Spaghetti Pie and Summer Squash

Ciao! For supper tonight, we will be having Spinach ricotta spaghetti pie and Italian summer squash.

Il Secondo (second course, main course)

Spaghetti pie is a wonderful dish to make to impress friends if you’re not that great in the kitchen. It is very easy to prepare but it tastes as if you spent hours in the kitchen. What’s so nice about spaghetti pie is, you can do so many things with it. Obviously, you are welcome to make any sort of baked pasta pie that you like best. You can add beef, sausage, broccoli, zucchini, the list goes on. It’s a nice way to sneak in some vegetables if you have a picky eater in the family; no one is going to mind the spinach when it’s mixed with creamy ricotta.  Making this is also a clever way to use your leftover pasta. Just add some cheese, egg and pretty much anything you like and bake it up!

Spinach ricotta spaghetti pie

1 bag of fresh spinach
4 tablespoons of olive oil (divided)
Red pepper
Garlic, chopped (to taste)
1 container of spaghetti
1 16 ounce container ricotta cheese
2 eggs
Salt
Pepper
Parsley

Preheat your oven to 350 degress and boil water for the spaghetti. Begin by chopping your spinach and cooking it in a small pan with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, red pepper and chopped garlic. Let cool. Add spaghetti to boiling water.

Mix ricotta, eggs, salt, pepper and parsley together. Add the spinach.

Drain your pasta and let it cool. Use a medium casserole size pan and oil with olive oil. Add the pasta to the ricotta spinach mix. Put the mix in the prepared pan and bake in the oven for 45 minutes. Take out and let it sit for around 10 minutes before serving. You can eat this as is, but I like to eat it with a fresh chunky tomato sauce. You can find a recipe for my tomato sauce here.  

Il contorno (Side dishes)

The other night, I was making dinner for some friends, one of whom notoriously dislikes vegetables. By the end of the meal, he had changed his mind. He was raving about this dish. I was shocked, I couldn’t believe it.  What I find so odd about this dish, is that for some reason, it reminds me (and others have said the same) of pizza. I know, it seems very strange. But to me it really does, there’s just something about the taste. I’ll let you be the judge.

Italian summer squash

3 summer squashes
4 tablespoons of olive oil
Garlic
Onion
Salt
Pepper
Parsley
Italian seasoning

Start with washing your squash and chopping it very thin. Heat a pan on low prepared with olive oil. Chop your garlic and onion very finely. Add to the pan. Add the squash. Season with salt, pepper, parsley and Italian seasoning. Let it cook on low heat for 45 minutes.

Let me know what you think of these recipes and anything you would like to share! I love to see what you have to say! Buon Appetito!