Tried and True Recipe Favorites - Pasta Feature

Hello lovelies!

Today, I wanted to share a few pasta recipes that I have tried recently! I am addicted to Pinterest, and I find so many interesting and delicious recipe ideas on there. I absolutely love to cook and bake, and I thought I would share some recipes with you all :)

I am obsessed with pasta, although I am trying to eat less of it in order to live a healthier lifestyle. Still, I cave in once in a while because...well, because it's SO WORTH IT. I hope you enjoy the recipes below, and make sure to check out the blogs from which they came!


Recipe 1: Classic Baked Macaroni and Cheese

This recipe is so great and very kid friendly. The dish is simple and quick, and the best part is that the cheese is freshly grated! Although boxed mac and cheese is so easy to prepare, I think (in my humble opinion) that it's always best to be eating foods without unnecessary preservatives and chemicals! And this recipe is such a great alternative! Give it a try someday!

Recipe 2: Creamy Garlic Shells

Another great recipe with "no pasta packet required." This dish is also quite simple and easy to make. You can also choose to use fat-free or low-fat versions of some of the ingredients to lower your fat intake. This dish, as the original blog post mentions, is a healthier, lower-sodium alternative to the pasta sides packets that you find in the grocery store! Try this out the next time you get a craving for a pasta side dish!

Recipe 3: Bacon and Pea Macaroni & Cheese

I admit, this recipe is a lot less healthy than the other two. Well, at least there are peas in it, right? Regardless, this is a great dish to have. It's a fancy "mac and cheese" that grown-ups can enjoy without feeling too childish. Personally, I don't mind having full-on mac and cheese with dinosaur-shaped pasta, but maybe some of you want to class it up a little bit (unlike me). Serve this in a fancy bowl (like the one above) and maybe some white wine, and you can even pass this Mac and Cheese dish off as a fancy meal with your loved one (maybe). Or you can eat it in a big bowl in front of the TV with your hair up in a messy bun like me.

Hope you enjoyed my recipes! Obviously, these were not authentic Italian dishes, but they were ones that I enjoyed and wish to share with you. Hope you try them out someday with the ones you love.

Aloha,

Cassie

"I honor the place within you in which the entire universe dwells. I honor the place within you, which is of Love, of Truth, of Light and of Peace. When you are in that place within you and I am in that place within me, WE ARE ONE"

Semi-Homemade: Mentaiko Pasta

Hello lovelies,

Yesterday, I decided to reward myself with a (semi) homemade dish after doing a lot of studying. I had a packet of mentaiko pasta sauce in my pantry, so I decided to make mentaiko pasta! So, what is mentaiko and how do you make a pasta dish using it? Mentaiko is the marinated roe (eggs) of pollock and cod, and it is used commonly in Japanese cooking! It does taste fishy, but I totally recommend it! I love mentaiko, and I love how the Japanese incorporate it into their dishes!

Mentaiko pasta is a Japanese-Italian Fusion dish! I LOVE FUSION DISHES because they give me a chance to eat two cuisines at once; they also are super interesting in flavor and appearance. This dish combines the japanese flavor of mentaiko with an italian base, the linguine! I love how the two work beautifully together. The flavors combined make a hearty dish! Below is my easy recipe for mentaiko pasta! Also, at the end of this entry, I have provided links for some of the harder-to-find ingredients in the recipe!

Mentaiko Pasta (semi-homemade)
Serves 1

1 packet of S&B Mentaiko Sauce
1 medium green onion (green AND white parts)
1/4 cup imitation crab
1 1/2 tablespoons Japanese mayonnaise (I used Kewpie)
2 oz of spaghetti-type pasta (I used Farro Linguine)
nori strips for garnish (comes with S&B sauce)

1. Boil water and cook pasta according to directions.
2. Meanwhile, chop the imitation crab into small pieces and slice the green onion.
3. While the pasta is still cooking, warm the imitation crab and green onions over medium low heat in a small skillet. Take care that they don't get too brown. I suggest doing this in the last minute of your pasta cooking time.
4. When the pasta is done, drain and put in the skillet with the imitation crab and green onions. Add the sauce packet and Japanese mayo to the pan. Stir gently to combine.
5. When combined and the sauce is warm, transfer to your serving dish and top with the nori strips. Enjoy!

I apologize that the photo isn't more close-up! If you want to try this dish, you can buy the sauce here or find it in your asian grocery store. Since I live in Hawaii, I can easily find this sauce, but I can understand that it is difficult to find it elsewhere! Also, if you want to try Japanese mayo, you can find it here. You can use regular mayo if you want to as well; I just find that the Japanese mayo tastes better!

Good luck in the kitchen, and hope you try this out!

Aloha,
Cassie

"I honor the place within you in which the entire universe dwells. I honor the place within you, which is of Love, of Truth, of Light and of Peace. When you are in that place within you and I am in that place within me, WE ARE ONE"