Fast Food Without the Golden Arches

Between work, kid activities, and some precious me time, sometimes meal planning just doesn’t happen. What happens then? You turn to those convenient pre-packaged meals – many of which are loaded with salt and preservatives, and taste more like the package they came in then the ‘food’ they’re meant to be.

Well, here at CCGM we think about food a lot, and we thought maybe we could give folks a break on meal planning, by putting together some meal ideas for you to consider, along with an ingredient shopping list, and complete preparation instructions.

Need a quick, easy meal to throw together after work and flag football? Here’s one your kids can help with. The *’d items are pre-prepared foods that you can substitute.

Easy Marinara Pasta with Cheesy Garlic Bread

Shopping List:
Garlic (fresh or crushed*)
Whole Grain Loaf of bread
Fresh basil
Amish Butter
Fresh or Dried Pasta
2 tomatoes, 1 pepper, 1 onion (Fresh Salsa*)
Fresh Mozzarella (pearls, balls or even Middlefield mozz work, choose your fav)
Stella Parmesan Cheese
Coarse salt (Kosher or Sea), pepper, oregano

Pre-heat oven to 350F and place a large pot of water on to boil. Place ½ cup of Amish butter in a microwave-safe bowl and soften it in the microwave (if it melts, no biggie, you want it very soft). Add a tablespoon (or less to taste) of diced (or crushed*) garlic and crushed pepper – let the kids mix away while you cut the whole grain loaf in half length-wise and place it on a large cookie sheet. Get out the pastry brush and let the kids paint the two halves of the bread with the butter mixture. If using fresh mozz, drain it, reserving the oil. Pearls can be sprinkled over bread as is (watch out, they roll!), balls would be best sliced, and block could be grated (good job for the kids). Sprinkle sparingly with coarse salt (kosher or sea salt work best). Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and just beginning to brown.

Set the kids to grating the parmesan cheese. Dice the tomatoes, peppers and onions (alternatively, buy two containers of CCGM’s Fresh Salsa*) and cut the basil into ribbons. Place a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1-2 tablespoons of reserved oil from the mozzarella (use olive oil, if you don’t have reserved oil), to the skillet. Add the tomatoes, peppers, onions, and salt and pepper to taste. Sauté until peppers are soft and onions are translucent. Add the basil (reserve some for garnish) and reduce heat to low.

If cooking fresh pasta, cook small amounts (one package) at a time. Once water is boiling, remove pasta from package, fluff it and add it to the water. It only takes one or two minutes to cook, so don’t walk away. Remove pasta to a colander and rinse with hot water. If cooking dry pasta, place in pot once water is boiling and allow to cook for 5-8 minutes, until done (depending on how ‘toothy’ you like your pasta). TIP: Let the kids pick out the flavor of pasta – there are lots to choose from.

Place pasta on plate, ladle sauce over it, sprinkle with parmesan cheese and garnish with basil. Serve with cheesy garlic bread.

ENJOY!