In Honor of You, Hilary!

I was making meals for three families with new babies today and decided on a couple great recipes from my dear friend, Hilary. I made her Baked Penne with Sausage and Brocoli! It is one of my favorites that she adapted from Williams and Sonoma. I also made her Orange Yogurt Pound Cake that she once again adapted from a recipe by Ina Garten. Both are delicious and easy to make! (I've included her reicpes below.) I must say they are making me miss you, Hilary, and our family dinner gatherings outside...bbbrrr, it's cold outside. We too are feeling very bottled up and tired of the indoors. It was good to just get out and deliver food to people!

Thanks for your inspirations Hilary.

Baked penne with sausage and broccoli (by Hilary)

Here is one of my fail-safe pasta recipes. I actually found it in a Williams-Sonoma catalog and have adapted to my liking so much that it looks very little like the original...so in some ways I consider it my own...something rare in my book. Its great because you can make it ahead and bake it before serving and it is all freezable so it is perfect for a new mommy. I am going to (hopefully--if my kids all go to sleep for their naps) go make it in just a minute for our church community group tomorrow night.

2 lbs pre-cooked turkey sausage, halved and sliced 1/2 inch thick
2 heads of broccoli, cut into pieces
1/2 c white wine
salt and pepper, to taste
1/4-1/3 c olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 T dried thyme (more or less to taste)
24 garlic cloves, minced (or 12 t minced garlic)
1/2 pound whole-grain penne, cooked according to package directions
1 c part-skim ricotta
pinch red chili fakes
2 oz Parmesan, grated

Preheat oven to 400. Saute sausage 3 minutes over medium heat. Remove to a large bowl. Cook broccoli in same pan 6 minutes, until tender. Add wine after 3 minutes. Season with salt. Add broccoli and wine to bowl. Warm oil. Add onions and thyme. Cook 8 minutes or until onions are tender. Add garlic and cook 2 more minutes. Add mixture to bowl, reserving oil. Add pasta, salt and pepper to the bowl. Add ricotta to bowl and gently toss to coat. Spoon mixture into 9x11 baking dish. Drizzle with reserved oil. Sprinkle with red chili flakes. Bake 20 minutes. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake 10 more minutes.

Orange yogurt pound cake (by Hilary)

Ina has inspired me again. And essentially this is her Lemon Yogurt Cake recipe, but I made my own adaptations with what I had. And this is the moistest (is that a word?) pound cake I've ever had. And I think this recipe, with the yogurt, is better than the one with butter. Odd enough?

1 1/2 c flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1 c plain yogurt (I used fat-free)
1 1/3 c sugar, divided
3 eggs
2 t orange zest
1/2 t vanilla
1/2 c canola oil
1/3 c orange juice

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour a loaf pan and line the bottom with wax paper.

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt. In separate bowl, stir together yogurt, 1 c sugar, eggs, zest, and vanilla. Gradually stir in dry ingredients. Fold oil gently into mixture. Pour into pan. Bake 50 minutes.

Cook juice and remaining 1/3 c sugar in small saucepan until sugar dissolves. Set aside.

Cool cake 10 minutes then remove to baking rack. While the cake is warm, pour the juice/sugar mixture over the cake. Cool cake completely.

Now here is where I have differed from Ina as well.

She recommends combining 1 c of powdered sugar and 2 T juice to create a glaze to pour over the cooled cake. But I didn't make the glaze. Instead, I combined 1 c of yogurt and 2 T sugar. I spooned the yogurt on top of each slice when serving and then topped with orange slices, for a dramatic effect--just think if I had added mint sprigs as well!