Tuscan Bread Salad

1 Loaf dense crusty Italian bread. (french bread or an artisan bread etc.)
1 Large ball of fresh mozzarella cheese
1 Large tomatoe
1 Yellow or red bell pepper
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped

Dressing:
1 clove garlic
6 Tbs olive oil
3 Tbs balsalmic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Combine dressing ingredients and blend well; set aside. Cut cheese, tomatoe and pepper into 1 inch cubes and transfer to a salad bowl with chopped basil. Pour dressing over cheese and veggies to marinate while cutting and toasting the bread. Cut bread into 1 inch cubes and toast in oven until lightly brown. Add bread cubes to salad bowl and bix well to coat all pieces. Serve immediately.

This is SO good. If you Bruchetta you will love this salad. I leave out the peppers when I make this and it tastes just as good.
Enjoy!

Easy Italian Pasta Bake

1 lb. ground beef
3 cups penne pasta or rotini pasta, cooked, drained
1 jar (26 oz) spaghetti sauce
1/3 cup parmesan and romano cheese, divided
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Brown meat; drain. Add pasta, sauce and half of the parmesan and romano cheese; mix well. Put into 13x9 baking dish and top with mozzarella cheese and remaining parmesan and romano cheese. Bake 20 minutes at 375 F or until heated through.

Creamy Crock Pot Chicken!

Last one for today. Gabe is asleep so this is working out well. This is a good flavorful dinner for Sunday or any day of the week. I am improvising with this one a little here in Grenada. I will let you know how it goes.

Ingredients:
- 2-3 boneless, skinless frozen chicken breasts
- 8 oz. cream cheese
- 1 (10 1/2 oz.) can cream of chicken soup (or favorite cream soup)
- 1 pkg dry Italian salad dressing mix ( I usually use the Zesty Italian one, but they don't have the dry packets here so I bought the Kraft Zesty Italian dressing already mixed up. We will see how it goes)
- UPDATE: It went well. I would recommend using half the bottle of the actual Kraft dressing, instead of the whole bottle. It was a tad strong for me, but if you like the flavor stronger, use the whole thing!

Place all ingredients in crock pot and simmer on LOW all day (8-10 hrs.) I have always done it in 4-6 hrs and it still tastes delicious. Shred or chunk chicken about an hour before serving; continue to simmer. Serve over rice, mashed potatoes, noodles or French bread. Make a big pot and freeze for several dinners.

Pasta Al Forno

This recipe comes from my friend Ugo who is a born and bred Italian! We really like this and it makes a TON! - Penne pasta
- Ragu' sauce (meat sauce);
- Bechamel sauce (white sauce);
- Shredded mozzarella cheese;
- Shredded Parmesan cheese;
- Dry basil.

For the Ragu' sauce:
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil;-
1 carrot finely chopped;-
1/4 onion finely chopped;-
1 bouillon cube;-
1lb lean ground beef;-
2 cans of tomato sauce (15oz. each);-
salt and pepper to taste;-
1 pinch of sugar.

Saute the carrot and onion in the oil in a medium size sauce pan. Add the bouillon cube and ground beef. Stir well until beef is brown. Add tomato sauce and 1/2 can of water (about 1 cup). Add salt, pepper and sugar. Continue to cook on low heat for at least one hour, stirring occasionally.

For the Bechamel Sauce:
1/2 cup of butter
1 tsp of nutmeg
1 pinch of black pepper
1/2 cup of white flour
1 qt. milk.

Place butter, nutmeg and black pepper in a sauce pan and melt on low heat. Mix half of the milk with the flour in a blender and add it to the butter together with the rest of the milk. Stir continually on low-medium heat until sauce thickens.

Putting it all together:
Cook and drain pasta. Mix with Ragu' sauce and place in a pyrex pan (13x9). Pour the bechamel on the past with the help of a large spoon. Generously sprinkle the cheeses and add a touch of dry basil for color and taste. Cover with aluminum foil and place in the fridge or freezer until ready to eat it. At that time, bake it for 1 hour at 350F, remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes, or until cheese has melted.