Cinco de Mayo, Ole!

It’s been a hot, lazy Saturday for me.  I’ve been hanging out, reading a book, drinking coffee, watching the Derby, doing a little laundry, setting up our new computer.  Hmm, guess it hasn’t been so lazy after all!  All that being said, it isn’t lost on me that today is Cinco de Mayo sooo…It’s happy hour at the Richard residence!!

We love Mexican food.  We don’t need a holiday to celebrate our love of all things salsa.  Spicy enchiladas, crispy tacos, refreshing margaritas, you can bet we indulge at least once a week!

One of our favorite places for Mod Mex food is Momocho in Cleveland, Ohio.  One of my besties works there and introduced us to it a few years ago.  I crave the guacamole and margaritas!!!  I’m having one of those cravings right now!  Since I can’t hop in the car and drive the 531 miles to my gastronomical Mod Mex heaven (but guacamole and margaritas for breakfast is tempting!!) I’ll have to make do with my own quite tasty knock off at home.

Guacamole with Pineapple, Jicama and Mint

• 2 ripe avocados
• 1/2 cup pineapple, diced fine
• 1/2 cup jicama, diced fine
• 1 tablespoon mint, chopped fine
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1 clove roasted garlic
• Juice of 1 lime
• Habanero pepper (as much or as little as you like)
• Salt & pepper

Place all ingredients in a bowl, mash with a fork and stir to combine.  Serve with your favorite tortilla chips and a nice, cold margarita.  How easy is that?!

It’s pretty delicious but it’s hard to beat the original, the atmosphere, the staff and the great time that’s to be had at Momocho.

The next time you’re in Cleveland (it does rock you know) stop by and see my friend Cristy.  Her smiling happy face will be your passport to a fantastic evening!  Viva Momocho!!

http://momocho.com/

Adventures in Gourds Part #1 – Peter, Peter Pumpkin Eater

Peter, Peter pumpkin eater,
Had a wife but couldn’t keep her,
 Put her in a pumpkin shell,
And there he kept her, very well.

What?!  This is one of the many nursery rhymes that sort of disturbs me…I’m sure there’s some deep philosophical meaning but I just don’t get it…

Anyway…

I. Love. Pumpkin. ♥  I’m sure you’re all expecting me to break out pumpkin cheesecake (I do make a fantastic one!) or a pumpkin roll or bread or some sweet treat when you hear me say pumpkin.  Well, this time you would be wrong!  Why do we put pumpkin in a box?  Do you think this gourd longs to become a pumpkin pie?  I would say the answer is definitely no.  Not when there are so many delicious things it can become!  Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE a big piece of pumpkin pie with a tower of whipped cream but the possibilities are really endless.

I encourage you again to step out of your comfort zone.  Try something new: new flavors, new techniques, whatever, just try it.

I’m making it my mission over the next few weeks to expand the horizons of Peter, Peter Pumpkin Eater.  I wonder what he would think of my first creation…Pumpkin Risotto with Blackened Shrimp and Apple Ginger Tarragon Salsa.  Eat that Peter!

Pumpkin Risotto with Blacked Shrimp and Apple Ginger Tarragon Salsa

Risotto (serves 2 with leftovers for risotto cakes, recipe follows, or 4 large portions):

• 4 cups vegetable stock
• 1 cup water
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large finely chopped shallot
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 2 cups uncooked Arborio rice
• 1 cup canned pumpkin (make sure it’s not pumpkin pie filling, I’ve made that mistake before!)
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Bring broth and water to a simmer in a medium saucepan (do not boil). Keep warm over low heat.

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add shallots; cook 1 minute or until tender, stirring constantly. Add garlic; cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add rice; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly until rice is slightly toasted.  Add wine; cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly or until liquid has evaporated. Stir in 1 cup broth mixture; cook until liquid is nearly absorbed, stirring constantly. Add remaining broth, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until each portion of broth is absorbed before adding the next (about 33 minutes total).  I always taste along the way to check the rice.  Stir in pumpkin during with the last of the stock. Stir in cheese and remaining ingredients.

Shrimp (serves 2, can be doubled):

• 1/2 lb. large shrimp, peeled & deveined
• Blackening seasoning (I made my own with cumin, chipotle powder, garlic powder, salt & pepper)
• Olive oil

Heat olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium high heat.  Coat shrimp with blackening seasoning.  Add shrimp to the pan and cook for 4-5 minutes (depending on the size of your shrimp it could be a little longer) or until translucent.

Apple Ginger Tarragon Salsa (serves 2, can be doubled):

• 1/2 Granny Smith apple, diced
• 1 teaspoon tarragon, minced
• Ginger, grated (amount depends on how much you like ginger)
• White balsamic vinegar
• Honey
• Olive oil

Mix all ingredients together and serve on top of shrimp and risotto.

Don’t be afraid of the flavor combination or the thought of standing over the pan stirring for half an hour.  It’s worth it, trust me.

Doesn’t that look delicious?!  I bet if Peter’s wife had this recipe he wouldn’t have put her in the pumpkin shell.  Just sayin’…

Bonus recipe time!  Sorry there is no picture…they were so good I scarfed them down before I even thought about it!

Pumpkin Risotto Cakes

• Leftover pumpkin risotto, chilled
• Olive oil
• Leftover shrimp & apple salsa OR mixed greens tossed with olive oil & lemon

Divide risotto into equal portions, shaping each into a 1/2-inch-thick patty. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add patties; cook 3 minutes. Carefully turn patties; cook 3 minutes on each side or until golden. Repeat procedure with remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil and patties.

Garnish with leftover shrimp & apple salsa or top with a mixed green salad for a light lunch/dinner.

Berry Pickin’

Tomorrow is October 1st.  Today’s high in Nashville is 68° and there is a chance of frost this weekend.  You would think I’d be breaking out the butternut squash and making a big pot of soup but no, today I’m reminiscing about summer.  Go figure.

For those who know me you will know that I really hate summer.  There isn’t much about it that’s appealing to me.  I’m not really a beach person.  I’m not in school anymore so summer doesn’t mean vacation and being lazy (in fact it gets much busier in my world!).  The word “sweat” is not in my vocabulary unless it’s in reference to a killer workout.  And don’t even get me started on the humidity in the South!

Give me mountains, football, sweaters, pumpkin pie, and and bonfires and I’m a happy girl!

As much as I loathe summer there are a few things that redeem it.  I do enjoy tall glasses of iced tea (unsweet please!), baseball and all the fresh veggies I can handle at the Farmer’s Market.  Who can resist the sizzle of burgers on the grill and corn on the cob slathered with butter?!  Patriotic holidays and picnics are filled with family and friends and great nostalgic culinary creations.  So I guess it isn’t all bad…

My favorite thing about summer is berry picking.  Just thinking about it makes me feel like a giddy kid again (picture bouncing up and down, clapping hands and a permanent Kool-Aid mustache).  In the summertime every car we owned had a stash of butter tubs, empty plastic pint containers and anything else we could use for collecting big, juicy berries.  It was a daily practice to drive around the country picking wild blackberries and raspberries from fence rows.  You had to keep your wits about you in the backseat (it wasn’t law for carseats and seat belts back then) or you’d end up on the floorboard when my Pappa would slam on the brakes and pull over (hmm, he did this in the Spring when he’d spot asparagus too)!  It brings back fond memories of thorns in my fingers and burrs all over my clothes. 

It was a happy day when we collected enough berries for my Grandma to make jelly.  That was always quite the accomplishment since I would eat half of what I picked!  Nothing is more satisfying than breaking out a jar of homemade jelly in the dead of winter when the snow is piled high and catching a whiff of lazy, summer days gone by…

This recipe combines two of the things I adore: blackberries and cheescake.  ♥  It isn’t blackberry jelly but it screams SUMMER!  Enjoy!

Lemon Goat Cheese Cheesecake with Blackberry Curd

(in a jar)

Blackberry curd:

• 3 cups fresh or frozen blackberries
• 1/2 cup water
• Zest of 1 lemon (juice is used for cheesecake)
• 1/2 cup sugar (or more depending on the sweetness of the berries)
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons cold water

In a saucepan, combine blackberries, water and lemon zest and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer 5-10 minutes until berries start to break down (frozen berries will break down quicker).  Remove from heat and let cool slightly.  Process the berries in a food processor and strain through a fine sieve to remove seeds.  Put back in the saucepan over medium heat and add sugar and butter.  Mix the cornstarch and water together and add to the berry sauce.  Stir until thick and bubbly, about 4 minutes.  Remove from heat and let cool completely.

Cheesecake:

• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 6 tablespoons butter, melted
• Dash of cinnamon
• 16 oz. goat cheese, softened
• 16 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 eggs
• Juice of 2 lemons

Preheat oven to 350°.

Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon and butter in a bowl and toss with a fork until crumbs coated.  Press a heaping tablespoon full of crumbs into each of 12 jelly jars coated with cooking spray.  Set aside.

With a hand mixer, cream together goat cheese, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time, beating until just incorporated.  Beat in lemon juice and zest.  Pour into jelly jars to about 3/4 full.

Place jars in a roasting pan with deep sides.  Place on the middle rack of the oven and fill the pan with hot water about half way up the jars.  Bake for 15-16 minutes or until cheesecakes are slightly jiggly.  Remove from water bath and let cool completely.

Top cheesecakes with blackberry curd, screw on the lid and chill for 2 hours.  Before serving, top with whipped cream, fresh blackberries and a sprig of mint.

Because these are baked up in a jar they are really great for picnics!  Just screw on the lid, pop them in the cooler and you’ve got a fancy, gourmet treat to impress your friends!

*This summer some of my Facebook friends had a little friendly cheesecake bake-off photo contest.  We concocted lucious cheesecakes, took our best photos and had a blind judging.  I didn’t win with this entry but it was fun to participate!  I wish we all lived closer so we could have tasted them all!!!  

This group comes from far and wide to share all things FOOD!  Check out the cookbook that was created featuring some awesome chefs to honor one of our own.  Yours truly had the pleasure of being included!

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/2193766

Get a copy today and support an amazing chef, father and friend!

Tea Time

There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea.  ~Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady

Nothing is quite as relaxing as a cup of tea and a good book.  It is one of my absolute favorite past times, especially on a rainy Saturday afternoon.  I love getting lost in the pages of a book, immersing myself in a story.  For me this is pure bliss.  History or biography, fiction or non-fiction, sci-fi or romance, classic or contemporary – it doesn’t really matter, I’ll read them all.  Call me crazy but I love a long British novel and a cup of tea (tea, Earl Grey, hot, if you’re a sci-fi geek like me you’ll get that reference) on a rainy day.  Add a few cookies or some homemade shortbread and let it rain, let it rain.

Orange-Earl Grey Shortbread Cookies

• 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), softened
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Grated zest of one orange
• 1 teaspoon Earl Grey tea (approx. one tea bag)
• 2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

Heat oven to 325° F. Combine the butter, sugar, and salt in a mixer and beat until light and fluffy. Blend in the orange zest, tea, and flour until smooth. Press into an 8-inch square baking pan, prick with a fork. Bake 30 minutes or just until the shortbread begins to turn golden.  Cut into 9 squares, then cut each square into 2 triangles. Cool completely on a wire rack. Remove the shortbread cookies from the pan.

(I use a shortbread pan because I have one and I like the pretty pattern it makes)

Some of the most dear and most influential people in my life have been there because of literature.  For that I will be eternally grateful.  Excuse me for a moment while I thank them.

My Mom, who read me bedtime stories starting at a very early age and who took me to the library for arm loads of books.  Thank you for introducing me to Beatrix Potter, Shel Silverstein, Judy Blume, the list could go on and on.  Thank you for continuing to indulge me and challenge me in my literary journey.

My Dad, who drove me all around Richmond, Virginia showing me sites and buildings that Patricia Cornwell wrote about in her Scarpetta series.  Thank you for helping me appreciate the scientific process.  Since I’m an “artsy fartsy” person I’m sure that was quite a challenge!  Love you and miss you Dad, Happy Father’s Day.

Mr. Brown, my 8th grade English teacher who introduced me to a world of poetry.  Without you I wouldn’t have Whitman, Emerson and my favorite, Poe.  It was many and many a year ago, in a kingdom by the sea…

Mr. Gumerlock, my freshman English teacher who brought an entire class together with the world of John Steinbeck yet wasn’t afraid to challenge us with Julius Caesar.  We shared a love of classic movies.  You are missed sir.  Love, your Mooresy Bug

Next to my Mom, my 11th and 12th grade English teacher, Mrs. Summers, had the most influence on my literary path.  She opened up the world of Jane Austen, the Bronte sisters, Dickens and the whole British library.  I will never be the same…

And lastly, but certainly not least, Dr. Murray my fellow Janeite.  No one else I know gets as giddy about Jane Austen.  If I had taken his novel class earlier in my college career I probably would have changed paths.  I’ve still got that research paper in my back pocket, maybe one day you’ll read it as my thesis!  Thank you for listening to my unconventional view of Mr. Darcy.

You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.  ~C.S. Lewis

So true Mr. Lewis, so true…

Dinner For One

Dinner for one is a common theme in my home.  I can say that’s probably the most challenging aspect of a life with a travelling husband.

There are some perks to him being gone though.  I can watch as many girlie movies on Netflix as I want.  It makes pedicures with my best friend easier to schedule.  I can sprawl out in the middle of the bed without repercussions.  See?  It’s not so bad.  And then there’s the anticipation of him coming home.  It’s great to catch up on each other’s weeks and make special date night plans.  I think we appreciate each other much more when we only have a few days together each week.  It makes those petty arguments few and far between.  We have time to miss each other.  It certainly keeps the spark alive after almost 9 years!

Back to the challenge: what’s for dinner when I’m flying solo?  I could swing through any number of drive thrus on my way home from work but I would just feel gross and guilty after that and have to put in some extra miles at the gym.  I could make a big pot or casserole of something and eat it for three meals a day for a week but why torture myself?!  Then there’s the old standbys: scrambled eggs and toast or a bowl of cereal.  Yeah that’s boring but it will suffice in a pinch.  But why do I have to sacrifice my foodie cravings just because I’m cooking for one?  I don’t and I try really hard not to.

Over the years I’ve become a master at creating one serving pasta dishes.  You pretty much can’t go wrong with a big bowl of pasta, a salad, and some crusty bread for a solo meal. The great thing is, if it’s good enough, I can easily double the recipe and share it with my hubby when he gets home.  If it fails horribly, he never has to know!

Here is my latest creation.  I don’t do a lot of measuring when I cook for one.  Feel free to adjust any of the ingredients to your taste.  Tonight it’s all about YOU!

Lemony Shrimp Florentine Linguine with Roasted Garlic

For roasted garlic:

• 1 head garlic, peeled, cloves separated
• Olive oil
• Salt & Pepper

Preheat oven to 350°.  Place garlic cloves on a sheet of aluminum foil.  Coat with olive oil, S&P.  Wrap foil around to make a package.  Bake for 20-25 minutes until fragrant.  Remove from oven and let cool.

For pasta:

• 10 shrimp, peeled & deveined, tails removed
• 3-4 roasted garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Handful chopped frozen loose leaf spinach, thawed
• Zest and juice from 1 lemon
• Splash of white wine, whatever you have on hand (I used Pinot Grigio)
• Splash of cream to finish
• Small handful parmesan cheese
• Linguine, cooked according to package directions

In a medium non-stick skillet, heat olive oil.  Add shrimp and cook for about 3 minutes or until translucent.  Remove from pan.  Deglaze with wine and add garlic cloves and mash.  Add the lemon juice and cream and reduce to a simmer.  Add the shrimp back in along with the spinach.  Cook for about 2 minutes more or until shrimp are cooked through.  Finish with parmesan cheese.  Toss in the pasta and serve.

How easy was that?!  I like to cook but I’m all about quick and easy when I’m on my own.  It makes for fewer dishes to wash too!  Oh and don’t feel guilty about finishing off that bottle of wine either.  There’s no one home to catch you! 

Hot Diggity Dog

My husband, Steve, travels A LOT.  I mean like every weekend a lot.  It’s been traveling off and on for most of the 9 years that we’ve been married but that’s okay.  I knew what I was getting into when I said “I do” and I wouldn’t trade it for the world!

Sting - Lockdown PPV, Cincinnati, OH

We have been blessed over the years to have him work at some amazing places and with some amazing people but I have to say that his current job is probably my favorite.  He is the Assistant Production Manager for TNA Wrestling.  I’m not afraid to admit that I love professional wrestling.  It has been a guilty pleasure of mine since I was a kid (more on that later!).  You can imagine my reaction when he got this job!  The past couple years have been an awesome opportunity to meet some of the most amazing, entertaining people I have ever encountered.  My life (and our marriage) are much better for them.  They certainly make our lives more colorful!

Jellyfish - Newport Aquarium

I have the pleasure of travelling with Steve several times a year which is always an adventure.  Usually he’s so busy (I mean he is working after all) that we don’t get to spend much time together but I find ways to entertain myself.  I love museums, zoos & aquariums, parks and outdoorsy stuff so it’s never hard to keep myself occupied.  I’m a self-taught, wannabe photographer too so it doesn’t take much to amuse me!

We had a rare occasion on a recent business trip to Cincinnati, Ohio to have a date night.  An online gaming friend of my husband’s suggested we check out SENATE Restaurant.  For someone who’s never met us and hardly knows us, he nailed us perfectly.  It’s a hip gastro-pub in the up and coming trendy Vine St. neighborhood.  If I could pick this place up (and the whole area for that matter) and move it to Nashville I definitely would!  Their menu consists of gourmet street food, local beer and hand-crafted cocktails.  For anyone who knows me and Steve, you know that those words describe us to a T.  I had one of the best hot dogs I’ve ever eaten (the Hello Kitty with cole slaw, bacon and wasabi peas on a brioche bun) which just so happens to have been featured in the latest issue of Food & Wine magazine (http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/hello-kitty-hot-dogs-cocktails-2011).  How cool is that?  Try it with a cocktail or local brew and you won’t be disappointed!  The cocktails are fresh and made by the skilled bartenders right in front of you.  The open kitchen allows a view of the wood fired grills and the chef’s creating your food.  The atmosphere is hip and energetic.  It is all the things that we like in a date-night restaurant!

Check out their Facebook page for the daily dog inspired by and named after celebrities.  It’s amazing how a hot dog can perfectly describe a person!  A couple weeks ago Senate pub caught a case of Beiber fever and I have to say now I have too!  Since I haven’t tasted their original I’m not sure how close I am but it was dang tasty!

SENATE Pub inspired “Justin Beiber” dog

• 1 package chicken sausages (usually 4 per pack)
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large Vidalia onion, halved and sliced thin
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 8 slices applewood smoked bacon, cooked to your liking
• 4 oz. goat cheese, crumbled
• Crushed pretzels
• Your favorite BBQ sauce
• Hearty hot dog rolls, brioche rolls, hoagie rolls

In a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, heat butter and olive oil until melted.  Add onions and salt & pepper.  Cook 3-5 minutes until they start becoming translucent.  Add sugar, stir and reduce heat to medium-low.  Cook, stirring occassionally, until brown and carmelized – about 15 minutes.

While onions are cooking, heat grill pan or electric grill to high.  Cook chicken sausages according to package directions (they should be fully cooked already, you’re just heating them up and getting grill marks).  I start mine in a hot grill pan on the stove until they get grill marks on each side and then transfer them to the oven to finish, about 7-8 minutes total.

To assemble dogs: Place 2 slices bacon on bottom of roll, top with sausage, onions, BBQ sauce, goat cheese and crushed pretzels.  Serve immediately.

The moral of this story is, don’t be afraid to try something new.  One of our favorite things to do when we travel is discover the city/region by it’s culinary voice.  I love coming home from a trip and recreating my experience with food.  There are a handful of restaurants I’ve visited across the country that truly inspire me.  SENATE Restaurant is definitely one of them.  If you find yourself in the Cincinnati area for any reason make sure you stop by and say hello (kitty, ha!).  You won’t be sorry, believe me!

SENATE Restaurant http://www.senatepub.com/

Check out the daily dog on their Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/SENATE-Restaurant/134193393637

More shameless self promotion:  Check out my Flickr page http://www.flickr.com/photos/mndapnda421/ for more TNA Wrestling, zoo/aquarium and lots of random photography.

On Top of Spaghetti…

Men, pay attention.  Ladies, I’m going to ask you to walk away.  Go ahead, it’s alright.  There’s got to be something that can keep you occupied for a few minutes.  They’re in good hands.  Just trust me.

Okay guys, are they gone?  No?  Okay I’ll wait…

Now?  Good, read on.

I stopped at the grocery on my way home the other night to pick up a few things to make pizza (from my previous post) and a young guy, probably in his early 20s, stopped me to ask if I could give him a few tips.  His girlfriend was having a rough day at work and he wanted to surprise her with dinner and flowers.  He figured by looking at the items in my cart (lobster tails, goat cheese, San Marzano tomatoes) that I’d be able to guide him in the right direction.  On his menu: spaghetti and meatballs.

Want a quick, easy way to impress your wife/girlfriend/that girl you see at the coffee shop but can’t get up the nerve to ask out?  Take a page out of this kid’s book and make her dinner.

What?!  Am I crazy?!  Isn’t it easier to just make a reservation?!  Well sure, but wouldn’t it mean more for your lady to come home to a romantic dinner than fight the crowd at that trendy new restaurant where you spend way too much money on a meal that just leaves you hungry and swinging through a drive-thru on the way home?  Add to that the stress of choosing the right outfit (and the resulting tornado of discarded items), the whining about our painfully sexy heels, the cloud of smelly beauty products that will follow us like Pigpen’s dust cloud and the hours and hours you will have to wait on us to get ready.  Oh and if you’re a family man don’t forget that you have to find a sitter, yikes!

Sounds like fun, huh?  Unless she’s a foodie and has a list of star chef’s restaurants and has bookmarked every website, menu and blog known to culinary man (wow, I just described myself) save it for her next birthday, your anniversary or to celebrate that big promotion.  She will thank you for letting her throw her hair up in a ponytail, don that worn out, oversized rock t-shirt from college and sit back with a glass of wine and relax.  And if y’all are anything like my husband you will think that’s just as sexy as as the glammed-up, shellacked version of ourselves that takes so long to create anyway.

Now, I know spaghetti and homemade meatballs sounds a little daunting but I’m going to give you a quick and easy recipe that would knock the socks right off Lady and the Tramp!  Add a tossed salad, garlic bread and a bottle of vino and you’re golden!

Spaghetti & Meatballs

• 1 lb. lean ground beef
• 1/3 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
• 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup yellow onion, diced fine
• 3 Tablespoons Italian parsley, minced
• 1 egg
• 1 (2lb.) jar herb and garlic marinara sauce
• Olive oil
• Thin spaghetti

Optional: garlic bread (from grocery bakery or frozen section), bagged salad, bottle of wine

Directions:

Put a large pot of water on the stove over high heat to boil.

(If you are adding garlic bread to your meal, preheat oven according to package directions.)

In a large mixing bowl, combine ground beef, bread crumbs, cheese, yellow onion, parsley, egg and 4 tablespoons marinara sauce.

Form mixture into about 16 golf ball sized meatballs.

Heat 3 Tablespoons olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.  Arrange meatballs in a single layer and cook cook about 2 minutes until brown and crisp on one side.  Carefully turn over with a spatula and cook 3-4 more minutes.  Add the remaining marinara sauce to the pan to cover meatballs.  Cover pan and reduce heat to medium.  Let meatballs simmer for 12 minutes, stirring gently about 5 minutes through cooking time.

(If you are adding garlic bread to your meal this would be a good time to put it in the oven.)

Cook pasta according to package directions.

(While pasta is cooking, prepare salad.)

Drain pasta and portion on to plates or bowls.  Top with three meatballs, a little extra sauce and lots of parmesan cheese.

That wasn’t so hard, was it?  You just scored MAJOR brownie points, believe me!  Sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labor.  Well done men!

Mangia! Mangia!

Need dessert?  A store-bought pound cake with fresh berries and whipped cream is an easy, elegant end to the perfect date night.

And flowers!  Don’t forget the flowers!

Ladies, I know you read this even though I told you not to.  You’re welcome.  Oh and while you’re at it, be sure to give your man a nice big thank you!