Not My Grandma's Cheesy Noodles!

Spicy Radiatore and Cheese
2 servings Radiatore noodles
3/4 cup Mexican Velveeta Cheese (mild)
1 tbsp. 2% milk (may need more)
1 tsp. green chiles
1/2 tsp. adobo (from canned chipotles)
1/2 tsp juice from pickled jalapenos
1/2 tsp jalapeno mustard
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp butter
1 tbps vegetable oil
1/4 cup Parmesean cheese, grated


Preheat oven to 450 degrees.


Cook pasta to al dente according to package.


Add cheese, milk, green chiles, adobo, jalapeno juice and mustard to a small saucepan. Heat over low heat and stir until cheese melts. Stir in pasta.


While cheese is melting, mix bread crumbs, paprika, chili powder, cayenne and salt and pepper together. Heat butter and oil in a pan until hot. Add bread crumbs to butter and oil and toast.


Spray a small oven safe bowl with non-stick spray. Pour noodle and cheese mixture in bowl. Top with toasted bread crumbs. Grate Parmesan cheese over top.


Bake for 5 minutes.


I really enjoyed the noodles and cheese. I remember my great-grandma making me noodles and cheese for lunch growing up. As a grown up I still enjoy the flavors. I spiced up her basic recipe and added bread crumbs to the top. This recipe has spice but is not too spicy. It has nice depth of flavor. I will definitely make it again!

Crab Cioppino

This is the meal I made for my Grandma's birthday when they stopped on their way to Texas. It is probably the best crab I have ever had, and made wonderful crab cakes the next day.

This recipe comes straight from Bon Appetit January 2010.

Parmesan Toasts with Prosciutto and Fig Jam

12 1/4-inch-thick baguette slices
Extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
6 slices prosciutto, each slice cut crosswise into 4 pieces
2 tablespoons fig jam

Preheat oven to 400°F. Place baguette slices in single layer on baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Divide Parmesan equally among slices. Bake until lightly toasted, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven and drizzle with additional olive oil.
Top each slice with 2 prosciutto pieces; top with dollop of fig jam. Sprinkle with pepper. Serve Parmesan toasts slightly warm or at room temperature.

Cioppino-Style Roasted Crab

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
6 large garlic cloves, pressed
1 cup dry white wine
2 cups bottled clam juice
2 15-ounce cans chopped tomatoes in juice
1 cup water
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup (packed) fresh Italian parsley leaves
1/2 teaspoon (scant) dried crushed red pepper
Coarse kosher salt
2 pounds Alaska king crab legs

Preheat oven to 400°F. Heat oil in large deep ovenproof skillet or large metal roasting pan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté until soft, about 5 minutes. Add wine; increase heat to high and boil 2 minutes. Add clam juice, tomatoes with juice, 1 cup water, bay leaves, parsley, and crushed red pepper and bring to boil. Season to taste with coarse salt and pepper.
Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer 15 minutes. Add crab pieces; nestle into sauce. Transfer skillet to oven and roast until crab pieces are heated through, 15 to 20 minutes. Place crab with juices in large bowl.

Lemon-Parsley Linguine

1/2 pound linguine
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium garlic cloves, pressed
1 teaspoon (packed) finely grated lemon peel
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Cook linguine in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking liquid.
Meanwhile, heat extra-virgin olive oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic; sauté until golden, about 1 minute. Add grated lemon peel to skillet and cook 20 seconds. Remove skillet from heat.
Add linguine to skillet with garlic and lemon peel. Return skillet to medium heat; mix in parsley. Add 1/2 cup pasta cooking liquid and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Toss until heated through, adding more cooking liquid to moisten if dry.

How to Use the Leftovers -- Crab Cake Sandwiches with Lemon-Parsley Aioli:

Preheat broiler. Squeeze 1 medium garlic clove through garlic press and mix with 1/2 cup mayonnaise, 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley to make a quick aioli. Remove leftover crabmeat from shells to yield about 8 ounces (1 1/2 cups). Mix crabmeat with 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs and 1/4 cup aioli. Form into 4 crab cakes. Place crab cakes on lightly oiled baking sheet. Broil cakes on center rack until golden and heated through, about 5 to 7 minutes. Split soft buns and spread additional aioli on bun halves; fill with crab cakes

Jalepeno Cream Cheese Burgers

1 pound 73% ground beef

2 tbsp. green chilies

Spicy Steak Seasoning

1/2 cup Cream Cheese

2 tbsp. diced jalapenos(pickled)

Crispy Jalapeno pieces

Hamburger buns

Preheat grill to medium high heat. Oil grill grates to prevent sticking. (I put oil on paper towel and rub the grill with the paper towel.)

Mix beef and green chilies together. Divide into four patties and season with steak seasoning.

Grill hamburgers for 7-8 minutes per side.

While hamburgers are grilling mix the cream cheese and diced jalapenos together.

When burgers are close to being done put buns on the grill for a minute.

Take burgers off the grill, top with cream cheese mixture and crispy jalapeno pieces.

Steak, Corn and Potato Salad

I made a spicy rubbed flat iron steak with a grilled corn on the cob and chipotle-lime butter with a chipotle potato salad.

Grilled Flat Iron Steak

I took a two pound flat iron steak and rubbed it with spicy steak seasoning, cumin, cayenne powder and chili powder. I let it sit in the fridgefor an hour. It was grilled for 5 minutes per side then it sat for five minutes and was thinly cut against the grain. Overall I thought it tasted really good. We used the rest of it for fajitas as leftovers and they were delicious.

Corn on the cob with Chipotle-Lime butter

Preheat grill to medium. Peel back the husks of the corn without removing them. Remove the silks and recover the corn with the husk. Soak in large bowl of cold water for 30 minutes. Remove corn from water and shake off excess. Place the corn on the grill, close the cover and grill for 15 to 20 minutes.
Unwrap corn and brush with the chipotle-lime butter.

Chipotle-lime butter

1 tbsp. chipotle w/adobo

1 stick butter

1 tsp lime juice

1 tsp lime zest

combine ingredients into food processor. let sit in fridge until ready to use.

Chipotle Potato Salad

1 pound yukon gold potatoes, diced

3 eggs (hard-boiled), diced

1 stalk celery, diced

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1 tbsp. jalapeno mustard

2 tbsp. chipotle with adobo (puree in food processor)

1 tsp. diced jalapeno (canned)

1 tsp. jalapeno juice

salt and pepper to taste

Mix mayo, mustard, chipotle peppers, jalapeno, juice together. Fold into potatoes, eggs and celery. Add salt and pepper to taste.