Cheap-o Night: Homemade Tomato Basil Sauce with Penne and Tomato Basil Bread

Chris loves this bread but I have only made it once for him. The time we had it before we loved it so much we vowed to not make it again, it is that good. We kept nibbling on it all night. As a surprise and because we happen to have the ingredients on hand I made it again. I did not have dried onion flakes so I made mine with onion powder, and I used fresh basil as I did not have dried on hand. To make vegan, use powdered soy milk or go with 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp warm soy milk (leave out the water if you go with this option). I used a whole package of yeast in this recipe and hand kneaded it. That means I let it rise the first time 1 1/2 hours and 1-1 1/2 hours once it is in the bread pan. Bake at 350 degrees F until loaf is golden and sounds hollowed when tapped.

 

I think that I have mentioned this recipe for Tomato Basil Pizza Sauce and I liked it so much I decided to make it again for pasta. I used 16 ounces of tomato sauce instead of the diced tomatoes, also I added oregano and sugar to my recipe. I doubled the recipe to use later in the week for more pasta and pizza ;)

 

Totally cheap and homemade, with fresh ingredients....Italian Night. From scratch and you probably have all of these ingredients laying around your home and it doesn't taste "cheap". Enjoy!

Watercress Salad

I picked up some watercress on a whim over the weekend from the Asian grocer (more posts to come from that visit) and came home and found
this wonderful recipe to use some of it on. I say "some" because you get a ton of it. It comes in a small "butcher pack" and it looks like a very small amount but it was enough to fill up my Pho noodle bowl. My earliest memories of watercress was eating some wild out of my grandma's yard. It has a peppery bite to it, spicy and a little heat not unlike horseradish. This salad has romaine, watercress, walnuts and Gorgonzola cheese. The dressing uses Gorgonzola cheese, fresh basil, olive oil, basalmic vinegar....It is supposed to be a clone recipe from California Pizza Kitchen, however I have never been to one. This is one of the best salads I have ever had, and I think that the only thing that would make it better is to have some thinly sliced Granny Smith apple or dried cranberries added to it.

California Pizza Kitchen Romaine-Watercress Salad W/ Balsamic-Basil Vinaigrette

Balsamic-Basil Vinaigrette

* 8 large fresh basil leaves
* 6 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
* 1/4 lb gorgonzola, crumbled
* 3/4 cup olive oil, mild flavored

Romaine-Watercress Salad

* 1 head romaine lettuce, cleaned and chopped
* 1 bunch watercress, cleaned and cut bite-size
* 8 ounces gorgonzola, crumbled
* 2 cups walnuts, shelled halves

In a blender, process basil, gorgonzola and vinegar. Then, on a slower speed, blend in oil briefly. Set aside in refrigerator to chill. Later, in a large mixing bowl, combine the greens. Add dressing and toss to coat all leaves. Transfer the dressed greens to several chilled serving plates. Top each with equal amounts of crumbled Gorgonzola cheese and walnuts.