Just~One~Donna

Hamburger Penne Pasta Lately I have not been in the mood to cook.  I blame it on spring.  There always seems like something else I'd rather be doing, or need to be doing.  Do you ever feel the same way?  This recipe was the result of my dinner making efforts on one of those days when there was too much to do and too little time to do it all.  Once again I turned to my freezer and pantry for ingredients that could be pulled together to make a tasty dinner quickly. You probably have these ingredients in your kitchen as well.  There are no exotic ingredients here.  The basic building blocks are the hamburger, some flavorful vegetables, tomatoes and pasta.  If you don't have both red and green pepper, substitute chopped celery.  No jalapenos in your refrigerator?  Add 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes instead, or leave it out entirely.  If your family prefers elbow macaroni instead of penne pasta, go ahead and substitute.  You get the idea.  This recipe works no matte

Baked Cod New England has a proud fishing heritage with many of the early settlers choosing to plant their roots along the shoreline.  For over 400 years the New England fishing industry has been known for its abundance of ground dwelling fish like haddock and cod.  As fishing methods changed and became more efficient the sustainability of the fish stocks became threatened.  As a result, New England's fishing industry is threatened.  With this in mind, I wasn't surprised to see that while the cod in my grocer's case was from the United States it was from the Pacific and not the Atlantic.  Seafood Watch Guide Is Pacific cod a good choice?  I checked my Monterey Bay Seafood Watch Guide  and found that U.S. cod from the Pacific is rated a best alternative.  Imported Pacific cod is listed as a fish to avoid, so knowing that the cod I was buying was from the U.S. was an important distinction.  Do you want to be sure you are purchasing your fish responsibly?  You can prin

Banana Cake This banana cake recipe has been with me for about 25 years, ever since a work colleague gave it to me way back when.  Over the years I had forgotten about the cake and forgotten who had give me the recipe.  After all, there have been many more recipes and many more colleagues in those 25 years.  Not too long ago I was going through my old recipes and found the page with this recipe.  There was a time when I was making banana cakes frequently, but I hadn't made one in several years.  I put the recipe in my recipe binder, planning to make a banana cake again soon. About a month ago I received a phone call from that long ago colleague.  She was looking for the banana cake recipe and thought she remembered giving it to me.  Ah ha, at last I knew from whom I had received the recipe.  Did I have it. she wondered?  You know the recipe with bananas in the frosting?  Yes, I did have it.  She was relieved and I was motivated to make a banana cake. This is a dense cake, pac

Are you ready for another lemon recipe?  This is a homey recipe from my childhood.  It was a favorite dessert that my mom made for us.  Sometimes Mom made these squares with cherry pie filling, but when she made them with lemon pie filling I was in heaven.  Have I told you how much I love lemon? Lemon Pie Filling Squares This is a terrific recipe for bake sales, office parties, baby showers, or just because you want something sweet.  The recipe is baked in a 10 x 15-inch pan, so it makes a lot of squares.  You can use prepared pie filling, but this recipe is made with lemon pie filling from scratch.  It is easy enough to do if you have a couple of juicy fresh lemons on hand. Lemon Pie Filling Squares Print Recipe Pie Filling Squares Ingredients 2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature 2 cups granulated sugar 4 large eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 3 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt lemon pie filling Directions Prehe

Chicken and Chokes Rigatoni My chicken and chokes rigatoni is a one pan dish that is hearty and satisfying.  I love to have a meal like this any time we are in the mood for a casual meal that I want to be quick to make and easy to clean up.  The chicken in this recipe is actually chicken sausages.  Any flavor chicken sausages will work, so choose a flavor that you will like.  The ones I used in this dish had spinach in them and I added more fresh spinach to the pan just prior to serving to complement the spinach in the sausage.  Chicken and Chokes Rigatoni Serves 6 Chicken and Chokes Ingredients 1 pound box rigatoni 1 pound chicken sausage links, any flavor 1/2 medium onion, sliced 1 medium red pepper, sliced into strips 2 cloves garlic, chopped 1/2 can pitted black olives, sliced in half 1 can artichoke hearts, drained and cut in half 1/2 cup white wine, Pinot Grigio 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes salt and pepper to taste 1 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes 1