Quick Meals Planner: Italian Night
Chopped Italian Salad | Chicken Cacciatore | Pencil Points | Espresso Gelato with Chocolate Shavings
Chopped Italian Salad
Recipe Summary
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 6 |
| Category: | Salad |
| Meal: | Italian Night (Quick Meals Planner) |
| 6 | oz | lettuce, mixed |
| 0.5 | cup | tomatoes, cherry |
| 1 | small | cucumbers, sliced |
| 1 | Tb | onions, chopped |
| 2 | oz | cheese, Romano |
| 1 | small | celery ribs |
| 3 | Tb | cheese, Romano, grated |
| 0.25 | cup | mushrooms, sliced |
| 0.125 | cup | olives, green |
| 2 | oz | salami |
| 3 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 0.5 | tsp | oregano, dried |
| 3 | Tb | vinegar, red wine |
| 1 | tsp | garlic powder |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
| |
Chop all ingredients into bite size pieces. Place in a large bowl. Add olive oil, vinegar, garlic powder and oregano and mix. Add grated romano and mix again. Serve
Chicken Cacciatore
Recipe Summary
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 4 |
| Category: | Chicken Entrée |
| Meal: | Italian Night (Quick Meals Planner) |
| 2 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 4 | lb | chicken, whole, cut up |
| 3 | medium | onion, yellow ,quartered |
| 1 | lb | mushrooms, quartered |
| 8 | cloves | garlic, chopped |
| 0.25 | tsp | oregano, dried |
| 1 | tsp | celery seeds |
| 2 | medium | bay leaves, whole dried |
| 1 | cup | wine, dry white |
| 1 | 15 oz can | chicken broth |
| 0.5 | tsp | salt and pepper to taste |
| |
Brown chicken in oil, add onions, mushrooms and garlic sauté for 3 minutes. Add remaining ingredients, simmer for 30 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.
Note: If you prefer red sauce, add 1 LB diced tomatoes, 2 TB tomato paste and substitute red wine for the white wine.
Meal Planning Suggestion!
Pencil Points
Recipe Summary
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 4 |
| Category: | Cooking for the Kids |
| Meal: | Italian Night (Quick Meals Planner) |
| 1 | lb | pasta, rigatoni |
| 3 | cup | tomato sauce |
| 2 | Tb | cheese, Romano, grated |
| 4 | tsp | basil, fresh chopped |
| |
Cook pasta according to instruction on the package. Heat sauce and pour over pasta, Sprinkle grated cheese and chopped basil over top.
Espresso Gelato with Chocolate Shavings
Recipe Summary
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 8 |
| Category: | Dessert |
| Meal: | Italian Night (Quick Meals Planner) |
| 5 | large | egg, yolks |
| 1 | cup | sugar, granulated |
| 1.5 | cup | milk, whole |
| 0.5 | cup | water |
| 2 | Tb | espresso, instant, divided |
| 1 | Tb | chocolate, semi-sweet bar |
| |
Whisk egg yolks and sugar together until light yellow. Place 1/2 of the espresso in the water in the microwave for 1 minute. Bring milk to a boil on the stove. Pour 1/3 of the milk into the egg/sugar mixture and whisk. Pour remaining milk into the egg/sugar mixture, add the espresso mixture and continue to whisk. Pour mixture back into the pan and heat over low-medium heat, stirring constantly until thick (do not boil). Sprinkle remaining espresso powder into mixture and stir. When you put a spoon into the mixture and remove it you can draw a line with your finger on the spoon. Cool the mixture in the frig. Pour into an ice cream maker and allow it to reach a custard consistency. Shave chocolate into small pieces and add to ice cream maker just before you remove the gelato. Place in a storage container and seal with a lid. Freeze in the freezer until hard.
