Author: Laura & Brett

I was confronted during the first week of the year with having to use up the last of our Christmas ham (as well as a whole lot of other leftovers from the holidays). There wasn’t much ham left on the bone and I didn’t have enough of anything else on hand to make soup, but what I eventually realized is that I did have almost everything on hand to make one of our favorite leftover ham dishes, pasta tossed with spinach, red pepper, and diced ham and coated in creamy cheese. It’s one of the simplest and easiest recipes in my repertoire, and always a crowd pleaser.

The only thing I was lacking this time was the spinach, but Brett and I included a bag of baby spinach one my first of the month Trader Joe’s list. That evening, I diced the remaining ham (and put the bone in the freezer for a later pot of soup), julienned a red pepper that had been hanging out in the produce drawer, cooked a remaining half bag of pasta I had in the pantry, and finally tossed the finished product with some leftover spreadable sharp cheddar cheese. With the addition of some freshly cracked pepper, the result was a fabulous meal that got only a couple of dishes dirty and provided leftovers for the next two days’ lunches.

The beauty of this dish is that it can be made from whatever someone desires or already has on hand. I rarely, if ever, see it any more, but my favorite spreadable cheese for this dish has always been sun-dried tomato, but any soft cheese spread – garlic with herbs, for example – works fine. Any type of pasta is fine as well, although the original recipe called for farfalle (bow ties). The pepper doesn’t have to be red, and spinach can be replaced with kale, arugula, or other greens. Ham provides a smoky flavor, but there’s no reason bacon, chicken, beef, or even salmon couldn’t be used.

Below is the basic recipe – variations are up to the cook and what’s on hand!

CHEESY PASTA WITH HAM, SPINACH, AND RED PEPPER

• 5-ounce bag baby spinach

• 1 large red pepper

• 1 1/2 cups diced ham

• 12 ounces dried pasta. Ones created to catch the sauce are preferred over long noodles, but they can work too

• 8-12 ounces soft cheese spread

In a large stockpot, bring water to a boil and cook the pasta until al dente. Don’t skimp on the water – the pasta water is what will “cook” the spinach and pepper.

Wash the spinach and leave in a colander. Julienne the red pepper into very thin strips and lay on top of the spinach.

When the pasta is ready, slowly pour the pasta water over the spinach and peppers, ending with the pasta sitting on the top. Let it sit for a minute or so, then transfer the pasta, spinach, and pepper back into the stockpot. Using tongs, pull apart the clumps of spinach and mix throughout the pasta along with the pepper strips, which should be tender crisp and not soggy.

When the spinach is mixed through the pasta, add the diced ham to the stockpot and mix it through the pasta.

Finally, add the spreadable cheese to the pasta. The heat from the pasta will soften it to coat the pasta as it is mixed. Gently stir until all the pasta and vegetables are coated.

Serve immediately with cracked pepper.

The first apple pie I made was when I was 18 years old. I went out in the middle of the night and picked apples off the tree just outside my college dorm (which we had been warned not to do) and stayed up to bake my pie in the kitchen on our floor. My roommate, friends, and I quickly devoured the pie the following day, and I’ve stuck to the recipe ever since, a crust filled to almost overflowing with sliced apples, topped with a simple mixture of flour, sugar, and cinnamon and a few butter slices over everything.

This year, however, I wanted to try something different for our Thanksgiving dessert, so I read what seemed like a hundred recipes trying to find a new recipe for apple pie. Most of the one I read were similar to my old standard, but I also kept coming across one called Apple Pie by Grandma Ople, enough times that I finally decided this was the one I had to try.

The big difference in this recipe is that apple slices are topped with a boiled mixture of butter, flour, and white and brown sugars versus the traditional mix of sugar, flour, and cinnamon topped with a few slices of butter under the top crust. I used tart Jonathan apples on my first try at Thanksgiving, but any tart apple variety will do, and I went with Granny Smith for my second go-round at Christmas and thought they made for a much tastier pie. The Jonathan apples were also a bit small – I used eight but another four would have made it better. My crust was a premade one from Aldi; however, the top crust is too small for my pie plate so K cut out shapes and we layered them over the top. Also, I like cinnamon in my apple pie so I added about a 1/2 teaspoon to the butter-sugar mixture and that was just enough for me and not enough to bother people who don’t care for cinnamon.

Overall, this pie was easy to make, and the result? Ooh la la! I can’t imagine ever making an apple pie any other way.

APPLE PIE BY GRANDMA OPLE

• 8 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into slices – I cut my apples into 12 slices, not too thin, not too thick.
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 3 TBSP unbleached flour
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 white sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• optional: 1/2 tsp cinnamon (or to taste)
• 1 9″ double pie crust

Preheat over to 425 degrees.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter. Sprinkle the flour over the melted butter and blend in, stirring to form a paste, Cook for around 1-2 minutes until it smells buttery, then add both sugars and the water, and stir until everything is blended together. Bring to a boil and simmer for 3-5 minutes, then remove from the heat.

Fill the pie crust to heaping with the sliced apples. Use the top crust to form a tight lattice, or use cut out shapes from the top crust to cover the apples.

Slowly and gently pour the butter and sugar mixture over the top crust, making sure it seeps into the pie. A bit of the syrup can also be brushed on top, making sure it doesn’t go down the side.

Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, then lower the heat to 350 degrees and bake until the apples are soft, around 35-45 minutes. If the crust edges are getting too brown, cover them with strips of foil until the pie is done.

Let the pie cool, and enjoy warm or cool with ice cream if desired. Makes 8 slices.

One of Brett and my fondest food memories from our travels was sharing a delicious, generous bowl of dulce de leche in Buenos Aires following a meal of empanadas. Dulce de leche is carmelized milk, created by heating sugar and milk over low heat for a long period of time. It can be used like caramel, or eaten on its own, like we did in Argentina.

Making this treat never seemed like something I’d have the time (or inclination) for, but in late November a reel showed up in my Instagram feed showing an incredibly easy way to prepare dulce de leche. And, when I say easy, I mean EASY! I gave it a try and the results were fantastic.

Only two items are needed to prepare dulce de leche this way: a slow cooker and a can of sweetened condensed milk. That’s it! The process takes all day, but the results will last for up to a month in the refrigerator, and are creamy, sweet, and full of delicious caramel flavor.

Here’s how to make it:

• Remove the label from a can of sweetened condensed milk. DO NOT use evaporated milk – it doesn’t work.

• Set the can on its side in a slow cooker and cover with at least two inches of hot water. You can cook more than one can if they can fit in the slow cooker without touching.

• Cook the can(s) on low heat for eight hours.

• When cooking is done, remove from the crockpot and LET THE CAN(S) COOL COMPLETELY BEFORE OPENING. Trying to open while the can is still hot can cause it to explode.

• Store the dulce de leche in the refrigerator for up to a month. It should be removed from the can for storage.

That’s it! We enjoyed it with apple slices a few evenings for dessert, and a small spoonful on top of apple pie one night. It’s yummy stuff.