These delicious recipes are courtesy of Jon Gheen of Fayetteville, father of three:
Mediterranean Pasta
8 ounces penne pasta
1 tablespoon olive oil
Medium purple onion, chopped
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 can quartered artichoke hearts
2 cans button mushrooms (or 8-ounce container, fresh)
8 ounces feta cheese (4 ounces for inside and 4 to cover top)
4 ounces parmesan cheese (2 ounces for inside and 2 for top)
1 1/2 teaspoon oregano
1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon basil
Salt and pepper to taste
Cook pasta according to package directions. Sautee onion in 1 tablespoon olive oil, then add tomatoes, artichoke heart and mushrooms. Season with basil, oregano, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix pasta with feta and parmesan; set aside. Pour tomato mixture over pasta and add extra cheese to top. Bake at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes.
Serves 4 (full meals)
Black Beans
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cans black beans
One-half green bell pepper (remove seeds, leave whole)
1 bay leaf
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon cumin
Hot sauce (to taste)
Vigo yellow rice (package)
Sautee onion in olive oil until clear. Add garlic and cook 30 more seconds. Add beans, stock, pepper, bay leaf and spices. Cook one hour. Remove pepper and bay leaf. Add hot sauce as desired.
Serve over Vigo yellow rice, cooked per package instructions.
(To go with this, Jon cooked pork shoulder all day in a crock pot. He says get a 6 pound pork shoulder, throw it in the crock pot with 1 cup Mojo Criollo (found at local grocery store or Spanish store), one cup water, some black pepper and two chopped onions.)
Serves 6.
Broiled Salmon with Marmalade-Dijon Glaze
Salmon fillets
1/2 cup orange marmalade
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
Preheat broiler. Combine marmalade, mustard, garlic powder, salt, black pepper and ginger and whisk. Brush on fish using half the mix. Broil six minutes. Brush again. Broil two more minutes or until flaky.
Each 4-6 ounce piece of fish serves one.
These recipes were originally published in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette’s Food section.
