Lasagna Soup topped with Basil Garlic Ricotta

Ever want the flavors of something but don't want all the hassle of making it? Yea me too, I knew there had to be an easier way to get the hearty cheesy flavors of lasagna without spending all day cooking. So my Deconstructed Lasagna Soup was born! Now I could have mixed the cheese in but then I thought it would seem more like a non baked pasta dish, so instead I topped each bowl with a ball of Basil Garlic Ricotta cheese. I kept the cheese cold so when it hit the warm soup it melted and mixed in nicely.


Ricotta Topping:
1cup Ricotta cheese
2-3 cloves Garlic, minced
3 tbsp Basil-fresh (DO NOT USE DRIED), chopped

1. Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix well

2. Prepare a small plate or sheet pan with foil or wax/parchment paper. With a spoon, cookie scoop, melon baller, or in my case I used a round 1tbsp to scoop balls of cheese. Place on prepared sheet/plate and refrigerate until needed.

Soup Ingredients:

3lbs Ground Turkey (Turkey Sausage- cut from casings or a mix of the two would be tasty too)
1 medium Onion, diced
5-6 cloves Garlic, minced
1 tsp Dried Basil
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
1/2 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
Salt and Pepper to taste
2- 15oz cans Italian seasoned Diced Tomatoes
2- 15oz cans Tomato Sauce
32 oz Chicken Stock
2- 10oz boxes frozen Chopped Spinach, thawed and squeezed of all moisture
1 box Bow Tie Pasta (yes there are two boxes in the picture but I only used one)

1. Brown and drain meat, add in onion and garlic, season with dried Basil, Italian Seasoning, Red Pepper Flakes, Salt and Pepper, cook until onions are soft.

2. Add diced tomatoes, tomato sauce and chicken stock, simmer for 15-20 minutes

3. Add Spinach and Pasta continue to simmer until pasta is cooked.
**SIDE NOTE: this is how I made it this time, but in the future I will most likely keep the pasta separate as it drank up most of the broth!!**

Now what is Lasagna without the garlic bread you may be asking? Well of course I had to serve something.....*thinks* but to me making garlic bread just seemed like it would be to bulky of a side for this hearty soup. So I decided on Bread sticks! (Although crusty Ciabatta toasted and rubbed with tomato and garlic sprinkled with Asiago cheese does sound good too....)

Ingredients:
1 package refrigerated bread stick dough
1 compound butter mixture (1 stick butter, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, 4-5 Garlic Cloves-minced)
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese

1. On prepared sheet pans place bread stick dough.
2. Slater with compound butter.
3. Top with Mozzarella Cheese
4. Bake 375 degrees for 13min

All that is left to do now is serve! Ladle soup into bowls and place a ball of the ricotta mixture in the center, make sure you use a spatula to do this as the warmth from your hands will ruin the shape of the balls you made when you try to pick them up.

In my opinion this came out really well, it was warm and really hearty and 1/4th of the work of actually making lasagna, not to mention clean up was a breeze! As I mentioned earlier in the post the pasta did drink most of the broth so I will need to add more tomato sauce and chicken broth when I go to reheat it. So next time instead of this being a one pot meal, I will break out another pot and keep the pasta separate until I am ready to dish it out.

Oh, and this recipe could easily be cut in half. I just have the habit of cooking for an army. Left overs make great gifts, or freeze nicely (if planning on freezing I would leave the pasta out until you are ready to thaw and eat)

 Enjoy!
<3 Laura ^.^

Chocolate Chip M&M Cookies

This is the last of the cookie's I made for the box I sent my bestie :) The most favorite the classic chocolate chip m&m cookie. Sandy sugary chocolaty does it get any better? I think not!

I used Pink a white m&m's you could use something like this and pretty it up by using custom colors for baby showers, bridal shower gifts, or birthday parties.

2 sticks softened butter

3/4 Cup sugar

1 Cup packed light brown sugar

2 extra large eggs

2 Tablespoons pure vanilla

3 3/4 Cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

12 oz bag chocolate chips

1 bag M&M’s (you’ll have some left over)

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a stand or electric mixer beat the butter and sugars until well beaten.
3. Beat in eggs and vanilla until well combined.
4. Place flour, baking soda and salt into a large bowl; mix.  Slowly add to wet ingredients along with the chocolate chips.  Do not mix in M&M’s!!
5. Scoop out the dough for the size cookie you want place onto prepared 2 inches a piece, and push several m&m's into each cookie.
6. Bake for 12-15 minutes (depending on the size you made them), until edges just start to turn golden brown.
7. Let cool for 10 minutes on cookie sheet before transferring to a cooling rack.

must have : Grab a tall glass of milk and EAT until your hearts content

 Enjoy!
<3 Laura ^.^

Snickerdoodle cookies

These are my besties favorites! So naturally i had to make them :) These are simple hand rolled crackled cookies coated in cinnamon sugar....yum...

Coating:
3 tbsp sugar
1tsp cinnamon

Cookie Dough:
3 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon light corn syrup

2 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1. In a small bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon and set aside.
2. Stir together the dry ingredients.
3. In a bowl with a paddle attachment, cream the butter. Add the sugar and continue to mix, then add the eggs, corn syrup, and vanilla, and mix thoroughly. Add the dry ingredients and mix until blended.
4. Chill dough 1 hour if it's sticky or difficult to handle.
5. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
6. line cookie sheet with parchment paper
7. Roll balls of dough about the size of a walnut then roll them in the cinnamon sugar to coat. Place on sheet pan 2 1/2 inches apart.
8. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until puffed up and the surface is slightly cracked. Let cool on the cookie sheet a few minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool.

These were yummy I had one...ya know just a tiny one to make sure they were good enough to send the my bestie :)

Enjoy!
<3 Laura ^.^

Cranberry Walnut Oat Cookies

It seems I took a small break from my blog. I have been very busy with work and then my birthday then this week I have been sick. But two weekends ago I spent a full day making DOZENS off cookies. I planned on breaking them up sending some to work, sending some to my best friend, and leaving some at home. Well my family (mainly my father lol) pouted and wouldn't let them leave the house.

This is a pic of the container I sent my Best Friend :) In this container are:
Chocolate Chip M&M
Snicker Doodle
Cranberry Walnut
Oatmeal Raisin.

I will make separate posts for each cookie in the next few days. Through all of the cookies I made the ones that disappeared first were the Cranberry Walnut, so I shall start with that recipe.

For this recipe I basically used the same basic recipe as the oatmeal raisin cookies but swapped ingredients.




Ingredients:

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cups rolled oats (I added these just for texture they are optional)
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup walnuts

Preheat oven to 350°F

1. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, egg and vanilla until smooth.

2. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt together.

3. Stir this into the butter/sugar mixture.


4. Stir in the oats, cranberries, and walnuts.

5. At this point you can either chill the dough for a bit in the fridge and then scoop it, or scoop the cookies onto a sheet and then chill the whole tray before baking them. You could also bake them right away, if you’re impatient, but I do find that they come out with a better final product after being chilled. (I was impatient but still wanted to chill the dough so I put it in the freezer for about 30min in a metal bowl).

6. The cookies should be two inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake them for 10 to 12 minutes, taking them out when golden at the edges but still a little undercooked-looking on top. Let them sit on the hot baking sheet for five minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool. If you try to take them off the parchment paper before they cool a bit they will just fall apart they need to "set up" a bit before being moved.


Enjoy!
<3 Laura ^.^