Lemon, Basil and Feta Pasta

I am very pleased with this new creation. This pasta is simple, yet super delicious. These three flavors are all very distinct and they work extremely well together. You can literally taste the flavors bursting in your mouth. This is a winner every time.





Ingredients:
- 1.5 lbs pasta (any variety)
- 12 oz. container of feta cheese, crumbled
- 1 lemon
- fresh basil, 15 leaves, chopped
- olive oil
- crushed red pepper flakes
- salt
- pepper

To Make:
Boil a pot of salted water and cook the pasta about 8-9 minutes until al-dente.

Drain the pasta and place into a large mixing bowl. Add olive oil and toss together. Add the container of feta cheese and the chopped basil. Zest one teaspoon of lemon zest and add into the mix. Then sqeeze out 1/2 of the lemon, avoiding the seeds.

Toss pasta together and coat everything evenly. Add salt, pepper and crushed red pepper to taste.

Serve immediatly.

Sexy Salmon with Onion, Garlic and Pepper Relish

I typically buy salmon in bulk, then divide it up and freeze it for later use. Then, when I'm ready to use it, I just take it out of the freezer about 30 minutes before I'm ready to use it and it's ready to cook! This recipe is simple and quick and can be served with anything.

Ingredients:

- 2 salmon fillets
- 1/2 onion, thinly sliced
- 1/2 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 1/2 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 8 garlic cloves, diced
- olive oil
- oregano
- crushed red pepper flakes
- salt
- pepper

To Make:

Drizzle olive oil in a medium saute pan and saute the onions, garlic and bell peppers for about 8-10 minutes on medium high heat until they are semi-tender. (I think they work well semi-crunchy but you can cook them longer if you want them softer)

In another medium saute pan, drizzle olive oil in the bottom and turn on stove to medium high heat.

Season the salmon fillets with salt, pepper, oregano and crushed red pepper (to taste) then add then into the pan.

Cook the salmon about 3-4 minutes on one side, then flip and cook another 1-2 minutes. Turn off stove and let the salmon sit for another minute.

To Plate:
Place salmon into serving dish and top with onion and pepper mixture. Top with crushed red pepper, salt and pepper.

Enjoy!

Delicious Crab Stir-fry

Stir-fry has become my "go to" meal for something quick and delicious. As long as you have soy sauce and veggies you can make an amazing stir-fry! In this recipe, I'm using imitation crab meat... I REALLY love it and it makes this dish come alive. You can try the same with chicken, steak, tofu or shrimp.






Ingredients:
- 3 cups of stir-fry veggies (frozen is easy)
- 1 cup pasta, any variety
- 2 cups imitation crab meat, (or any other meat)
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup stir-fry sauce
- 1 tablespoon spicy stir-fry sauce
- olive oil
- crushed red pepper flakes
- salt
- pepper

To Make:
Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook for 8-9 minutes or until al-dente.

In a large saute pan, drizzle olive oil to coat the bottom and saute the onions and garlic for about 3 minutes. Add in the crab meat, breaking up into smaller pieces. Add a teaspoon of soy sauce. Let this cook about 6 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes.

Add in the veggies. Mix together. Add 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes and pepper. Add in the stir-fry sauce, spicy sauce and the rest of the soy sauce. Mix together and allow to cook until the veggies are tender, not overdone. About 6 minutes. The best way to tell if they are done is to test a piece of broccoli (that takes the longest to cook.) Add more salt if needed.

Add in the pasta and mix together. Add in more stir-fry sauce if needed.

Serve immediately and ENJOY!

Liz's ULTIMATE Sauce :

If you haven't noticed by now, sauce is my FAVORITE thing to eat and make. I just think that with the perfect sauce, your eating options are ENDLESS, not only does sauce go over top of pasta, but it can be turned into soup, dip, salsa, pizza... or put it on top of chicken or fish! Really the possibilities you have when you make a pot of sauce are ENDLESS.
I'm going to share my DELICIOUS sauce recipe that you will always be craving, trust me... try it out and let me know what you think!

Ingredients:
- 2 cans PLAIN tomato sauce
- 2 cans DICED tomatoes
- 20 fresh basil leaves
- 2 medium red bell peppers, diced
- 1 large onion, diced
- 20 garlic cloves, diced
- Parmesan cheese
- salt
- pepper
- sugar
- oregano
- crushed red pepper
- olive oil
- *secret ingredient*
- *secret ingredient*

* I can't share the 2 secret ingredients because once this sauce becomes famous, EVERYONE will want to know why it tastes SO GOOD! However, the sauce will be delicious without these, but with them it's just OUTRAGEOUS!

To Make:

In a large pot, drizzle about 1/2 cup of olive oil and saute the onions, garlic and red bell peppers for about 10 -12 minutes on medium low heat until they are very tender, lightly salt and stir every few minutes.

In the meantime, in a food processor, combine the diced tomatoes and basil leaves and pulse 6 times for 2 seconds each until the basil is chopped up.

Empty the diced tomatoes and basil into the sauce pot and stir together. Add the other two cans of PLAIN tomato sauce into the pot and stir together. Add 3/4 cup of Parmesan cheese. Add 1 tsp. of sugar and 1 tablespoon of the following, salt, pepper, oregano and as much crushed red pepper as preferred.

Mix all ingredients together and let this sauce simmer for at least 30 minutes before serving. The longer the sauce can cook, the better it will be... cook on medium LOW heat and check frequently and stir every 5 minutes.

DELICIOUS... this sauce CAN'T be beat...

Delicious Fall Stew: Made in the Crock Pot

I love the fall, the colors are beautiful and I love making hearty meals that keep you warm and cozy. I made this stew in the crock pot, which I love because since when your cooking in the crock pot, your meal needs to sit for hours until it's ready. What I do when I'm making a crock pot meal, I make it on an evening where I'm going to be eating dinner out somewhere... so before I leave, I take 20 minutes to prep and prepare and then when I get home, I have a meal for the next day. It's the perfect idea and it saves LOTS of time. Check it out...

Ingredients:
- 1 can dark kidney beans
- 1 can plain tomato sauce
- 2 carrots, diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 1/2 large white onion, diced
- 3 large potatoes, diced (medium pieces)
- Either 2 chicken breast OR boca burger
- 3/4 cup White Rice
- Water
- Salt
- Pepper
- Crushed Red Pepper
- Paprika
- Oregano
- Garlic Powder
- Olive Oil

To Make:
Drizzle olive oil into the bottom of the crock pot, about 2-3 tablespoons. Place all diced veggies into the crock pot. Add in chicken breasts or boca burger, add in tomato sauce, drained kidney beans and rice. Add 1 tablespoon of all spices except the crushed red pepper, that is "to taste" so you be the judge.

Next fill the crock pot up almost to the top with water, leaving some "expansion room" and gently mix together just to break up the spices. Set on high heat. This can cook on high heat for about 3-5 hours, depending on your crock pot. Make sure you do not leave this on over night. If you are planning to leave over night, set on LOW HEAT and wake up EARLY so you can shut it off.

This is easy, delicious and HEALTHY!!!!! No more weight gain for the cold months... with this recipe, there is no need so you can stay FULL and SEXY!

Easy Garlic Bread

To go along with any fabulous dish, especially lasagna, garlic bread is amazing. Not only that, it's SO easy you almost have to make it. Again, I have to give props to Kelli's Catering in Largo, FL. Kelli was also the one to show me this quick and easy method to making the best tasting garlic bread EVER!

Ingredients:
- 1 Loaf of Italian, French or any other bread you like... as long as it's soft and in a loaf style
- Melted butter
- fresh parsley
- Dried Garlic Flakes
- Salt
- Pepper

To Make:
Slice the bread down the middle so that it is in two loafs. Smear the melted butter onto the loafs. Next top with a generous helping of the garlic flakes. Then lightly season with salt and pepper.

Bake in the oven at 375 degrees for 5-6 minutes or until golden brown. Lastly, top with fresh parsley. Slice accordingly and ENJOY!

The Easiest-Lasagna-Ever Recipe:

My wonderful cousin Kelli, owner of Kelli's Catering in Largo, FL. shared with me her simple and delicious lasagna techniques that I am going to "borrow" from her now and forever. I'm delighted to share them and I'm sure she won't mind that I am giving her catering business some "props."

Ingredients:
- Delicious Sauce (See here the Sauce Ingredients and Directions)
- Ricotta Cheese
- Mozzarella Cheese, grated
- Flat, no boil lasagna noodles
- Fresh Basil
- Parmesan Cheese
- Salt
- Pepper

To Make:
Follow the instructions above for the sauce.

In a large mixing bowl, add the entire 1 quart container of ricotta cheese and season with salt, pepper and crushed red pepper. Add in 5 handfuls of mozzarella cheese, 1 cup of Parmesan cheese and 1 cup of fresh basil.

To assemble:
In a lasagna pan, spoon several ladles of sauce. Taking the UNCOOKED noodles, begin spreading the ricotta cheese onto the noodles and laying the noodles on top of the sauce. Top with mozzarella cheese and then another layer of sauce and repeat until your lasagna pan is filled up.

Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees for about 45min. Remove from oven, remove foil, top with fresh mozzarella and broil for another 3-5 min to get the top brown.

Garnish with fresh basil on top.

CLICK HERE TO SEE HOW TO MAKE THE AMAZING GARLIC BREAD!

This is SO MUCH easier than boiling noodles and then burning yourself and trying to spread ricotta cheese onto soft noodles... it's almost impossible. Check this out, you won't regret it!