Tortellini Carbonara

I’ve been craving pasta for weeks and just had to give in. Technically, this isn’t a true carbonara as there are no eggs or pancetta, but the flavor profile is there so I’m going with it. I used dried tortellini, but fresh would certainly work.

Let’s start the recipe by cooking a few slices of bacon. I like to leave them a little chewy, but cook them the way you like.

Remove the bacon from the pan and crumble the bacon - set aside for now.

Lower the heat and add a clove of minced garlic - stir for 30-60 seconds.

Add the crumbled bacon, parmesan cheese, heavy cream, red wine vinegar, and freshly ground pepper. Stir to combine and bring to a bubble.

Add the precooked tortellini and toss well to coat.

Serve with fresh basil and enjoy!

Tortellini Carbonara

makes 2 servings

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound dried tortellini, cooked, drained, and cooled

• 3-4 slices bacon

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

• 1/3 cup heavy cream

• 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• Garnish: freshly chopped basil

Directions

1. Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat, then remove from skillet (reserve the drippings), crumble the bacon, and set aside until needed.

2. Lower the heat and sauté the minced garlic in reserved bacon drippings for 30-60 seconds; immediately add the crumbled bacon, parmesan cheese, heavy cream, red wine vinegar, and freshly ground black pepper, stirring until the mixture begins to bubble.

3. Stir in the cooked tortellini to reheat and gently toss to coat with the sauce.

4. Serve immediately with fresh basil.

Cheesy Meatball Casserole

I love the simplicity of this dish. No matter how busy my day is, I can pull a bag of my make ahead freezer meatballs out of the freezer and grab a can of crushed tomatoes from the pantry to put a hot meal on the table in less than an hour. Served with a salad or steamed vegetable on the side, it’s a very satisfying meal.

To make the sauce, sauce a minced clove of garlic in a little olive oil for 30-60 seconds. If you like heat, add some crushed red pepper flakes too. Immediately add a 28-ounce can of crushed tomatoes (remember, the better the tomatoes, the better your sauce will taste). Stir to combine.

Cover skillet with splatter shield and simmer sauce over low heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add meatballs (and fresh basil if using) and stir to coat. Cover with splatter shield again and continue simmering for about 10 minutes.

Turn off stovetop and uncover skillet. Sprinkle shredded part-skim mozzarella and crushed dried parsley all over the meatballs and place in preheated oven for about 15 minutes, or until the cheese melts and develops a few toasty brown spots.

Items used to make this recipe:

(affiliate links)

• 12-inch cast iron skillet https://amzn.to/3cztoY6

• splatter shield https://amzn.to/2XdPnxb

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Cheesy Meatball Casserole

makes 6 servings

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (or more)

• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced

• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

• 28 ounces crushed tomatoes

• 1/4 recipe Make Ahead Freezer Meatballs (about 1 1/2 pounds)

• 1-2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

• garnish: chopped fresh basil or parsley

Directions

• Preheat oven to 375F.

• In a 12-inch oven-safe skillet on medium, heat the olive oil, garlic, and crushed red pepper flakes, stirring constantly, until oil bubbles and garlic is fragrant (should only take a minute or so).

• Immediately add crushed red pepper flakes and reduce heat to medium low; cover with a splatter shield and bring to a gentle boil.

• Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

• Add frozen meatballs and toss to coat; cover and heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

• Uncover skillet and spread cheese evenly over the surface; place skillet in center of preheated oven until cheese melts and browns a bit.

• Remove from oven and sprinkle with freshly chopped basil or parsley.

Note

• I used 1/4 batch of my Make Ahead Freezer Meatballs for to make this recipe (about 1.5 pounds of meatballs).