I’d like to take a moment to honor my obsession adoration of the beautiful Giada De Laurentiis.
Seriously.
The woman can COOK. And she looks like this.
Seriously?!
Who WOULDN’T want to be her!!
(funny side note…4 years ago I worked at an Olive Garden and I can’t even tell you how many old people in at 11 am for soup n salad told me I look like that “beautiful italian girl on that food tv channel”
…
the closest resemblance I bore to Giada is the fact that I was holding italian food in my hands. THATS it.)
OK so anyway, last night our entire meal was Giada inspired. In fact, so was my lunch today (aka leftovers!). Yeah yeah, I’m gonna try to control my love of all things Giada for now. Let’s rewind to lunch yesterday- which, before dinner last night & lunch today, may have been the most delicious lunch I have had in a lonnnng long time.
Mixed greens topped with sprouts, roma tomatoes, cukes, a crumbled slice of center cut bacon, 1/4 of an avocado, some shredded honey roasted deli turkey, and about 1/8 a cup of shredded colby jack cheese. Oh, and a window view of snow falling!
Dressed in the most fabulous guilt free creamy dressing ever – 1/2 tbsp olive oil vinaigrette with 2 tbsp dijon mustard, a tiny splash balsamic and a tiny tiny squirt of honey.
NOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM NOM NOM x 8 thousand!
SO GOOD. WILL be repeated, fo sho.
When I knew I wouldnt be getting home until pretty late (I was in a different office that is a 1.5 hour drive from home, unless you get totally lost in B.F’in NOWHERE, which turns it into a 3 hour drive- not that I’d know !?), I busted out a snack I have been dying to be hungry for-
Gorgeous blueberry chobani with pomegranate arils & kashi honey sunshine. FABBBB!!
After coming face to face with 5 “Road ENDS” signs and more dirt road than I knew existed in Northern Michigan (my car currently looks like it was the loser in a mud wrestling match) I busted out Giada and got to work in the kitchen, putting my twist on a recipe from her newest cookbook, Giada’s Kitchen.
Spaghetti with Spicy Sausage, Artichokes & Creamy Peas
Serves 4
1/2 box whole wheat spaghetti
3 links sweet turkey sausage, removed from casings
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1-2 tbsp crushed red pepper
1/2 red onion, sliced
2 cups chopped artichoke hearts canned in water
10 oz bag frozen peas, defrosted
4 sun dried tomatoes, rehydrated & sliced
1 cup low fat ricotta
1/2 cup reserved pasta water
1.Get a large pot of water boiling for pasta & preheat nonstick pan over medium heat. Once water is boiling, add pasta & cook until al dente (4-7 minutes), & reserve 1/2 cup of the water before straining. Once nonstick pan is preheated, add 1 tbsp EVOO. Sauté minced garlic & crushed red pepper for 1-3 minutes, JUST until the garlic turns golden.
2. Add sausage & onions. Cook 4-5 minutes, breaking up sausage with your spoon as it browns. 
3. Add artichoke hearts & sundried tomatoes. Toss to combine. Push sausage mix to one side of pan and add in thawed peas.
4. Using your spoon/potato masher (or your really cool egg yolk poker!), smash the peas until most of the are mashed. Let a few keep their shape!!
5.Stir in ricotta & pasta water. Season with salt & pepper. Toss with cooked spaghetti! Finito!
On the side, my Giada recipe pt 2 was for her Pane Alla Grillia. This one I followed to a T- substituting this amazing Asiago Roasted Garlic bread made here locally. Check out these wholesome ingredients!
Brushed with EVOO, sprinkled with sea salt, popped under the broiler for a couple minutes on each side. Once out of the oven, rubbed with a garlic clove and a piece of roma tomato. BEST garlic bread EVER.
seriously, I swear I don’t love this so much because it is PINK 
Winner, winner Giada dinner!
And that concludes this Giada gush sesh.
Tonight we have big plans- another 7th grade boys home game! Hopefully Coach TJ can bring home win number 3 
I hope to get some better pics of the madness that is middle school basketball tonight.
And in lieu of a cute puppy pic, here is a pic of Ashley & Brents adorable cat, Zeke, trying on my sunglasses. Hahaha.
He loved it- fo REAL!
No comments:
Post a Comment