Italian Wonderpot

I'm continuing my Budget Bytes kick with another pin. Specifically, this one here.

The Italian Wonderpot

It's a spin on a Martha Stewart creation, according to the genius behind Budget Bytes. I followed the recipe pretty closely but switched things up a bit, as I am wont to do. It turned out pretty good, but I think I will make a few adjustments in the future. Specifically, I'm not sure that I will use whole grain pasta. It was a bit filling and now my tummy is rumbling a bit. In addition, I think I might add some mushrooms to the mix. I love mushrooms. Either way, without even asking Justin has deemed this a repeat (I usually have to pry it out of him) and since it only took 35 minutes from start to finish, I agree. This is the recipe and how I did it:

Ingredients

• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 12 oz. whole wheat fettuccine
• 8 oz. frozen chopped spinach
• 1 (28 oz.) can diced tomatoes
• 1 medium onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• ½ Tbsp dried basil           I used 1.5T of homemade Italian seasoning, the recipe for which is here.
• ½ Tbsp dried oregano
• ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
• freshly cracked pepper to taste
• 2 oz. feta cheese

Instructions

1. Add four cups of vegetable broth to a large pot. Break the fettuccine in half to make stirring easier later, and then add it to the pot. Also add the canned tomatoes (undrained), olive oil, frozen spinach, onion (thinly sliced chopped), garlic (thinly sliced), basil, oregano, Italian seasoning, red pepper, and some freshly cracked black pepper.
2. Make sure the ingredients are submerged under the liquid, place a lid on top of the pot, and then turn the heat on to high. Allow the pot to come up to a full, rolling boil over high heat then remove the lid and turn the heat down to medium.
3. Allow the pot to continue to boil over medium heat, without a lid, for 10-15 minutes, or until the pasta is cooked and most of the liquid has been absorbed. Stir the pot every few minutes as it cooks to prevent the pasta from sticking to the bottom, but avoid over stirring which can cause the pasta to become sticky and mushy. The pot must be boiling the entire time.
4. After the pasta is cooked, crumble the feta cheese over top and serve.

My photo is less-than-desirable and unfortunately I didn't get a good picture of my sous chef since he was busy gumming a apple wheel to bits that later ended up stuck to his onesie. Apparently even blogspot finds the picture so unappetizing it wouldn't upload it. 

In order to get more protein I sliced up some chicken breasts, threw them in some Italian seasoned breadcrumbs (and just hat- no egg wash or anything to make it stick) and sauteed them in olive oil until they browned. Justin said they were fancy chicken nuggets, but I'm not sure if that's a compliment or not...

Beef Taco Pot

I have a confession to make. Since Atticus was born in February our dinners at home have mainly consisted of Velveeta Cheesy Skillets and Hamburger Helpers. At first it was because I needed quick food options I could prepare with a newborn. Then it just turned into laziness. I mean, it was done in 30 minutes! When I get home from work the last thing I want to do is cook for an hour. That's just masochistic. Once Atticus was more independent and fine sitting in his high chair while I cooked I decided to bite the bullet and start cooking from scratch. It's healthier, tastier, and more budget friendly- all of which are things I need more of in my life. But a lot of the recipes weren't quicker. Tasty? Yes. Healthy? Yes. Inexpensive? Yes. But not faster. I pinned this little number thinking it would be another 45min-1hr production. The blogger who created it is one of my favorites; she does inexpensive and healthy-ish. Plus she's a New Orleans blogger who likes spice! The recipes of hers that I have tried have been quite delicious but have taken varying amounts of time to prepare. But even with frozen meat (I forgot to take it out to thaw last night) this only took 30 minutes!

Here is the original pin: 

Nice enough picture


Here's my picture:

I never said it would be pretty.

It was pretty simple and straightforward. I made a few adjustments because of what I had on hand and needing to get rid of things in my fridge, but it was quite tasty. Here's the recipe and my adjustments.

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp olive oil 
• 1 small onion 
• 1  2 clove garlic 
• ¾ 1 lb. lean ground beef 
• 1 Tbsp chili powder 
• ½ tsp ground cumin                       I used 1.5 T of my homemade taco seasoning; here's the recipe
• ½ tsp dried oregano 
• ⅛ tsp cayenne pepper (optional) 
• 1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes        I used 2 10-oz cans of medium Rotel tomatoes with chilies
• 1 (4 oz.) can diced green chiles 
• 2 cups beef broth*
• 8 oz. wide egg noodles 
• 1 (2.25 oz.) can sliced chopped black olives 
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 2-3 green onions, sliced

Instructions

1. Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Cook both in a large pot with the olive oil over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, or until they begin to soften. Add the ground beef and continue to cook until the beef is fully browned.
2. Add the chili powder, cumin, oregano, diced tomatoes, and diced green chiles  taco seasoning and Rotel tomatoes (do not drain the tomatoes and chiles). Stir to combine with the beef.
3. Add the noodles and beef broth. Stir to combine and push the noodles down until they are mostly submerged under the broth. Place a lid on the pot and allow it to come up to a simmer. When it begins to simmer heavily, turn the heat down slightly (just above low) and allow it to continue simmering for 10 minutes. Stir every few minutes to keep the pasta from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
4. After about ten minutes the pasta should be fully cooked and most of the broth absorbed. If it is still slightly watery, let it continue to cook for a minute or two without the lid. Taste the pasta and if it is not spicy enough for you, add the cayenne pepper.
5. Drain the can of black olives and stir them into the pasta. Add the cheese and stir it in until it is fully melted. Slice the green onions, sprinkle over top, and serve.

Notes

*I use Better Than Bouillon soup base to make my broth rather than using canned or boxed broths. It is much less expensive.
*Instead of using separate cans of diced tomatoes and diced green chiles, you can use one can of Rotel or a similar diced tomato & green chile product.
*Instead of using individual spices, you can use one packet of taco seasoning.

I obviously took her notes to heart.

In the future I'm thinking to cut out some of the meat and add a can of black beans instead. But overall, this was a definite repeat.

And to make up for my ugly earlier picture here's a picture of my handsome little sous chef. I'm thinking to turn into a calendar.