Baked Lemon Pasta

Another delightful recipe from The Pioneer Woman (that lady is genius).

I love it because it has lemons.

Jase loves it because it is filling, creamy, and absolutely mouth-watering.

It's simple, refreshing, and the lemon-on-pasta thing gives a unique spin on pasta. We love it!

One problem we run into a lot when cooking, is that we often end up with loads of leftovers that go to waste (because one of us refuses to eat left overs. It's me. Sorry folks, I just can't do it) This recipe is nice because if there are just two or three of you, you can easily half it and cook it in a little 8x8 pan for a perfectly portioned meal.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 pound Thin Spaghetti
• 4 Tablespoons Salted Butter
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 2 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 1 whole Lemon, Juiced And Zested
• 2 cups Sour Cream
• ½ teaspoons Kosher Salt, Or More To Taste
• Plenty Of Grated Parmesan Cheese
• Flat-leaf Parsley, Chopped
• Extra Lemon Juice

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook spaghetti until al dente.

In a skillet, melt butter with olive oil over LOW HEAT. When butter is melted, add minced garlic. Squeeze lemon juice into the pan. Turn off heat.

Add sour cream and stir mixture together. Add lemon zest and salt. Taste, then add more salt if necessary. Pour mixture over drained spaghetti and stir together, then pour spaghetti into an oven safe dish.

Bake, covered, for 15 minutes. Then remove foil and bake for an additional 7 to 10 minutes. (Don’t bake too long or the pasta will dry out.)

When you remove it from the oven, squeeze a little more lemon juice over the top. Top generously with Parmesan cheese, then chopped parsley. Give it a final squeeze of lemon juice at the end.

Raspberry Cream Pie

We found this amazing recipe on Pioneer Woman's website and it became an instant favorite. It's sweet, not too tart, and incredibly easy. Enjoy!

 

 Ingredients

 

• 25 whole Oreo Chocolate Sandwich Cookies (my note: also, those pre-made oreo pie crusts work marvelously. And are way less work)
• 4 Tablespoons Butter, Melted
• For the Filling
• 1 cup (generous) Raspberries
• 3 Tablespoons Sugar
• 2 containers (6 Ounce Each) Raspberry Yogurt
• 1 package (3.4 Ounch) Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix
• 1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
• Extra Raspberries For Garnish

How to do it

To make the crust, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Crust cookies in a food processor (or smash in a Ziploc bag with a rolling pin). Stir in melted butter until all combined. Pour into a regular pie pan and press crumbs all over the pan and up the sides. Bake for 3 to 4 minutes—just long enough for it to set. Cool crust completely. (Like I said, the pre-made crusts work just as well and cut down the prep time substantially)

 

Place raspberries on a plate or in an empty pan. Smash them with a fork, then sprinkle on 3 tablespoons of sugar (Or Splenda). Stir together and allow to sit for 15 minutes.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine raspberry yogurt with the instant vanilla pudding mix (just the powder itself.) Beat on low until combined, about 1 minute. Pour in heavy cream and whip on low for 30 seconds. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula. Turn mixer on medium-high speed and beat for two minutes, or until mixture is thick. 

Turn off mixer, then fold in raspberries until just combined. Pour into cooled pie pan and spread evenly. Freeze for two hours, or until very firm. Cut into slices and top each slice with cookie crumbs, dollops of whipped cream, and extra raspberries. Keep in freezer, allowing time to thaw before serving.