PARMESAN TORTILLA CRIPS

This is for Day 21 of 30 Days of Creativity www.30dayofcreativity.com and today's theme is "Cheese".  I chose to try a recipe from One Perfect Bite to make Parmesan Tortilla Chips and they came out tasty more like crackers than chips, but would be a fun soup topper.

I stuck pretty much to the recipe except that I used 8 inch flour instead of 6 inch corn tortilla and used sea salt.  I also recommend checking at 6-8 minutes instead of 12 minutes as the first batch was too toasted and I ended up throwing it out.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 12 6 or 8 inch tortillas
• 1 cup fresh shredded Parmesan
• 1/4 to 1/2 sea salt

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

"Line two large heavy large baking sheets with aluminum foil. Whisk oil, oregano, and pepper in a small saucepan over medium heat just until warm. Set aside for 15 minutes.

Brush oil mixture over both sides of tortillas.

Stack tortillas and cut them into 1/2 to 3/4-inch wide strips. Arrange strips in a single layer over the baking sheets. Sprinkle cheese and salt over strips. Bake until strips are golden brown and crisp" about 6-8 minutes.

Yield: 5 to 6 servings.

For original recipe visit:

http://oneperfectbite.blogspot.com/2011/01/parmesan-tortilla-crisps.html

Artichoke & Parmesan Pasta Casserole

A lighter pasta dish with a hint of artichoke and cheese.   This recipe is from
http://www.blisstree.com/bakingdelights/artichoke-parmesan-pasta/
and the reviews for it are mixed.  My son loved it, especially the cheese layer on the top.    I like a more creamy, cheesy pasta dish and I would prefer it with a little garlic, but than again, I am garlic lover.  I am also conditioned that if a casserole goes in the oven, it must be topped with crushed crackers, but I do admit I like the light but a bit crunchy taste that the cheese topping brings.  If you are looking for a lighter pasta than the standard cream based, this is worth trying.

• 1 lb pasta
• 1 1/2 cups mozzarella
• 1/2 cup Parmesan
• 1 large can chopped artichoke hearts
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 cup milk or half and half
• Non-Stick Coating Spray
• Salt and pepper to taste

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.  Cook the pasta according to the package - I used Meijer's brand Farfelle which required bringing water with salt to boiling then add pasta, and cook for 11 minute, but pastas seem to vary by brand and type.  Once cooked to Al dente, drain pasta.   I spritzed the pasta with non-cook spray and tossed, but that is optional.

Chop onion and artichoke.  The original recipe called for sauteing the onion in a little olive oil until transparent, but I used the onion raw instead. 

Mix the onion, artichoke and milk in with the pasta together.   Add a few dashes of salt and pepper.

 

 Spray the baking dish with non-stick coating, then transfer the mixture from the pan to the baking dish.

 

Put Mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese on top of the pasta and put in the oven..

Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until the cheese starts browning a little on the top.  I cut into 9 large pieces as it was the main dish, but we still had plenty left over and it should freeze well if you didn't want leftover the next day. 

RANCH BLACK OLIVE BOWTIE PASTA SALAD

This is a good alternative to a standard ranch pasta salad to take on a picnic or barbeque as it does not contain any mayonnaise and holds up a bit better as the pasta is firmer. 1 lb box bowtie pasta Cook according to directions on the box, drain and place in large bowl. Add 2 tbsp of margarine, olive oil and and toss to distribute (keeps pasta from sticking together). Put in fridge while you prepare dressing.

Dressing:

• 1 pkg. Ranch dressing packet (Hidden Valley brand is recommended)
• 1 3 oz can finely chopped black olives
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic salt
• 1/2 tsp dill
• 1/2 cup shredded paremsan or Italian cheese

Mix dressing together throughly using the above ingredients.

Remove the pasta salad from the fridge and pour in 1 1/2 cups of the above dressing and toss. If you want your salad to be creamier, you could use the entire 2 cups of the above dressing that was made.

Other add-ins to this salad are:

• Sunflower seeds
• Green olives
• Finely chopped red or green pepper

If pressed for space in small cooler, you could put the pasta salad in a zip lock bag.

If it is going to be left out for a period of time, you could take a larger bowl, fill it full of ice and pour the pasta salad into a smaller bowl that you put inside the larger one and cover it with a plate for easy access (but keep the bugs out).

BABY SPINACH OMELETTE

Great way to sneak something healthy into a breakfast! I really didn't taste the spinach nor did it have an overly crunchy texture - just a bit wee bit of spicy cheese flavor and brings a lively blend of yellow and green to the breakfast table.

It is based on the following recipe: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Baby-Spinach-Omelet/Detail.aspx This is for 1-2 servings

• 4 medium eggs
• 1 cup torn baby spinach leaves
• 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Non-stick cooking spray
• Fork
• Frying pan
• Spatula

Beat the eggs in a bowl with a fork.

Add in the torn baby spinach leaves, parmesan cheese, onion powder, nutmeg, salt and pepper.
Mix together until well blended. Spray the frying pan generously with the non-stick cooking spray, then pour mixture into the frying pan and cook on medium heat for 3 minutes.

Use the spatula to flip the omelet over and cook the other side 2-3 minutes (mine was done at this point). If it is still too runny for you, reduce heat to low and continue cooking 2-3 minutes, or until it is done to what you like.