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to Die For Recipes Article:

The World According To Penne

Penne pasta is a product of Naples, Italy. The pasta was created

to remind the clever Neapolitans of the days when their ancestors

dipped feather quilled pens into bottles of ink in order to

communicate the written word. Although the pasta has an air of

delicacy, it is able to hold its weight from the lightest to the

heaviest of sauces.

Deliberating over how to begin a meal, it is not easy unless it

happens to be a soup that can be light enough to be served as an

appetizer or stand alone as an entree.

Penne Pasta Soup

(Serves 4 bowls or 6 cups)

3-cups swiss chard, julienned(cut into long strips)

3 or 4 cloves garlic

1-Tlb. olive oil

3-cups penne pasta

1-medium onion, chopped

4-14oz. cans chicken broth

2-cups water

1-8oz. can Italian tomatoes with basil

2-whole carrots, sliced thin,precooked

1/2-cup parmesan cheese

1/4 tsp. dried basil

Directions: In a dutch over or a soup pot:

Heat the olive oil and saute the onion and the garlic until they

are wilted. Add the precooked carrots and the swiss chard. Add the chicken broth and the water. Let the ingredients simmer(medium-low) in the broth until they are tender. Add the cooked

penne pasta, the canned Italian tomatoes with basil and the dried

basil. Simmer on low for an additional twenty minutes. When all

of the ingredients are finished cooking, ladle into soup bowls or soup cups and sprinkle the parmesan cheese on the top of the

soup. Serve with Italian bread and some ripe olives.

A rich dense portabella mushroom sauce works well with the delicate balance of penne pasta.

Portabella Mushroom Sauce

(Serves 4)

2-cups portabella mushrooms, sliced

1-medium onion, chopped

2-Tlbs. butter

1-tsp. flour

1-cup half and half

1-tsp. worchestershire sauce

2-Tlb. parsley flakes

1-cup parmasean cheese

1/4-cup red or rose wine

4-cups penne pasta

Directions: Saute the sliced mushrooms and onions until they are

tender. Add the worchestershire sauce and the half and half. Stir

the ingredients and then add the red or rose wine and the parsley

flakes. Boil the penne pasta in salted water and drain it in a

strainer.After the pasta is drained put into an oiled baking dish

and pour the mushroom sauce over it. Cover with foil and bake at

350 degrees for thirty minutes.

A ham and cheese sauce is for those times when a meal needs to

be prepared in a hurry.

Ham And Cheese Sauce

2-cups ham, precooked

1-cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2-cup parmesan cheese

2-cups half and half

2-Tlb. butter

1-Tlb. all purpose flour

1/2-cup frozen English peas

4-cups penne pasta, parboiled

Directions: Line the bottom of a medium sized baking dish with

foil and brush it with some olive oil. In a saucepan: Combine the butter and the flour. After it is incorporated add the half and half and the two cheeses. Stir until the ingredients are of a

sauce consistency. In a baking dish: Arrange the penne pasta and

mix in the ham and the peas. Pour the cheese sauce over the

ingredients. Cover the ingredients with foil and bake at 350

degrees for thirty minutes.

A penne pasta salad is a topic of debate over whether to use fresh plum tomatoes, a favorite brand of canned plum ones, or the

sweetness of the sun dried. Whatever the outcome of the discussion, any type of plum tomato will do.

Penne Pasta Salad

(Serves 4)

4-cups penne pasta, precooked

2-green onions, chopped

1-Tablespoon parsley flakes

3/4-cup plum tomatoes (canned or sun dried)

1/2-cup ripe olives

1/2-cup roasted red bell peppers

3-Tlb olive oil

2-Tlb red wine

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions: Rub a salad bowl with a clove of garlic.Combine all

of the salad ingredients.Whisk the olive oil and the red wine

vinegar. Season the pasta salad with the salt and the pepper.

Combine the vinaigrette dressing with the ingredients.Refrigerate

the pasta salad for thirty minutes.

A light finish to a penne pasta meal is a simple fruit salad made

with oranges, freshly chopped mint and toasted coconut.

Orange Mint Fruit Salad

(Serves 4)

4-cups sliced oranges

2-mint leaves, finely chopped

1-cup toasted coconut

1-anisette cookie for a garnish

Directions: Lightly combine the fruit salad ingredients and then spoon the fruit salad in individual bowls with with an anisette

cookie as a garnish

Cooking since the age of fifteen, the author has always loved

the cuisine of Italy.

Sausage seasoning varies with the region and the country. Since sausages are preferred by some spicy or simply garlicky, you can imagine how various the sausage herb and spices blends can be. Every individual likes a certain flavor added to the meat and the flavor also varies with the style of cooking the meat. Generally speaking sausages are fired or grilled so perhaps people would be more inclined to use sausage seasoning that somewhat resembles that of barbecued meat. And it so happens that if you want to purchase a certain kind of sausage seasoning and you are in a foreign country, you might not find it on the store shelves. Instead you will find other brands that will reflect the local tendencies in cuisine. Thus the sausage seasoning is not of only one kind and another tendency nowadays is to combine whatever you are into in terms of flavors borrowing ideas from other cultures and cuisines all over the world.

Recipe for a delicious oyster stuffing, perfect for that Thanksgiving turkey, or maybe the Christmas goose. My friend said a couple of years ago "that's the best oyster dressing I have ever eaten. I hope you like it too! -- Frank

Sauces are unusual components of meals. Often they do not merit more than an afterthought as they are the natural cooking mediums of stews. Or they're made as an afterthought. Yet, in French-influenced cuisine a sauce is a central part of the culinary experience that adds to the meal itself. Here, two sauces are presented: one classic and one very modern.

Is your social calendar so packed with activities that you don't have time to cook? Try cooking Olive Garden Restaurant recipes - many only need 1/2 an hour to cook.

Are you wondering how you can use up all that leftover turkey? Are you looking for a new way to use it that will surprise your family? Try this Day After Hash! Surprise your family and/or friends at breakfast or brunch with this turkey hash.