Balsamic Pine Nut Pasta Toss with Meatballs

For years I had a kid who was not fond of sauces or spreads of any kind.  This made things a little challenging when invited to dinner parties, but actually made things pretty simple at home.  While my friends were coaxing their kids to eat vegetables by slathering them in cheese or were looking for ways to “hide” them in other dishes, all I had to do was produce a bowl of cooked fresh broccoli and some lemon juice, green beans with a little sea salt, or spinach with balsamic vinegar, and there was no coaxing required! (Note: balsamic vinegar is a staple in my kitchen and has never been turned down by my no-sauce kid.)  Pair my non-sauce eating diner with a very lactose intolerant husband, and my cooking was transformed into the mostly whole food, produce-rich, simple presentations that I'm known for today.  Fast-forward a few years and I now have a kid who eats sauces & spreads, but my cooking hasn’t changed that much.  This simple preparation of meatballs with pasta & pine nuts is a sauce-free dish that is easy to put together on short notice and everyone leaves the table satisfied.

Oven Baked Meatballs

• 1 pound extra lean ground beef
• 1 egg
• ½ cup whole wheat bread crumbs
• 2 T chopped Italian parsley
• 1 sm clove garlic, minced
• 2 T chopped red onion
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• 2 T Worcestershire Sauce

Mix ingredients together using your hands.  Form into 1 inch balls and place on foil-lined baking sheet.  Bake for 20-25 minutes in oven pre-heated to 350 degrees.

Balsamic Pine Nut Pasta Toss

• Cooked thin spaghetti
• Pine Nuts
• Freshly shredded asiago or parmesan cheese
• Fresh Italian parsley
• Balsamic vinegar
• Meatballs

While meatballs are in the oven, cook pasta according to package instructions.  Sprinkle 1 Tbsp (or more) each of pine nuts and cheese on pasta.  Add parsley to taste.  When meatballs are cooked through, add to pasta dish and drizzle with balsamic. Enjoy!

Easy Bruschetta.

My family loves bruschetta and I love the ease of this recipe! While many recipes call for blanching tomatoes as a first step, I prefer to use uncooked, diced fresh tomatoes for my bruschetta.  This is a simple recipe that can be adapted to your taste.  The better quality your balsamic vinegar, the better this will be!

• 8 tomatoes, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 T olive oil
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 8-12 basil leaves, sliced into thin strips
• salt & pepper
• baguette, thinly sliced

Gently toss tomatoes and garlic.  Stir in oil & vinegar.  Toss basil and add salt & pepper to taste, if desired.  Spoon tomato mixture on baguette slices and enjoy!

Balsamic Chicken and Onions.

This was one of those "what's in the fridge?" sort of meals that turned out to be rather tasty. It was super simple because it is made with some of my go-to, always-on-hand ingredients: frozen chicken breast strips, red onion, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and fresh herbs.

• a dozen frozen chicken breast strips (boneless, skinless)
• 1/4 cup chopped red onion
• balsamic vinegar
• olive oil
• sea salt
• pepper
• 1 T each chopped chives, Italian parsley

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line 9 x 13 baking pan with foil. Arrange chicken in single layer.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Drizzle olive oil and balsamic vinegar over all chicken pieces. (I was rather generous with the balsamic because I love it!) Sprinkle onion and fresh herbs evenly over chicken. Bake for 30-35 minutes.

This was delicious served with lima beans (my fav!) and red potatoes sprinkled with truffle salt. Yum!