Double-Post Tuesday

Besides being Taco Tuesday, it's also Double-Post Tuesday. Today's yummy offerings include Squash and Spinach Lasagna and Gjelina's Roasted Yams. Enjoy!

CLASSIC MEATLOAF

This recipe is from MyDailyMoment.com, and begins, “Get ready to meat your maker. When you're looking for a quick and easy dinner, feast your eyes on this simple solution. Prep for this classic comfort food takes just a matter of minutes. It's sure to be a family favorite.”

For 6 people; Ready in 1 1/2 hour.

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

16 ounces ground beef

1 ounce can vegetable soup

2 tablespoons ketchup

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1/3 tablespoon milk

1 1/2 cups oatmeal

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Form into a loaf and place in baking pan. Bake for 1 hour.

GRACELAND OATMEAL MEATLOAF

This comes from the infamous long-since-forgotten emailing list.

Serving Size : 10

2 Green peppers , diced

2 medium Onions, diced

2 large Eggs, lightly beaten

2 pounds Ground chuck

1 pound Bulk sausage meat

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1/2 teaspoon Black pepper

1/2 teaspoon Garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon Onion powder

1 cup Rolled oats

1 1/2 cups Hunt's ketchup

Preheat the oven to 375'F. Combine all the ingredients except 1/2 cup of the ketchup in a large mixing bowl. Mix well and shape into a nice, even loaf. Place the loaf in a shallow baking dish and top with the remaining ketchup. Bake for 90 minutes or until well-done.

TRIPLE TOMATO PASTA WITH SPINACH AND WHITE BEANS

This comes from Molly Cleary, MS, RD, CDN, CNSC on VeryWellFit. Molly wrote, “Tomatoes get their red color from lycopene, an antioxidant that may help to prevent cancer and cardiovascular disease. Cooking tomatoes actually helps to increase lycopene content, therefore potentially boosting its disease-fighting power.

“In addition to lycopene, this recipe also provides great nutritional benefits from the cannellini beans. These beans are full of fiber, at 6 grams per half cup serving. They are also one of the highest potassium beans out there, a micronutrient and electrolyte that can help lower blood pressure.”

Total Time: 30 minutes; Prep Time: 10 minutes; Cook Time: 20 minutes; Servings: 4

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

8 ounces whole wheat penne pasta

1 can low sodium cannellini beans

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 package baby spinach

2 cups cherry tomatoes, diced

1 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil

1/4 cup sliced/slivered almonds

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

2 cloves garlic (or 1 teaspoon minced)

2 teaspoons dried basil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

Directions

Cook pasta according to package directions.

Combine pesto ingredients (slivered almonds through crushed red pepper) in a food processor and blend until mostly smooth; some small chunks are okay. You may need to a litter water to thin, but do not add more than a few tablespoons since the sauce is meant to be thick.

Drain and rinse cannellini beans.

Add olive oil to a pan and heat to medium high. Add baby spinach and cook until wilted. Remove from heat.

Combine the pasta, beans, spinach, and tomatoes into one large pot. Add the pesto and mix well.

Divide into 4 bowls and serve.

Ingredient Variations and Substitutions

If you cannot find sun-dried tomatoes in oil, then you can substitute 3/4 cup bagged sun-dried tomatoes with 1/4 cup olive oil. It works best if tomatoes are soaked in the oil for at least an hour.

Cooking and Serving Tips

Leftover pesto tastes delicious as a sandwich spread. It also freezes well.

RED LENTIL SOUP WITH LEMON

This comes from Melissa Clark in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Melissa wrote, “This is a lentil soup that defies expectations of what lentil soup can be. It is light, spicy and a bold red color (no murky brown here): a revelatory dish that takes less than an hour to make. The cooking is painless. Sauté onion and garlic in oil, then stir in tomato paste, cumin and chile powder and cook a few minutes more to intensify flavor. Add broth, water, red lentils (which cook faster than their green or black counterparts) and diced carrot, and simmer for 30 minutes. Purée half the mixture and return it to the pot for a soup that strikes the balance between chunky and pleasingly smooth. A hit of lemon juice adds an up note that offsets the deep cumin and chile flavors.”

Yield: 4 servings; Time: 45 minutes.

This was featured in “A Lentil Soup to Make You Stop, Taste and Savor”, and can be viewed online here.

The Times has two more links with this recipe that come in handy: “How to Make Soup,” a guide by Samin Nosrat and “How to Cook Beans,” a guide by Melissa Clark. Both of these are extremely helpful when making homemade soup and/or cooking beans. I highly recommend both.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil, more for drizzling

1 large onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Pinch of ground chile powder or cayenne, more to taste

1 quart chicken or vegetable broth

2 cups water

1 cup red lentils

1 large carrot, peeled and diced

Juice of 1/2 lemon, more to taste

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Preparation

In a large pot, heat 3 tablespoons oil over high heat until hot and shimmering. Add onion and garlic, and sauté until golden, about 4 minutes.

Stir in tomato paste, cumin, salt, black pepper and chili powder or cayenne, and sauté for 2 minutes longer.

Add broth, 2 cups water, lentils and carrot. Bring to a simmer, then partially cover pot and turn heat to medium-low. Simmer until lentils are soft, about 30 minutes. Taste and add salt if necessary.

Using an immersion or regular blender or a food processor, purée half the soup then add it back to pot. Soup should be somewhat chunky.

Reheat soup if necessary, then stir in lemon juice and cilantro. Serve soup drizzled with good olive oil and dusted lightly with chili powder if desired.

SQUASH AND SPINACH LASAGNA

This comes from the Food Network, and begins, “Lowfat milk thickened with cornstarch takes the place of a traditional bechamel and ricotta filling and it still tastes incredibly creamy. Fresh, sweet squash also lends a nice richness and part-skim mozzarella gives you that gooey cheese goodness. Fresh baby spinach adds vitamins and minerals to this vegetarian main.”

Level: Intermediate; Total Time: 1 hr 40 min; Prep Time: 15 min; Inactive: 10 min; Cook Time: 1 hr 15 min; Yield: 8 servings

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

9 no-boil lasagna noodles

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 large onion, finely chopped

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 cups lowfat (1-percent) milk

1/4 cup cornstarch

Two 5-ounce packages baby spinach

1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped, plus more, for garnish

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 butternut squash (about 2 1/2 pounds), peeled, seeded, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/4-inch-thick half-moons

2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Soak the lasagna noodles in warm water.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic, onions and salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and browned, about 10 minutes. If the mixture becomes too dry, add a tablespoon or two of water.

Meanwhile, stir together 1/2 cup of the milk and the cornstarch in a small bowl until smooth. Heat the remaining 3 1/2 cups milk in a large saucepan until bubbling. Stir the cornstarch mixture into the milk and bring to a boil. Simmer, stirring, until the milk thickens to the consistency of a thin batter, about 5 minutes. Stir in the onion mixture, spinach, parsley and nutmeg, and cook until the spinach wilts. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat.

Drain the noodles. Spread 1 cup of the spinach mixture over the bottom of a 13- by 9- by 2-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. Arrange 3 lasagna noodles over the spinach. Arrange half of the squash over the noodles, overlapping slightly, and sprinkle with one-third of the mozzarella. Spoon 1 cup spinach mixture over the cheese, and top with 3 noodles, the remaining squash and another third of the mozzarella. Top with 1 cup spinach mixture, followed by the last 3 noodles and the remaining 1 cup spinach mixture. Cover tightly with foil; reserve the remaining mozzarella.

Bake for 40 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle the remaining mozzarella over the top. Bake until bubbling and the squash is tender, about 15 minutes. Let stand at least 10 minutes before serving.

Cook’s Note

For freezing and reheating, allow the lasagna to cool completely. Divide into 8 even portions and store in a freezer-safe resealable plastic bag or container. Transfer to a microwave-safe plate, loosely cover with plastic wrap and microwave until hot, 4 to 5 minutes.

GJELINA’S ROASTED YAMS

This is from Sam Sifton in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Sam wrote, “These roasted yams are adapted from a recipe that Travis Lett, the chef and an owner of Gjelina in Venice, Calif., published in a 2015 cookbook devoted to the restaurant’s food. They are a marvelous accompaniment to a roast chicken, but they are maybe even better as a platter to accompany a salad of hearty greens, cheese and nuts. What makes them memorable is a technique Lett calls for during the cooking: tossing the tubers in honey before roasting them, which intensifies their caramelizing. The crisp, near-burned sweetness works beautifully against the heat of the pepper and the acidic creaminess of the yogurt you dab onto the dish at the end. It is a simple dish, but it results in fantastic eating.”

Yield: Serves 3 - 6; Time: 1 hour.

This was featured in “A New California Cuisine”, and can be viewed online here.

Ingredients

3 large yams

2 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon Espelette pepper, or crushed red-pepper flakes

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup Greek-style yogurt

4 tablespoons fresh lime juice, approximately 2 limes

2 scallions, both green and white parts, trimmed and thinly sliced, for garnish

Preparation

Heat oven to 425. Cut the yams lengthwise into 4 wedges per yam. Put them in a large bowl, and toss them with the honey, 1/2 tablespoon of the Espelette pepper or crushed red-pepper flakes and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Let it sit for 10 minutes or so, tossing once or twice to coat, as the oven heats.

Transfer the yams to a foil-lined, rimmed baking sheet, season with salt and pepper and then bake until they are deeply caramelized around the edges and soft when pierced with a fork at their thickest part, approximately 30 to 35 minutes.

As the yams roast, combine the yogurt, lime juice and remaining tablespoon of olive oil in a small bowl, and whisk to combine, then season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

When the yams are done, transfer them to a serving platter, drizzle the yogurt over them and garnish with the remaining Espelette pepper or red-pepper flakes, the scallions and some flaky sea salt if you have any.