my take on martha's one-pan pasta

A few nights ago I posted about and made Martha Stewart's One-Pan Pasta dish. I made a few changes to it that I thought I would share. It was a hit and I cannot wait to make it again next week! I did not add the red pepper flakes because a few of us aren't big on spicy dishes and I didn't want to chance it. I figured if anyone wanted to add a little extra heat, they could sprinkle some on their own plate. I also added about 1/4 - 1/3 cup of tomato paste to add a little something extra to it, especially since the hubs wouldn't be eating the grape tomatoes already in the meal. Everyone loved it and I passed the recipe along. It is such an easy recipe, either the original or using my changes and will definitely be a repeat on our table, especially on nights I know I will need something quick!

this or that?

tea or coffee? sweet tea cold, cafe con leche hot

matte or glossy? in pictures, glossy

sweet or salty? i'm a real combo girl - pretzels and m&ms = perfect match

tv or radio? that's a real hard one. i would have to say tv if i can only pick one.

morning or evening? morning

pen or pencil? pen, preferably a LePen

introvert or extrovert? introvert until i get to know you and i open up more

mountain or beach? BEACH

spontaneous or structured? i need structure or else i am a mess, but i'm not too good at it

neat or messy? i'm not dirty, but if you ask the hubs, i make little piles in little places - so i guess that is a bit messy, but i'm not a slob.

town or country? that's a hard one. i like a little of both. i love the beautiful countryside, yet i love a quaint town

eat in or take out? i'm not the best cook. i have a few good dishes, but that's about it. and by dinnertime i'm usually exhausted. last night was take out. but overall eating in is best.

we're more than best friends

On July 11 (7-11 - how fun is that!?!) of 2008 my very dearest and lifelong friend married the man of her dreams and I was lucky enough to be one of her bridesmaids in their wedding. She was a beautiful bride on that warm and sunny day and five years later she is a beautiful and amazing wife and now a mother to two very cute little men! I can't believe that five years have passed, but I know they have been five very blessed years for their sweet and growing family!

Happy Anniversary dear friend! I love you and your family with my whole heart!

Here is a picture of her on her sunny and warm wedding day and me on my cold and rainy wedding day. Two very different days, but two very similar faces! We may not be sisters by blood, but in our hearts we certainly are. I think you can see that in each of our faces! She was my Matron of Honor at my wedding... but unfortunately she wasn't able to physically be there. Her first little handsome man was arriving a little earlier than expected, just two days later so she had to stay behind. She wrote the most beautiful and perfect speech for us and a mutual friend read it aloud for us and our guests. I know she wasn't there, but some how, God allowed her to be in all of my wedding day memories. What a gift! And what a gift she is!

Katie, you are a beautiful wife and mother and your husband and sons are very blessed that you are theirs. And I am blessed to have such a loving and beautiful friend. I will love you forever!

mini kitchen makeover

Slowly but surely somehow we find the time to get some home improvement projects done. I have a very knowledgeable and handy aunt and uncle and they volunteered their time and tools to help with my kitchen project. Our goal was to tile the backsplash in the kitchen. It wasn't a very large area so if I was able to find tile in our budget, this would be doable. My uncle did the cutting, my aunt did the measuring and I did the installing. It was a lot of fun!

Befores:

Afters:

It just adds a little touch, yet isn't a drastically different look. I had made the white curtains when we first moved in and didn't know how we were going to be decorating and as much as I loved the clean and simple look, I wanted a small splash of color in there so I purchased new fabric and made new ones. Same style. ha.

We have a lot of baby items in our kitchen and it isn't any designer kitchen, but it is functional for our family. I'm always changing little things up here and there, but all but one of the big kitchen projects is done. Last is to install a new light above the island. I just have to find the right fixture. I'm always on the lookout, but I have yet to find one I like in my very limited budget.

a before and after

When we purchased our home that we would live in when we got married, the hubs and I each had some furniture to contribute to furnish the house. We were quite well situated and had all the necessities. We knew though that in time there were a few pieces we would like to have. One of the pieces was one for the foyer. I knew I wanted it pretty, yet functional. The foyer is directly off the dining room, so I knew it would be perfect to hold many of our china pieces, etc. We didn't have a huge budget, but being that I wanted something pretty and didn't want to settle, I didn't have too high of hopes. At one point before we moved in, Mom and I were shopping and I came upon a great deal for a piece I loved. I just didn't love the color. I should rephrase that. I liked the color, but the color didn't like our house. I went through with my purchase anyway because I figured one day I could some how figure it out and wing it with re-finishing the piece. I had never re-finished anything in my life so I knew I was semi-crazy, but I couldn't pass up the deal. It was a beautiful piece, very well made, and a great price! So we threw it in the back of Mom's Tahoe and off it went. The purple piece sat in our house for quite a while. Some people loved it. Some people looked at me with a questioning look. And two babies later, it took me an even longer time to be crazy getting it done. One day I had the urge to do it and after the boys were asleep, I began my long project, just praying that as I went, I'd figure out what I was doing. I started with the mirror (another super cheap find- thanks Jilly!) and when that went well, I moved on to the piece of furniture.

I had heard people raving about Annie Sloan's chalk paint so I thought I'd give it a try. I do like how it worked on these pieces, but when I went to use it on a few other pieces, I became less of a fan. I am glad I went with Annie Sloan for this piece of furniture and am truly pleased with the outcome, but in the future, I would definitely consider trying to refinish with another brand, less pricey. I am not really sure what the big deal with the paint is. It does look nice, but I am not sure it is worth all the hype. Maybe it is, but I just don't realize what the difference would have been with regular paint.

First I painted the pieces with Old White Chalk Paint.

Once it was completely dry, I used some antique glazing. Again, I was praying as I went alone that I wouldn't destroy the piece with all the black glaze!

And while I don't have a great DIY or step by step pictures, here is the after. Although purple is one of my favorite colors, I do think this looks much better! I'll let you in on a little secret... I still have to wax this piece, but at least it looks finished. Maybe when the boys are a little older I will have the time... college age older. wink.

Don't be afraid to try to refinish a piece yourself! It's not too hard, just time consuming and a little tedious! So don't pass up that cute end table or desk just because of its color or finish! 

Martha Stewart: One Pan Pasta

I posted one of my current favorite recipes for an almost one pan/pot pasta dish, but this truly is a one pot meal! It looks delicious, healthy, and easy... including an easy clean up! There is nothing I love more after a long day and a good meal, than an easy clean up! Below you will see the step-by-step pictures and then it is followed by a video tutorial (via a link) underneath.

Ingredients:

12 ounces of linguine 

12 ounces of grape tomatoes (or cherry)

1 onion, thinly sliced

4 garlic cloves, very thinly sliced (I will probably add more garlic)

2 sprigs of basil

1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

1/4 teaspoon of ground pepper

2 teaspoons of salt

olive oil

4 1/2 cups of water

Or, if you would like a little bit more of a tutorial, check out the video online for Martha's One Pot Pasta!

This looks simple and delicious! I think we will have this for dinner tonight!

an almost one pan dish

Spring Break doesn't happen for Momma's of babies. Maybe once they are school age and we have school breaks, Spring breaks will happen again. Spring break does happen for my cousin, and Gus's god-mother. She decided to spend hers with us and we were delighted to have her and my aunt stay with us for a few days! Lea is a fabulous cook! While she was here one night she cooked an easy and healthy meal. I wasn't sure if the hubs would like it, but even he did so it has become a repeat favorite meal in our home! I don't have exact measurements, but hopefully between my pictures and approximate measurements, you can enjoy this easy and healthy meal as we do!

You will need:

a large pan, with a cover

olive oil

2-3 shallots (or more if you'd like! the hubs doesn't like them so we don't use too many)

garlic (i used one whole head because we love garlic)

kale (one bunch)

parmesan cheese (to your liking)

pasta (i used about 1 pound of rigatoni)

First I begin with the prep work.

Cut the stems off the kale and then chop finely.

Then slice the shallots. I would do this finely as well, but keep it larger so the hubs can remove of the deadly slimy things easily! The garlic is finely chopped. That's not deadly to the hubs.

After everything is chopped and sliced, I start my pasta water boiling.

Then, I pour a generous amount of extra virgin olive oil over the bottom of my 14" pan and let it heat.

Put the shallots in first so they become slightly transparent.

And then add in the garlic. (add more oil if needed)

Once the onion and garlic has blended well, add in the kale. 

I pour a slight bit of water in and stir before I cover for a few minutes, cooking on medium-high heat. Keep it at a temperature to cook high, yet not stick and burn.

After the shallots, garlic and kale have been cooking for a few minutes, it is at this point I add in the pasta to the boiling water.

Once the mixture is nice and tender in the pan and the pasta is ready, I pour out the pasta water and put the pasta into the pan, along with parmesan cheese. Mix and taste to your liking. Here I add salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy! I hope you enjoy this dish as much as our family does! It is quick, easy, light and healthy and we love it! One of the best parts is, it is all done in nearly one pan! One pot for pasta water and one pan for the meal! Not too many dishes!