Cheesy Baked Ziti

I have been in the process of adjusting to living gluten free for the past few weeks for health reasons. As a result of this dietary change, I have been missing things like pasta, bread, and baked goods. One of the first things I tested out was making baked ziti using corn pasta. That worked very well and it tasted almost exactly like regular pasta and the texture was good. While the majority of my starches now I eat brown rice, potatoes, and sweet potatoes now, I do eat gluten free swaps like corn pasta about once a week to fulfill my pasta cravings. As many in my life know, I am a big fan of Italian food and I spent many of my childhood years in an Italian neighborhood. For me, Italian food is one of the things I consider to be special and many dishes like the one I am going to share with you today brings me back memories. This is also one of my husband's favorite meals that I make. Here is the recipe:

Cheesy Baked Ziti -  Serves 8

Ingredients:

* 1 box of any ziti or penne pasta of your choice
* 1 jar of pasta sauce
* 1 8oz bag or 2 cups of shredded mozzarella (I used reduced fat mozzarella)
* 1/2 of a 15 oz container of part skim ricotta cheese
* 1 TBSP of Parmesan Romano Cheese (The kind from the pasta aisle is fine)
* 1 TBSP of basil
* Olive oil cooking spray

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
2. Cook pasta to al dente according to instructions on the box in a large pot of water.
3. Heat and mix pasta sauce, ricotta cheese, 1/2 TBSP of Parmesan Romano Cheese, and 1/2 TBSP of basil together in a large saucepan over low heat.
4. Once the pasta is done cooking, strain pasta and mix pasta into the sauce in the large saucepan.
5. Turn off the stove and add 1 cup of shredded mozzarella in with the pasta mixture and stir until pasta is coated with sauce and cheese.
6. Spray 13 x 9 with cooking spray and dump pasta into the pan. Make sure the pasta is an even layer in the pan.
7. Sprinkle remaining 1 cup of shredded mozzarella, 1/2 TBSP of Parmesan Romano Cheese, and 1/2 TBSP of basil on top of the pasta.
8. Bake the ziti in the oven for 10-12 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
9. Remove from the oven, leave ziti to cook for 5 minutes, and serve with a spatula. Enjoy!

Strawberry Sugar Cookies

I love dessert in general as my friends and family will tell you, I have a major sweet tooth. While I don't eat sweets as often as I used to for health reasons, I still enjoy smaller amounts of sweets a few times a week and them in smaller portions or in lower calorie ways that I like. I believe in practicing moderation with food in general. Eating healthy is easier for me when I eat foods I like, eat a wide variety of foods, and can still have treats and indulgences. Here is a recipe for cookies I made today using fresh strawberries and a lower fat sugar cookie dough. Not super healthy, but not as bad as some other cookie recipes out there. They taste a lot like homemade strawberry shortcake, but in cookie form.

Strawberry Sugar Cookies - makes about 12 larger cookies

Ingredients:

• 5 tbsp butter, softened
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup dark brown sugar, unpacked
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 6 strawberries sliced into halves, lengthwise
• 1 1/2 TBSP of sugar to sprinkle on cookies (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Using a mixer, beat butter and sugar until creamy. Then add egg and vanilla into the bowl, mixing well.
3. In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Gradually stir flour mixture into the mixing bowl until dough forms.
4. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray and form 12 cookie balls on the cookie sheet. Each cookie ball should be about 2 TBSP of cookie dough.
5. Press a slice into each cookie, this will flatten the cookie into a flatter, round shape.
6. Sprinkle each cookie with 1/8 tsp of sugar. Cookies should look like this before heading to the oven:

7. Cook in oven for about 8-12 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned.
8. Remove cookies from pan onto a cooling rack or a large plate. Should be ready to eat once they cool for at least 15-30 minutes. Enjoy!

Perfectly Peachy Overnight Oatmeal

This is an easy overnight oatmeal recipe I have made many times and enjoy. I often eat oatmeal for breakfast, especially in the winter. During those colder months I eat oatmeal about 4-5 times a week. I usually make my oatmeal the night before if I have work the next day. I am not naturally a morning person, even though I workout a few times a week in the morning.  Additionally I lead a very busy life as a student taking an average 2-3 classes a term and a full time working professional. Therefore I do everything I can to make sure I can easily eat healthy the majority of the time. I eat these overnight oats cold or heat them up in the microwave before eating them.

Feel free to substitute fresh peaches in place of the canned ones. I would only do so though if you can find ripe ones like the ones available this time of the year. I usually use canned ones and drain them, because they are widely available most of the year and are inexpensive.

Perfectly Peachy Overnight Oatmeal - Serves 3 (approximately 1 cup per person)

1 1/2 cups of old fashioned, rolled oats (not instant, quick, or steel cut oats)
1 1/2 cups of any kind of milk (I use Organic 1% milk or unsweetened almond milk most of the time, vanilla soy milk also works well here).
1  15 oz  can of sliced peaches canned in juice or splenda, drained or three fresh peaches, sliced
Sweetener or sugar to taste (I usually use 3 tsps of splenda or a small amount of stevia)
1/2 tsp of vanilla extract 
1/2 tsp of cinnamon (optional, I recommend adding this)

Add all ingredients except the peaches into a large sized container or bowl. Mix ingredients together and then mix the peach slices into the oat mixture. Portion oatmeal into three smaller containers or into one large container. Store oatmeal in the refrigerator or overnight.

Serve the next day cold or heated up. I normally microwave a portion for about 1-2 minutes if I want them warm. Keeps for a few days in the refrigerator. Sorry for the lack of pictures. This was a saved recipe I have made for myself several times in the last few months. I will make sure to include at least one picture in my next recipe. Hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do.

Welcome!

Hi everyone, my name is Rachael. This is a new venture I am taking based on my love of food, but I also am someone who eats mostly healthy food and believe in eating most things in moderation. I have in the past dabbled in vegetarianism and other ways of eating, but I now am an omnivore that often eats meatless meals and for me this works very well. I often get overwhelmed when I cook with too many ingredients, so a lot of what I cook is easy recipes that I modify or recipes that I make up on my own. I plan to post a few recipes a week and let you all see what I enjoy eating on a regular basis. My husband and some of my friends and family will also get the opportunity to sample what I eat and blog here. A variety of recipes will be featured including meals, snacks, and occasionally beverages.

I hope you all enjoy reading this blog and cooking these recipes. I will only be posting recipes that I feel are perfected to my tastes and the tastes of others I dine with.