Good Cooking In The Heart Of Winter

Sorry an update didn't appear yesterday.  I took the time to take a long walk through the snowy woods with my daughter.  I hope you take the time to get out and enjoy winter instead of just grumbling about it.  Snow and ice do bring a lot of problems but there is great beauty to be enjoyed as well as the opportunity to get a great workout and have some fun.  Channel your inner kid for a change; sled or throw a few snowballs.  Get out and admire mother nature's artistic abilities and take a few photos.   

Today I am excited to share two new wonderful recipes I found in the last week.  Finding a great recipe always makes me excited because I love to cook and eat well.  I am always on the look out for new recipes to add to my collection that are easy and healthy.  I hope my readers have tried some of these recipes and found that they really are easy. 

I found the first recipe in the January Southern Living and I was skeptical about it.  I am a bit of a snob about certain foods, believing that the original can't be improved.  However, the Sausage and Ravioli Lasagna proved me wrong.  It is so simple, my husband could make it and my family gave it a very high approval rating. 

Sausage and Ravioli  Lasagna
1/2 lb. Italian Sausage ( I used the turkey sausage to cut the fat)
1 24 oz. jar tomato and basil pasta sauce ( Eat This Not That recommends Barilla among others)
1 6 oz. package fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup refrigerated pesto sauce (or homemade, see my previous recipe)
1 25 oz. package frozen cheese ravioli, do not thaw
1 cup shredded Italian 6 cheese blend
Preheat oven to 375.  Cook sausage in a skillet over medium heat until brown and sausage is crumbled.  Drain and rinse well.  Return to pan and stir in pasta sauce.  Chop spinach and toss with pesto.  Spoon 1/3 of the sausage mixture into a lightly greased 11x7 baking dish.  Top with half the spinach mixture.  Arrange 1/2 of the ravioli in a single layer over spinach.  Repeat layers once and top with remaining sausage mixture.  Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.  Top with cheese and bake 5 more minutes till hot and bubbly.  Serve with a simple green salad. 

I saw the next recipe in Prevention, a magazine I hardly ever read.  Because it was unusual and would use up the remaining pesto sauce I had from the above recipe, I had to try it.  I am always looking for fish recipes and this has to be the fastest dinner I've ever made. 

Italian Fish
4 white fish fillets of your choice ( I used tilapia)
4 slices of prosciutto
pesto sauce
Preheat oven to 425.  Wrap 1 slice of prosciutto around each piece of fish and place in a lightly greased baking dish.  Bake until fish flakes easily with a fork, 8 to 10 minutes.  Top each fillet with a bit of pesto.  That's it!

I made baked potatoes in the microwave which took about 20 minutes.  A homemade dinner can't get any easier and this also received very high ratings from my family, kids too.  The prosciutto is salty and the pesto adds more flavor so you don't need anything else.  This looks like you took more time so it would be good to serve to company.  Add a salad and you are good to go.

As for the frittata I mentioned last week, my family was less enthusiastic about it.  I used asparagus, mushrooms and onions with some of the leftover Italian 6 cheese blend.  No meat.  It was easy to make and I liked it.  This recipe is good for one or two people as it is easily adjustible for the number of people.  Just use less vegetables and eggs and of course, you could add some meat.