Kitchen Ranch

Leek Mac N Cheese

I love a new spin on an old favorite-In this case sauteed leeks added to my favorite Mac N Cheese recipe

And here is a link to really gorgeous and expensive dinnerware: Here

as well as some foxy chocolate eye candy: YUM

Have a great Monday..............

Potato Au Gratin

I am actually not here, but rather, I am attending the Downieville Classic -only as backup food prep. I hope to report on some delicious foods we are eating next week.

In the meantime I shall rely on potatoes once more...

Any casserole sporting layers of onions, cheese, potatoes and of course delicious bread crumbs put this dish at the top of the list when the big bags of potatoes go up for sale.

• 3 Mid to Lg Potatoes
• 1 Onion chopped
• 3 Garlic Cloves Minced
• 3 Handfuls of preferred and grated cheese
• Butter
• Bread Crumbs to Top

Begin with washed and sliced potatoes in a casserole dish, salt and pepper to taste.

Saute the onions and garlic in olive oil until they are translucent.  Layer the goods and cut with butter chunks just for kicks. Top off with salt, pepper and bread crumbs (oh yes more cheese please!)

Bake at 350 F for 45 minutes. The potatoes will be soft and the cheese top bubbly.

For a variation, add chopped walnuts throughout the layers...

Orzo Pasta Casserole

• 1 Cup Fusilli Pasta
• 1 Cup Orzo Pasta
• 1 Onion Chopped
• 2 Garlic cloves minced
• 1 Head of Broccoli washed and chopped
• 2 Cups Cheddar cheese
• 1/2 Cup Bread crumbs
• 1 Can of Cream of mushroom Soup
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Cook Pasta and set aside
Cook Orzo Pasta for about 7-10 minutes, set aside

Heat a couple glugs of Olive oil in a frying pan pan
Add onion and garlic and cook until brown
Add broccoli and continue to cook until the broccoli softens -about 5 minutes

In a Casserole dish, add cooked pastas along with onion, garlic and broccoli mix
Top with a can of cream of mushroom soup-mix

Add 1 Cup (or more if you adore cheese) shredded cheddar
Mix into casserole and top with bread crumbs as well as another cup cheese

Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes and until cheese is nice and bubbly

Lilly's Two Timing Casserole

The following recipe was inspired by my friend Lilly. We decided to call it a two timing casserole because there is a creative license with this recipe-any leftover pasta can evolve into a delicious casserole with a few simple additions (namely cheese), hence this dish is a two timer.

If you haven't any pasta leftovers but fancy a baked pasta casserole, try the following on for size.

• Olive oil
• Fusilli Pasta (about 1/2 a bag or 4 handfuls cooked)
• 4 quartered tomatoes
• 1 Yellow onion sliced
• 4 garlic cloves minced
• 3 zucchini chopped into bite sized pieces
• 1/2 Cup each Cheddar and Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F

Begin with roasting the tomatoes. Place quartered tomatoes in a roasting pan. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle Herbes de Provence as well as salt and pepper. Roast for an hour.

Move on to the pasta and cook in a large pot of water.

In a skillet, add olive oil, onions and garlic. After two minutes add the zucchini and brown all ingredients.

Now combine everything into a large baking dish and top with cheese (as seen below).

Bake at 325 for 20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.