I've been on a bit of a caprese kick for the past week, but how can you not be when tomatoes and basil are coming into their own? I thought of this dish last week while I was at work, and when I got home Friday I had to make it for lunch. It came together quickly and definitely hit the spot. Bright and fresh flavors, carbs, and cheese. Heavenly. Not to mention it's great at picnics since it's mayo free. 
 
I have a love/hate relationship with fresh tomatoes, and I'm generally not a fan. Therefore, I cooked the tomatoes quickly in the olive oil and garlic. Not only did it take away that strong fresh tomato taste, but it also gave the oil a great flavor. I highly recommend this, but I think you also could use fresh cherry tomatoes with great results. I know I'll be enjoying this pasta salad throughout the summer...and wishing for it this winter.

Caprese Pasta Salad Recipe
Serves 4 sides or 2 main dishes
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2 cups mini farfalle pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 roma tomatoes, diced
10 fresh basil leaves, cut or torn into pieces
1/2 cup cubed mozzarella
Salt and pepper to taste

In a medium saucepan, boil your pasta just past al dente. When cooked, transfer to a colander and run cold water over it. Let sit until cool. 

While the pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the tomatoes. Cook for about 1 minute, add the minced garlic cloves, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Transfer the oil mixture to a bowl and place in the refrigerator to cool. 

Once the oil and the pasta are cool, combine them in a large bowl with the basil and mozzarella. Add salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste and serve. Store leftovers in the fridge. 

A She Makes and Bakes original recipe 

Is it just me or are onion rings a special treat? Personally, I'd rather have French fries, but that's because I have a weird love affair with them. I do really like onion rings, and every so often I order them when we go out to eat. They seem a little indulgent with all that fried onion and breading, but that's why this recipe is so incredible. These are baked, but they taste like they're been fried. The secret to these bad boys is the topping of crushed saltine crackers and kettle-cooked potato chips. I know, right? Who comes up with this stuff? I tell you, only those geniuses at America's Test Kitchen could come up with this. It works, and while it's slightly time consuming to do all the dipping of the onion rights, it's worth the work. And it's nice knowing you're saving yourself a few calories.    

Baked Onion Rings Recipe
Makes about 24 rings (about 4 servings)
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1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/4 teaspoon cayenne powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
30 saltine crackers
4 cups kettle-cooked potato chips
2 large yellow onions, cut into 24 large rings, 1/2 inch thick
6 tablespoons vegetable oil

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees and get out 2 large rimmed baking sheets. Spread 3 tablespoons of oil on each.

Take out three shallow dishes for dipping. In one, place 1/4 cup flour. In another dish, mix together the egg and buttermilk and then mix in the remaining 1/4 cup flour, cayenne, salt and pepper.

Using a food processor, pulse together the crackers and chips until well blended and they resemble coarse crumbs. Place these in the third dish.

One at a time, dip your onion rings in the flour, the egg mixture, and then the cracker/chip crumbs. Make sure they get coated on all sides in each container. Place on the greased baking sheet.

Cook the rings for 15 min, flipping each ring over half way through the baking time. I've found that using a fork to flip these works much better than tongs. Drain the rings on a paper towel and serve immediately.  

Source: Barely adapted from The Best of America's Test Kitchen 2007

This recipe is a gem. It's easy to make, has great flavor, and reheats beautifully. I found this recipe last year and made it for Father's Day, but I could not remember where I saw it. I just googled it, and it's Giada's recipe. No wonder it's so good. I've only made it twice, but I've loved it both times. I think if you grilled some chicken and added it, the dish would be a great main course. I had never used mascarpone before, but it's similar to cream cheese. The mushrooms and wine pair beautifully together, and the mascarpone adds a wonderful creaminess to this in place of a normal roux (which means that it reheats much better). This makes a ton of pasta, so make sure that you are feeding a lot of people or cut the recipe in half. Even half of the recipe makes a lot! 

Mascarpone Mushroom Rigatoni Recipe
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Serves 4-6

1 pound rigatoni
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 shallots, diced
1 clove garlic, diced
Salt and pepper
1 pound mushrooms, stems removed and quartered
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 cup (8 ounces) mascarpone
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chives

Boil your pasta to al dente and drain, saving 1 cup of the pasta water. While your pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, add the shallots and garlic, and season with salt and pepper. Cook until soft. Add the mushrooms and cook until tender. Pour in the wine and simmer until it is almost evaporated. Add in the chicken broth and simmer until slightly reduced. Remove the pan from heat and add in the mascarpone. Stir until there are no clumps. Add the pasta and parmesan to the mushroom mixture and stir until pasta is coated. If needed, add in some of the reserved pasta water to loosen. Garnish with chives.  

Source: Giada de Laurentiis  

I have been eating this macaroni salad for pretty much my whole life, and I love it. I think it's perfect for most occasions, and almost everyone loves it (everyone except my husband who hates pasta). In fact, one of my friends requested a bowl of this as her Christmas present one year. I get requests for the recipe frequently, but it's one of those things that you throw together until it looks right. So I made it and measured everything out because I love you guys. It only requires six ingredients, it's a breeze to make, and it's pretty easily adaptable...although I never stray too far from the original. If I want to make this a main dish, I add a can of drained tuna. My parents add pickles to it, but that addition never makes it to my bowl because pickles are the devil!

There's a couple of things about this recipe. You want to cook your noodles past al dente because when you run cold water on them, they'll go back to al dente. Also, once it sits in the fridge, the noodles soak up the Miracle Whip. You can be smart and healthier by adding a couple tablespoons of hot water to loosen everything up, or you can be like me and add more Miracle Whip. It's just better. And no, you can't sub the Miracle Whip for mayo. It's gotta be the whip, and I prefer the light version. If you don't like Miracle Whip, you are not going to like this salad. But if you do, make this for your Memorial Day BBQ this weekend, and you'll have people asking for the recipe!

Macaroni Salad Recipe
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1 box pasta (12 ounces, I used bow ties)
1 cup Miracle Whip
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded or cubed
1/4 cup green onions, diced
3 large celery stalks, diced
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Cook your pasta past al dente, drain, and rinse under cold water. Let it dry for about 10-15 minutes. In a large bowl, mix together the Miracle Whip, cheese, green onions, and celery. Add the pasta and stir until everything is combined. Sprinkle the garlic powder on top and stir once more. Place in the fridge until cold. Store in the fridge.

Optional ingredients: 1 can tuna, drained and/or diced pickles

A She Makes and Bakes Family Original

This is one of my favorite stove top macaroni and cheese recipes. Instead of boiling the noodles in water, you cook them in milk. It's very easy to do, and there's only three ingredients. Have you ever had Pasta Roni Shells and White Cheddar? This is that but better...and just as easy. I used to eat Pasta Roni a lot...until one horrifying day. This is a gross story; I'm sorry in advance. But maybe I also can warn you in case you eat these mixes. Do not EVER cook one if it's past the expiration date.

One day when I was in college, I made an expired box of Pasta Roni. I really didn't pay attention to those pesky expiration dates back then. Wrong move. So there I am in my blissful ignorance boiling the noodles in the water, and creepy crawly bugs started trying to crawl out of the boiling hot water. It still gives me the chills, and this was years ago. I did what any other normal girl would do. I slammed the lid on the pan, took it off the burner, and called my dad. I made him drive 15 minutes to take care of the pan with the bugs. I was about to throw the whole pan away! In all fairness, I think my dad was planning to come over anyway for something, but I don't think he was planning to do my dishes. It took me a few years to eat the box mixes again but I did. Now that I found this recipe, I'm good. No more boxes of Pasta Roni...and no more bugs. Sick. 

Anyway, this is a great stove top mac and cheese recipe, and I'm excited to try a lot of different varieties. Next time I'm going to add a garlic clove in the milk while the noodles are boiling, and I'm going to try different cheeses. Boiling the noodles in the milk makes it so creamy and delicious, and it's a great treat! 

Shells and White Cheddar Recipe
Makes about 4 side dish servings
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2 cups milk
2 cups shells
1 cup white cheddar cheese

In a medium saucepan, bring the milk and pasta to a simmer over medium heat. Cook for about 20 minutes, stirring often and making sure that the milk doesn't boil. Once the pasta is al dente, remove from heat and add the cheese. Stir until melted. If you like it a little creamier, you can add more milk. Add salt to taste.
 
Source: Adapted from Macaroni and Cheesecake 

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Cheese, pesto, and pasta. It doesn't get much better than this. The only thing that could have made this better would have been if I could have made fresh pesto. However, I don't have the basil reserves yet so I used a jar of pesto. I wrote parmesan cheese in the recipe, but I actually used half parmesan and half gruyere. You could also use fontina or monterey jack with good results. If you really like pesto, you can add more than I said. Make it your own. This is a great side dish, and since I seem to struggle on new side dish ideas, I'm glad I found this one!

This is an easy recipe to make, and it's done in one pot. I served this with some Italian sausage patties and garlic bread. I love orzo because I can "trick" my anti-pasta husband into eating pasta. It's a win for me. If I would have done this recipe with spaghetti....forget about it. He never would have eaten it.

Cheesy Pesto Orzo
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Makes 4 servings

2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup orzo
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
2-3 tablespoons pesto
Salt and pepper, to taste

In a medium saucepan, bring the broth to a boil. Add the orzo, reduce to a simmer, and cook for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the orzo is tender and the liquid is absorbed. When the pasta is done, add the cheese and stir until it's melted. Add salt and pepper to taste. If the pasta is too thick, you can add a few tablespoons of broth or milk to get it creamier.

Adapted from Sprinkled with Flour