Giada's Cheesy Baked Tortellini

Tonight we had cheese, cheese and more cheese. We could live off of cheese. I used Giada's Baked Cheese Tortellini recipe from the Everyday Pasta book. I changed it up just a little.

Cheesy Baked Tortellini

20oz jar of Tomato Basil Sauce

1/2 lb Italian Sausage crumbled and browned

1/3 cup mascarpone cheese (I used 2/3 of the 8oz container)

1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves

2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves

1 pound purchased cheese tortellini (I use one 9 ounce package)

2 ounces thinly sliced smoked mozzarella (I just covered to top of the pasta)

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil an 8 by 8 by 2-inch baking dish.Whisk the sauce, sausage, mascarpone cheese, parsley and thyme in a large bowl to blend. Cook the tortellini in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 2 minutes. Drain. Add the tortellini to the sauce and toss to coat. Transfer the tortellini mixture to the prepared baking dish. Top the mixture with the mozzarella and Parmesan. Cover and bake until the sauce bubbles and the cheeses on top melt, about 30 minutes.

Southwestern Turkey Cheddar Burgers

Tonight we had some of the great looking burgers out of the newest Cooking Light magazine.

We tried the Southwestern Turkey Cheddar Burgers and they looked and tasted great! Next time I'll mix up the seasoning a little bit. The cumin was a little overpowering. I think they needed a little more salt!

Wheat germ adds a nuttiness that complements the turkey and spices. For more spicy heat, use Monterey Jack cheese with jalapeño peppers.

Ingredients

1/3 cup wheat germ

1 1/2 teaspoons ancho chile powder

3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper

1 1/2 pounds ground turkey breast

4 ounces extrasharp cheddar cheese, thinly sliced

6 (2-ounce) Kaiser rolls, split

Prepare grill.
Combine first 7 ingredients in a large bowl. Divide mixture into 6 equal portions, shaping each into a 1/2-inch-thick patty.
Place patties on a grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 5 minutes. Turn patties over; grill 2 minutes. Divide cheese evenly over patties; grill an additional 5 minutes or until a thermometer registers 165°. Remove from grill; let stand 5 minutes.
Place onion slices on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 4 minutes on each side or until browned and tender.
Place rolls, cut sides down, on grill rack; grill 1 minute or until toasted. Place 1 patty on bottom half of each roll.

Nutritional Information
CALORIES 395(24% from fat); FAT 10.7g (sat 4.8g,mono 2.5g,poly 1.6g); PROTEIN 32.8g; CHOLESTEROL 54mg; CALCIUM 211mg; SODIUM 853mg; FIBER 3.3g; IRON 3.4mg; CARBOHYDRATE 42.6g

Crumbly Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Well, I came across this recipie today on thenest.com and they sounded soooo good! I had to make them when I got home. They taste AWESOME! They look less than awesome. I've included a picture of the ones that stayed together. The rest.....cookie crumbles. They'd be perfect over ice cream!!! I really made myself sick eating the cookies as they fell apart until I realised tehy were ALL falling apart and I had to draw the line somewhere. Must have been the entire cup of butter...any ideas? Come to think of it, I used dark brown sugar instead of regular. Do you think that makes a difference? Anyway, they tasted YUMMY!!!

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 TBS sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup flour

2 1/4 cups old fashioned oats

2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 F

Beat eggs, butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs and beat until just blended. Add vanilla, baking soda and salt. Beat well.

With a spoon, gently mix in flour until just blended. Gently stir in oats and chocolate chips. Don't over-mix!

Place spoonfuls of dough on cookie sheet 2 inches apart.

Bake for 10-13 minutes or until the edges start turning golden.

Cool cookies on sheets for 1 minute before transfering to a rack to cool completely.

The Picky Eaters

I need something new to entertain me (the wedding is over and no babies yet) and I really like to cook and bake, so here goes! DH and I are really picky eaters, therefore it's not going to be too adventurous, for now. We do try to branch out, though, so maybe there will be some visible growth in this blog!

Cheers!