I had a great time testing all the recipes for the Saucy Mama Recipe contest and a very tough time choosing a winner.  Now that the crunch of getting all the recipes tested is over I am going back and making the favorites for my staff.  Today we did Parmesan Garlic Pasta from www.imperrfections.blogspot.com.  After lunch everyone was very satisfied and we had a unanimous “I am going to make this at home”.  Here is the recipe from Megan’s very entertaining blog.

PARMESAN GARLIC PASTA

Ingredients:
(Serves 4-6)

2 zucchini, sliced in half and cut into 3/4 in wide pieces
1 red onion, sliced in half and cut into 3/4 in wide pieces
8 oz white mushrooms, sliced
1/3 C Saucy Mama’s Parmesan Garlic Marinade sprinkle of salt & fresh cracked black pepper

6 slices Oscar Meyer thick cut bacon, cooked and crumbled (or 1/2 C bacon
bits)
12 oz rotini pasta (3/4 of a 1lb box), cooked al dente
1/4 C grated parmesan cheese
2 TBS Saucy Mama’s Parmesan Garlic Marinade
6-8 fresh basil leaves, chiffonade

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large bowl toss together the vegetables with the marinade, salt, and pepper, making sure to coat evenly.
Spread on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes. If using fresh bacon instead of bacon bits, line another baking sheet with foil, spread out 6 slices of bacon, and bake until crisp at the same time as the vegetables (about 25-30 minutes).

Cook the pasta, drain, and throw into a large bowl. When the vegetables are done and the bacon is cooked, drained on paper towels and crumbled, add it all to the pasta along with the parmesan cheese, marinade, and fresh basil.

Toss everything together and serve warm. Excellent

When I made the pasta for my staff I deglazed the pan I roasted the vegetables in with a little chicken broth, scraping up all the brown bits and tossed that in with everything else.  I then served it with coarsely grated Parmesan on top since I do live by the theory that you cannot have too much Parmesan.

Whenever I have to open a new box of any kind of broth and need only a little I pour the remaining portion into an ice cube tray and freeze.  I then place the frozen broth in a dated zip lock bag and toss it back in the freezer. I then always have it on hand for deglazing pans or whatever else requires a small amount of broth.

My good friend Jo Simpson had our monthly Bunco night at her house out in the country last night. Cheryl Doyle, another very good friend and I were co-hostesses.  Jo ordered a Mediterranean Chicken light crust pizza from our local Papa Murphy’s www.papamurphys.com so she could just slip it into the oven after we all arrived.  I made an asparagus salad using Saucy Mama Sesame Ginger Dressing.  For dessert Cheryl brought raspberry sherbet and butter cookies.  It all made for a very tasty very easy meal with no stress and lots of fun.  It was great to sit out on her deck watching the evening colors change on our beautiful Blue Mountains, catching up on each others lives and doing a whole bunch of laughing.

This salad is easy to make and travels well.

Asparagus Orange Salad with Glazed Almonds

Serves 8

1/2 cup whole almonds
3 tablespoons Saucy Mama Sesame Ginger Dressing
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce

4 bunches asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 to 2 inch pieces
2 large oranges
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
1 large avocado cubed
1/3 cup Saucy Mama Sesame Ginger Dressing
2/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves

Place almonds in a heavy skillet set over medium heat.  I use my trusty old cast iron skillet.  Stir until almonds are lightly toasted, about 5 minutes.
Increase heat to medium high and add dressing and soy sauce.  Stir until the liquid has evaporated and the almonds are coated.  About 1 minute.  Transfer the almonds to a cutting board and coarsely chop as soon as they are cool enough to handle.

Cook asparagus in a large pot of rapidly boiling water for about 2 minutes until bright green and just tender.  Immediately plunge the asparagus into ice water to stop the cooking.  Drain well.

Use a sharp knife to remove the peel and pith from the oranges and divide the orange sections removing the membrane.

Toss the asparagus, oranges, onions, avocado and dressing together.

Place into a pretty serving dish and top with cilantro and almonds.