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Classic Baked Ziti

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The idea that any recipe which includes pasta is totally Italian is completely false. Some dishes, like the Baked Ziti has also an American twists and is a mainstay of the Italian-American diet. The mix of ziti pasta, in tomato and cheese sauce has stuck around for years.

This dish requires 1 lb lean ground beef, olive oil, 1 cup onion, chopped, 2 cloves of garlic, chopped, 1 jar meatless sauce, 1 cup chicken broth, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1 package ziti pasta, cooked and drained, shredded mozzarella cheese, salt, 1 cup grated Parmesan, red pepper flakes, rosemary, basil leaves, and Italian seasoning.

To prepare, preheat and oven to 400 degrees F. In a large skillet, sauté the ground beef, onions, and garlic with olive oil over a medium to high flame for about 8 minutes or until the beef is browned, stirring often. Add salt to taste. Once the meat is browned, cook for a minute adding the rest of the spices including the rosemary, basil, and Italian seasoning.

Next spread a thin layer of the sauce on a baking dish and add the mozzarella cheese. Add pasta and layer some more sauce, continuing like this until the pasta is finished. Top with a final layer of sauce and cheese. Bake until the dish is browned or four about 20 minutes.

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Penne with Chicken and Pesto, pasta ready

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Penne is one of the most popular varieties of pasta in the world and pesto one it’s most popular accompaniments.

Penne, because of its practical shape and size makes it easy for use in a variety of meals. Pesto, the grounded sauce of basil, garlic, and pine nuts, originated in the Italian port city of Genoa.

To prepare the Penne with Chicken and Pesto, you will need 1 package penne pasta, 2 tablespoons butter, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast cut into strips, 2 cloves garlic, minced, salt, pepper, 1 1/4 cups heavy cream, 1/4 cup pesto, and 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese.

In a large pot of lightly salted water, boil the penne pasta. You may add a few drops of olive oil to the water to prevent past a sticking together. Cook until firm to the bite.

In a skillet heat the butter and olive oil over a medium flame and sauté the chicken and garlic until the chicken is almost cooked. Turn down the fire and add the salt, pepper, cream, and pesto as well as Parmesan cheese.

Continue to cook until the chicken is no longer pink. Add the pasta.

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Italian Sausages with Peppers and Onions, simple and delicious

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Who doesn’t like simple and tasty? There can be no more simple meal than putting together sausages, peppers, and onions. For this dish we can use the Italian sausages.

To prepare, gather together 6 links of sweet Italian sausages, 2 tablespoons of butter, 1 yellow onion, sliced ½ red onion sliced, 4 cloves of garlic, chopped finely, 1 large red bell pepper, sliced, 1 green bell pepper sliced, 1 teaspoon dried basil, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, and ¼ cup white wine.

Then put sausages in a large saucepan over a medium flame and brown them on all sides. Remove from the saucepan and slice. Melt the butter in the pan and add the yellow and red onions, as well as garlic and cook for about 2 or 3 minutes. Add in the red and green bell peppers and season with basil, oregano, and white wine.

Continue to cook until the onions and peppers are tender. Add the sausages and vegetables to the pan and lower the heat and cook for about 15 minutes.

The meal of Italian Sausages may be served with rustic bread and a glass of white wine.

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Penne pasta with vodka sauce, yummy

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Pasta (read here other news) is tasty and simple to make and can go with just about everything – even vodka. This is penne pasta with vodka sauce.

To make, you will need salt, 12 ounces whole wheat penne pasta, 1 can whole plum tomatoes, 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, 2 shallots minced, 1 clove garlic minced, ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, ½ cup vodka, 2/3 cup heavy cream, ½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, and a handful of freshbasil leaves torn.

To prepare bring a large pot of water to the boil and add the penne pasta and cook according to the directions on the box. Drain the pasta and use some of the water for afterwards. Put the tomatoes in a bowl and crush them with your hands.

Melt the butter over a large skillet over a medium flame and place shallots and cook until they are slightly softened for about 3 minutes. Next add the garlic and the red pepper flakes and cook for a minute. Take from heat and add the vodka, tomatoes and salt and return to the fire and continue to stir until the alcohol cools. This should take about 7 minutes. Add the heavy cream and cook until the sauce thickens and stir in parmesan cheese and basil.

Add the pasta to the sauce and combine and add a bit more parmesan and basil.



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Italian Sausage Lasagna, sweet
						

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There is nothing like tasty Italian lasagna to tickle the taste buds. This is the Italian sausage lasagna (read here other news).




To make you will need 12 lasagna noodles, 1 poundsweet Italian sausage, 2/3 cupchoppedonions, 1/2 tablespoonminced garlic, 2/3 cupchopped parsley, 3 cans tomato paste, 1 cantomato sauce, 2 cups water, 1 1/2 teaspoonsItalian seasoning , 1 1/2 teaspoonsdried oregano, 1 1/2 teaspoonsdried basil leaves , 1 poundpart-skim ricotta cheese, 1 packagechopped spinach, 1/2 cupgrated Parmesan cheese , 3eggs , 2 teaspoons garlic salt, 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper , and 3 cupsshredded mozzarella cheese.




First preheat an oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 9×13-inch baking dish. Then bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the lasagna noodles and cook for about 10 minutes.




In a saucepan over a medium flame, cook the sausages with onions, garlic, and parsley. Then add the tomato paste, tomato sauce, water, Italian seasoning, oregano, and basil and mix carefully. Allow to simmer for 5 minutes while stirring occasionally.




In a separate bowl, mix parsley, ricotta, spinach, Parmesan, eggs, garlic salt, and pepper. Spread some sauce in the bottom of the baking dish and layer with 4 noodles, 1/2 cheese mix, 1/3 remaining sauce, and 1 cup mozzarella.




Repeat and make last layer noodles, sauce, and mozzarella cheese. Cover pan with aluminum foil.




Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and bake uncovered for another 10 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.


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Creamy Fettuccine Alfredo with Chicken and Parmesan Cheese
						

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For a meal with a taste of Italian try Fettuccine Alfredo (read here other news). This is a dish to which one can add a variety of meats or seafood such as chicken and shrimp.


The recipe requires 12 ounces dried fettuccine,3 tablespoons butter, 12 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces, 2 large red or yellowbell peppers, cut into bit-size strips, 3 cloves garlic, minced, 1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream,1/2 teaspoon salt,1/8 teaspoon black pepper 2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, and Fresh basil.


To prepare, first cook the fettuccine in a large pot and according to directions on the package, then drain and return to the pot and cover to keep warm. You can add a few teaspoons of vegetable or olive oil t the salted water to prevent pasta from sticking together.


Next melt butter over medium flame in a large skillet and add chicken. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until cooked through and no pink remains. Remove the chicken from the pot with a slotted spoon.


Add bell peppers to pan and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Then add whipping cream, salt, and black pepper and bring to a boil.


Boil gently, uncovered, for 2 to 3 minutes or until mixture begins to thicken. Remove from heat; add the 2/3 cup Parmesan cheese and cooked chicken. Add the cooked fettuccine to the pan, stir gently and serve with additional Parmesan cheese and fresh basil.


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Ravioli, magnific italian food
						

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ravioli

To make the pasta use 6 cups all-purpose flour, 6 eggs, 3/4 cup water, and 2 teaspoons olive oil.


For the sauce use 1 can crushed tomatoes, 1 cup tomato puree, 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, 1/3 cup water, 1/3 cup tomato paste, 3 tablespoons sugar, 2 tablespoons minced basil, 1 tablespoon minced parsley, 1 tablespoon minced oregano, 1 garlic clove, minced, salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.


For the filling use 1 carton of ricotta cheese, 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, 1 egg, lightly beaten, 2 teaspoons minced basil, 1 teaspoon minced parsley, 1 teaspoon minced oregano, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, salt and pepper.


Place flour in a large bowl, make a well in the center and add beaten eggs, water and oil. Stir to form a ball. Turn onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.


In a pot combine the sauce ingredients. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and cover and simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. In a bowl, combine the filling ingredients and refrigerate until ready for use.


Divide pasta dough into fourths, place teaspoonfuls of filling 1 inch apart over half of pasta sheet. Brush around filling with water, ffold sheet and press down to seal. Cut into squares with a pastry wheel.


Boil salted water and add ravioli. Simmer and cook until ravioli float to the top and are tender. Drain. Cover with sauce and serve.


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Vegetarian Pizza, a way to eat healthy
						

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The great thing about a good pizza is that you can choose your own toppings. If you’re not a fan of meat then you can also pile on the vegetables. The basic pizza dough 2 x 7g sachets dry yeast, 2 teaspoons caster sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, 5 cups plain flour, and 1/2 cup olive oil.


To make the dough combine the yeast, sugar, salt and 1 1/2 cups warm water in a bowl. Cover and let it stand for 20 minutes or until the mixture is foamy. Then add flour and oil in a bowl and stir. Make a well in the centre and add yeast mixture. Knead onto a lightly-floured surface.


When the dough has risen, use fist to flatten and knead until smooth. Divide into quarters; roll to form four, 30cm round pizza bases and place on greased baking trays.


For the toppings use 1 small onion, finely chopped, 1 clove garlic, crushed, 1 small zucchini, grated, 200g of diced tomatoes, 1 tablespoon shredded basil, 1/2 medium red capsicum, thinly sliced, 1/2 medium green capsicum, thinly sliced, 4 (120g) bocconcini cheese, sliced, and 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese.


In a saucepan heat oil and add onion, garlic and zucchini. Stir until onion has softened then add tomatoes. Bring to the boil; reduce heat until sauce has thickened. Add basil. Then spread pizza base with tomato mixture and add capsicum, bocconcini and mozzarella. Bake until cheese has melted and base is crisp. 


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Thai shrimp, spicy exotic
						

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Spicy, tasty, exotic. Thai style shrimp is ideal for a quick dinner with spunk. It can be made in half an hour as shrimp is easy to prepare. Just add steamed broccoli and white basmati rice.


To prepare you need 1 cup basmati rice, 1/2 broccoli, 4 cloves of peeled garlic, 1 piece of fresh ginger, chili peppers, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric, vegetable oil, 1 medium onion finely chopped, 1 stalk scallion, 1 pound medium shrimp – peeled and de-veined, 2 tomatoes, diced, 1 cup coconut milk, and 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves.


To prepare rice, place in a small pot and cook according to directions on the package. In a separate pot, bring 2 cups of water to a boil and add broccoli. Steam for five minutes. For shrimp: In a blender, mix garlic, ginger, chili, salt, and turmeric to a smooth paste.


Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and scallion and cook, stirring frequently. Add paste and stir. Add shrimp, and cook for a few minutes until they turn pink. Add the tomatoes and coconut milk. Cover, and simmer for a few minutes.


Stir in the basil in the last minute of cooking. Serve rice and top with shrimp.


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