had to do the hardest thing ever

So I am the type of person who HATES to ask for help. As an Italian I am extremely proud and have always been pretty good at getting myself out of sticky situations. But it has happened that I had to start up a gofundme account to beg for handouts.

It sucks and I am irreparably embarrassed but it has come down to keeping the electricity on or putting food in my child's belly.

So here it is, for no one to see, the link to my GoFundMe page

http://www.gofundme.com/dyjk08

chicken tacos

Have I posted this one yet? Probably but it's delicious so you get it again.

3 chicken breasts (boneless and skinless)
1 package of taco seasoning
1 cup of chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons of FRESH lime juice

Put it all together in a crockpot on low for 6 hours and boom! Best chicken taco meat ever.

*note do not add any other liquid other than the lime juice, it is not needed.

I think the rest of the taco fixings are pretty explanatory. Go out and feast my friends.

Baked Penne with Pancetta, Mushrooms, and Spinach

Found this recipe on Safeway's website recently, tried it and man was it AMAZING!

Give a try guys, I know you will love it too!

Baked Penne with Pancetta, Mushrooms, and Spinach

Recipe by: Safeway

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 1 hour

Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 pound O Organics(TM) Penne Rigate
• 1 (3 ounce) package Primo Taglio Pancetta
• 1 pound cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more for pasta water
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 (5 ounce) packages O Organics(TM) Baby Spinach
• 10 ounces Primo Taglio Smoked Fontina Cheese, shredded
• 1 cup Lucerne(R) Half-and-Half
• 1/2 cup Lucerne Shredded Parmesan Cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a large pot of salted water, cook penne according to package instructions. Drain the pasta and return it to the pot, then set pot over low heat.
2. Meanwhile, in a large frying pan over medium-high heat, cook pancetta until browned and crisp, about 6 minutes. Remove from pan to a plate lined with a paper towel to drain. Add mushrooms to pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 6 minutes. Add garlic; cook 2 minutes longer. Season with the salt and pepper to taste.
3. Add spinach to pasta by handfuls, stirring so the heat from the pasta wilts the spinach. Add the mushroom mixture and crumbled pancetta, then the fontina and the half-and-half. Stir to combine.
4. Transfer pasta to a buttered 9- by 13-inch ovenproof dish and sprinkle with parmesan. Bake, covered with a greased piece of foil, for 30 minutes. Uncover and continue baking until top is golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes more.

A quick and yummy soup

Made this tonight because I was feeling lazy. Strange to make soup in the summer but I'm a rebel like that. Ha.

Here is what you need:

1 32 Oz box of Chicken Stock
1/2 can of (safeway brand) fire roasted tomatoes w/garlic - you can get plain too if you wish
1 1/2 cups of dry bowtie pasta
4 cloves of garlic (leave em whole if you dig soft garlic, dice em if you don't)
1 sprig of fresh rosemary
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp thyme
1 tbsp salt
a pinch of cayenne pepper

(you can add some garlic powder/garlic salt if you like it more garlic-y)


Pour the chicken stock into a medium to large sauce pan. Heat on high. Remove the leaves off the rosemary sprig and toss in the stock, add the garlic and other spices. Let the chicken stock come to a slow boil then add the pasta, reduce heat just a tad so it won't boil over.

Let the pasta boil in the stock and spices until soft (about 12 minutes)

Add the tomatoes, stir and reduce heat to medium-low. Let the soup simmer for about 10 more minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat, stir again then serve. Try it with some sourdough bread.

ENJOY!

A note about my substitutions

So there isn't a recipe in this post but I wanted to make a quick note. I have a strange food allergy that quiet possibly makes me the worst Italian on the planet.

I am allergic to ONIONS..... lame right?


So you may notice that in some of my recipes you will not see onions listed. I will try to add side notes for those recipes for those of you who wish to have onions in your yummies.

Also wanted to give you a heads up that I am working on my chili recipe, it's running about a 9 alarm at the moment but I am attempting to cool it down for y'all. Keep checking back, it should be up within the week.

Thank you for taking the time to stop by my blog, in the mean time GET COOKING!!!!!

A fresh take on instant rice

So if you are like me (super impatient and usually waits to cook dinner until I'm STARVING) then you are or should be familiar with instant rice. Besides, who really has 30 minutes to wait for rice to cook anyway? Right?

Well as great of an invention as Instant Rice is, it can get pretty boring...

So My mom actually used to make this recipe and it has become one of my favorite comfort foods.
Really simple all you need is:
1 Can of Condensed Cream Of Mushroom Soup
and some instant rice.

Here is how you do it (really every household should know how to make this dish)

in a medium saucepan pour one can of cream of mushroom soup followed by one can of water (use the can to measure the water and Rice) bring to a boil then throw in one can's worth of dry instant rice. Cover, remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes.

DONE! Easy right?

My favorite way to enjoy this side dish is to pour some Crystal Louisiana Hot Sauce on it. YUM YUM!

Hope you enjoy it :)

Classic Itallian Tricolore Snack

So this one is pretty simple, but simple can be delicious!

If you aren't familiar with Tricolore, allow me to break it down for you: The word tricolore refers to the Italian flag (red, white and green) translated into food: tomatoes, cheese and basil. Super simple and super refreshing, great for a summer snack!

This particular pairing is great if you have to throw something together for a potluck.

What you need:
Grape tomatoes - sliced (that can be tricky, please be careful)
Smoked Mozzarella - sliced to 1/4 inch thick and about the size of a wheat thin cracker or ritz
Fresh Basil - also cut to cracker sized pieces
Wheat thins OR Ritz (your decision)

All you do is take a cracker, place a slice of smoked mozzarella on top, then a slice of basil and topped of with a slice of grape tomato.

Pick up cracker and toppings, eat and enjoy!

Variations: you can use Trisquit crackers with a drop of olive oil for a twist on the taste.