Green Options

This Blog has started with a few pretty simple recipes, however this time around I am going to ramp things up a little by delving into the world of casseroles.  For the beginner chefs out there don’t fret, because what I am going to suggest is only slightly more advanced than before.  If cooked properly, this easy to make mostaccioli casserole results in a big portioned, tasty meal sure to please.

Before you get started, this meal you need a few simple ingredients that you can pick up at just about any grocery story:  1) About a pound of Mostaccioli noodles 2) 2 cans of Diced Tomatoes 3) Roughly 1 can each of Tomato sauce and tomato paste 4)1 pound of mild Italian sausage 5) Fresh mozzarella cheese and some Italian blend shredded (or grated) cheese 6) Crushed Garlic.

Start with the noodles and boil them until they reach al dente style (firm pasta, just slightly undercooked), and then drain and strain.

Then cook up the Italian sausage in the same pan you just used.  Load the sausage with what you like as far as seasonings/ salt and pepper.  While working on the sausage, warm up the tomatos adding crushed garlic to it (the garlic can also be added in the final mix).

(As far as substitutions for Italian sausage, different kinds of meat or sausage, especially spicy can make for a really interesting taste.  If using a substitute, try to find other cheeses that fit well with your meat choice.)

For today’s edition of my can’t cook blog, I have something really simple and delicious to take a try at.  It is honestly one of the easiest meals you can possibly make, but still fantastic nonetheless–Spaghetti with Garlic/Cheese Bread.

If you are thinking, well that is just too easy meal, don’t give up on me yet.  I am going to show you how if you spend just a little more time with the preparation or variation, this can be a really great meal.

First off, cook up some spaghetti.  Even for a beginners cooking Blog, this pretty easy–Boil some water, toss noodles in the pan and cook until they reach al dente, or firm but not solid (just a hair under fully cooked).

Right here is where I would like to improve this dish.  First off, try whole wheat pasta instead of regular enriched flour pasta.  It is much better for you, and the taste difference in negligible.

For this post I am going to express one of my favorite simple recipes, and a very healthy one at that–Grilled Chicken Salad.

Now your probably thinking, this is probably too simple to be expressed on a Blog.  Well I disagree.  If a little extra time is spent with preparation, this can be one of those great easy meals, that you can remake again and again.  This meal is such a staple that in our house, we designate one night a week as Grilled Chicken Salad Night.

In order to make up this meal, you need to grab some boneless chicken fillets from your local grocer’s freezer.  Simply grill up the chicken over a charcoal or propane grill until the chicken is cooked through and crisp, but not burned. While cooking, cover the chicken with basic seasoning to improve taste. For my super delicious chicken salad, usually a little well done on the chicken makes for a tastier meal.

If you lack the potential to grill, chicken actually bakes well in the oven under steady supervision of flipping the chicken to ensure the chicken is baked all the way through.  To bake it use the same formula as you did for grilling, but just expect a little more production time.  In either case, slicing open the raw chicken at various parts will help cook the bird and let the seasoning soak in more.

For my edition of the learning to cook Blog, I am going to start with something super simple:  Grilled cheese sandwiches, one the key staple foods of a child growing up in the Midwest.

But these culinary treats should not just be for moms and kids.  Playing around with the recipe some can turn this classic into a work of art, and I would like to show you how.

(Photo taken by Dan Tentler)
Now this is not the first time the guilty pleasures of grilled cheese have been toted on this site.  Kelly Best-Oliver spells out her enjoyment of grilled cheese and tomatoe shallot soup.  Robin Shreeves also encourages grilled cheese and tomato soup in her Thrifty Thursday Blog from September 2008.

However, both these Blogs do not improve the process of making grilled cheese to improve taste.  I like to think that Grilled Cheese sandwiches can be a real meal, an almost delicacy if you will.  That is where I, Jason Karnosky–the working food journalist come in.

Question:  Have you ever watched the Food Network and think the people on the television are speaking in a foreign language?

Q:  Do your friends think you have the cooking skills of a sting ray and not Rachel Ray?

Q:  When you read a cook book, do would wish it said, “Here open this and place it in the microwave for five minutes?”

Q:  Do people go out of their way to make sure you are NOT in the kitchen when a holiday meal is being made?

Well if you answered yes to any/all of these questions, then my Blog is the one for you.  Up until about five years ago, I really sucked at cooking.  By sucked I mean frozen pizza and microwave popcorn was about the extent of my cooking skills.  And I would have answered a resounding “YES” to all of those questions.