Sandy!

Over the past few years, I have gotten very into Mixology, the art of mixing cocktails. So, since I have been terrible about posting, I decided to add cocktail recipes to my blog, cause they're short and simple and ta e very little time to post on. Now, Matt and I, like much of the east coast, were confined to our apartment this evening due to hurricane Sandy, so I figured I would share our "Sandy" menu. Hope you enjoy!

Simple Pasta Bake
1 head of broccoli, cut into florets
1 zucchini, cut into half rounds
1 lb pasta (i used Barilla's vegetable pasta, the squash and carrot variety)
1 jar pasta sauce
1/3 cup skim ricotta
Handful of fresh basil, chopped
Enough very thinly sliced fresh mozzarella to cover the pasta

Preheat the oven to 375. Boil water for the pasta. Then add the pasta to the water once it is boiling. Meanwhile, saute the broccoli and zucchini over very high heat until just tender and brown around the edges. Stir in the ricotta , pasta sauce, basil, pasta, and a 1/4 cup of the starchy cooking water. Pour mixture into a baking dish and cover with the mozzarella. Bake for 25 minutes.


"The Sandy" (a cocktail I invented this evening, so I named it for the event that caused us to be stuck at home)
1 tsp apricot preserves
2 oz. gin
1 oz. St. Germain
juice of half a lemon
juice of 1/4 of an orange
2-4 dashes Angostura bitters

Put your cocktail glass in the freezer. Use a vegetable peeler to peel a large part of the lemon peel off. Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker and stir thoroughly (don't shake, you don't want to bruise the gin). Squeeze the lemon peel into the cocktail glass and drop it into the glass. Pour the contents of the shaker over the lemon peel. Enjoy!

Chocolate Cake...IN A MUG!!
I'm all about the 'from scratch' dessert. Not only does it usually taste better (with the exception of my pumpkin souffle cake (for a later post)), but you also know exactly what is in it. Well, with this gem, you know exactly what you are consuming, and it takes under 10 minutes, start to finish. LITERALLY! START TO FINISH!!! Just give it a try. Trust me.

4 Tbls Whole Wheat Flour
3 1/2 Tbls Sugar
2 Tbls Pure Cocoa Powder
1 small or medium egg (or 2 Tbls egg from a container)
3 Tbls milk
2 Tbls canola oil
1 splash vanilla extract
2 Tbls chocolate chips
2 Tbls chopped walnuts or pecans
Cooking spray

Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl. Spray inside of mug with cooking spray, pour in ingredients, and microwave on high for 3 mins 15 secs.

This menu is amazing. May not be the most nutritious, but it is wonderful for a night in. Enjoy!