Pasta a la Checca

     Pasta a la Checca is the simplest, most delicious pasta I have ever made! It is light, refreshing, colorful, and perfect for the summer. I discovered this recipe on BenjiManTV's vlog, and thought it wouldn't be flavorful since there are so few ingredients. Also, I'm not a fan of mint leaves, and I thought the basil would make the pasta taste very minty.

     I was completely surprised by the way this pasta turned out, and I absolutely love using basil now. I was at the local farmer's market this morning and picked up some fresh ingredients along with ciabatta bread, so I toasted some for a little crunch on the side. Give this recipe a try! I guarantee you will love it just as much as I do!

     This picture sums up basically everything you'll need for this recipe.

• 2 cups cherry tomatos, or 1 large tomato
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 cup fresh basil leaves
• 1 cup fresh mozzarella
• 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
• Linguine pasta, or any king you like
• Salt and Pepper
• Toasted ciabatta bread (optional)

     To begin, dice up the tomatoes and basil and crush the garlic cloves. Add this to a large plastic mixing bowl along with extra virgin olive oil. Allow this to marinate in the refrigerator 2-8 hours.

     When you're ready to serve, boil the pasta and begin toasting the ciabatta bread slices for about 15 minutes on 400 F. After the pasta is al dente, add the mozzarella, salt, and pepper, toss together and serve with the toasted bread! 

Four Bean Veggie Chili

     The other night, I came home from an evening shift at work and had a craving for chili. I decided to recreate a Bosnian dish similar to chili that my mom made growing up called grah. Grah is a pretty simple recipe as far as ingredients go; beans, one onion, some water, vegeta (a Bosnian spice) and paprika, but it takes a while to cook (3-4 hours). Yikes! That's way too long after coming home hungry at 11.30 at night. 

     

     I decided to rummage through my pantry for cans of beans, and sure enough I found them! I also had some vegetables in the fridge, and decided to start cooking! My fiance was in bed at this time, and since working my evening shifts messes with my circadian rhythm anyway, I decided this would also be a nice lunch for him to take to work. (It is midnight now as I'm writing this, so clearly my evening shifts take a toll on my sleeping schedule). I was worried that it wouldn't turn out to be very good, but my fiance called the next day and said it was the best chili he'd ever eaten! I dare you guys to give it a try too :)

• 1 yellow or red onion, chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 5 celery stalks
• 1 large red pepper
• 2 tablespoons paprika
• 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
• 1 can black beans
• 1 can garbanzo beans
• 1 can kidney beans
• 1 can pinto beans
• 2 cans diced tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoon Mediterranean seasoning, or any herb seasoning
• Salt and pepper  
• 1 avocado and croutons for garnish (optional)

     To begin, I added a chopped red onion to saute on medium high heat in a wide, large dish for about 2 minutes. I then added the chopped red pepper, celery, and garlic and allowed that to saute about 5 minutes.

     I then added the paprika, red pepper flakes, Mediterranean seasoning, salt, and pepper and allowed that to cook about a minute before adding one cup of chicken broth.

     After about 5 minutes, I added all the beans as well as the beans and tomato paste. I topped it all off with the remaining chicken broth and allowed it to simmer on medium high heat for about 30-45 minutes. 

     I garnished my dish with half an avocado, diced, and some croutons. The chili was phenomenal, and there was still a bit of a crunch from the celery and red pepper. If you don't like that and want it to be a little more tender, just cook for an additional hour.

     

A Simple Raspberry Cake

     I woke up early on this gloomy morning because I was so excited about making this cake, and partly because I wanted to finish it before my soon-to-be-husband came home early from work. We needed to be out the door as soon as he got home, since we were about to embark on a three-hour long road trip to visit our parents, and I wanted to share this cake with them :)

     I have the biggest sweet tooth so, naturally, my first blog post is a cake recipe. This is a simple cake I found on epicurious, and it is super easy to make. I doubled the ingredients because I was using a bigger baking dish and planned on sharing with family. Adding the berries (raspberries are my favorite) is what really transforms this recipe into a delectable masterpiece.

• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 cups raspberries, or any other berry would be delicious

     Begin by preheating the oven to 375 F and preparing the dry ingredients. Mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and set it off to the side.

   
     Next, combine the wet ingredients in a deep mixing bowl. Whisk together the softened butter, sugar, vanilla extract, buttermilk, and eggs; adding one at a time.

     Once the wet ingredients have been mixed, slowly begin to incorporate the dry ingredients and thoroughly combine. Butter a baking dish, and add the batter. Sprinkle the raspberries on top and bake for 30-45 minutes.

 

     Voila! This is what the finished product looks like. The combination of the raspberries, which sank to the middle, and the buttermilk make this cake moist and flavorful.

     I hope you give this a try! I guarantee you will impress friends and family :)

     Thanks for reading!