Couple of Easy Dinner Recipes

 This past week I tried making a couple of new recipes, which came out great and are perfect for a week night meal. Bon appetit!
Gnocchi with Meat Sauce
*I adapted this recipe from Martha Stewart and made this sauce the night before, making the dish more flavorful the next day. This did make a lot of extra sauce, which you can freeze for later.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 lb. lean ground beef
• 3/4 cup diced yellow onions
• 3/4 cup shredded carrots (I purchased a bag at Trader Joe's)
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 can (28 oz.) peeled, diced tomatoes
• 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese
• 1 package of gnocchi
• Salt, pepper, basil to taste

Directions

1.  In a large frying pan, heat olive oil and cook ground beef until it begins to brown making sure to break up the pieces as the meat cooks (about 6 minutes).
2. Add onions, garlic, and carrots until the meat browns completely. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Add tomatoes and bring to a rapid simmer. Cook for about 15 minutes or until the liquid is slightly reduced. Mix in parmesan cheese and sprinkle with a little dried basil.
4. Store in air tight container until ready to serve.

Pineapple-Orange Glaze
 *I made this sauce this week and used it on chicken breasts and a pork tenderloin. You can add hot sauce to make this sweet and spicy (if you like spicy!).

Ingredients

• 1 cup of thawed pineapple-orange concentrate
• 1 cup ketchup
• 4 teaspoons worcestershire sauce
• 4 teaspoons white wine
• 2 tablespoons of brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon of salt

Directions

1. In a small saucepan, combine all ingredients and bring to a simmer and cook until the mixture thickens. This takes about 20 minutes (periodically stir the mixture).

 Red Potatoes Cooked in Parchment Paper
*My new favorite thing is to cook with parchment paper as it captures and seals in the flavor of whatever dish you are preparing!

Ingredients

• 1 pound of small red potatoes 
• Drizzle of olive oil (about 1 tablespoon)
• 1 teaspoon of dried parsley (you could use fresh parsley - I just didn't have any)
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Parchment paper and aluminum foil

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
2. Cut a large piece of foil and parchment paper. The foil should be on bottom and then layer the parchment piece on top.
3. Place the potatoes in the middle of the parchment paper, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with parsley, salt, and pepper.
4. Wrap the potatoes up in the parchment paper and then aluminum foil. Cook for about 25 minutes or until the potatoes are softened. You can test them by sticking a fork in them; if the fork comes out easily, they are done.

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