Broccoli Chicken Marinara Lasagna Rolls

This was another recipe I found while aimlessly scrolling through the Tasty app. It had one of those videos that makes it look easy and delicious so, even though I don’t have a spring-locking pan, I figured I could make do with what I had.

The recipe
Pull-Apart Broccoli Chicken Alfredo Lasagna Rolls from tasty.co.

Ingredient changes
I did groceries during the day so I was preparing ingredients when Jeff got home. I explained the recipe to him, stating that I would need his help making the noodles. He gave me that surprised “umm… what?” sort of look, to which I responded, “umm… what?”

“I hate Alfredo sauce. It’s the white sauce I hate the most.”

OMG. We literally had the white sauce conversation with the much-maligned ravioli dish last night. Good thing I listen so well. Also a good thing I had marinara sauce on hand to substitute.

The only other thing I changed was the wide lasagna noodles. My trusty No Frills didn’t have them so I settled for regular-sized noodles.

Ease (or not) of prep
I thought I’d learned my lesson about shredding chicken when I made Buffalo Chicken Cheese Dip, but apparently I’m a glutton for punishment. Cooking and shredding chicken, finely chopping broccoli, shredding cheese, boiling noodles, all before actually putting together the ingredients resulted in a total of about two hours prepping this meal.

Jeff and I had a sort of assembly line situation going as we rolled the noodles.

“Look at us, cooking together,” he said.

“Thank god,” I replied. “I can’t imagine doing this alone.”

To which he said, “I can’t imagine you doing this again.” *crying laughing emoji*

Special guest curmudgeons: Jeff’s family
I also made Cheesy Pesto Bread with this dish so we had quite a bit of pasta left over. The next day, we went to visit Jeff’s brother and sister-in-law so we took the lasagna rolls with us. Jason apparently hates broccoli so he only had one, but he said it was good (he might have been lying). Stacey said they were great and took a few to keep for lunch the next day.

The Boyfriend Test: Pass
The marinara sauce was a stroke of good luck because Jeff said he really liked these.

Picky Eater Test: Pass, but only just
These were quite delicious. They tasted like lasagna but they’re finger food so that was a fun twist. I’m glad that I couldn’t find the extra wide noodles because the normal noodles, cut in half, were the perfect size to handle and get a few bites from. Bigger noodles might have made them harder to keep from falling apart. Unfortunately, they just aren’t good enough to make up for the insane prep time. If it takes so long to make something that your back hurts and you need a break, that’s too freaking long.

We made a whole big pan but there were a few we couldn’t fit so I froze them. Once those are gone, that’s it because, even though they’re yummy, I am never making lasagna rolls again. Apparently having to shred chicken makes me really grumpy.

Spinach Artichoke Ravioli Bake

Running out of ideas for things to make has led to a lot of pasta dishes, especially since the ones I’ve done so far have been so successful. I wasn’t looking for pasta specifically, but I found this recipe the same time I found the Cheesy Pesto Bread, so I decided to make them both.

The recipe
Spinach Artichoke Ravioli Bake from tasty.co.

Ingredient changes
The comments on the recipe talk about using different kinds of ravioli so I decided to use a non-frozen one. Also, the recipe didn’t specify type so I included my usual skim milk and 5% sour cream.

Ease (or not) of prep
I’m a bit torn here. On one hand, the directions were pretty straightforward: dump stuff in a bowl, mix it, pour in a pan with some ravioli layered in. On the other hand, it took a bit of time to prepare; from start to oven it took about 45 minutes.

The Boyfriend Test: Fail
Unbeknownst to me, Jeff has, in fact, met a food he doesn’t like, and it’s name is ravioli. Not only that, but he hates white sauce (his words). He can’t give much of an explanation why, but he knew before even taking a bite that he wouldn’t like this. To his credit, he at least tried it with several bites, but couldn’t finish his bowl. It’s a good thing I also made the Cheesy Pesto Bread because otherwise, he wouldn’t have had anything to eat.

Picky Eater Test: Eh, pass, I guess
Generally speaking, this dish was alright. The sauce was creamy and the ravioli pieces were good, but I can’t give the recipe credit for that since they were store-bought. I didn’t chop the artichoke hearts because the recipe didn’t say to do so, but I wish I had.

Special guest curmudgeons: my neighbours
Since Jeff wouldn’t want anymore, I asked my neighbours to help me with the leftovers. Amadita, across the hall, took a portion to lunch and texted me saying, “Omg it’s so goooooooood.” Victoria, from downstairs, ever the writer, wrote me a review as long as some of my blog posts (I, ever the editor, cut it down a smidge):

I wish I ate it warm first. If ever someone delivers you food in a still-warm container, do not think, “I’ll save it for lunch tomorrow.” Dig in and enjoy a mouthful or two, right away.

My first bites were cold. I found it amazingly tangy — I have never had a pasta with this flavour note so forward before; I liked it. Nuking it didn’t get back to its original creamy consistency, and all I could think was, it’s not as cream-forward as an Alfredo. I found the sauce refreshing and light; it must be that tanginess influence or cheese selection. The pasta — OMG heavenly. It was light, and not dense like other ravioli’s purchased from the freezer section of the grocer.

This was a solid “PASS” and I encourage it being made a second time… and I’m invited to the first serving.

I’m glad you liked it, Victoria, but you’re on your own. The pasta comes from Fortinos, in the fresh pasta section near the deli. The mozzarella cheese I used was a ball in blue packaging, in the same section as the pasta.

Unfortunately, I’m not as excited about the dish as my neighbours. The lengthy prep time, coupled with the fact that Jeff really didn’t like it means I won’t be making this again.

Pull-Apart Cheesy Pesto Bread

I begrudgingly admit that I occasionally enjoy this new cooking excursion we’ve embarked upon. Begrudgingly! As in, we’ve found a few amazing recipes that have been permanently added to our meal rotation. The only problem is, I’m running out of ideas. I was raised on meat and potatoes so now that I’ve made soups, pastas, a roast, and sliders, I don’t really know what else to make. With the age-old question of what to make for dinner in mind, I stumbled upon this recipe while scrolling around on the Tasty app. Bread? Good. Cheese? Good. A handful of ingredients, most of which I already have? Sold.

The recipe
Pull Apart Cheesy Pesto Bread from tasty.co.

Ingredient changes
I was puzzled by the “strong flour” ingredient so I Googled it. The best source I found said it’s a British term and, in Canada, that refers to all-purpose flour, so that’s what I used. I also accidentally forgot to add the olive oil soooo… *shrug emoji*. Lastly, I didn’t measure the pesto sauce, I just poured some in a small bowl and figured I would add more if necessary.

Ease (or not) of prep
I’ve seen recipes that say the dough must rise for hours or even overnight, so no thanks. This recipe calls for the dough to rise for an hour when mixed, and then an hour again after the balls have been formed; that seems much more manageable. I normally don’t bother with recipes that require hours of prep time but this little how-to video made these look too good to pass up. Besides waiting on the dough, this recipe is pretty easy. I just set timers and then went to do something else  (like try not to eat all the freaking delicious old cheddar cheese I bought at Fortinos).

The Boyfriend Test: Solid pass
Jeff said these were delicious. I believe he also belongs to the school of thought that says, you can’t go wrong with bread and cheese. He’s playing a video game while I write, so I asked if he had anything to add. He said, “Because you made it, that makes it all the more special.” He’s such a sweetie! *blush emoji*

Picky Eater Test: Pass
I also really liked these. I could eat bread and cheese forever so homemade, warm bread and cheese can only be good. I found they got cold quickly so don’t let them sit for too long. I’ll probably add a bit more cheese next time. I also think they might benefit from a sauce on the side, for those who are so inclined.

It’s a good thing these was so delicious. I made this dish as an appetizer and I’m about to unwittingly blunder with the main course…

Chicken-Stuffed Peppers

I am the kind of person that does not enjoy plain, raw vegetables. Jeff is the kind of guy that can just go to town on a vegetable plate and completely ignore the dip; it’s infuriating. I want to eat more vegetables but smothering them with dip seems counter productive. Thus, I went looking for a stuffed pepper recipe. I was keen to find one with chicken rather than beef because I try to not go too nuts with the red meat.

The recipe
Dila’s Chicken-Stuffed Peppers from allrecipes.com.

Ingredient changes
I was making these as a side rather than a main dish so I halved the recipe and made only two. Also, as I was chopping the cilantro, I felt like the whole bunch was a lot so I used only half.

Ease (or not) of prep
This recipe was pretty straightforward – cook chicken, chop stuff, grate cheese. I’d say it took about 25 minutes to put together, so I suppose I can’t really complain (oh no, what do I do now?).

The Boyfriend Test: Pass
Jeff said he really liked his. He scooped all the filling out and then ate the pepper like an apple, which amused me as I, a huge prude apparently, carefully used my fork and knife to cut slices out of mine.

Picky Eater Test: Soft fail
I plan to make these again with a couple big differences so, while I enjoyed the stuffed pepper idea, I did not like this recipe at all. My main issue was the cilantro. I was right to cut half of it out because it still overpowered the flavour. I don’t use a lot of fresh herbs when cooking so the smell of cilantro really surprised me as I chopped it. I found it smelled like soap, almost chemical, and I was immediately turned off. I figured it would change a bit in the dish but I was wrong. I ate as much as I could while trying to pick around the cilantro but I gave about half of mine to Jeff. I was really disappointed; I so wanted to enjoy this. Next time I make it, I will use spinach instead. That may also solve the second problem I had, which was that the recipe did not yield enough filling. I’m guessing this has something to do with using half the cilantro but I’m surprised it made that much of a difference.

I’m going to look around at other stuffed pepper recipes and see what looks good. I can easily replace beef with chicken so I’ll likely try that before I get too experimental with my cooking. I’m not that fancy just yet.

You know what I hate? Rotten produce.

Welcome to another instalment of “You know what I hate?” In today’s episode, we will discuss how much I hate rotten produce, and I don’t mean the wilting head of lettuce in the crisper I forgot to use. I’m talking about the brand new apples I bought at the grocery store YESTERDAY.

We live really close to a No Frills (a cheaper grocery store chain in Canada) so I usually shop there knowing full well that I either won’t find what I’m looking for, or what produce I do buy should be eaten relatively quickly. Yesterday, I went to Fortinos, a higher-end store that charges more for the same no-name stuff No Frills carries but also has a deli, a beautifully piled produce department, and a whole section for fancy cheese. I went there for ingredients I knew No Frills wouldn’t have and because I wanted to blunder my way though an awkward conversation with a cheese professional. I could have easily stopped at No Frills on the way home but it was about 4pm so I knew it would be busy and I was in no mood to pilot Jeff’s old truck in a parking lot now consisting largely of piled snow. Thus, it was to the Fortinos produce section I went, looking for Granny Smith apples.

It was only this morning, as I made Jeff’s lunch before he went to work, that I found one of the apples had a funny… thing… where the stem should be. It looked sort of like a cobweb so I tried to wash it off. When it became clear that it wasn’t simply going to rinse away, I got out a knife to cut it out. When I sliced into the top of the apple, I discovered that it was literally rotten to the core. I stuffed another apple into Jeff’s lunch bag so he could leave but I’m still annoyed. I don’t care that it wasn’t very expensive, now I have to go back to Fortinos and get my money back. As much as I rag on No Frills, I’ve never bought apples there and then cut into them the next day to find a brown, mushy mess.

How does this even happen? How is the middle totally decayed when the body of it still looks edible? Maybe I was on the right track with the cobweb. Maybe a bug made its home in this apple. Ugh, ew. This concludes this segment of, “You know what I hate?” Bugs. I mean, rotten produce.