Barbecue Tofu & Spaghetti

Happy Thursday! Still enjoying the Summer days and keeping it simple in my kitchen.
Being that I love just about anything cheese or cheese related I have been researching other options because well anything in abundance is just not good for you. I've settled on Tofu because if cooked properly it takes on just about any flavor or form you want.
I wanted to kick up my pasta dish and I didn't want to use cheese so I found this recipe tweaked it to fit my home and here it is.

Thursday's Treat...Barbecue Tofu & Spaghetti!

Ingredients:
-firm tofu
-pasta
-bbq sauce
-garlic powder or cloves
-onion powder or red onions
-olive oil
-salt

-plum tomatoes

-mushrooms or other veggie

Cook your pasta, I chose Spaghetti, to your liking which for me is 12 minutes. I used 2 packs of firm tofu removed the water and cut into 1 inch squares, took handful of mushrooms and sliced 1/4 inch and set aside. In a large skillet on medium heat I added 2tbsps olive oil, 2tbsps garlic powder, 2tbsps onion powder and a pinch of salt. As it simmered I added the tofu and mushrooms and covered for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes I add BBQ sauce to my liking which was 1 cup and cooked another ten minutes.

Served with additional plum tomatoes as another topping, Delish! Great flavor lite no heavy sauce or oils very tasty and easy clean up. Enjoy!

Always stress free xo,

Mari

Seafood Pasta

Happy Thursday! 

Working on some fun DIY projects can't wait to share in the meantime lets enjoy a nice meal.

Thursday's Treat...Seafood Pasta!

Ingredients:

-bag of Shrimps

-bag of Seafood Medley

-box of spaghetti

-plum tomatoes

-sweet peppers

-butter

-salt

-parsley

-garlic powder 

I always try to make things simple and quick so when I do use bags of Seafood I grab the ones that are already cooked and ready to go. I washed half bag of shrimps and half of medley in cold water then in a large pot I added seafood and pinch of salt and placed on medium heat. Cook for 10/12 minutes or until shrimps and seafood start to turn pinkish in color, add 3tbsps of butter, 11/2 tbsp of garlic powder mix and cook another 5 minutes adding handful of plum tomatoes cut in halves and handful of sweet peppers cut in slices mix well till tender.

As this is cooking prep your pasta (I used Spaghetti #8 this time but you can use what you like or what you have already in your pantry) as you normally would 10/12 minutes, drain water and add to seafood pot, mix well and done. Depending on how many servings of course is amount you use from your box I used whole box I had several people over.

Quick & easy tasty treat plates were bare when everyone was done. Semi healthy I'd say if you turn blind eye to the butter part lol, enjoy! 

Always stress free xo

Mari 

Eggplant w/ Ziti Pasta

Thursday's Treat!!!

I hope you guys didn't think I was too busy to share something yummy lol.
I hope you have been enjoying my September Challenge shares and my Tuesday guest hosting duties on Turn It Up Tuesdays.

My love for Eggplant lives on...

Ingredients:
- 1 large Eggplant
- pasta
- favorite pasta sauce
- grape tomatoes
- salt
- 6 small sweet peppers
- olive oil
- parsley
- Parmesan cheese
- black pepper

Use 2 tbsps of olive oil in a large skillet on med heat add the peppers cook for 3 minutes. Add the Eggplant cubes, the sliced grape tomatoes and the sauce cook for 20 minutes or until Eggplant is tender.

As the Eggplant is cooking 10 minutes in begin to boil and prep your pasta. I used 2 cups of Ziti this time around because that's what I had in my pantry but you can use Penne or Angel hair or Linguine. I would dare say just about any type of pasta you like because I just don't like to follow many rules lol. I made enough for dinner and leftovers.

After 20 minutes and Eggplant is tender remove from heat, sprinkle pinch of black pepper, some parsley (to your liking) and set aside.
In a large bowl I mixed the pasta and Eggplant and was ready to serve. The bowl will be on double duty as my leftover saver and I can wash the skillet once cooled.

I sprinkled some Parmesan cheese as an added flavor kick and done.
Start to finish about 30 minutes.
Another great quick what do I have in the kitchen for dinner tonight.
Yummy, tasty and very little fuss

Enjoy,
Always stress free xo