Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce

1. In a crockpot or slow cooker (whichever term you prefer) place your ground beef. Add the jar of spaghetti sauce, bay leaves, dried oregano, garlic powder, pepper, onion and 3 whole cloves of garlic.
2. Mix all the ingredients together and set the timer to cook for 4-6 hours. Stir every hour or so if you are home. The garlic will start to soften and just permeate the sauce.

   

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   Garlic Breadcrumb Topping

   1. Melt 1/2 cup butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add the garlic and bring it to a sizzle about 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat, add the breadcrumbs and combine, coating all of the breadcrumbs.

   

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Faux Lasagna Assembly

1. Cook the lasagna noodles according to package directions.
2. Layer the bottom of an oven safe baking dish with enough noodles to cover the bottom.
3. Layer a cup or so of the crockpot spaghetti sauce over the noodles.
4. Add half of the mozzarella cheese and spread to cover the sauce.
5. Add half of the garlic breadcrumb topping, spread out over the mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle this layer with some parmesan cheese.
6. REPEAT the layers and sprinkle with parmesan cheese and a little olive oil over the top to add a golden color when baking.
7. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let stand 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!  😛

   

   

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

1. In an oven proof good sized fry pan, on medium heat, add the center cut bacon and fry to your desired crispness. Remove the bacon to a paper toweled plate to drain. Keep the bacon drippings in the pan.
2. Add the olive oil to the bacon drippings. Sauté the onion and garlic for a few minutes and add the gnocchi. Stir to combine. Sauté all together for 5 minutes.
3. Add the marinara sauce, mustard powder, paprika, 1/2 the parsley flakes and salt & pepper to taste. Simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and add half the mozzarella cheese to the gnocchi and combine.
5. Spread the rest of the mozzarella on top with the rest of the parsley. Sprinkle the crumbled bacon over the top OR mix half in with the gnocchi and sprinkle the remaining on top. Bake for 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Enjoy!  😀

   

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**Be VERY careful when removing the pan from the oven, the handle will be HOT.

As a visual reminder I always put an oven mitt over the handle in addition to using a pot holder.**

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

1. Remove the mushroom stems (put aside to chop for the filling) and place the mushrooms on a foil lined baking sheet. Drizzle 1 tbsp of the olive oil over the mushrooms. Sprinkle each one with a little kosher salt.

   

2. In a frypan on medium heat, add the remaining tbsp of olive oil and the whipper butter. Melt the butter. Sauté the sliced green onions, chopped garlic and chopped mushroom stems for 5 minutes. Add black pepper and kosher salt to season. Add the breadcrumbs and mix it into the mixture.

   

3. Take the frypan off the heat and stir in the shredded cheddar cheese. Mix to combine and to start to melt the cheese.

   

   

4. Spoon 2 tbsp of the mixture into the mushrooms. Fill them liberally at first to spread out the mixture and then pile on the remaining mixture to “beef” up their appearance. Top them with a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of kosher salt. Bake for 12-15 minutes.

   

5. You can serve them anyway you like—on a platter or piled gloriously on top of each other in a serving dish. Either way, I guarantee they won’t last! Enjoy!!!  😀

   

1. In a wide saucepan, on medium heat, add 3 tbsp of the olive oil and the whipped butter. When the butter is melted, add 3 of the minced/chopped garlic cloves and saute for about a minute, watching the garlic so it doesn’t burn. Add the flour and mix it in with the butter and olive oil with a whisk. Add the chicken stock and continue whisking until there are no lumps. Turn the heat up to high to boil and thicken the sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste and continue whisking for about 5 minutes or until your sauce is the consistency or thickness you enjoy.

   

2. Turn the heat back down to medium and add the bell peppers. Cook them for 20 minutes for a firm, yet chewy bite. Add the fresh chopped parsley and parmesan cheese. Add a little more salt and pepper to taste.

   

   

3. In a frypan, on medium heat, add the remaining tbsp of olive oil. When heated add the remaining minced/chopped clove of garlic and saute for about a minute. Add the shrimp and cook them about 2-3 minutes per side until they turn from grayish to a nice pink color. Shrimp cook very fast.

   

4. While the shrimp is cooking, cook the angel hair pasta according to package directions. After it is cooked, turn off the heat and leave it in the water to stay warm.
5. When ready to plate, use a pair of tongs to take out a generous portion of pasta and twist it for presentation in a nice themed bowl. Add your scampi sauce and shrimp on top. Garnish with a little more parmesan if you please and a little fresh parsley. Salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!!!

   

   

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

1. In a saucepan over medium heat, add enough extra virgin olive oil to cover the bottom of the pan, about 2 tablespoons. Add the chopped mushroom stems (chop them pretty small) and saute for about 5 minutes until they are tender.

   

   

2. Add the chopped garlic, then the breadcrumbs. Mix together. Turn off the heat and add the cheese and mix through. The residual heat will melt the cheese. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove pan from the heat and set aside.

   

   

   

   

3. Butterfly your chicken breasts (cut them in half, without cutting all the way through). Cover your surface with plastic wrap and place a piece of plastic wrap on top of your butterflied chicken. Take the spiked side of your mallet and pound and simultaneously gently pull the chicken out to the side to flatten and create a bigger surface. Flip them skin side down (yes I know they are skinless, pretend there is skin) and put your stuffing on top a little away from the edge. Now roll the chicken, starting from the edge and tucking the stuffing in as you go. The rollups will be a little uneven but we will take care of that in step 4.

   

   

   

   

4. Take a piece of plastic wrap about 12′ by 12′ and lay it flat on your counter surface. Put your rollup on the edge, centered on the plastic wrap edge and roll it tight as you go in the plastic wrap. When your chicken is all rolled up. Twist the sides of the plastic wrap in opposite directions tightly. This will result in a uniformed size rollup. Tie off the ends. Put them in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or more to continue forming.

   

   

5. When ready to cook, remove rollups from the fridge and let set on the counter for about 5 minutes. Unwrap and salt and pepper rollups. In an oven safe fry pan add two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and 2 tablespoons of whipped butter, melt over medium heat. When butter is melted brown your chicken rollups on all sides. About 1 minute per side. Baste chicken with butter sauce as you turn. Finish cooking in the oven for about 20 minutes or until cooked all the way through. Remove from the oven, and put them on a plate and set aside to rest.

   

6. Put your fry pan back on the stove, be careful as the handle will still be really hot! Over medium heat, add two more tablespoons of whipped butter, the sherry, chicken stock and the mushrooms. Salt and pepper to taste. Cook until the mushrooms are to your desired texture and the sauce has reduced about half.

   

7. Slice your chicken rollups on a biased (diagonal) and feather them out on your plate. Pour a nice amount of reduction on top and serve with your favorite vegetable. Enjoy!!!  🙂