Eat Your Greens Pasta

Here’s something about me you might not guess from all the baked goods I make: I like to eat healthy.  I exercise a ton, take omega-3 supplements, am always trying to eat enough greens (thus my daily kale smoothies); you get the picture.  I also like things to taste GOOD. I mean it – I LOVE food. I love eating.  I also love eating out, which often presents a decision crisis for me: do I eat healthy or delicious or sacrifice a bit of both.  There are the occasional restaurants where this conundrum doesn’t present itself, but the easiest place to eat is my own kitchen.

This homemade pasta fits the bill – it’s packed with greens (basically as much as I could fit in without the pasta falling apart) and tastes amazing.  Like homemade pasta should.

I cooked it up with more veggies (surprise!) and made an awesome pasta primavera.  Just some green onions and an assortment of yummy veggies sauteed together, topped off with white wine, lemon zest, parmesan, and a little pasta water (not to mention the ubiquitous S&P). Oh yum.

You will need a stand mixer for this and either a pasta attachment or a hand-crank pasta maker. Alternatively, you can do this without a mixer, but I read somewhere that you have to knead so hard/long that your butt will sweat.  I recently experienced this making a batch of bagels without a mixer and it wasn’t pretty.  My arms were sore for days (we won’t even discuss the state of my clothing).

Hot & Spicy Spinach Artichoke Dip

Spinach. Artichokes. Chiles. Jalapeños. Green onions. Pepper jack. Cream Cheese.  Need I say more?

 

 

 

 

 

Ok, just a little bit more. This is the ultimate spinach artichoke dip.  Besides having the requisite creamy-cheesy goodness, the addition of chiles and jalapeños is outrageously good (melt in your mouth, out of this world, etc).

Make this tomorrow. You won’t regret it – and you might even forget that your team isn’t in the superbowl. (That might be over stepping it, but you know what I mean.)

Ricotta Spinach Cups

Makes 30 cups.

Recipe is modified from an Eating Well, Living Thin recipe.

These are delicious and can be reheated in the toaster oven afterwards. You can make the filling ahead of time and refrigerate until ready. They are one of my favorite appetizers.

Ingredients:

Vegetable cooking spray

2 packages mini fillo shells (Athens brand)

1 cup ricotta cheese

One 10-ounce bag frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry (try using a potato ricer – it works wonders and saves tons of time!)

2 eggs

1 tablespoon cream

1 clove garlic, through a press

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black or white pepper

1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

a couple dashes cayenne pepper (your own preference on heat)

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small bowl combine the ricotta, spinach, eggs, cream, garlic, salt, black pepper, nutmeg, cayenne, and 1/4 cup Parmesan.  Fill fillo shells with spinach mixture.  Spray baking sheet or line with parchment paper and bake for about 10 minutes.  Remove to wire rack to cool.