Pesto Pasta Salad

I have three different versions of pasta salad in my "repertoire" that I make regularly. One is a tri-color pasta salad with pepperoni cubes, cheddar cheese cubes, artichoke hearts, black olives, onions, green peppers, and Italian dressing. One is a creamy "deviled egg" pasta salad with mayonnaise and mustard, vinegar, sugar, hard-boiled eggs, paprika, and pickles. The one I'm sharing with you today is my third version, the one that is most requested at family gatherings, and definitely Joe's favorite. Since I can't seem to get enough pesto lately, I thought this would be the perfect accompaniment for our prosciutto pork kabobs.

This is a delicious pasta salad. It's creamy and slightly sweet, and it has a nice balance of textures. I love the way the fresh mozzarella just melts in my mouth, almost as much as I love the pop and juiciness of the grape tomatoes. Red onion would be a nice addition to this salad, as would fresh basil or some cubed salami or pepperoni, but I like to keep it pretty straightforward. I hope your family likes this as much as ours does!

Pesto Pasta Salad
source: Cassie

8 ounces short pasta (we usually use shells)
1/2 to 1 cup mayonnaise, depending on how creamy you like it (I like it creamy, so I use a full cup)
Splash of balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
3 teaspoons prepared pesto (add more if you like)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 carton fresh ciliegine mozzarella
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved

1. Cook pasta in salted water according to package directions; drain; rinse in cold water; drain again.
2. Meanwhile, whisk together mayonnaise, balsamic vinegar, sugar, pesto, and salt and pepper in a large bowl.

3. Add cooled, drained pasta to dressing; stir pasta to coat. Gently mix in fresh mozzarella and grape tomatoes. Chill until serving.

Prosciutto Pork Kabobs

Oh, how I love prosciutto. I think I would eat its salty deliciousness with, in or on pretty much anything, but my favorite thing to pair it with is pork tenderloin. Something about the pork-pork combo really gets me. In the words of Emeril, pork fat just totally rules.

When I saw these kabobs combining prosciutto-wrapped pork pieces with zucchini and mushrooms, I was immediately smitten. Even though Joe over-cooked them just slightly (he got distracted with talking to our neighbor over the fence), they turned out to be just as delicious as I'd hoped. Because I never buy flavored oils (seriously, why spend the money when you can make your own so easily?), I used regular olive oil that I added a few cloves of crushed garlic to and cooked over low heat until the oil just started to bubble. The flavor infused perfectly.

Nothing screams "summer" like a grilled kabob, so this meal was a nice way to say goodbye to summer as we welcome the cooler weather.

Prosciutto Pork Kabobs
source: Better Homes and Gardens New Grilling Book

1/4 cup garlic-flavored olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 pound pork tenderloin
3 ounces thinly-sliced prosciutto
8 ounces fresh whole mushrooms, stems removed
2 small zucchini and/or yellow summer squash, cut into 3/4-inch thick slices
2 tablespoons finely shredded parmesan cheese

1. In a small bowl combine oil, lemon juice, and crushed red pepper; set aside.

2. Trim fat from pork. Cut pork into 1 1/2-inch cubes. Cut prosciutto into 1 1/2-inch-wide strips. Wrap a strip of prosciutto around each pork cube. On (metal or water-soaked wood) skewers, alternately thread pork cubes, mushrooms, and zucchini, leaving a 1/4-inch space between the pieces.

3. For a charcoal grill, grill kabobs on the greased grill rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium coals for 18 to 20 minutes or until pork is no longer pink and juices run clear, turning once halfway through grilling and brushing with the oil mixture during the last four minutes of grilling. (For gas grill, preheat grill. Reduce heat to medium. Place kabobs on grill rack over heat. Cover; grill as above.)

4. Just before serving, sprinkle kabobs with parmesan cheese.

Chicken Fajita Pasta

This is just another one of those simple weeknight pasta tosses that comes together in no time. And this particular one? It's really, really good. The peppers and chipotle marinade provide just the right amount of heat, and the sour cream balances the spice perfectly. I amended the recipe slightly, but I've linked to the original.

We love Mexican food in our house, so I pretty much knew from the get-go that this dish would be a hit. I topped our servings with some shredded cheese (to me, a fajita isn't a fajita without cheese!) and some extra sour cream. This is definitely one that I'll make again!

Chicken Fajita Pasta
source: adapted from Better Homes and Gardens Annual Recipes 2007; original recipe found here

16 ounces pasta (I used rotelle, but any short or long cut of pasta will work)
1 8-ounce carton dairy sour cream
1/2 cup chipotle liquid meat marinade (I used Lawry's Baja Chipotle marinade)
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced (1/2 cup)
1 medium red sweet pepper, seeded and cut into thin bite-size strips
1 fresh Anaheim chile pepper, seeded and cut into thin bite-size strips (1/3 cup)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound boneless skinless chicken tenders, cut into bite-size pieces

1. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain.

2. Meanwhile, in a bowl combine sour cream, marinade, lime juice, chili powder, and cumin; set aside.

3. In large skillet, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and cook chicken over medium-high heat until no longer pink. Remove from skillet. Add remaining olive oil and onion, sweet pepper, and Anaheim pepper. Cook and stir over medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes or until crisp-tender.

4. Add chicken, vegetables, and sour cream mixture to drained pasta. Toss to coat. Heat through over low heat.

Butterscotch Chocolate Chip Blondies

Wow, these blondies were really good. Rich, sweet, decadent, and 100% addictive. Even Joe, who isn't usually a big butterscotch fan, absolutely loved these. (Andrew loved them too, but I think that goes without saying, right?) They're the first blondies I've ever made, and an awesome beginning to what I think is going to be a long, beautiful relationship.

The only issue I had was that the caramel topping made them really sticky and hard to eat with our fingers. The caramel is supposed to be marbled into the blondie batter -- but the batter's pretty thick and doesn't really lend itself well to marbling. I smeared it in the best I could, but I think most of the caramel ended up on top of the batter. So after eating these, we had sticky fingers but very happy tastebuds. It was definitely a fair trade.

Butterscotch Chocolate Chip Blondies
source: Cookies, Brownies and More

1/2 cup butter at room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup butterscotch chips
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup caramel ice cream topping

1. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, and vanilla.

2. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt; add to wet mixture in batches, mixing well after each addition.

3. Stir in chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and pecans. Pour batter into a greased 13 x 9-inch baking dish.

4. Dollop caramel topping on top of batter; use a knife to marble topping into batter.

5. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Roast Beef, Gravy and Onion Ring Sandwiches

I debated whether or not to post this, but in the end I decided it was just too darn good not to share with you. I don't know how many of you are like me, but I absolutely love watching The Food Network. One of my favorite shows to watch is Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. The food always looks so amazing, and by the end of each episode I've usually seen five or six things that I'm just dying to re-create in my kitchen. This sandwich is one of those things. I saw a version of it on Triple D, and I just couldn't wait to make it. Roast beef, gravy, and onion rings, all piled on soft fresh bread? How could you possibly go wrong?

This is a great sandwich. The meat was really tender, and the gravy thickened for me perfectly (and gravy is something that's always a little iffy with me; I'm an over-thickening repeat offender). I loved the crunch of the onion rings on the sandwich; they provided just the right amount of texture. I served some onion rings on the side, too, because I just can't seem to get enough of them.

This sandwich is comfort on a roll, pure and simple. Thanks for the inspiration, Triple D!

Roast Beef, Gravy, and Onion Ring Sandwiches
source: inspired by Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives

1 1/2 - 2 pound beef top round roast (or any cut of beef you prefer)
Salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste
1 bay leaf
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
Onion rings (we strongly prefer these because they're really crispy)
Fresh rolls, split and toasted (if desired)

1. Rub roast with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Place in a Crock pot. Add bay leaf, thyme, and water. Cover and cook on low heat 9 to 10 hours or until meat is tender and shreds easily with a fork.

2. Heat butter over medium heat in a large saucepan. Add flour and whisk until mixture is thick and bubbly, about 1 minute. Add 1 to 1 1/2 cups of the beef cooking liquid. Stir over medium heat until gravy reaches desired thickness; salt and pepper to taste.

3. Top the bottom of a roll with a portion of the shredded beef. Top with gravy and two onion rings, then roll tops. Serve with additional onion rings on the side.