Minestrone Soup

Ingredients:

1 small onion, diced
2 carrots, sliced
2 celery stalks, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
8 cups of vegetable stock
2 cans diced tomatoes
(2 tablespoons greek seasonings, optional)
4-5 red potatoes, diced into bite sized pieces
4-5 handfuls of kale, chopped
2-3 cups of small pasta
1 can of cannelloni beans, drained and rinsed
salt and pepper, to season

Directions

sauté the onion, carrots and celery with some olive oil.  Add in garlic and cook until fragrant

Add vegetable stock, tomatoes, spices, potatoes, kale, pasta and beans

Simmer 30-40 minutes until pasta and potatoes are soft

Enjoy!


Source: Center of the Pie

Spinach and Tomato Pesto Quesadilla

Ingredients:

Uncooked flour tortillas
1-2 roma tomatoes, sliced
Feta cheese, crumbled
Mozzarella, shredded
Pesto
Fresh baby spinach

Directions

Cook the tortillas according to directions.
Spread pesto on one tortilla.
Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over the pesto.
Spread the tomatoes and spinach and sprinkle more mozzarella over the top.  Add feta cheese.

Spread pesto on the other tortilla and place on top.

Return to the pan and cook until the cheese is melted.

Enjoy!

Chicken Pasta with Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Sauce

Ingredients: 

3 garlic cloves, minced
1 small jar of sun-dried tomatoes. You could also use the dried ones found in a bag. 
1 lb chicken breasts
salt
paprika, just a sprinkle
1 cup half and half
1 cup mozzarella, shredded
8 oz penne pasta
1 T of dried basil
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or more if you like it spicy!
1/2 cup reserved cooked pasta water, or more

Instructions:

In a large skillet, on high heat, sauté garlic and tomatoes.  You can use olive oil or the oil from the jar of sun dried tomatoes.  Sauté the garlic until it is fragrant. Remove the tomatoes from the pan. 

Sprinkle the chicken with salt and paprika, then add it to the pan.  Cook on each side until cooked through. Remove from heat. 

Cook pasta according to package directions.  Reserve some of the cooked pasta water.  Drain and rinse cooked pasta with cold water. 

Slice tomatoes into small pieces and return to the skillet with chicken. 

Add half and half and cheese.  Bring to a gentle boil. 

Reduce to a simmer and cook, stirring constantly until the cheese melts and the sauce turns creamy and thickens. (you can thin it out with the reserved pasta water in the following steps if it's too thick)

Add the pasta to the skillet and combine. 

Add basil, red pepper flakes and stir. 

Add about 1/2 cup of the cooked pasta water to help thin out the sauce. 

Season the pasta with salt and more pepper flakes, if needed.  Let simmer for a few minutes. 

Source: Julia's Album