Olive Garden's Bolognese

Tortelloni Bolognese

Prep Time:

25 minutes

Cook Time:

1 hour, 15 minutes

Serving Size:

4812

Ingredients

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 celery stalk, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

½ lb ground beef

6 oz Italian sausage, skinned

1 cup red wine

18 oz can crushed tomatoes, chopped (ground)

1 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped (1/4 tsp dry)

1 tsp fresh sage, chopped (1/4 tsp dry)

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

2 lbs Tortelloni

Parmesan cheese, freshly grated

Procedures

1. HEAT oil in a large pan. Add celery, carrot, onion, garlic and cook about 5 minutes. Add meat and cook 10 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
2. DEGLAZE pan with wine; let reduce. Add tomatoes and remaining ingredients and stir. Simmer for about 1 hour.
3. TOSS hot, drained pasta in sauce. Top with parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.

Cake Batter Pudding Cookies

These were soooo good! I could have easily eaten the whole batch--but I didn't. I made these for my husband (who lives for cookies, cakes, candy, etc.)...he was very particular about the sprinkles, but I had to go with what they offered at Walmart...so nothing spectacular.

Original Recipe:

• 1 1/2 sticks (or 3/4 cup) butter
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 (3.4 oz) package instant vanilla pudding mix, dry
• 3/4 cup yellow cake mix, dry
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2-1/4 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• sprinkles

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Stir together flour, salt and baking soda and set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars together.

Add in pudding package and cake mix and beat until well blended.

Add eggs and vanilla and mix until smooth.

Add flour mixture slowly until well incorporated.

Mix in sprinkles sprinkles.

Roll into 1" balls and place on greased baking sheet.

Bake at 350 F for 10-12 minutes.

Chipotle Chicken Salad

I'm not sure if I already mentioned this, but I'm not a fan of sour cream--at all. And when I saw this recipe called for sour cream I was hesitant. But I've found that when a recipe asks for sour cream (as long as it includes other ingredients as well) I'll add it, just not as much as it asks for. Luckily this recipe was great and the sour cream wasn't over powering at all.

Original Recipe:

• 
  
• Dressing:
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2/3 cup light sour cream
• 1 tablespoon minced chipotle chile, canned in adobo sauce
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 4 teaspoons fresh lime juice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Salad:
• 4 cups shredded romaine lettuce
• 2 cups chopped roasted skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 2 breasts)
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cup diced peeled avocado
• 1/3 cup thinly vertically sliced red onion
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 (8 3/4-ounce) can no-salt-added whole-kernel corn, rinsed and drained

Preparation

1. To prepare dressing, combine first 7 ingredients, stirring well.
2. To prepare salad, combine lettuce and remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Drizzle dressing over salad; toss gently to coat. Serve immediately.
   
   Tip: Add a spoonful of adobo sauce for a spicier salad. Kidney or pinto beans also taste great in this dish.

White Chocolate & Cherry Shortbread Cookies

My dad always says, "you'll know your husband really likes something if he asks you to make it again." This was one of those recipes. I first saw this recipe on Pinterest...I wanted to make it for Valentine's Day. Plus it gave me the chance to use my new food processor. It was slightly labor intensive...but that could just be because I'm not the greatest baker...and mine didn't come out like the picture either. But they were very good. I wondered exactly what shortbread was/is and I read that it's crumbly because of it's high fat content! ha! But they're a keeper for sure.

Here is the original recipe:

ingredients:

2/3 cup maraschino cherries, drained
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup cold butter, cut into cubes
12 ounces good quality white chocolate, finely chopped and divided
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 drops red food coloring (optional)
2 teaspoons shortening

directions:

Pulse cherries briefly in a food processor until finely chopped. You should have 1/2 cup of chopped cherries; spread on a double layer of paper towels to remove any excess liquid.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour and sugar. Add the butter and pulse until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Add drained cherries and 4 ounces of the chopped chocolate. Pulse briefly to combine. Finally, add almond extract and, if desired, food coloring. Knead mixture until it comes together in a smooth ball.

Divide dough in half, and roll each half into a cylinder approximately 1 1/2-inches in diameter by 10-inches long. Roll up in parchment paper or plastic wrap, twisting ends to seal. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or until firm.

Preheat oven to 325ºF. Using a sharp knife, slice chilled dough into 3/8-inch-thick slices. Arrange on a non-stick or parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until centers are set and bottoms are lightly golden. Cool for 1 minute on cookie sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

In a small saucepan or a microwave safe bowl, combine remaining 8 ounces white chocolate and the shortening. Cook and stir over low heat or microwave on low power, stirring often, until melted. Transfer melted chocolate into a squeeze bottle fitted with a small round tip and drizzle over tops of cookies. Alternatively, you can dip cookies in melted chocolate and roll edges in decorative sprinkles. Place cookies on waxed paper until set.

Here are the changes I made:

Oh, I should point out that from August 2011-May 2012 (hopefully) I didn't actually have an oven. I used a toaster oven to bake anything and everything. As a result the baking times and temperature in the original recipe have not been tried and tested. Also, I didn't add the melted chocolate at the end. Hubbs thought they were sweet enough without it, and requested I don't put it on--which is a rarity for him. (He loves ALL things sugar--especially white chocolate). Oh and I prefer mine thicker than the picture shows. I made them both ways (thin and thick) and the thicker ones have a better taste and texture.

Potato, Corn, and Leek Chowder

I've only made this once...maybe twice...why? I have no idea, because I loved it! I added some leftover shredded chicken to mine and it was sooo good! I left out the chives and I used dried parsley. Also, I'm fairly certain I used 2% milk and not whole milk. I can't remember for sure, but I just don't see myself buying whole milk for this. Oh, this is another Cooking Light recipe. Definitely a keeper.

• 2 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped leek (about 1 large)
• 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
• 1/2 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
• 2 cups whole milk
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 2 cups fresh corn kernels (about 4 ears)
• 2 pounds cubed peeled Yukon gold or red potato
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

Preparation

1. Heat butter and oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add leek, celery, and bell pepper; cook 4 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring frequently. Combine milk and flour in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Slowly add milk mixture to pan, stirring constantly. Stir in broth, corn, potato, salt, and freshly ground black pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until potato is tender. Stir in parsley and chives.

Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies

Sounds good, right? Well, don't bother. I didn't love them. Although my blueberry loving husband did. I just don't think they're worth all that effort. Plus, the whole "I hate cheese" thing--yes that includes cream cheese. They just weren't anything special. I even tried to jazz up one batch my adding powder sugar and a touch of vanilla to the cream cheese before adding it to the cookie. Just wasn't great. Wouldn't make again unless someone requested them.

The recipe is adapted from this website: http://hotpolkadot.com/2011/08/18/its-12am-do-you-know-where-your-cookies-are/

Here it is:

Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies
Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar
Zest of 1 lemon
3 tbsp lemon juice
2 eggs
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3 cup flour
1 cup blueberries

1/2 pkg cream cheese, cut into 1 tsp cubes

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and position a rack in the center. Line your baking sheets with parchment paper and set them aside.

In a large bowl with an electric mixer cream together the butter and sugar until it's light and fluffy. Blend in the lemon zest, juice and eggs. Make sure to scrape off any bits of zest that stick to the mixer paddle.

In a separate bowl whisk together the baking soda, baking powder, salt and flour then mix it into the wet ingredients. Gently fold in the blueberries so as not to burst any. Refrigerate the dough for about 15 – 20 minutes to make it stiff enough to roll. For each cookie, roll 1 heaping tbsp of dough into a ball then flatten it slightly into a disc shape. Place a 1 tsp cream cheese cube into the center and form the dough around it creating a ball again. Bake them for about 10 - 14 minutes until the edges brown slightly. Transfer them to a cooling rack and enjoy!

Lasagna Rolls

Another Cooking Light recipe that I really enjoy--although at this point I'm the only one in my house that loves them. Everyone else just kind of likes them. The complaint is there's not too much flavor. But I disagree. The complaint came after I used skim-milk ricotta--and that's really the only thing that I can think that gave it a "blah" flavor--maybe. But I love the idea of these.

Here's the original recipe:

• Lasagna:
• 8 uncooked lasagna noodles
• 4 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 (8-ounce) package presliced mushrooms
• 1 (6-ounce) package fresh baby spinach
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup minced fresh basil, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• Sauce:
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 (7-ounce) bottle roasted red bell peppers, undrained
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper

Preparation

1. To prepare lasagna, cook noodles according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain and rinse under cold water. Drain.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, mushrooms, spinach, and 3 garlic cloves; sauté 5 minutes or until onion and mushrooms are tender. Remove from heat, and stir in cheeses, 2 tablespoons basil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper.
3. To prepare sauce, place vinegar and remaining ingredients in a blender; process until smooth.
4. Place cooked noodles on flat surface; spread 1/4 cup cheese mixture over each noodle. Roll up noodles, jelly-roll fashion, starting with short side. Place the rolls, seam sides down, in a shallow 2-quart microwave-safe dish. Pour 1/4 cup sauce over each roll, and cover with heavy-duty plastic wrap. Microwave at high 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons basil.

Here are the changes I make:

I add ground beef (next time I may add Sage Sausage for extra flavor). I now use whole milk ricotta, and one time I even cut up some red bell peppers (left over from another recipe) for added flavor. Oh, and to make my life easier I use store bought sauce. Very good and less time consuming. And of course no mushrooms.