Category: Main Dishes

Today we’ll play the Pantry Puzzle Game https://carltoncooks.com/pantry-puzzle-game-makes-delicious-dishes-at-home/ to make a delicious a pasta dish plus https://carltoncooks.com/use-leftover-egg-whites-to-make-crunchy-carlton-kisses/ a sweet and crunchy dessert! Carlton’s Carbonara is easy to make and uses ingredients found at home.

To make:

Carlton’s Carbonara

Ingredients:

2 eggs (we’ll use the yolks for dinner and save the whites for dessert)

2 mushrooms, sliced

Some dry spaghetti (12 ounces of you have it, Macaroni or any other pasta will work, too).

One-half a bag of frozen peas (frozen corn would work, too)

One small piece of Parmesan cheese or any hard cheese that you have. You can also use the little packets of cheese that come with delivery pizza. Try to shred 1/4-1/3 cup of cheese.

Because this recipe is our own invention, you can also add whatever you have in your own house. I like to add a few slices of crumbled bacon, a handful of browned pine nuts, some sautéed onion and garlic, and maybe some chopped green chile or jalapenos. Sometimes I like to fry an egg and place it on top of the pasta, or serve it with sliced grilled chicken.

And, I’ll tell you a secret. Egg yolks mixed with some saved pasta water will always make a creamy pasta sauce, no matter what other ingredients you add.

 Directions:

Shred your cheese and set aside.

Separate your eggs. Place the whites in the refrigerator to use later for dessert.

Put a large sauce pot of water on to boil. If you have salt, add a teaspoon to the water.

Add the pasta to the water and cook as directed on the package.

REMEMBER TO SAVE ONE CUP OF THE PASTA COOKING WATER! Drain the pasta and return it to the stockpot

Next, heat a small frying pan over medium heat. Add a bit of butter or oil to the pan and sauté the mushrooms until they brown at their edges. Add the peas to the pan and set aside.

Beat the egg yolks.

SLOWLY scramble in 1 large ladle full (about 1/3-1/2 cup) of the pasta cooking water into the eggs. The pasta water stops your eggs from scrambling when added to the pasta, and helps to make a creamy pasta sauce.

Add your shredded cheese to the egg and pasta water mixture.

Pour the egg mixture over the pasta. Continue to toss the pasta until it soaks up egg mixture and thickens, 1 to 2 minutes. The mixture will be creamy.

Remove pan from heat and add the mushrooms and peas to the pasta. Sprinkle with black pepper if you’d like.

Tl’s ingredients will make four small servings.

You can use your egg whites to scramble with leftover vegetables for breakfast, or you can go here https://carltoncooks.com/use-leftover-egg-whites-to-make-crunchy-carlton-kisses/to make a batch of Carlton Kisses for tomorrow’s dessert.

Happy cooking. And remember to send me ingredients to use for our next Pantry Puzzle Game https://carltoncooks.com/pantry-puzzle-game-makes-delicious-dishes-at-home/

Love,

Carlton

TORTI-YUMS are an easy tortilla breakfast recipe for kids to make on Mother’s Day.

Good cooks know the word: Broil. To melt, crisp or cook food under direct heat. The broiler is the burner/heating element on the ceiling of your oven and cooks your food from above.

INGREDIENTS:

2 eggs

2 Tablespoons shredded cheddar cheese (about 1ounce)

1 six-inch flour tortilla

1 Tablespoon butter, melted

Optional Ingredient: Jarred salsa

TOOLS:

1 small mixing bowl

1 whisk or fork

1 box grater

1 plate

Measuring spoons

1 medium sauté pan

1 pastry brush

1 cookie sheet

DIRECTIONS:

1. Turn your broiler on to high.

2. Next, break the eggs and use the whisk or a fork to scramble them until they are a light yellow color. Set the eggs aside.

3. Place the box grater on a plate or cutting board. Shred the cheese and set aside.

4. Using the pastry brush, brush both sides of the tortilla with butter.

5. Place the tortilla in the sauté pan and cook over medium heat two minutes on a side until the tortilla is lightly browned and slightly crisp. Remove the tortilla from the pan and place on the cookie sheet.

6.Pour the remaining butter in the sauté pan. Over medium heat, pour the eggs into the pan and stir the eggs until they are cooked.

7. Finally, place the browned tortilla on a cookie sheet. Top the tortilla with the scrambled eggs and then cheese. Have your adult place the cookie sheet under the broiler for 30 seconds (count to 30) or until cheese is melted.

8. If desired, serve the Torti-Yum with salsa.

Serves one person for breakfast in bed, at the kitchen table, or anywhere else you like to eat breakfast!

FETTUCCINE ALFREDO DAY is February 7th!

Good cooks know the word: Colander  A colander looks like a bowl with handles and holes. A Colander drains liquid from foods.

INGREDIENTS:

¾ pound of fettuccine noodles (12 ounces of dry noodles)

2 Tablespoons butter

½ cup of Half and Half (whole milk can also be used, but it will affect the texture of the sauce)

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

¼ cup of pasta water from cooked fettuccine

Salt and pepper

TOOLS:

One 8-quart stockpot

One 2-quart saucepan

Mixing spoon

One colander

Liquid measuring cup

Dry measuring cups

Measuring spoons

DIRECTIONS:

1.To begin, have all of your ingredients measured and ready, mise en place (remember, that means things in place. )

2. Cook fettuccine noodles in the stockpot as directed.

3. While your fettuccine cooks, melt the butter in the saucepan over medium-low heat.

4. Add the Half and Half to the butter in the saucepan and stir.

5. Next, add the cheese to the butter and Half and Half mixture. Continue to stir.

6. Before draining the fettuccine, have your adult remove ¼ cup of the water used to cook the fettuccine and set aside. Using the colander, drain fettuccine and return to the stockpot.

7. Add the ¼ cup of reserved fettuccine water to the sauce in the saucepan and continue to stir.

8. Add the nutmeg to sauce in the saucepan and stir. The mixture will begin to look creamy.

9. Pour the sauce over the fettuccine in the stockpot and stir.

10. Finally, place the fettuccine on a platter or in serving bowls. Try a bite and then sprinkle with salt and pepper if desired. Makes 6 servings.

Psst. Want to know a secret about food glue? Good cooks use a little leftover pasta water when they cook because the starch left in the water after cooking the noodles acts like glue and helps the sauce stick to the noodles.

You can make this oatmeal the night before and let it sit in the refrigerator until you bake it in the morning, or you can make it, bake it, and serve it right away.

Good cooks know the word: Grease – to put butter, fat, oil or non-stick cooking spray on a pan to prevent cooked food from sticking. When you grease a pan, the word is a verb. When people call fats and oils by the name grease, the word is a noun. Mechanics also use a type of grease to fix cars, but that is a different kind of grease that we will never use in cooking!

INGREDIENTS:

1½ cups old-fashioned oats

1/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup dried cranberries (or other fruit that you like)

1/2 cup sliced almonds

1¼ cups milk

1/4 cup maple syrup

1 egg, beaten

2 Tablespoons of butter, melted

½ teaspoon vanilla

TOOLS:

One large mixing bowl

One medium mixing bowl

Dry measuring cups

Measuring spoons

Mixing spoon

Liquid measuring cup

Whisk

2-quart baking dish

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Grease the baking dish.
3. In the large bowl, combine the oatmeal, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, cranberries and almonds. These are your dry ingredients.

4. Next, whisk together the milk, syrup, egg, butter, and vanilla in the medium bowl. These are your wet ingredients.

5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir.

6. Finally, pour the mixture into the baking dish.

7. Bake 20-25 minutes. Serves 4.

Can you spot the potato in the photo? See the answer below.

BREAKFAST BURRITOS

Good cooks know the word: Shred

When shredding, you push food across the large holes of a box grater which cuts the food into long strips. Each hole on the grater acts as a sharp blade. Always place the box grater on a flat surface. While one person holds the grater in place, the other can shred the food.

INGREDIENTS:

1 baking potato cooked

3 Tablespoons cooking oil such as canola oil

3 eggs

1 Tablespoon of milk

1 Pinch of salt

2 ozs shredded Cheddar cheese (about ½ cup)

2 nine-inch flour tortillas

TOOLS:

1 box grater

1 medium frying pan

1 spatula or turner

1 medium mixing bowl

1 whisk

Dry measuring cups

OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS:

Chopped green chile

Diced red or green bell pepper

Bacon

Ham

DIRECTIONS:

1. Wash your paws.
2. Read your recipe.
3. Gather your ingredients and tools.
4. Sing a little song and start to cook!
5. Wash and scrub the baking potato. Microwave the potato using the baked potato setting or for 3-5 minutes and let cool. This can be done the night before and is also a great way to use leftover baked potatoes from dinner!
6. Using the whisk, beat the eggs, milk and salt together in a bowl and set aside.
7. Shred the cooled bake potato on the large holes of a box grater.
8. Heat the oil over medium heat and have an adult test the temperature by adding a bit of potato to the oil. When the oil sizzles on the potato piece, it is time for your adult to add the remaining shredded potatoes in an even layer to the pan. Cook the potatoes for two minutes and have your adult turn them over. Cook again for two minutes and turn. Repeat this process for 6-8 minutes or until the potatoes are golden and crispy.
9. Add the beaten eggs and cheese to the potatoes in the pan. If you would like to add optional ingredients add them now.
10. Over medium heat, lift and then fold the egg mixture over repeatedly until mixture is thick and eggs are cooked. Place half of the egg mixture onto each tortilla and fold into a burrito shape. Serve immediately. Makes two burritos.

Optional ingredients: Where I live we add roasted and chopped green chile to our egg mixture before we scramble them. Some people like to add chopped red peppers, tomato, ham or bacon to their burrito. The choice is yours!Photo Answer– The potato is hiding behind the eggs.