 1 mandarin orange, peeled and split into segments, optional
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Apple Cider Vinegar and Shallot Vinaigrette (see recipe below) ~ or substitute any light vinaigrette dressing

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line large baking sheet with aluminum foil. Spray lightly with cooking oil.
• Roast Beets: Dice beets into 1/2 inch pieces. Place beets in a medium bowl and add olive oil; toss until well coated. Transfer beets to the prepared baking sheet; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place baking sheet in preheated oven, and cook for 30 minutes or until tender.
• Prepare Quinoa: Rinse and drain quinoa. Cook quinoa, per package instructions (or in a small saucepan, bring 1 cup of water with a sprinkling of salt to a boil; add quinoa and bring back to a boil; cover pan with lid; reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes allow to sit an additional 5 minutes before removing lid). Fluff the quinoa with a fork; set aside.
• In a dry skillet, toast pecans over medium-high heat about 5 minutes, or until browned and fragrant, stirring frequently to ensure they don't burn. Set aside. 
• In a large bowl, toss together kale and radicchio well mixed; add vinaigrette dressing and toss until well coated.
• Assemble Salad: Place the kale blend evenly among 4 salad bowls. Add about 1/4 cup of quinoa and 1/2 cup of roasted beets to each bowl. Evenly distribute onions, blue cheese, roasted pecans (and mandarin oranges, if desired) among bowls. Lightly season with salt and pepper. And enjoy.

Apple Cider Vinegar and Shallot Vinaigrette Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon cane sugar 
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• 1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions:

• Whisk together all dressing ingredients in a small bowl.

Cauliflower Rice

This Cauliflower Rice is a mild tasting and healthy dish that you can serve with nearly any main entree. It's a perfect low carb alternative to rice ~ and tastier!

Ingredients:

• 1 large head cauliflower
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large carrot, shredded and diced into small pieces
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• 2 green onion, remove stringy root ends and any damaged leaves; and thinly slice white onion and dark green leaves (keep separate)
• 1 handfull cilantro
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions:

1. Cut cauliflower and remove the center core; grate cauliflower with food processor or on medium holes of box grater. Use paper towels to remove as much moisture as possible.
2. Melt olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook a minute, while stirring continuously. Add cauliflower, carrot pieces, white onion and vegetable broth; cook, while continuing to stir, until a few bubbles form around edges.  Cover with lid, reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until tender, but not mushy. 
3. Transfer to serving dish and mix in green leaves of onion, cilantro, salt and pepper.

Chicken Nuggets

These Chicken Nuggets are not just for kids ;o) I like to serve them with a few healthy side dishes such as Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Butternut Squash and Cauliflower Rice.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, remove any visible fat and cut into 2" pieces (or preferred size)
• 1 cup bread crumbs, crushed
• 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh oregano (or 1 teaspoon dried oregano)
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons olive oil (more if needed)
• 1 egg, slightly beaten

Directions:

1. Mix bread crumbs, cheese, oregano, salt, pepper, and garlic powder together in a small bowl.
2. Dip chicken pieces into beaten egg; roll in bread crumbs until fully coated.
3. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add breaded chicken and cook until nicely browned on both sides and meat is thoroughly cooked (no longer pink in the center), about 10 minutes.

Serve with mustard or BBQ sauce, if desired.

Roasted Beet and Baby Kale Salad with Apple Vinaigrette Dressing

This is a simple salad (although requires some time for roasting) but adds a special touch to any meal. If you're using your oven for roasting vegetables for a side dish such as Roasted Butternut Squash, Brussels Sprouts and Leeks, it's a perfect time to include this salad with your meal.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 5 ounces of baby kale
• 6 small beets
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• Apple Vinaigrette Dressing (see recipe below)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place aluminum foil on a large baking sheet; lightly spray with cooking oil. 
2. Clean and peel beets; dice into 1/2 inch pieces. Place beets in a medium bowl; add olive oil and toss until well coated.
3. Place beets on prepared baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Place in oven and cook for 30 minutes or until tender.
5. While beets are cooking, add pine nuts to a small skillet over medium heat; toast several minutes until nicely browned, stirring frequently to ensure they don't burn. Set aside. 

Assemble Salad:

1. Put kale in a large bowl; toss with apple vinaigrette dressing; distribute kale evenly among 4 salad plates or bowls. Season salt and pepper to taste, if desired.
2. Distribute beets evenly among plates; sprinkle pine nuts on top of salad.

Dressing ingredients:

• 3/4 cup extra virgin oil
• 1/8 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

• Whisk all dressing ingredients together in a small bowl until combined.