Penne a la Carbonara

I've had a desire to make pasta carbonara of late.  Earlier this summer I tried a carbonara recipe that left me wanting.  There seemed to be a flavor missing, but as I hadn't tasted carbonara prior to making this recipe, I wasn't sure what I should be tasting.  Then I had the pleasure of visiting a locally-owned Italian restaurant, Piatto Cucina Italiana.  They served a dish similar to this recipe and when I tasted that dish, it was full of flavor and tasted incredible!  Now I knew what I was looking for!

This recipe is wonderful and reminded me of my visit to Piatto Cucina Italiana here in Tulsa.  If you live here or happen to be visiting you should go there, but in case you can't make it to Tulsa, try this recipe:

Penne a la Carbonara

Live well, eat well, enjoy!

Cyn aka Fine Mama

Penne Pasta with Spinach and Bacon

The first time I made Penne Pasta with Spinach and Bacon I found it was tasty but not really flavorful. The pasta to sauce/ingredient ratio was lacking. That time I followed the recipe exactly. So as I was planning my menu for the next week. (A rarity for me.) I looked at this recipe and decided to try it again, with some Fine Mama's twists.

 I found this recipe on www.allrecipes.com. I absolutely love the site. Lots of great recipes and I encourage you to go out there and look for some too. To tweak this recipe, I went to the website and pulled up the recipe. Using the serving size adjustment tool, I doubled the recipe. I figured I like the flavors, but wanted more flavor. As I was cooking, I thought of the pasta to ingredient ratio and decided to only use one box of pasta. Doubling the recipe called for two. I then followed the directions and cooked the bacon until crisp and brown, but use the doubled amount. I used more garlic but didn't double it. Doubled the amount of diced tomatoes and the spinach. I did add one simple ingredient: fresh cracked black pepper:

 The result: 



Here's the link to the original recipe:

  Penne Pasta with Spinach and Bacon. 

Here's the way I tweaked it and gave it a Fine Mama's touch:

Ingredients:
1 (12 ounce) package of penne pasta
4 tbsp olive oil, divide in equal parts
12 slices of bacon, chopped
3 tbsp minced garlic
2 (14.5 ounce) cans of diced tomatoes (recommend using no salt added)
Fresh cracked pepper
2 bunches (or 1 large plastic container) fresh spinach, rinsed and torn into bite size pieces

Directions: Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the penne pasta, and cook until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. (Salting the water here is the main seasoning for your spinach later) Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Place the bacon in the skillet and cook until browned and crisp. (If you have excessive amounts of oil after this step, remove all but 2 - 3 tablespoons). Add garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes, lightly season with pepper and cook until heated through. Place the spinach into a colander, and drain the hot pasta over it so it is wilted. Transfer to a large serving bowl and toss with the remaining olive oil. Toss with the bacon and tomato mixture. Serve and enjoy!


 Live well, eat well, enjoy!

 Cyn aka Fine Mama

Home-made french fries

You don't have to go to restaurants to get great french fries. It is easy to make them yourself. I fry the potatoes twice, because potatoes just taste better cooked twice. (Twice baked potaoes? Come on you know you love them.) Easy steps: Heat the oil in a fryer or heavy bottom skillet Cut potatoes into french fry size sticks (peel first if desired) Fry (in small batches) the raw french fries until they are tender but not brown Drain on paper towels After about 10 minutes, fry the tender french fries a second time until golden brown Drain on paper towels Sprinkle with salt immediately Easy!

Live well, eat well, enjoy! Cyn aka Fine Mama

Pesto Cream Sauce with Shrimp

This recipe is from www.allrecipes.com. When it was in my daily email yesterday I thought "that looks good!" Well, it is good! Here's the recipe. It goes very quick, especially if you prep all of the other ingredients while the pasta cooks. Pesto Cream Sauce with Shrimp recipe Live well, eat well, enjoy Cyn aka Fine Mama

Herb Crusted Pork Loin (or Tenderloin)

Let's face it, it's HOT outside. At least it is in my neck of the woods. The temps have been 110+ for weeks. When it's this hot who wants to cook? But you gotta eat and you don't want to keep spending money on meals out. This recipe, Herb Crusted Pork Tenderloin, is a good quick recipe. Although your oven is turned up high, you don't have to stay in the kitchen with it. (it's that easy!)

To make your kitchen time easier (and cooler!), pair this with a nice side salad or quick microwave steam veggies. (We have to have our veggies!)

At any rate, try this tasty recipe. By the way, it's another Paula Deen recipe. She's fast becoming one of my culinary heroes. (Butter really does make it better!)

Live well, eat well, enjoy...

Cyn aka Fine Mama

Parmesan crusted pork chops

I was cooking pork chops today and wanted to try a different recipe. I really didn't want the same old flavor. I surfed FoodNetwork.com and found this recipe for Parmesan Crusted Pork Chops. I think there are some things that I would change the next time I make it, but overall it was tasty. I switched to canola oil rather than olive oil because of the higher burn point. I also used relatively thick pork chops and finished them off in a 300 degree oven for about 10 minutes to be sure they were cooked through.


I paired the pork chops with my Broccoli, Rice and cheese redone. I've included the recipe as a reminder of this wonderfully tasty dish.

Broccoli Rice and Cheese/redone
Ingredients
1 box Rice-a-Roni
Chicken broth
Romano Cheese
Frozen broccoli
Directions
Prepare a box of Rice-a-Roni according to the box instructions using chicken broth in place of the water. When the Rice-a-Roni is done, add grated Romano cheese (at least 1/2 to 3/4 cup; more if you like it really cheesy) and stir in 1/2 to 3/4 cup of chopped broccoli.



Live well, eat well, enjoy...

Cyn aka Fine Mama

Baked Tilapia with Tomato and Basil

So I was watching Food Network (no surprise there, right?!) and I saw Paula Deen make this recipe, Baked Tilapia with Tomato and Basil. I'm not usually a Tilapia fan, but the recipe looked fabulous and easy. So I saved it and thought I'll try it. In this same episode there were Honey Balsamic Green Beans paired with the tilapia. I saved that one too.

I can't tell you how WONDERFUL these recipes turned out. My words just stop, (stop laughing, it's possible). So I'm sharing the recipes with you. It was a quick and easy meal and positively delicious. Healthy and light too! Click the links above and enjoy!

Live well, eat well, enjoy...

Cyn aka Fine Mama