Toasted Mediterranean Veggie Pasta

Our exciting week continues but with a lot more cooking in the kitchen. How exciting is this? I do not even have to have Julianne in a carrier in order to make this happen.

This last weekend was filled with more events in our second home: Holland. The smaller ensemble, Lyrischkoor, had a concert and I was finally going to be able to sing.

I was able to rehearse and perform but every time someone came to say hello to me they asked me where the baby was. I find this both amusing and irritating because it almost seems like I should not be apart from the baby or like people expect me to say that the baby is in the car. Ha ha, right.

We have good friends that took care of Julianne and I promise you, every time we left her, she was a total angel. I mean, she always is an angel but I am always afraid she will cry to much or be a little much to handle. I feel like I inconvenience people.

Seriously. This is one of my biggest issues lately is asking for help. I feel as if I am a bother to people even if others offer to hold Julianne or to take care of her.

How do I get rid of this or is this a new mother feeling?

Anyway, the concert went well and Julianne was a joy. We left late Saturday night after the concert and arrived home in time to sleep and get up the next morning for church.

10 weeks and nap time with mommy

The good thing about this weekend is that we got naps. Yes, we all got naps. I love taking naps with Julianne in my arms. I alternate though so she will not get used to sleeping with only me in my arms.

She is almost 3 months old! Can you believe it! We slept almost 3 hours on Sunday too!

10 weeks in her bumbo

Our short week started with quick meals being prepared. Lately I feel like I have my lingo back with creating dishes the way I was before getting pregnant. I look at what I have in the fridge and I whip up something quickly. I love doing that. Many people do not but I enjoy seeing how quickly I can create a meal.

This week, after being inspired by a 30-minute segment by Rachel Ray on Spanish-style pasta, I decided to give it a whirl with my own touch.


We loved this dish a lot because it had unique flavors and it was VERY filling. It was also very quick to prepare. Hope you give it a try!

Toasted Mediterranean Veggie Pasta

by Noelle Kelly

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients (4 servings)

• 1/2 pound thin spaghetti, torn in 2-inch pieces
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 16 ounces diced tomatoes
• 8 ounces tomato sauce
• 1 large red onion, diced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 3 cups vegetable broth (I used Rapunzel bouillon cubes)
• 1 1/2 cups asparagus, cut in 1 -inch pieces
• 1 cup artichoke hearts, chopped
• 1 medium eggplant, peeled and diced
• 1/2 cup parsley, chopped
• 1/2 feta cheese, crumbled (optional)
• 1 teaspoons sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

Instructions

In a large cast iron pot, heat 2 Tablespoons olive oil on medium to medium high heat. Add the spaghetti pieces and toast for 10 minutes until brown and aromatic.

Remove the pasta from pot and set aside.

Heat the remaining olive oil and saute' onions and garlic for 3 minutes or until onions are transparent. Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, paprika and cook for another 5 minutes.

Add the chopped vegetables except for the parsley. Add the salt and pepper. Cook for another 5-7 minutes.

Add the toasted pasta to the vegetables and the vegetable broth and cook pasta according to package directions, 9-10 minutes.

Serve each dish with chopped parsley and crumbled feta.

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Chocolate Pistachio Biscotti

Happy Monday! February is almost upon us and I started thinking of yummy recipes I could make and just decided I should just start making some.

Ryan and I are coffee drinkers. Besides having coffee with breakfast, I usually like it in the evenings with some kind of crunchy sweet item. I found myself surprised when I realized that one of my favorite crunchy cookies happen to be biscotti.

When I go to coffee shops I usually choose a biscotti especially if they are chocolate and EVEN more when they are chocolate-covered too! Ryan is not big on biscotti because he thinks they are too dry but I made these and he really enjoyed them. I just think he is starting to take his time with realizing how great of a treat biscotti can be especially when accompanied with coffee.

Make your honey some biscotti for Valentine's Day. Add some chocolate chips to this batter or melt some chocolate, dip or drizzle each biscotti or simply sprinkle some powdered sugar.

These are SUPER simple to make and fun because they start looking like lumps of dough but then end up looking like gourmet cookies, ready to dip into a hot drink.

Forget about all the negative comments biscotti can get and make them this week!

Chocolate Pistachio Biscotti

by Noelle Kelly (original recipe from skinnytaste.com)

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Keywords: bake breakfast snack dessert brunch vegan pistachios cookie

Ingredients (28 biscotti)

• 1-2/3 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened good quality cocoa powder
• 1-1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 3/4 cup whole pistachios
• 2 oz Earth Balance (1/4 cup), softened
• 3/4 cup superfine sugar
• 2 flax seed "eggs" or 2 large eggs
• --to prepare flax seed "eggs": 2 Tbsp flax seed meal + 6 Tbsp water--set aside for 3 minutes

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375°. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Add pistachios, and mix.

In a mixer, mix margarine and sugar on medium speed for 1-1/2 minutes. Add flax "eggs" or eggs, one at a time.

Add the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just combined to make a dough.

Remove the dough and using your hands, divide the dough into two or three pieces and form into long flat shapes about 8 long x 1-1/2 inches wide. Place on the lined baking sheets and bake 20 minutes.

When cool enough to handle, gently cut the loaves on the angle into 1/2 inch slices (a serrated bread knife works best). Return to the baking sheet fitting as many as you can on the baking sheet, you may need to do this in batches. Bake the biscotti for another 3-4 minutes on each side, less if you like it softer. Makes about 28.

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