Kiss the cook!

That's right, only the second day in and I already started on one of my goals. Proud? Well...I am! Haha. Tonight I made one of my three new recipes in my "Rachel Renovation" project. I just came up with that name now...hmmm, it's sticking most definitely. Anyways tonight I made...

"Outside-the-Box pasta pie"

It was Delicious, if I do say so myself. My family loved it as well and said it was a definite repeat recipe! I put the recipe down below if any of you are interested to try it yourself..I highly recommend it. This recipe was very easy, inexpensive (I only spent $19 at the grocery store plus I have plenty of left overs with the ingredients that will be used easily) I used whole grain pasta to try and be a little more healthy and it tasted awesome! Also, if you were to just to non fat milk, low fat cheese, and low fat cream cheese (especially because the amount of cream cheese that is used is so small) this would be a really health conscience meal! I also used turkey bacon, which again the recipe only calls for two slices spread throughout the whole dish. So...here you go! Let me know if you guys try it!! Have fun with it. Add something to make it your own and let us know about it!

Outside-the-box pasta pie

1 teaspoon salt, plus more for pasta-cooking water

8 ounces of penne or penne rigate

1/2 cup milk

2 large eggs

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Dash Worcestershire sauce (say that five times fast! =)

Pinch freshly grated nutmeg (mmm...adds so much flavor!)

Black pepper

2 slices bacon

1/2 medium onion

1/4 cup drained-oil packed sun dried tomatoes (I just used a fresh tomato and it tasted great)

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, plus more for greasing pie dish (I hardly used any butter withe the veggies to keep it healthy)

2 cups broccoli florets

2 ounces cream cheese

2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1. Preheat the over to 350 degrees F. Bring a large pot of water to boil over high heat and salt it generously. Add penne and boil, stirring occasionally, until al dente, about 6 to 8 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk milk, eggs, mustard, Worcestershire, nutmeg, and some black pepper in a large bowl. Drain the penne, let cool for a few minutes, then add to the bowl.

2. Roughly chop the onion and tomatoes. Melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium high heat until it begins to crisp, 3 to 4 minutes. (I removed the bacon from the skillet and then did the veggies, because the recipe didn't leave any chance to break the bacon into small bits before mixing it with everything else. So I took the bacon out, put the veggies in the skillet, then broke up the bacon and put it with the veggies) Add the onion, tomatoes, and broccoli to the skillet. Season with salt and pepper and cook until onion is tender, about five minutes. Toss the vegetable mixture with the pasta, add the cream cheese and 1 1/2 cups of cheese. Stir until cheese starts to melt

3. Grease a 9 inch pie dish with some butter and mound the pasta mixture in the dish. Scatter the remaining 1/2 cup cheese over top. Bake until pie is set and the top is golden brown and crisp, about 25 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.