Toasted Orzo with Peas and Parmesan

When it comes to side dishes to go with my meals, I am terrible. It's always the same thing. Potatoes or rice and some sort of green vegetables (usually green beans or broccoli). Bor-ing. So, when my grocery store had pasta buy-one-get-one-free last week, I stocked up on regular spaghetti and pasta, but also things I don't normally buy like pastina and orzo, in hopes of making some different side dishes.

I've always wanted to try orzo, but never have. So, I did what I always do when I'm searching for a random recipe...searched through my Google Reader. When I searched for orzo recipes and saw this one, I knew it'd be a winner because, well, everything on Joelen's blog is a winner! This recipe was really good, and I'll definitely make it again, along with some variations of it, because as of now, I'm a big fan of orzo!

Toasted Orzo with Peas and Parmesan
from Joelen's Culinary Adventures, written as I made it

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
1/4 c. chopped onions (I used frozen)
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. minced garlic
1 lb. orzo
4 c. chicken broth
10 oz. frozen peas
1 c. grated parmesan cheese
pepper, to taste

Melt the butter in a pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and salt and cook until onions get soft and start to brown. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Pour orzo in the pan; stir to coat well with butter. Toast for about 5 minutes, or until orzo starts to turn golden brown.

Add chicken broth to pan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes, or until liquid has been absorbed and orzo is tender. Stir in peas, parmesan cheese, and pepper and heat until peas are hot.

Crispy Cauliflower with Parmesan Dip

Last night I was feeling lazy and did not get home until almost 8pm. When I'm feeling lazy or I don't feel like making dinner, the go-to dinner is a meal completely made up of appetizer type foods. Last night was no exception.

Any vegetables roasted in the oven are a-okay with me, but I had never tried cauliflower. I've had this recipe saved since the day it popped up on my Google Reader, but for some reason, had not made it until last night. Well, that was a mistake! I loved this recipe. I will most definitely be making both the cauliflower and the dip again, maybe together, maybe separately. The dip, as Jessica suggests, would be great with bread, crackers, other vegetables, and probably a lot of other things. And the cauliflower is delicious on its own too.

Crispy Cauliflower with Parmesan Dip
from How Sweet It Is, written as I made it

Crispy Cauliflower
Ingredients:
1 head of cauliflower
1 tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Chop cauliflower into small florets. Place on baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 45 minutes or until brown.

Parmesan Dip
Ingredients:
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. plain Greek yogurt
1/3 c. parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix until smooth. Divide mixture between two ramekins. Bake for 10 minutes or until top starts to brown.

Toasted Ravioli

I know, I know. It's been a little while. But we really have had so many things going on these past couple weeks that have prevented me from blogging, and even cooking. I think today was the first time in a week I've actually done anything that resembles cooking. Even so, I wasn't sure whether or not to post this 'recipe', because it is so easy I'm not sure it qualifies as a recipe. The other day I heard someone mention fried ravioli, and thought about these. These aren't fried, but they sure taste like it, minus all the extra calories. I've made these several times before, but this is the first time since I've started this blog.

Toasted Ravioli
Original Recipe

Ingredients:
20 frozen cheese raviolis (I used them straight out of the freezer)
1 egg
1 c. Italian style breadcrumbs
cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat egg in a shallow bowl. Pour breadcrumbs in another shallow bowl. Dip raviolis in egg, a couple raviolis at a time. Let egg drip off a little and place in breadcrumbs. Cover well with breadcrumbs. Place on cookie sheet; spray top of raviolis with cooking spray. Bake for 20 minutes, turning halfway through. Serve with marinara sauce.

Lemon Pasta

It's a rare occasion that Mr. Z and I get to eat lunch together. On the slim chance that we do, it's usually something quick and easy like a sandwich. Today, Mr. Z had a pretty long morning, and I happened to be home at lunchtime, so I decided to make something a little more substantial than our normal sandwiches. I found this recipe a few days ago, and it sounded like a perfect dish for this time of year. Plus, I had all the ingredients on hand, which does not happen too often. It's not as heavy of a dish as most pastas are; it's more light and clean tasting. I loved it, but Mr. Z thought it was a little too lemony for his taste. Imagine that!

Lemon Pasta

from Telly's Tasty Tidbits, written as I made it

Ingredients:
1 lb. spaghetti (I used fettucine)
2/3 c. olive oil
2/3 c. freshly grated parmesan cheese
1/2 c. fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper, to taste
parsley, for garnish

Cook pasta in salted water until al dente. Meanwhile, mix olive oil, parmesan cheese, lemon juice, and salt and pepper until well blended. Drain pasta, reserving 1 c. of the pasta water. Pour lemon juice mixture over pasta, then toss well. Add a little pasta water at a time until desired consistency (I only used about 1/2 c.). Garnish with pasta.

Baked Egg Rolls

Mr. Z and I are pretty big (okay, huge!) fans of Chinese food. If it didn't have so many darn calories, we would probably eat it several times a week. One thing I do not love, though, are egg rolls. I'll eat one every once in a while, but for the most part, I will pawn them off on Mr. Z, and he is more than happy to take them. There's just something about them that I just really don't like...maybe the grease that drips all over my chin and down my clothes every time I take a bite.

When I saw a recipe on Google Reader for baked egg rolls, I though that might solve my problem. And I was right! I loved them. Much better than the greasy fried ones we get at the Chinese restaurant down the street. Mr. Z thought they were really good too, but I think he secretly prefers the greasy, fried ones. But, these will definitely start coming up on our menu more often.

Baked Vegetable Egg Rolls
from Joyful Abode, written as I made it

Ingredients:
8 egg roll wrappers
1/2-16 oz. bag of coleslaw mix
1 can of mushrooms (I omitted)
1 tsp. minced garlic
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
splash of soy sauce
salt and pepper
olive oil cooking spray

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Put coleslaw mix in a microwave safe bowl. Cover and microwave for 3-6 minutes (mine was about 4). Add garlic, ginger, soy sauce, and salt and pepper; mix well. Spoon about 2 tbsp. of mix into each egg roll wrapper. Fold in two corners. Dab a little bit of water on the top corner. Starting at the bottom corner, roll tightly, tucking the mixture in as you roll. Repeat for remaining wrappers.

Place egg rolls on greased cookie sheet. Spray tops with olive oil cooking spray. Bake for about 10 minutes, turning egg rolls over half way through.