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Easy Week Night Meal

I understand what it’s like to be a busy mom. I am running all day long. When the kids come in from dance or sports they are so hungry! Some nights you just want an easy and nutritious meal with not a lot of steps or ingredients. My Pasta Fagioli recipe will not disappoint. This is best served fresh. It will take you roughly 15 minutes to prepare and 40 minutes to simmer. The kids will devour it! Easy, delicious and nutritious – what more could you ask for!!!?????

An Italian Easter Tradition

I have fond memories of going to my Italian grandmother’s and my Aunt Millie’s house for Easter. They lived in a two-story home located in a small Italian neighborhood. Everybody knew them. Any time you stopped by, there was always company, and someone speaking Italian. Aunt Millie was the ultimate chef. She would always have mounds of food ready to be eaten the moment her boys (and girls) jetted in the house from school. Grandma lived upstairs and Millie was downstairs. Later when Aunt Millie had grandchildren, they would call them Grandma upstairs/downstairs. Being a part of the hustle and bustle of their home was where everyone wanted to be: family friends, neighborhood kids, and relatives. My mom worked in the area sometimes, and always stopped in, no phone call necessary. You were always welcome! My neighbor and I are like that. We still keep that open door policy and stop in and chat.

Salami & Egg Bread, Ricotta Cheesecake and Italian bread with the hard boiled colored Easter Eggs baked inside were always part of our celebration, and it was something I looked forward to every Easter. There is something savory and sweet about the Salami & Egg bread. It’s salty, because the cheese and deli meats, but sweet because the crust. It has the consistency and texture of a quiche, but is served cold. The Cheesecake is melt-in-your-mouth-goodness, that will be a hit! Both of these recipes have been in my family for many generations. I was so lucky to recover them to share with my family at Easter. I have my grandmother’s bread recipe, and I promise to share that soon!

Salad in a jar

When you are a busy family, it’s hard to find the time to pack your kid’s lunches and then your lunch. Here is a great lunch if you are on the go and you can make it the night before. Fill up a mason jar with all of your favorites like: veggies, cheese, turkey, marinated chicken, celery, carrots, red onion, romaine hearts, spring mix, spinach, hard boiled eggs, corn, and the list can go on and on. I think the best way to approach salad in a jar is to use what you have on hand.

The salad dressing will go in first, then you can build your salad from there. In this salad in a jar I added: tomatoes, carrots, celery, gorgonzola cheese, corn, cranraisins and spring mix salad. Then when you are ready to have lunch, shake and eat! You can eat right out of the jar or pour onto a plate. I like to add some extra lettuce for more crunch. This was a winning combination of flavors. The choices are limitless though. Here are some suggestions:

Spinach Salad – organic baby spinach leaves, hard boiled eggs, turkey bacon, cranraisins, tomatoes, strawberries, and poppyseed or vadalia onion dressing.

Romaine Salad – corn, shredded carrots, cheddar cheese, honey roasted turkey, golden raisins, and red onions with a light vinaigrette.

Go GREEK! – romaine hearts, tomatoes, cucumbers, red & green peppers, black olives, marinated chicken and red onion with red wine vinegar and a touch of olive oil.

Kale Yeah!– Organic curly Kale leaves drizzle with olive and lemon to soften leaves, corn, cranraisins, chick peas (my favorite!!!!!), chunks of your favorite cheese, and a lemon vinaigrette.

Cobb Salad – Romaine or iceberg lettuce, diced hard boiled eggs, bacon, blue cheese, avocado, tomatoes and a creamy dressing.

Appetizers

We are Italian, so serving mozzarella as an appetizer is always something I do. I decided to get creative because serving fresh mozzarella can get messy and it’s very expensive. I thought this is a great way to serve guests and give everyone a taste. These are also great for the older kid’s lunches. Here’s what you’ll need.

Start by finding fresh mozzarella cheese balls in olive oil. They are sold in most specialty Italian stores or major food stores. If you want to make these more kid-friendly opt for getting the cheese sticks and dicing them into bite size pieces and use those instead. Then, find the tiny tomatoes and taste them to be sure they are fresh. Then try to find the small salami slices that are pre-cut or you can get the regular slices at the deli and cut in half.

Assemble these on a toothpick by starting with the mozzarella, then the tomato and last the salami. Artfully drizzle balsamic vinegar & olive oil. I like red apple balsamic vinegar by Carter & Cavero. (Our cousin, Rosemary & Frank sent it to us as a gift! YUM!) For garnish and color add sprinkles of dried parsley. They are ready to eat and serve! They will be the hit of the party!!!