Korean Barbecued Beef (Kalbi)

This is a recipe from one of my cookbooks called Family Feasts for $75 a Week. I served it with lettuce leaves and rice. I also forgot to add the green onions to the marinade, so I threw those in the wraps. This was really easy and very good.

Korean Barbecued Beef

serves 6         prep time:30 minutes, plus marinating overnight

2 lbs round steak
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1/4 cup lemon-lime soda
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 green onions, chopped
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon sesame seeds

1. Thinly slice beef against the g
rain. Mix remaining ingredients together in a glass baking dish. Add steak; cover and marinate overnight.
2. Preheat grill. Remove beef from marinade, and grill to desired degree, turning slices over at least once while cooking.

Cinnamon Frosted Zucchini Squares

1 3/4 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 c butter
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 c shredded zucchini
1 c coconut
3/4 c chopped walnuts
1 recipe cinnamon frosting

In a small bowl stir together flour and baking powder. In a large bowl beat butter with mixer for 30 seconds. Add sugars; beat till fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat well. Stir in flour mixture. Stir in zucchini, coconut, and nuts. Spread evenly in greased 9x13 inch pan. Bake in 350° oven about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack. Drizzle with cinnamon frosting. Cut into bars.

Cinnamon Frosting

2 c sifted powdered sugar
2 tbsp milk
2tbsp butter, melted
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine all ingredients in large bowl. Beat until smooth.

TERIYAKI SAUCE

Success!  After many trials and errors, I have finally found a homemade teriyaki sauce that I like!!!!!
It's like that sweet, thick sauce from that fast food place I love!

1/4 cup soy sauce
1 cup water
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp garlic powder
5 T packed brown sugar
1-2 T honey
2 T cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water

Mix all ingredients except cornstarch and 1/4 c water in a sauce pan and begin to heat.  Mix cornstarch and 1/4 c cold water in a cup and dissolve.  Add to sauce in pan.  Heat until sauce thickens to desired thickness.  Add water to thin you if over thicken it.   Makes about 1 1/2 cup sauce.I browned some chicken strips and added the sauce to the cooked chicken, served it over rice with veggies.  Yummy! and easy!!!!!

This recipe comes from a Pampered Chef party I went to last week.  Really yummy! And even though I don't have the $85 Deep Covered Baker or the correct measuring utensils or the Simple Slicer or the Mix N Chop or the $10 Italian Seasoning, it didn't turn out too bad Sunday night for dinner using my old pan, etc.   Instead of cooking in the microwave according to the original instructions, I cooked it all on my range.

ITALIAN BEEF HOAGIES

1 lb extra lean ground beef
1/4 tsp salt and pepper
1 onion
1 red and 1 green bell pepper
1 envelope dry Onion Soup mix
1 T Italian seasoning
1 T red wine vinegar
6 slices provolone cheese
1 package hoagie rolls

Place ground beef, salt, pepper, onion soup mix, Italian Seasoning, and vinegar in pan and cook until beef is cooked through.  Add onion and peppers and cook until soft.
At this point you can place cheese on top of mixture, cover and melt or do like I did and let everybody put the cheese on their own sandwich.  Serve on hoagie rolls. 

Stove Top Macaroni and Cheese

If your kids are like mine they won't eat macaroni and cheese unless its bright orange. I was happy when I found this recipe on Pinterest and both of my kids loved it! I was also excited that it wasn't much more work than making it from a box. The link on Pinterest takes you to a blog called Creatively Domestic.

Stove Top Mac & Cheese
recipe from Alton Brown
Serves 6 to 8 servings as a sidedish

1/2 pound elbow macaroni
4 tablespoons butter
2 eggs
6 ounces evaporated milk (My can was 5 oz)
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh black pepper
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
8 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded (I like to use a medium cheddar. The sharp is to potent for me.)

In a large pot of boiling, salted water cook the pasta to al dente and drain. Return to the pot and melt in the butter. Toss to coat.

Whisk together the eggs, milk, hot sauce, salt, pepper, and mustard. Stir into the pasta and add the cheese. Over low heat continue to stir for 3 minutes or until creamy.

Garlic Chicken Farfalle

I got this recipe from Becky Higgins via Kevin and Amanda. It is so not healthy, but so good. Seriously, so good.

Garlic Chicken Farfalle
by Becky Higgins

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 (12 oz) bottle Lawry's mesquite marinade with lime
16 oz. farfalle (bow tie) pasta
1/2 cup butter
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon pepper (i only used 1/2 tablespoon and we thought it was plenty)
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
1 lb. bacon, crumbled

Cook chicken and marinade in crockpot on low for 6 hours. Pull chicken out of crockpot, allow to cool a little bit, and shred. Set aside. About half-hour before serving boil the pasta. In a small saucepan melt butter. Add garlic, whipping cream, pepper, parmesan and bacon. Whisk together on low heat for 3-4 minutes. In a large bowl, pour sauce over cooked, drained pasta. Add chicken and stir through. Sprinkle with additional parmesan.

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

We had this at Sunday dinner and everyone seemed to like them. The recipe is from an old Taste of Home magazine.

1 8 oz pkg cream cheese, softened

2 T water

2 tsp onion powder

2 ts ground cumin

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

5 c diced cooked chicken

20 flour tortillas ( 6 in), room temperature

2 cans cream of chicken soup, undiluted

2 c sour cream

1 c milk

2 4 oz cans diced green chilies

2 c shredded cheddar cheese

In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, water, onion powder, cumin, salt, and pepper until smooth. Stir in chicken.

Place 1/4 c chicken mixture down the center of each tortilla. Roll up and place seam side down in two greased 13x9" baking dishes.

In a bowl, combine the soup, sour cream, milk and chilies; pour over enchiladas.

Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until heated through. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese; bake 5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. YIELD: 10 servings.

NOTE: I doubled the cream cheese, water, onion powder, cumin, salt and pepper. I used shredded chicken instead of diced and the original amount seemed too dry to me. (Not like Rob's dry chicken though).

Chicken and Summer Vegetable Tostadas

I got this recipe from Cooking Light. It is delicious and would be really easy to adapt with whatever you had on hand. I think it would be good to use a red salsa and red bell peppers or use pepper jack for extra kick. They could also be made on a griddle or in a skillet so you wouldn't have to heat up the oven. It also helps hide those vegetables that kids don't like to eat because they are covered in cheese. :)



Chicken and Summer Vegetable Tostadas

Ingredients

1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons canola oil
12 ounces chicken breast tenders cut into bite-sized pieces
1 cup chopped red onion (about 1)
1 cup fresh corn kernels (about 2 ears)
1 cup chopped zucchini (about 4 ounces)
1/2 cup green salsa
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, divided
4 (8-inch)flour tortillas
Cooking spray
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Preparation
1. Preheat broiler.
2. Combine first 3 ingredients, stirring well. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the spice mixture evenly over chicken. Add chicken to pan; sauté for 3 minutes. Add onion, corn, and zucchini to pan; sauté for 2 minutes or until chicken is done. Stir in salsa and 2 tablespoons cilantro. Cook 2 minutes or until liquid almost evaporates, stirring frequently.
3. Working with 2 tortillas at a time, arrange tortillas in a single layer on a baking sheet; lightly coat tortillas with cooking spray. Broil 3 minutes or until lightly browned. Turn tortilla over and spoon about 3/4 cup chicken mixture in the center of each tortilla; sprinkle each serving with 1/4 cup cheese. Broil an additional 2 minutes or until cheese melts. Repeat procedure with remaining tortillas, chicken mixture, and cheese.
4. Sprinkle each serving with about 3/4 teaspoon of remaining cilantro. Serve immediately.

Fresh Strawberry Bars

I found this recipe a couple of years ago in a Better Homes and Gardens. They are really good (even Rob likes them!).


Fresh Strawberry Bars

3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup peanut butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup strawberry jam (I use my freezer jam)
4 cups strawberries, hulled and halved or quartered

Heat oven to 350. Line 13x9x2-inch baking pan with foil, extending foil beyond the edges. Set aside. In large mixing bowl beat butter and peanut butter on medium to high for 30 seconds. Beat in sugars, baking powder, and salt until combined. Add eggs and vanilla; beat until combined. Beat in as much flour as you can with mixer. Stir in remaining flour. Spread dough in prepared pan. Bake 25 minutes or until top is lightly browned and toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool completely on rack. Remove from pan by lifting foil. Spread jam and top with berries. Cut into bars. Serve at once or refrigerate up to 6 hours. Makes 24 bars.


Make Ahead: Wrap the peanut butter base in foil; store at room temperature up to 24 hours. Before serving, top with jam and berries. Or freeze the peanut butter base in a freezer container up to 3 months.

**After about 6 hours the bar and berries start to get soggy. They still taste ok, but definitely not as good as when they are fresh.

Hawaiian Sweet Bread

I got this recipe from my Taste of Home cookbook. I love it. The bread is just slightly sweet. I like to use it instead of rolls for dinner, for sandwiches, I even used it as the crust for a Hawaiian pizza. Also the recipe makes enough for three loaves. I ended up freezing two of the loaves to use later. I just put them in into Ziploc freezer bags after the first rise and then thawed them and let them rise again before baking them. It worked great.



Hawaiian Sweet Bread

7 to 7 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup mashed potato flakes
2/3 cup sugar
2 packages active dry yeast (1/4 oz each)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup pineapple juice
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine 3 cups flour with the next five ingredients. In a small saucepan, heat milk, water, butter and juice to 120-130 degrees. Add to dry ingredients; beat just until moistened. Add eggs; beat until smooth. Beat in vanilla. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.

2. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic; about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover; let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 1/4 hours.

3. Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into thirds. Shape each into a ball. Place in three greased 9-in. round baking pans. Cover; let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.

4. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cover loosely with foil if top browns too quickly. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

Yield: 3 loaves (12 wedges each).

New Food Blog

So, this isn't a recipe that I've tried. Instead it is a new (to me) food blog. The recipes look so good. I am excited to try quite a few.

http://fortheloveofcooking-recipes.blogspot.com/

Buttermilk Syrup

I've been trying to convince my family to steer away from the fake maple syrup, so I've been trying lots of different syrup recipes for pancakes. We all love this one! With a stick of butter in it, I'm pretty sure it's not exactly any healthier than the fake stuff, but it's so much yummier!


Buttermilk Syrup
from The Sister's Cafe

1/2 cup butter
¾ cup buttermilk (I do milk + vinegar or lemon)
1 cup sugar
½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract*

Place butter, buttermilk and sugar in a pot. Then turn stove on medium and stir until butter melts and sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil and boil one minute. Remove from heat and add soda and flavoring. It will bubble up; just continue to stir and give it a few minutes for the 'fizz' to reduce before serving.

*You can substitute different flavoring/extracts for the vanilla... coconut, orange, etc. Mike even did root beer extract once (the kids loved that one!).

Glazed Pork Chops with Apricot-Ginger Sauce

I saw this in the new Our Best Bites cookbook. It is one of the "new" recipes that isn't on the website. I thought it was so good (so did Nathan and Mom). It also is really quick to make (like less than 30 minutes). I would suggest having everything already prepared and ready to cook, that is how fast it is. Anyway, try it. You won't be disappointed.

Glazed Pork Chops with Apricot-Ginger Sauce
by Our Best Bites


3/4 tsp kosher salt 
1/2 tsp garlic powder 
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp black pepper
4 boneless pork loin chops, about 1/2 inch thick each
2 tsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp minced ginger
1/2 cup chicken broth
2/3 cup bottled apricot-pineapple preserves

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.
2. While the pan is heating, combine salt, garlic and onion powders, and pepper. Sprinkle half of spice mixture evenly over one side of pork chops.
3. When the pan is hot, add the olive oil. Place pork, spice side down, in hot pan. Sprinkle remaining spice mixture on the top of the pork chops. Cook pork for 3 minutes and then flip and cook 3 additional minutes. Remove the pork from the pan and cover with foil to keep warm.
4. Reduce heat to medium and add the butter. When melted, add the garlic and ginger. Saute for about 30 seconds while stirring. Add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Use a spatula to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan and continue to simmer 1 minute.
5. Whisk in preserves. Bring the sauce to a simmer and return the pork to the pan. Cook for and additional 2-3 minutes on each side or until cooked through to an internal temperature of 160 degrees F.
6. Remove from heat and let the pork chops rest 5 minutes before serving. Serve over white or brown rice and spoon the sauce over each piece of pork.

Click here for a printable version.

Pesto Ravioli with Chicken

We LOVE this recipe. It's really easy and really, really good!

Pesto Ravioli with Chicken

2 teaspoons olive or vegetable oil
1 package (15 oz) chicken tenders
3/4 cup chicken broth
1 package (9 oz) refrigerated cheese-filled ravioli
3 small zucchini, cut into 1/4 inch slices
1 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/4 cup refrigerated pesto
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, if desired

1. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Cook Chicken in oil about 4 minutes, turning occasionally, until brown. Remove chicken from skillet.

2. Add broth and ravioli to same skillet. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer about 4 minutes or until ravioli is tender. Stir in zucchini, bell pepper and chicken. Cook over medium-high heat about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are crisp-tender and chicken is no longer pink in center. Toss with pesto. Sprinkle with cheese.

Zephyr Pancakes

These pancakes are so yummy. Mmmmm... :)

Zephyr Pancakes
2 cups flour
2 1/2 Tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large egg yolks
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1 1.4 cups buttermilk
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, cream, buttermilk, melted butter and vanilla. Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry, just until combined- it's okay if there are a few lumps.

Preheat and lightly grease a heavy skillet or griddle. Scoop the batter onto the griddle with a 1/4 cup measure or a large spoon. Make sure the heat is slightly less than medium.

Double- Chocolate Dream Cookies

I've made these cookies several times. I've never been a big fan of chocolate cookies, but these are really, really good. I got the recipe off a bag of Nestle Toll House chocolate chips.

Double-Chocolate Dream Cookies

Ingredients
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup Baking Cocoa (I use dark cocoa because it makes it more chocolate-y.)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups (12-oz pkg) Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels (Last night I used mint dark chocolate chips, and they were delicious.)

Directions

PREHEAT oven to 375° F.

COMBINE flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. Beat butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl until creamy. Beat in eggs for about 2 minutes or until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

BAKE for 8 to 10 minutes or until cookies are puffed. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

I usually get 26-30 cookies from one batch.

I've also tried adding a cup of dried cherries to the recipe, but I think I would like strawberries better. I also think caramel or peanut butter chips would be yummy too.

Romano Ranch Chicken and Rice Skillet Dinner

I got this recipe from Picky-Palate. I made a lot of changes to it when I made it though. I pan fried my chicken instead of baking it. I also used a red bell pepper instead of a green one. I only used half the onion, which was plenty. I didn't add the can of peas and carrots. And I just used garlic powder instead of the Lawry's garlic salt with parsley.

I really liked this recipe. When I make it again I will use a roasted red bell pepper. When Patrick took the leftovers to work, his co-worker commented on how good it looked. Sorry I didn't get a picture of it.


Romano Ranch Chicken and Rice Skillet Dinner

2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 packet Ranch Dressing dry mix, divided

1/4 Cup extra virgin olive oil (what I used) or you can also use veg oil

1 large onion, finely diced

1 green bell pepper, diced

6 cloves fresh garlic, minced

6 Cups fresh spinach leaves, coarsely chopped

1 small can diced carrots and peas, drained

2 Cups steamed long grain brown rice (I cooked mine in a rice cooker)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper

1/4 teaspoon Lawry’s garlic salt with parsley

1/2 Cup shredded Romano Cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place chicken breasts into small baking dish and sprinkle half of the ranch packet over each breast. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Remove and let rest for 10 minutes.

2. Heat oil in large skillet with high rimmed edges over medium heat. Saute onion, bell pepper, garlic and spinach until softened, about 5-7 minutes. Stir in can of carrots and peas then stir in cooked rice, season with salt, pepper and garlic salt.

3. With a knife dice each chicken breast into small cubes and add into rice mixture. Sprinkle remaining ranch seasoning mix and romano cheese into rice. Reduce heat to low; taste and season as needed. Now you are ready to serve.

4 servings

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

I made these taquitos the other night and they were REALLY yummy. I got the recipe from Our Best Bites. I love that site. :)The picture is also from that site.

When I made them, I used red salsa instead of green and I didn't put in the cilantro. I also made them with both corn and flour tortillas and I really liked them both. Patrick and I couldn't decide which we liked best. They are really easy and fast to make. I haven't tried this, but you could probably make a whole bunch and freeze them for later use.




Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

1/3 C (3 oz) cream cheese
1/4 C green salsa
1T fresh lime juice
1/2 t cumin
1 t chili powder
1/2 t onion powder
1/4 t granulated garlic, or garlic powder
3 T chopped cilantro
2 T sliced green onions
2 C shredded cooked chicken (for extra yumminess, use grilled taco chicken!)
1 C grated pepperjack cheese

small corn tortillas (and actually, flour ones are really good as well)
kosher salt
cooking spray

Heat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.

Heat cream cheese in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds so it's soft and easy to stir. Add green salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder and granulated garlic. Stir to combine and then add cilantro and green onions. Add chicken and cheese and combine well.

You can prepare up to this step ahead of time. Just keep the mixture in the fridge.

Work with a few tortillas at a time and heat in the microwave until they are soft enough to roll without cracking. It helps to place them between damp paper towels. Usually 20-30 seconds will do it. If you find yours are cracking when you roll them or are coming unrolled right away, just try heating them longer and try the paper towel thing.

Place 2-3 T of chicken mixture on the lower third of a tortilla, keeping it about 1/2 inch from the edges.

Then roll it up as tight as you can.

Place seam side down on the baking sheet. Lay all of the taquitos on the baking sheet and make sure they are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray or an oil mister and sprinkle some kosher salt on top.

Place pan in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends start to get golden brown.

Pumpkin Pie

I made this pie for FHE yesterday. I tried a new crust from Melanie at melskitchencafe.com. It was good. I was a little concerned about the dough at first because it didn't have the normal pie dough consistency I am used to (I didn't read the part in her recipe that says it will resemble sugar cookie dough until after I made it). I also tried a new pumpkin filling that I found on a google search. I was intrigued by it because it uses whipping cream instead of evaporated milk and brown sugar in place of regular sugar. I thought it was really good. Nathan said it tasted "professional" (as if I would make anything less!).

Pate Brisee (aka pie dough)
by Mel’s Kitchen Cafe

2 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. sugar
1 c. shortening
1/3 c. ice-cold water

Mix flour, salt, sugar and shortening together with your hands to form a uniform mixture. Add water. Dip your hands in flour so they won’t get too sticky (although it will still be messy) and mix well. Roll into a ball. The dough will resemble sugar cookie dough. Divide in half and roll out each half on a lightly floured surface. Bake according to pie instructions.

Pumpkin Pie Filling
by joyofbaking.com

3 large eggs
15 oz. pumpkin
1/2 c. whipping cream
1/2 c. light brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/8 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 375. In a large bowl lightly whisk the eggs. Add the remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Pour the mixture into the prepared pie shell and place on a large baking pan to catch any spills. Bake the pie for about 45-55 minutes or until the filling is set and the crust has browned (the center will still look wet) and a knife inserted in the middle comes out almost clean. Place on a wire rack to cool.



Click here for printable version.

Spaghetti Sauce

picture: www.americastestkitchen.com

While I think this sauce took me more than 15 minutes, it wasn't much more. Hailey and Kade asked if we could save some for them to take in their lunches (they've never asked that of my spaghetti before). I think it is a really good basic sauce and since it uses grated onion and crushed tomatoes it isn't chunky (a major plus for my kids). Plus, mine looked exactly like the picture. How often does that happen?!

Quick Tomato Sauce
by America's Test Kitchen

2 tablespoons unsalted butter  
1/4 cup grated onion , from 1 medium onion (use large holes on a box grater) 
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano  
table salt  
2 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 2 teaspoons) 
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes (ATK says to use Tuttorosso or Muir Glen brands. Fry's had Hunts so that's what I used.)
1/4 teaspoon sugar  
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves  
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil  
ground black pepper

Heat butter in medium saucepan over medium heat until melted. Add onion, oregano, and ½ teaspoon salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has evaporated and onion is golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in tomatoes and sugar; increase heat to high and bring to simmer. Lower heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened slightly, about 10 minutes. Off heat, stir in basil and oil; season with salt and pepper. Serve. Makes 3 cups (enough for 1 pound of pasta).

For printable recipe click here.