What's Cookin?

     OK people, this is a bonafide everybody in your house gonna eat it up potentially embarrassing themselves into a licking their plate pronto fast frenzy cookin situation.  What, prey tell, could I possibly be making that could have such a reaction you ask?  Well, sit back and check out the amazing and easy, yes I said EASY...

Giada de Laurentiis's
Cheesy Baked Tortellini 

OK so here are the basics

     2 cups Marinara Sauce
     1/3 cup mascarpone cheese
     1/4 cup chopped italian parsely
     2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
     1 lb cheese tortellini
     sliced fresh mozzarella
     1 clove garlic
     parmesan cheese


The first thing to do when cooking is involved is to remind ourselves that...Cooking is fun, that's right, COOKING IS FUN!  Not unlike reminding ourselves about things when dealing with our significant others...I love my husband...I LOVE MY HUSBAND!!  Especially fun when it involves copious amounts of carbohydrates and wine (I'm talking about the cooking people, sheesh)...but anyhoo as I was saying...

-Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
Then you will need a dish to bake the pasta and a moment to organize your essential ingredients
pour a smidge of olive oil in your selected baking dish...Mr. Newman, you are quite welcome...



and of course...


   
OK, Cherie I know it's Prego...but I'm Irish so throw me a bone alright!  Cherie is an amazing friend, cook, artist, and well everything fabulous, who just happens to be Italian and feels about "sauce" the way I feel about pie crust, which is basically that it is way too easy to make from fresh ingredients and so much better than the grocery store alternative. 

And can I just say one thing about this dish that is sublime, well there are lots, but if I had one thing to say which is nearly impossible an almost all occasions would be my affection for mascarpone cheese... 


So take 1/3 cup of the mascarpone cheese, or at my house, a giant scoop, and slowly whisk 2 cups of "sauce" into the sublimeness that is mascarpone.

  
Chop 2 tsp of fresh thyme and 1 clove garlic, OK people the original recipe calls for italian parsley and no garlic.  But after making it the first time I thought pretty much almost immediately that I could totally icksnay the parsley and add the garlic, and it we would make an even more perfectly perfect pasta... 

  
Then add to the marinara mascarpone sauce, and it should look something like this...


Now it's time for the tasty tortellini, but first grab a pot and bring it to a boil
 don't forget the Kosher salt.  The truth is that most pastas are in and of themselves kind of blah, but add a little kosher into the boiling water, and it's a whole different situation...


The tortellini cooks for about 2 minutes, less time than you would normally cook it because it is going in the oven after you're finished.  It should look something like this...


Add tortellini to the mascarpone sauce and top with fresh mozzarella and Parmesan cheese (parmigiano reggiano which be the bomb diggity kind thank you)



Stick that perfectly perfect pastariffic dish into your 350 degree oven have a glass of your fave vino...
This one happens to be Conundrum, great name right?  Might actually be in the top 10 names for wine EVAH...



So you are pretty much mindin your own business,  sipping your glass of vino and in about 25-30 minutes out comes from your very own oven something, well something pretty spectacular...


And there you have it.  Seriously, no dish short of pigs and a blanket or the spicey Chick Fil A sandwich with waffle fries has made my kiddos so happy!
So very happy!


1 comment:

  1. It looks fabulous Maureen! ( Now...for that lesson in sauce-making ;)

    ReplyDelete