Have you ever opened the fridge and longingly looked inside, wondering what you could possibly make for a meal with the limited ingredients or mismatched food sitting on the shelves?
I have and I did tonight. I even did that fridge dance, where you bend halfway over with your hand still on the door handle, peak inside, then stand up still holding the handle and half close the door while in deep thought.
Tonight nothing jumped out at me right away.
I knew I wanted to make a pasta dish, but my gut was pushing me to try something creative and different, but what would it be?
After taking out a few staple ingredients (garlic, onion, mushrooms) I found the perfect addition that would certainly spice up what would have been a rather unoriginal pasta sauce. Ricotta cheese!
I had a 32 ounce container of Ricotta cheese leftover from when I made stuffed shells a few weeks before (yes apparently, Ricotta cheese has a very long shelf life). Bingo!
Here's what I whipped up that turned out to be one of my best, creamiest pasta sauces. This recipe uses gluten free corn pasta because my fiance recently started cutting out gluten, but you can use regular pasta if you prefer.
Ingredients:
1 package gluten free corn fusilli pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves crushed garlic
1 cup frozen peas
2 cups fresh sliced mushrooms
1 can crushed or stewed tomatoes
1/2 can tomato sauce
2 cups fresh ricotta cheese (low fat or fat free)
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
8 leaves fresh basil, chopped
8 leaves fresh oregano, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1 package of ground tofu crumbles (optional for additional texture & protein to sauce)
Ready in less than 30 minutes.
1. Boil the corn pasta as directed, typically 8-10 minutes or al dante.
2. For the sauce, heat up 2 tablespoons olive oil with the garlic and onions in a large deep dish sauce pan.
3. Saute the garlic and onion until soft and add the mushrooms.
4. Toss in the frozen peas, crushed tomatoes, and ground tofu crumbles. Let simmer for 5 - to 10 minutes.
5. Add the oregano, salt, and 1/2 can of tomato sauce. Stir well and simmer on medium heat for a few minutes.
6. Add the 2 cups of ricotta cheese one cup at a time while stirring. Let simmer for 1-2 minutes
7. Add the basil and Parmesan cheese.
Enjoy!
I have and I did tonight. I even did that fridge dance, where you bend halfway over with your hand still on the door handle, peak inside, then stand up still holding the handle and half close the door while in deep thought.
Tonight nothing jumped out at me right away.
I knew I wanted to make a pasta dish, but my gut was pushing me to try something creative and different, but what would it be?
After taking out a few staple ingredients (garlic, onion, mushrooms) I found the perfect addition that would certainly spice up what would have been a rather unoriginal pasta sauce. Ricotta cheese!
I had a 32 ounce container of Ricotta cheese leftover from when I made stuffed shells a few weeks before (yes apparently, Ricotta cheese has a very long shelf life). Bingo!
Here's what I whipped up that turned out to be one of my best, creamiest pasta sauces. This recipe uses gluten free corn pasta because my fiance recently started cutting out gluten, but you can use regular pasta if you prefer.
Ingredients:
1 package gluten free corn fusilli pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves crushed garlic
1 cup frozen peas
2 cups fresh sliced mushrooms
1 can crushed or stewed tomatoes
1/2 can tomato sauce
2 cups fresh ricotta cheese (low fat or fat free)
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
8 leaves fresh basil, chopped
8 leaves fresh oregano, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1 package of ground tofu crumbles (optional for additional texture & protein to sauce)
Ready in less than 30 minutes.
1. Boil the corn pasta as directed, typically 8-10 minutes or al dante.
2. For the sauce, heat up 2 tablespoons olive oil with the garlic and onions in a large deep dish sauce pan.
3. Saute the garlic and onion until soft and add the mushrooms.
4. Toss in the frozen peas, crushed tomatoes, and ground tofu crumbles. Let simmer for 5 - to 10 minutes.
5. Add the oregano, salt, and 1/2 can of tomato sauce. Stir well and simmer on medium heat for a few minutes.
6. Add the 2 cups of ricotta cheese one cup at a time while stirring. Let simmer for 1-2 minutes
7. Add the basil and Parmesan cheese.
Enjoy!
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