At Home Italian Cooking by JoElaine

Homemade Manicotti by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn

Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
3 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt

FILLING:
1-1/2 pounds ricotta cheese, drain liquid
1/4 cup grated Romano cheese
1 large egg
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
Pinch of nutmeg
Prepared Sauce

Process,
1. Place flour in a bowl; whisk in milk, eggs and salt until smooth. Heat a lightly greased 8-in. skillet; pour about 2 tablespoons batter into center of skillet. 2. Spread into a 5-in. circle. Cook over medium heat until set; do not brown or turn. Repeat with remaining batter, making 18 crepes. Stack crepes with waxed paper in between; set aside.
For Filling
3. Combine cheeses, egg, nutmeg, and parsley. Spoon 3-4 tablespoons down the center of each crepe; roll up.
4. Spoon spaghetti sauce into an ungreased 13x9-in. baking dish enough to cover the pan.
5. Place crepes, seam side down, over sauce; pour remaining sauce over top.
Cover and bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake 20 minutes longer or until heated through.
Note: I like to place fresh shredded mozzarella on top for the second step of cooking.
 

            Enjoy!

Spinach & Mushroom Stuffed Chicken in White Wine Sauce by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Large plastic food storage bags or waxed paper
1 package (10 ounces) frozen spinach
2 tablespoons butter
8 large mushroom caps
2 cloves of garlic, smashed
1 small shallot, quartered
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup of ricotta cheese
1/2 cup of parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, fresh grated
Toothpicks
2 Tbsps of extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbsps of butter
2 Tbsps of flour
1/2 cup white wine
1 cup of chicken broth

Process,
1. Place breasts in the center of a plastic food storage bag or 2 large sheets of waxed paper. Pound out the chicken from the center of the bag outward using a heavy-bottomed skillet.
2. Defrost spinach in the microwave. Transfer spinach to a kitchen towel. Twist towel around spinach and wring it out until very dry. Transfer to a medium-mixing bowl.
3. Place a nonstick skillet over moderate heat. When skillet is hot, add butter, mushrooms, garlic and shallot. Season with salt and pepper and sauté 5 minutes. Transfer mushrooms, garlic and shallot to the food processor. Pulse to grind the mushrooms and transfer to the mixing bowl, adding the processed mushrooms to the spinach. Add ricotta and grated cheese to the bowl and the nutmeg. Stir to combine the stuffing. Return your skillet to the stove over medium high heat.
4. Place a mound of stuffing on each breast and wrap and roll breast over the stuffing. Secure breasts with toothpicks. Add 3 tablespoons oil to the pan, 3 turns of the pan. Add breasts to the pan and brown on all sides, cooking chicken 10 to 12 minutes. The meat will cook quickly because it is thin.
5. Remove breasts; add butter to the pan and flour. Cook butter and flour for a minute, whisk in wine and reduce another minute. Whisk in broth and return breasts to the pan. Reduce heat and simmer until ready to serve. Remove toothpicks.
6. Serve breasts whole or, remove from pan, slice on an angle and fan out on dinner plates. Top stuffed chicken breasts or sliced stuffed breasts with generous spoonfuls of the sauce.
 

             Enjoy!

Homemade Chicken Broccoli Stir Fry with Honey Garlic Sauce

Ingredients:
2 Tbsps of olive oil, divided
1 large carrot, sliced thin
2 cups of broccoli florets
1 medium sweet onion, sliced thin
1 lb of chicken breast, cut in cubes 1 inch in size
4 Garlic cloves smashed and minced
1/4 cup of low sodium soy sauce
1 cup of homemade chicken broth
3 Tbsps of honey
2 tsps of corn starch
1 Tbsp of water
Salt and pepper
1 Tbsp of garlic powder
For Rice
2 cups of white rice
2 cups of water
3 Tbsps of olive oil

Process,
1. Heat 1 tsp of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
2. Add the broccoli, onions and carrots to skillet and cook till tender. Remove from pan place in a covered bowl.
3. Turn your skillet up to high heat and add the rest of your olive oil. Season your chicken pieces with salt, pepper, and garlic and place in you pan. Lightly Brown on all side making sure your chicken is cooked through.
4. Add your garlic to the skillet and cook for I minute.
5. Add the Vegetables back to the skillet and cook till the vegetables are heated through.
6. In a small bowl whisk together honey, soy sauce, and chicken broth and pour into your skillet. Bring to a boil.
7. In a small bowl mix together your corn starch and 1 Tbsp of water. Pour over your chicken and vegetable and cook till sauce thickens, turn heat down to low and cover.
For The Rice
8. Place swatter and your rice in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook rice till all the water is evaporated and rice is tender and fluffy.
9. Take off of heat and add your olive oil and parmesan cheese.
10. Turn off the heat to your chicken and vegetable stir fry and serve over rice adding your sauce on top.
 

             Enjoy!

Homemade Goulash made by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn Bobby Flay's recipe

Ingredients:
2 pounds lean ground beef
2 large yellow onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
3 cups water
Two 15-ounce cans tomato sauce
Two 15-ounce cans diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
3 bay leaves
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon House Seasoning, recipe follows
1 tablespoon seasoned salt
2 cups elbow macaroni, uncooked
Season Recipe,
1 cup salt
1/4 cup pepper
1/4 cup garlic powder

Process,
1. In a Dutch oven, sauté the ground beef over medium-high heat until no pink remains. Break up the meat while sauteing. Spoon off any grease. Add the onions and garlic to the pot and sauté until they are tender, about 5 minutes.
2. Add 3 cups water, along with the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, Italian seasoning, bay leaves, soy sauce, House Seasoning, and seasoned salt. Stir well. 3. Place a lid on the pot and allow this to cook for 15 to 20 minutes. Add the elbow macaroni, stir well, return the lid to the pot, and simmer for about 30 minutes. Turn off the heat, remove the bay leaves, and allow the mixture to sit about 30 minutes more before serving.
Serve with garlic bread and top with sour cream.
 

              Enjoy!

Homemade Pollo Tetrazzini over Noodles by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn

Ingredients:
1 pound of fettuccine or egg noodles
2 cups of mushrooms, sliced
3 Tbsps of unsalted butter
2 Tbsps of of all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups of milk
1 cup of homemade chicken broth
1/8 tsp of fresh grated nutmeg
1/8 tsp of pepper
1/8 tsp of paprika
1 large egg, beaten
1/4 cup of parmesan cheese
2 cups of peas
5 chicken breasts grilled, sliced
Salt to taste, 
Fresh parsley, for garnish

Process,
1. Cook your pasta to Al Dente.
2. Meanwhile, in a skillet, sauté the mushrooms in the butter, add your flour and mix into a roux. Cook the roux on low heat till a golden color.
3. Then add the milk and broth and blend together. Mix in the nutmeg, pepper, and paprika. Then blend in

the egg and cheese.

Note: keep the heat on low you do not what to boil.
4. Then add the peas, grilled chicken, and salt. Simmer and stir until sauce becomes thick and creamy.
5. Drain your pasta add olive oil just enough to coat and 2 tsps of garlic powder , mix well. To serve place your pasta onto a dish then place your creamed chicken on top and garnish.
 

          Enjoy!

Lasagna Roll Ups by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn

Ingredients:
Extra virgin olive oil
1 box of lasagna noodles
3 cups homemade Sunday Sauce, divided
15 oz of ricotta cheese
1 large egg
1 cup of shredded mozzarella, divided
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
10 oz package of frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp of dried Italian seasoning
3/4 tsp of salt
1/4 of pepper
Pinch of ground nutmeg

Process,
1. Bring a large pot of water to boil; throw in a good pinch of salt and add your lasagna noodles. Cook until

al dente according to package directions. Note: After draining, drizzle with a bit of olive oil to prevent sticking and drape them over the colander.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spread 1 cup of Sunday Sauce on the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish.
3. In a large bowl, stir together the ricotta, egg, 1/2 cup of mozzarella, parmesan, spinach, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Mix until combined.
4. Spread a 1/3 cup of the mixture onto the length of each lasagna noodle and roll up in a jelly-roll fashion.
5. Arrange rolls, seam side down, in the baking dish. Top with remaining 2 cups of sauce, and remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese.
6. Cover loosely with foil and bake for about 35 minutes or until cheese has melted and the inside is warmed through.

            Enjoy!