What's for Dinner? Briam,Macaroni and Cheese, Meatloaf, and Cheesecake Marble Brownies

Above is my Summer comfort foods dinner. Our family loves macaroni and cheese, but it wasn't until I made this recipe for Baked Macaroni and Cheese from Alton Brown, that I told myself, even though it's more expensive than Kraft Macaroni and cheese, there is no comparison in how good it tastes. It really is a comfort food.

My husband loves vegetables, and I get tired of broccoli, and green beans, when yesterday Ms. Cellenia posted about Briam a Greek side dish of roasted Summer vegetables. I'm not a huge fan of eggplant and tomatoes, but when roasted in beef broth and olive oil with garlic, it becomes a very satisying and very healthy side dish.

What can I say about meat loaf, as a child growing up there was something about meatloaf I just didn't like. Most of my dinners I use ground beef, beef stroganoff, enchiladas,spaghetti with meatballs, but meatloaf is one of those versatile dishes, that you can add anything to ground beef to make it. In mine I used eggs, seasoned bread crumbs, parsley, dijon mustard, ketchup, worchestire sauce, salt and pepper and onions.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

This recipe has the best of both worlds, Cheesecake, and Brownies. What dessert can be better than that. Here's the recipe from Epicurious.com Cheesecake Marbled Brownies.

See if you can eat just one!

Blog Review- Coconut & Lime

My first thought after finding Rachel's Coconut and Lime, was what beautiful photos she takes and how delicious everything looks. What is also really cool is the photos in her sidebar are linked to their corresponding recipes, making it really easy to find what I want to EAT. My favorite photos are of East Meets SouthEast Barbeque Pulled Pork Sandwhich, ShotGun Wedding Soup, and I love Steak, Onions and Zucchini, but how creative to put them all together into a Crepe. Besides all the great recipes, and beautiful photos, Rachel also has some fantastic How To tips. My favorite would be How To Make Ducle de Leche. If you are looking for some 'creative tips and original recipes' than you would definetly enjoy Rachel's Coconut and Lime.

Chicken Cacciatore

This is a very quick and delicious meal which can be served hot or cold. According to Wikipedia, Cacciatore means "hunter" in Italian. In cuisine, cacciatore refers to a meal prepared "hunter-style" with tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, herbs, often bell pepper, and sometimes wine. Cacciatore is popularly made with braised chicken or rabbit.

Ingredients:

Extra Virgin Olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
3lbs (1350g), chicken skinless chicken breasts, cut into one inch chunks
28oz (400g) can of crushed tomatoes,drained
2 cups of sliced mushrooms

One green bell pepper chopped
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsps. dried Italian seasoning

Spinach or tricolor pasta cooked according to directions on package.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F. Cook chicken in olive oil until brown. Transfer chicken to a glass 13x9 baking dish. Add all ingredients. Cover and Bake for 35 minutes. You can serve this dish with crumbled Feta cheese and sliced olives.

Serves 4.
Adapted from Wiki-Cookbook

Serve with:

Ruffino Chianti Classico Riserva 2001 $24

Region: Tuscany, Italy