Family Dinner - Manicotti and Lemon Blackberry Cheesecake Recipes

Hey Everyone!


Yesterday, it was my turn to cook dinner. I love cooking for others as a gift. Nothing says I love you more than a home cooked meal - so cheesy haha. I decided to make manicotti for the main meal and a cheesecake for dessert. It was a hit; everyone loved the manicotti and cheesecake. I wanted to share how I made each dish so anyone else can recreate them for their family and/or friends.


Manicotti:

Filling:

Ingredients:

• spinach*
• ricotta*
• ground turkey (1 pound)
• bacon or panchetta (optional but if use, use around 6 slices; to taste) 
• salt and pepper (to taste)
• italian seasoning (1 tablespoon)
• paprika (1/4 teaspoon)
• chicken stock (2 cups)
• onion (1/2 onion)
• garlic (3 - 4 cloves of garlic)
• oil - olive or avocado

Crispy Bacon

Turkey with Chicken Stock Before Bacon

Turkey with Bacon

Turkey with Chicken Stock and Bacon

Mixture Components All Together

1. at medium-high heat, cook bacon till crispy and fat has rendered off; set aside on paper towel to drain off excess fat and pour rest of fat into a bowl to cool down. 
2. at medium-high heat, add ground turkey to pan used to cook bacon and break up meat using a metal spoon. Sauté chopped garlic and onion with turkey. 
3. add salt, pepper, italian seasoning, paprika, and extra oil ( if needed)
4. add 1 cup of chicken stock and let mixture cook till turkey has browned up nicely
5. add bacon and add another 1 cup of chicken stock to ensure flavors have melded together and turkey is fully cooked and juicy. 
6. set aside to cool down before adding to cheese and spinach

* http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=2172738 (used this dish for the manicotti recipe and where notated in my ingredients list, exact measurements from their recipe; as well, i followed the recipe in terms of assembling the dish, oven temperature and duration of cooking)


Sauce:

Ingredients:

• Diced tomatoes (28 oz can)
• garlic (4 cloves)
• dried chili pods (3 pods)
• salt and pepper (to taste)
• italian seasoning (1 teaspoon)
• chicken stock (2 cups)
• onion (1 onion)
• olive oil
• bay leaves (2 leaves)
• balsamic vinegar (1/4 teaspoon)
• brown sugar (1/2 teaspoon)

Sauce with Chicken Stock 

Sauce after simmering for 4 - 6 hours

Sauce Pureed 

1. at medium-high heat, sauté up onion and garlic with olive oil till tender
2. add salt, pepper, italian seasoning
3. add canned tomatoes, bay leaves, chili pods, balsamic vinegar and brown sugar to mixture
4. add chicken stock to just cover the ingredients and lower temperature to a simmer and let simmer for 4-6 hours. 
5. after simmering, let cool a bit and puree mixture

Noodles: 

*as noted in recipe listed above from Barilla* 

After Baking/ Final Product:

I followed the method used from this recipe. 

http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=2172738

Lemon Blackberry Cheesecake:

http://rachelschultz.com/2014/01/29/blackberry-lemon-cheesecake-bars/

**I decided to make a traditional style cheesecake instead of the bars. I used arrowroot cooked instead of graham crackers. I also split the cream cheese portion in half and used pureed cottage cheese for the rest (1 cup of cream cheese and 1 cup of pureed cottage cheese)** 

I hope you all enjoy these recipes. The end result was delicious and perfect for a family dinner. Let me know if you try these dishes. I would love to hear about it. 

*Adjust to fit your own needs, tastes and health restrictions/concerns. I am not a health expert, Nutritionist nor a Dietician. I am just a student interested in living a healthier lifestyle. The purpose of this post is to showcase the healthier lifestyle choices I am now making.*

*Feel free to tweet me on twitter or tag me on instagram  @blushingrosexo !

Hannah,xo