Author: Stef

This is a great dish if you love lasagna but are trying to cut back on pasta or just want a lighter dish.  My family devoured it (and they very rarely opt for the vegetable version of something!)

Tip: To avoid a watery dish when using zucchini to replace a traditional noodle make sure to dry it as well as possible before cooking it.  For this recipe we dried the cut strips in the oven at 375^o on a jelly roll with cooking racks placed in them.

Ingredients:
10-12 large Zucchini, cut into approx. 1/4″ strips (see above tip)
1 large onion
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1-2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large portobello mushroom, chopped finely/minced
1lb ground beef (can substitute other meats if desired)
1 jar Due Cellucci Traditional or Tomato Basil Sauce
Basil (if you have on hand)
Salt and pepper to taste
Shredded Mozzarella
1 container Ricotta or Mascarpone Cheese (let it sit outside of the fridge for a bit so that it’s easier to spread)
Grated Parmigiano Cheese

Preparation:

Meat Sauce:
1. Sauté the onion and garlic in the oil, until soft and
2. Add meat and portobello mushroom and cook until browned and cooked through. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.
3. Stir in jar of sauce,  and simmer low for about 20 minutes.
4. Stir in fresh chopped basil. Set aside

Lasagna Assembly:

Use a Large casserole dish and layer as follows:

Layer 1 – Zucchini

Layer 2 – Meat sauce

Layer 3 – Ricotta and sprinkle Parmigiano Cheese

Layer 4 – Thin layer of shredded mozzarella

Keep repeating until you’re at the top (probably 3 times depending on your pan)

Final Layer should be just Zucchini and sauce.

Bake at  convection 350^o for 30 minutes then add a layer of mozzarella on top and bake for another 10 mins or until cheese is golden brown.

There are many variations on baked eggs.  This one has bright spinach, hearty artichokes and creamy burrata.  It’s perfect for brunch or serve it with crusty bread for a unique dinner. You will need two cast iron skillets or you can cook the eggs in batches.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
5 oz baby spinach
8 large eggs
2 cups artichoke hearts, chopped
8 oz burrata
24 oz Due Cellucci Tomato Sauce
½ tsp red pepper flakes
salt and black pepper, to taste

Preparation:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350F.
2. Sauté Spinach – Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic to the pan and saute for 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant. Add the spinach to the pan and saute until wilted. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
3. In a large cast iron skillet, spread half of the Due Cellucci tomato sauce.
4. Top with half of the spinach, half of the artichokes, and half of the burrata.
5. Crack four eggs over the top.
6. Sprinkle with salt, black pepper, and half of the pepper flakes.
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the whites are cooked and yolks are cooked to preferred doneness.

Repeat with remaining ingredients.

Serves 8

The perfect soup for chilly days.  So easy to make and it’s full of protein so it really fills you up.  Vegan Option:  leave out the sausage and replace chicken broth with vegetable broth.  Either way this soup will make your belly happy!

Ingredients

1/2 lb ground Italian sausage
About 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 large onion, roughly chopped
2 celery stalks, sliced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1 1/2 tsp. smoked paprika (sub other paprika if smoked not on hand).
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 bay leaf
1/2 can (7oz ounces) diced tomatoes
1 can (15 ounces) black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup lentils
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 cups Due Cellucci Traditional Sauce
3 cups water
1/2 cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped

Preparation:

1) Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottom pot over medium high heat. Add the ground sausage and sauté until it is well browned, about 5-8 minutes. Transfer the cooked sausage to a paper towel lined plate to drain. Set aside (you will add back at the end)

2) Add the onions, celery and carrots to the pot and sauté until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, salt, pepper, paprika, chili powder and bay leaf. Sauté for another 1-2 minutes. Add the diced tomatoes and their juices, the black beans, lentils, chicken broth, Due Cellucci sauce and water. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer. Simmer, uncovered, for about 30 minutes, or until the lentils are tender.

3) Remove and discard the bay leaf. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until it is at the consistency that you desire.

4) Return the soup to the stovetop over medium heat to re-warm. Stir in the chopped parsley and the cooked sausage. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serve with chopped fresh parsley, tortilla chips & lime wedges

Serves 10-12

 

My dad’s meatballs are just delicious.  They just are.  I know this recipe makes more meatballs than you can possibly eat in one sitting, but if you’re going to go through the effort of making meatballs you might as well make a bunch.  I always keep them in the freezer.  They defrost quickly and are great for when you have unexpected guests. You’ll need a meat grinder for this (trust me it’s worth it).  I have one that attaches to a kitchenaid stand mixer and is easy to use.

Ingredients:

3 lbs ground beef

1 lb ground veal

1 lb ground pork

3 baseball size balls of white bread soaked in milk (about 20 slices of bread and about 1 cup of milk. Do not use the excess milk)

10-15 cloves of garlic

2 tablespoons of parsley

5 eggs

8 drops Worcestershire sauce (i will measure this for you next time.  I basically count to 8 while it’s dripping out!)

5 squirts of ketchup (good hearty squirts!)

1 Tbsp cutlery teaspoons of salt

1 Tsp espresso spoon of pepper

Other ingredients:

Olive oil for rolling the meatballs and lining bottom of baking sheet pan.

Stock (chicken/vegetable/beef…whatever you have on hand) for bottom of pan if meatballs start sticking during cooking

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 325^oF

1. Run the first 6 ingredients together through meat grinder.
2. Mix in remaining 5 ingredients. (make sure everything is fully mixed in)

To form meatballs:

1. Drizzle a little oil in the pans to coat bottom.  Leave a little extra for dipping your fingers
2. Dip fingers in oil and using your palms roll the mixture into round balls. (the oil will ensure the meat doesn’t stick to your hands).
3. Line them up in rows on pan leaving a little space between balls.
4. Bake for about 45-55 mins or until 165^oF internal temp. Flip meatballs over about halfway through cooking time.  T

Total cooking time depends on size of meatball. If they are starting to brown too much on the bottom or stick to pan pour a little broth in the bottom of the pan.

Yields: about 50 (2” meatballs)

Ingredients:

1 cup V8 (or jarred tomato juice)

1 1/2 cups Due Cellucci Traditional Sauce

3-5 celery stalks

2 Tbsp Horseradish (or to taste)

2-3 Tsp Worcestershire Sauce

1-1 1/2 Tsp Tabasco (or to taste)

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

1/2 tsp celery seed or celery salt

Salt & Pepper to taste (add this after you blend if needed)

1-2 shots of vodka per glass (or more or less!)

Preparation:

Blend everything together in a blender until smooth, keeping the Vodka aside. Pour over ice and add in vodka.  Stir well and serve with favorite toppings: Celery, bacon, olives, shrimp, pork belly, pickles or any combination. For an extra treat, rim the glasses with a combination of chili, cayenne and salt. Dip each glass into lemon juice and then into your spice mixture.

Serves: 4 (depending on glass size)

Ingredients:

10-15  lasagna noodles

1 tsp olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 medium zucchini, grated and squeezed dry

1 cup  ricotta cheese (can also use marscapone or combination of both)

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 large egg, beaten

1/2 tsp kosher salt

Fresh pepper

1 3/4 cups Due Cellucci Traditional sauce

1/2 cup part skim mozzarella cheese, shredded

Fresh basil for garnish

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Ladle about 1 cup Due Cellucci sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.

Cook lasagna noodles in salted boiling water for about 4 minutes (just soft enough to roll…they will continue cooking in the oven).  In a medium nonstick skillet, sauté garlic and olive oil over medium heat for about 1 minute; add zucchini, salt and pepper to taste and cook about 4-5 minutes, until soft.

In a medium bowl, combine the zucchini, ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, egg, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.

Lay out the lasagna noodles on a clean work surface. Take 1/3 cup of ricotta mixture and spread evenly over the noodle. Roll carefully and place seam side down onto the prepared baking dish. Repeat with remaining noodles.

Ladle the remaining Due Cellucci sauce over the lasagna rolls and top each one with 1 tbsp mozzarella cheese. Put foil over baking dish and bake for about 40 minutes, or until the inside is heated through and the cheese is melted. Top with fresh basil.

Whenever my grandmother had leftover spaghetti, she would make us her Spaghetti Pie!  It was my favorite thing to eat on long car trips.  It’s so easy to do and now I often make it for my own kids.  It’s yummy warm or at room temperature, making it the perfect on-the-go snack or meal.

Ingredients

Leftover spaghetti with sauce
1 egg, lightly beaten
Parmigiano cheese (about a cup)

 

Preparation:

1. Toss the spaghetti, egg, and Parmigiano together in a bowl until completely mixed throughout.

2. Heat a skillet pan over med heat and spray with olive oil.  Add the spaghetti mixture to the pan and spread it out evenly to cover the whole bottom.  Let it brown slowly (reduce the heat a bit if you need to.)

3. Flip the pie by sliding it from the pan onto a plate.  Then, place the pan upside down on top of the plate and quickly flip the plate and pan over in one motion (I promise this isn’t that hard!)  Return to heat and continue cooking the other side until browned.

I use a pizza cutter to cut the pie into wedges.  Serve warm or at room temperature.