tastiest Italian cooking recipes

Yummy Lasagna

Ingredients     1 pound lean ground beef

     2/3 (28 ounce) jar spaghetti sauce

     2 pounds ricotta cheese

     1/2 cup grated Romano cheese

     1 egg

     1/4 cup dried basil

     1 clove garlic, pressed

     1 (8 ounce) package sliced ​​pepperoni sausage

     8 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
In large skillet over medium-high heat, cook beef until brown; drain. In small saucepan, heat spaghetti sauce.
In a medium bowl, stir together ricotta, Romano, egg, basil and garlic.
Coat the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish with a thin layer of spaghetti sauce. Place 3 or 4 noodles, overlapping edges, over sauce. Spread half of ricotta mixture over noodles. Cover ricotta with half of browned beef, half of pepperoni slices, and 1/4 of mozzarella cheese. Repeat sauce, noodle, ricotta, meat and cheese layers. Layer sauce and noodles again, and pour remaining sauce over all, being sure to cover the edges. Top with remaining mozzarella.
Cover pan with foil and pierce foil 3 or 4 times with fork to ventilate. Bake 45 minutes, remove foil, and bake 15 minutes more to brown the top. Let stand 10 minutes before serving

Kay's Spaghetti and Lasagna Sauce 

This sauce came from a good friend's Italian mother-in-law. It is easy, and by far the best homemade sauce I know of. Great for both spaghetti and lasagna. Pssst ... the secret is the sugar! Also, as I am now vegetarian, it tastes great with out the meat! Just substitute two tablespoons olive oil for the beef. "

Ingredients

1 (28 ounce) can stewedounce) can stewed tomatoes

     1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes

     1 pound lean ground beef

     2 yellow onions, chopped

     2 green bell peppers, chopped

     5 cloves garlic, chopped

     2 tablespoons white sugar

     1 tablespoon dried basil

     1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

     salt and pepper to taste

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Directions

Blend the stewed tomatoes and crushed tomatoes in a blender. In a stock pot or large kettle, brown the ground beef with the onions, peppers, garlic. Pour in tomatoes, and reduce heat. Add sugar, basil and oregano, and simmer about 40 minutes. Season with salt and pepper before serving

Italian Breaded Pork Chops

It taste wonderful, I love it very much

Ingredients

3 eggs, lightly beaten

     3 tablespoons milk

     1 1/2 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs

     1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

     2 tablespoons dried parsley

     2 tablespoons olive oil

     4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

     4 pork chops

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (160 degrees C).
In a small bowl, beat together the eggs and milk. In a separate small bowl, mix the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, and parsley.
Heat the olive oil in a large, oven-proof skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic, and cook until lightly browned. Remove garlic, reserving for other uses.
Dip each pork chop into the egg mixture, then into the bread crumb mixture, coating evenly. Place coated pork chops in the skillet, and brown abut 5 minutes on each side.
Place the skillet and pork chops in the preheated oven, and cook 25 minutes, or to an internal temperature of 145 degrees F (63 degrees C

Spinach Tomato Tortellini

An old boyfriend's mother used to cook this for me whenever I ate over. Cheese tortellini are served in a creamy tomato and spinach sauce. I love it! "

Ingredients

1 (16 ounce) package cheese tortellini

     1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes with garlic and onion

     1 cup chopped fresh spinach

     1/2 teaspoon salt

     1/4 teaspoon pepper

     1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil

     1 teaspoon minced garlic

     2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

     3/4 cup milk

     3/4 cup heavy cream

     1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the tortellini, and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.
While you get the tortellini going, combine the tomatoes, spinach, salt, pepper, basil and garlic in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook and stir until the mixture begins to bubble.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, milk and cream. Stir this mixture into the saucepan along with the Parmesan cheese. Heat through, then reduce heat to low, and simmer until thick, about 2 minutes.
Drain the tortellini, but do not rinse, then pour them into the saucepan with the sauce. Stir to coat, and serve

Balsamic Roasted Pork Loin

Ingredients

2tablespoons steak seasoning rub

     1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

     1/2 cup olive oil

     2 pounds boneless pork loin roast

Directions

Dissolve steak seasoning in balsamic vinegar, then stir in olive oil. Place pork into a resealable plastic bag and pour marinade overtop. Squeeze out air and seal bag; marinate 2 hours to overnight.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Place pork into a glass baking dish along with marinade. Bake in preheated oven, basting occasionally until the pork reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees F (65 degrees C), about 1 hour. Let the roast rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving

 Chicken Milano

 

A delicious pasta and chicken dish with garlic, sun-dried tomatoes and fresh basil. Use the dry packaged sun-dried tomatoes instead of the tomatoes packed in olive oil. The sauce can be kept, covered, for one day in the refrigerator; heat again over low heat. Try it with some crusty bread if desired. "

Ingredients

1 tablespoon butter

     2 cloves garlic, minced

     1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped

     1 cup chicken broth, divided

     1 cup heavy cream

     1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

     salt and pepper to taste

     2 tablespoons vegetable oil

     2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

     8 ounces dry fettuccini pasta

Directions

In a large saucepan over low heat, melt butter; add garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and 3/4 cup of the chicken broth; increase to medium heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for about 10 minutes or until the tomatoes are tender. Add the cream and bring to a boil; stirring. Simmer over medium heat until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides. In a large skillet over medium heat, warm oil and saute chicken. Press on chicken occasionally with a slotted spatula. Cook for about 4 minutes per side or until the meat feels springy and is no longer pink inside. Transfer to a board; cover and keep warm. Discard the fat from the skillet.In the same skillet, over medium heat, bring 1/4 cup chicken broth to a boil; stirring the pan juices. Reduce slightly and add to the cream sauce; stir in basil and adjust seasonings to taste.Meanwhile, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add fettuccine and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain, transfer to a bowl and toss with 3 to 4 tablespoons of the sauce.Cut each chicken breast into 2 to 3 diagonal slices. Reheat the sauce gently if needed. Transfer the pasta to serving plates; top with chicken and coat with the cream sauce; serve