Agnolotti with Tomato Alfredo Sauce

This is simple and easy.. why? Because the ingredients are all pre-made and when you are in a hurry, trust me buying at the supermarket makes sense.

Now I'm old school, make it from scratch, because well there is nothing better than homemade.  But, I have to be realistic as well... I sometimes don't have the time to make from scratch. I do however have time to take the supermarket bought stuff and modify it to make it taste like I been in the kitchen slaving away all day long.

This recipe is going to be one of those times.   You will need:

Ingredients
1 package of Buitoni Quattro Formaggi Agnolotti 
1 container of Buitoni Alfredo Sauce
1 fresh tomato, diced up into small pieces
1 cup of fresh baby spinach leaves
1-2 tablespoons of heavy cream or milk (if needed)
2-3 tablespoon of butter
Salt and Pepper to taste (I use cracked pepper)
Parmesan Cheese to taste

In a deep pot, place water over the stove to boil for the fresh Agnolotti.  When water starts to boil season with salt and pour the Agnolotti, cook until a bit al dente or follow the package instructions.

 

On a skillet over medium high heat, melt the butter, once its bubbling, throw the dice tomatoes, season with salt and pepper and stir, let them cook until they are soft, about 2 minutes or so.  Then add the fresh spinach and stir once more.  The spinach will quickly start to wilt, season with a bit of salt and pepper again.

Next step is to pour the Alfredo Sauce over it and mix together... if the consistency is too thick, add 1 or 2 tablespoon of the heavy cream or milk.  Stir together and taste, if needed add a bit of salt and pepper.  You can also add a bit of parmesan cheese at this point too.  The end results will be a creamy, smooth sauce.

By this point, your Agnolotti should be done.  Take from the pan and using a spoon start adding the pasta to the sauce.  Slowly move them around and coat each of them.

Served on a bowl and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and enjoy!

Rajas con Queso

I originally saw this in Food Network show that has since been cancelled and thru the years have modified it.

This is an easy recipe and a life saver, because if you have all the ingredients and you organized yourself a day or two before cooking, it should take you no more than 10 minutes to have it on the table for anyone to gobble it up. .

The other plus about it? It’s a proven crowd pleaser as party food.

I mean tortilla and melted cheese, can’t be beat people. Trust me.

Ingredients
5 or 6 fresh Poblano chilies
3 tablespoons corn oil
2 large onions, halved and sliced about 1/4-inch thick
1 (16-ounce) container sour cream
1 Chicken bouillon granules
1 1/2 cups Oaxaca or Mexican cheeses (those shredded cheese packages are perfect for this)

In order to save on prep time, I usually roast the Poblano a day or two before I put this together, since it keeps well in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Then when I make this, all I have to do cut the onions and whip it up in less than 5 minutes.

If you have a gas stove, you can roast the Poblano chilies over an open flame until blackened, but not charred. If you don’t have a gas stove, then turn your oven to broil, on high and place the Poblano chilies in a baking tray, lined with aluminum foil. Coat each of the chilies with a bit of oil and sprinkle with salt. Cook until you get the same results as noted before. If you do use the oven, remember to check then every 2-3 minutes and given then a turn so they roast evenly all around.

Once they are cooked to the right color. Wrap the chilies in a towel and place them in a plastic bag for about 10 minutes. Remove the chilies and with the help of a kitchen towel rub the skins off. The chilies should be firm. Do not rinse them, since it will take away the roast flavor. Cut them in 1/2-inch strips discarding all the seeds and the ribs. At this point you can store them and use them up later.

Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the chilies and the onions at the same time. Stir often. When everything is soft add the chicken bouillon granules to taste and stir, once is incorporated, add the sour cream and stir some more.

At this point turn off the burner and add the cheese. Cover immediately.

At my house we have this with warm tortillas, but you can also serve it with white rice.

Tip 1: If you choose to dish up at a party, I have found that if you use a small crock pot, to keep it warm and provide with warm tortillas your guest can make their own.

Tip 2: Other variations that I have tried are instead of Poblano chilies I have sautéed some mushrooms until tender and then add the onions and follow the rest of the recipe as noted above.

Picadillo

There are numerous versions of Picadillo. It's usually made all over Latin America, but living in Florida, most people identify it as a Cuban dish. But, pretty much everyone in Latin America has their own version. It is often served with rice and in some cases as the filling for pastries, like empanadas. In my house it’s basically a quick dish that is made when Tom begs for it. Its simple and quick and everyone pretty much loves it.

You start with the ground meats. I use a half mixture of ground beef and ground turkey or pork, in this case whatever is on sale in the meat department in your local supermarket. Plus using a leaner type of ground meat makes the whole dish lighter. I season the meats in a bowl with salt and pepper, a bit of milk (about 1/2 tablespoon) and a bit of cumin (1/2 teaspoon), mix it all and let it rest for a bit.

In a large skillet, that has been pre-heated on medium-high heat, pour about 2 tablespoons of oil (regular, I use corn/vegetable oil) and change the heat to high, take my bowl of meat and start to brown it, breaking up the pieces and letting it cook until all the fat moisture is dry, I also add about 2 bay leaves at this point as well and some dry oregano, about 1/4 teaspoon.

Then while that is going, I chop up into small pieces 1 red pepper and 1 green pepper. I do the same with 1 large onion (or 2 medium) and about 2-3 cloves of garlic.

I then add it to the brown meat and mix it all around... making it look like this:

Go back to the cutting board and cut up about 4-5 tomatoes (at this point you can also use 1 large or 2 medium can of diced tomatoes). If you use the fresh tomatoes, before I mix them into the meat in the skillet, I season with salt and pepper and then in they go. Give it a swirl and go back and mix in about 1/4 cup of raisins (or more if you want a bit of a sweeter dish), give it another swirl. And get working with the olives. Some people like them whole or cut in half. I like them chopped, not too much but enough that they become part of the dish. (for those that have picky eater kids, this is a good way to "hide" them in plain sight). Dump them in the skillet and give it another swirl.

Next up the liquids! I use red wine, but you can also use dry white wine. I usually pour about 1 cup of red wine, 1/4 cup of tomato paste or ketchup and about 1/2 cup of water. A tip: if you use the can tomatoes (which you can), the liquid will take place of the water. I give it a good toss around. After about 5 minutes of that bubbling along, I taste it and adjust the season by adding a bit of salt and pepper, I also add 1 tablespoon of brown sugar and 1 or 2 chicken flavor bouillon cubes depending on the taste. At this point, I reduce the heat to Medium-Low and I let it cook about 20 minutes of so, stirring it from time to time, adjusting the liquid (more wine or water) for more sauce/less sauce. I like my picadillo on the dry side with enough juices to sort of coat it, if you like it soupy, then by all means, finish cooking it once you hit your desire consistency.

I usually served it in a bowl, over white rice and with a spoonful of sour cream (optional!).

Ingredients

1 1/2 pound of ground meat (Beef, Turkey, Pork)
1/2 teaspoon of milk
1/2 teaspoon of cumin
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoon of cooking oil (corn/vegetable)
1/4 teaspoon of dry oregano
1 large red and green pepper (each) chopped
1 large (or 2 medium) yellow onion chopped
2-3 cloves of garlic minced
4-5 tomatoes chopped (or 2 medium cans of tomatoes)
1/4 cup of raisins
1/4 cup of chopped pimiento-stuffed green olives (drained of liquid)
1 cup of red (or dry white) wine
1/4 cup of tomato paste or ketchup
1/2 cup of water (if needed)
1 tablespoon of brown sugar
1-2 cubes of chicken flavor bouillon cube
Salt and ground pepper to taste

How to:

In a bowl mix the milk, salt, pepper, cumin and oregano with ground meats. Heat the oil in a skillet and brown the ground meats with the bay leave and oregano until liquid evaporates.  Mix in the rest of the ingredients all the while stirring and tasting and adjusting the salt and pepper. Cook about 20 minutes until desired consistency, let it rest for a bit and then served over white rice.

Enjoy!