Simple Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes, Basil, and Parmesan Cheese Recipe

This was a simple pasta dish I made for lunch the other day with some of the Pasta Gravy I got from my April Hatchery Box! I wouldn't call the Pasta Gravy anything super special, but it was very spicy! If you like spicy things, especially sauces it might be for you. But you can always use a regular marinara sauce. I just served the pasta and sauce with some fresh chopped basil, tomato slices, and Parmesan cheese. This dish is very quick and easy to make, but it looks so colorful and fun for the Summer or anytime of year.

Lasagna Recipe

I went up to Lake Tahoe this past weekend for a little last minute getaway with B and his brother. While, they were out snowboarding I was in the hotel getting some work done (I'm a terrible snowboarder and I get too frustrated, so I've given up long ago), and making lasagna for dinner! It was a little weird that there was no snow at the hotel ground level, the guys said the snow on the mountain was pretty good. They went to Heavenly, but last time we went to Squaw and they had much more snow at the hotel, but less on the mountain! I think next time the plan is Kirkwood, they always seem to have tons of snow, even with the drought, and low snow levels.

Luckily our hotel had a kitchenette and I brought all the necessary ingredients. Other than forgetting to bring the egg, and the pan with the sauce filled to the top while it was cooking, I didn't have any big problems cooking it in our suite. I brought a cooler with our ingredients, and an aluminum pan for the lasagna. I cooked and put it all together before the guys came back, and just popped it in the oven once we were ready for dinner. You can serve it with a Casesar salad or garlic bread, or beer like we did!

Zero Zero Restaurant Review

Zero Zero is another favorite go-to restaurant in San Francisco with wonderful pizza, great brunch menu, and delicious drinks. Zero Zero is located near the Metreon in downtown and there are a few parking garages near there that aren't too expensive. Like so many other San Francisco restaurants, the have mostly staple menu items, and then a few others are swapped out based on the season. Some of these aren't on the menu all the time, and they do swap out one or two of the pizzas. Let's get to the food!

Roasted Cauliflower - If roasted cauliflower isn't one of your favorite winter vegetable dishes then I just don't know what you're doing with your life!

Superbowl Dinner - Braciole

We were going to make wings for dinner today for the Superbowl, but we had a flank steak in the fridge and I found this recipe for it. Definitely not a very traditional Superbowl meal, but it was very easy to make and you can let it simmer in the oven for an hour and a half so you could make it ahead of time for the game, or have it cooking before the game starts. I served it with some roasted parmesan asparagus, which was tossed in some olive oil, salt, pepper, and parmesan cheese, then roasted in a 400 degree F oven, for 15-20 minutes.

More Homemade Pizza

Went over to a friends house, and we wanted to cook something together. Pizza seemed like a good option, since I've been making so much of it recently. It turned out really great because her oven seemed to get extra hot. Almost burned it, but pulled it out of the oven just in time. It was absolutely delicious! Just used some store bought pizza dough, covered with some jarred tomato sauce, added some spices like oregano and some salt, tossed on some store bought roasted garlic (I know, this was news to me that you can find roasted garlic in a store, and it was amazing. Perfect for pizza), fresh mozzarella cheese slices, some fresh basil and a drizzle of olive oil.

We cooked it for 8-12 minutes in a 500 degree oven. If your oven gets super hot like this one did, make sure to check on it every few minutes. Slice up and enjoy!

Pasta with Tomato Sauce and Basil

I decided to make a simple pasta dish for dinner, and I used up this interesting pasta shape we had around the house. All I did was cook the pasta in boiling water, heat up some pasta sauce in a pan with some olive oil, and diced tomatoes. Then added the drained, cooked pasta to the sauce. Mixed with some grated Parmesan cheese, and topped with some chopped fresh basil from the garden! Easy, simple and delicious!

Risotto Milanese with Short Ribs and Roasted Carrots

I got kind of on a risotto kick, and decided to make Risotto Milanese to go with the short ribs my mom made. I only have the recipe for the risotto, because my mom just threw the short ribs into the Crock Pot with whatever the hell else she felt like, and I don't think she even remembers what went in there. But it turned out delicious, so I just served up the short ribs on top of the risotto, along with a side of roasted carrots, that we got from the Farmer's Market.

Caramelized-Onion Risotto with Bacon

I had the most wonderful caramelized onion risotto on my trip to Monterey, and have been wanting to attempt to recreate it at home. I found an easy enough recipe, because I've never made risotto before, and so here it is. It was fairly simple, and it turned out pretty good, but nothing like in Monterey. Maybe it was because there were too many other flavors with it, like the bacon and the thyme. I'm also not the best at cooking caramelized onions, I'm too impatient. But anyways, I totally recommend this recipe if you want some nice comforting, creamy risotto.

Homemade Pizza - 3 Ways

An easy thing to make for dinner is homemade pizza. It cooks quickly, you don't have to have a ton of ingredients, and you can buy pizza dough at the store. It's also an easy way to get rid of some pantry jars of stuff to put on your pizza, such as olives, artichoke hearts, anchovies!?, pizza sauce/tomato sauce, whatever you want.

A local grocery store, carries frozen and fresh pizza dough, so we occasionally grab one, freeze it, and then defrost it the day before I want to make it. At first, I was trying to top the dough on a cookie sheet, and then trying to move it over to a pizza stone preheating in the oven. It's impossible. You can flour it, put olive oil on it, but it doesn't matter. It always seems to be too heavy to move easily without just stretching out the dough. So I've learned to just get over it, and cook it on the cookie sheet. I cook these at 500 degrees, for 10-15 minutes.

This was before it went in the oven. Here are the ingredients in order I added them: olive oil, tomato sauce, red pepper flakes, dried oregano, salt, parmesan cheese, fresh mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, and half artichoke hearts. 

As you can see, the basil got kind of fried, so I recommend adding it in the last few minutes of cooking time, or just adding it after it comes out of the oven. This first style was very good, simple and classic.

Here's my 2nd way, ingredients were: olive oil, half pizza sauce, half garlic ranch sauce (bought from the store), red pepper flakes, dried oregano, parmesan, red onions, fresh mozzarella cheese, half artichoke hearts and fresh basil. As you can see, this is right around when our basil plant started dying, so there weren't many leaves to pick for this pizza.

For the 3rd way, I decided to split the dough into 2 pizzas. This one was, olive oil, pizza sauce, red pepper flakes, dried oregano, parmesan cheese, monterey jack cheese, red onions, tomatoes, and mozzarella cheese.

The 2nd half of the dough was all the same, just the garlic ranch sauce instead of pizza sauce. 

I really liked the ones with the garlic ranch sauce. I found it with the pizza dough and the store had some fresh packages of pizza ingredients, like pepperoni, pizza sauce, and the ranch sauce. I highly recommend trying to make pizza at home. It's so easy, and it turns out delicious!

Berkeley Adventure: Pizza, Food Trucks, and Beer Gardens!

B and I had another food adventure, and this time we went to Berkeley. The food truck event wasn't going to start until later that night, so we stopped by the Cheese Board Collective and got half a pizza to tide us over for the afternoon. They have a different flavor pizza everyday, and it's never the same, so you probably won't see this one if you went. It was a very simple, tomato, mozzarella, garlic, and red onion pizza. It was so simple and perfect, and I would highly recommend trying anything they have there. I was worried half a pizza wouldn't be enough for us, but it was just the right amount. We didn't really feel like paying for the whole pizza, as that was $20. 

As we waited for the food truck event to start, we headed over to the East Bay Vivarium to check out their reptiles, snakes, lizards, frogs, and turtles. When it was finally time for Off The Grid, we headed over there, and started scoping out the trucks. I wanted to try something from the Taco Guys truck and I got their pork taco with mango, and pickled cabbage. It had good flavor, but by the time I got to eat it, the tortilla was a little soggy. That was my own fault though.

I also ordered a couple drinks from the Taco Guys, I don't quite remember the full flavor profiles, but one was hibiscus, and the other was peach? I think. I just remember the light pink one was a little better. And they switch out their tacos and their drinks on a regular basis, so if you went they probably wouldn't have them anyways.

The last truck we tried was the Arki Truck. B and I shared a Works sandwich, which had fried chicken, cole slaw, fried potatoes, and spicy aioli on a torpedo roll. It was definitely a lot of food, and better to share it with someone!

For dessert, we ordered 2 beignets to share from the Arki Truck. Honestly, I think these were the stars of the night, The glaze was perfectly sweet, and even when they sat there for a few minutes with glaze all over them, they were still crispy and airy inside. Highly recommend!

We decided to end the night over in Redwood City, at the Gourmet Haus Staudt beer garden. I have no idea what the first beer I ordered was, because the glasses didn't always coordinate with the beer. I just told the bartender I liked wheat beers and he gave me something kind of fruity, which was ok. Not my favorite, but drinkable. B ordered a delicious Paulaner Salvator, and I ordered that as my second beer. It's now one of my favorites, and I've found it at BevMo. 

Everything was delicious from the day, and I can't wait for my next food truck adventure!

Sausage, Mushroom, and Pepper Pasta and Cupcakes

I made some late birthday cupcakes for myself after seeing an article in the Food Network Magazine about making frosting colors. So I chose a couple colors and just made some box cupcakes, and frosted them with homemade frosting. They were colorful and delicious!

I also made some pasta for dinner, which wasn't a recipe, I just kind of threw together some things we had in the fridge. I cooked the sausage and mushrooms until they were cooked, and in the mean time cooked up some fresh pasta. I added some peppers to the sausage/mushroom mixture and then added part of a can of crushed tomatoes. I seasoned it with some salt, pepper and some red pepper flakes, then added the drained, cooked pasta to the sauce. Mix it all together and grate some parmesan cheese over the top, and top with fresh basil. Then eat it! It was a delicious mix of ingredients, and it was just some stuff we had leftover in the fridge. 

Napa Birthday Trip, Day 1

For my birthday, I decided on a wine tasting trip to Napa with B. It wasn't going to be just wine tasting, but also food tasting! I had picked out a few restaurants and wineries I wanted to try while on the trip, and we got to almost all of them. Which, was impressive for a 2 day trip! The first place we hit was The Boon Fly Cafe. I had heard about their amazing donuts, so obviously we had to stop by. We got there for Sunday brunch, and we started with some delicious cinnamon sugar coated donuts. They were quite small, but we shared an order of 4, and downed them with a gusto. 

I decided to order the Boon Fly Benedict, which had a deliciously spicy Jalapeño Hollandaise covering perfectly poached eggs, thick cut ham, all on some artisan bread. It was amazing! I had never had Eggs Benedict before (I know, where have I been?) but it was a great introduction. 

B ordered the Eggs in a Hole, which is his favorite. I make it for him all the time, and he said it was good, but not quite as good as mine. I was glad to hear he liked mine better ; ) 

For lunch, we stopped by V. Sattui Winery and got a sandwich, bread, their famous artichoke cream cheese dip, and their sesame noodle salad. We shared the sandwich, which was their spicy italian, and it was quite possibly the best italian sandwich I've ever had. We went on a hike, and then ate our food after we finished. 

Here was the sesame noodle salad, which I've had before at the winery, and it was delicious as always.

Since, it was the day of my birthday, I made reservations for an Italian restaurant for dinner. We ate at Bistro don Giovanni, which was right near our hotel. I have to give a link for the hotel we stayed at, because we were really happy with it. It was the Best Western Premier Ivy Hotel and the photos look just like the hotel, it was very nice, clean, complimentary breakfast (with make your own waffles, breakfast sandwiches...etc.).

So back to the dinner; I ordered the Orrecchiette with Spicy Sausage. It was absolutely delicious, but B and I definitely did some trading of our dishes.

B ordered the Margherita pizza, and it was probably one of the best I've tried. I managed to convince B to give me about half of his for half of mine. We had eaten lunch not that long ago, so we didn't want to much for dinner.

The winner of the show, was dessert. We ordered their famous "Bostini" Trifle. It had vanilla custard, chocolate cake, whipped cream, clear caramel and toasted almonds. Delicious! One of my favorite desserts I've ever had, and that clear caramel was the star of the trifle. 

Everything we ate from the first day was wonderful, and I highly recommend trying any of these restaurants!

Pasta Carbonara

I have made some form of pasta carbonara many times before, but so far this is my favorite recipe. It's made even better with fresh pasta, which I highly recommend getting if you're going to attempt this recipe. This is also great with some sliced sausage or vegetables added. Serve with some toasted French bread!

Here's the recipe adapted from Food Network

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 ounces pancetta or slab bacon, diced
• 1 teaspoon diced garlic
• 2 tablespoons white wine
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 9 ounces fresh fettuccine
• 1 cup grated Parmesan Reggiano (Original recipe calls for Pecorino Romano. I like the Parmesan better, but either will taste great. Or you could do half and half of each)
• 2 egg yolks
• Fresh chopped parsley
• 
  
• Directions:
• 1. Put the water in a large pasta pot and bring it to a boil over medium heat.
  2. Add the oil and bacon to a large saute pan over low heat. Cook the bacon until crisp, being careful not to burn it, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir for 5 seconds. Add the wine, cream and black pepper. Cook until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Drop the fresh fettuccine into water and stir to separate strands. When pasta is just undercooked remove it from the water and add it to the pan with the sauce. Gently stir for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat, add 1/2 the cheese and the egg yolks and stir, being careful not to break the noodles. Transfer the pasta to a serving bowl or platter and garnish with the remaining cheese and parsley.

Bruschetta

I love making bruschetta because it's easy, filling and I usually have everything to make it. It's nice when I don't really feel like cooking, but I have the energy to take a few minutes to whip this up. I recommend using fresh baked bread, from the bakery at the grocery store. I have several variations depending on what we have on hand, but it's usually a combination of tomatoes, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, basil, garlic and some melted mozzarella cheese on top of toasted bread.

At home, we always have fresh homegrown tomatoes in the backyard, but this year they ripened a little late. We just roasted a bunch of them and froze them for marinara sauces in the winter. The trick to a crunchy bruschetta is to toast the bread before adding the tomato mixture to the top.

I marinade the tomatoes in a mixture of half olive oil, half balsamic vinegar, and add some minced garlic to it. I finely chop some basil and throw that in as well. I slice the bread into 1/2 inch slices, and drizzle olive oil on it. Sometimes I get adventurous and use basil or garlic infused oil. The broil it until it's slightly golden brown. Top the bread with the tomato mixture, drizzling some of the liquid on top. Then thinly slice some fresh mozzarella to top with. Throw it back into the broiler, and remove when the cheese is melty. Then eat!

Fettucini All'amatriciana with Mozzarella Meatballs

I saw this recipe on an episode of Giada, and decided to make it for dinner since we kind of had all the ingredients. Well almost, I made some changes.

Here's the recipe adapted from Giada.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cooking Time: 1 hour | Difficulty: Easy | Serves: 3

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp Olive Oil
6 ounces Bacon, diced
1 Yellow Onion, finely chopped
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
Pinch Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
1 (14-ounce) Can Crushed Tomatoes (I used fresh tomatoes, because we had them)
½ tsp Kosher Salt, plus more for seasoning
½ tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper, plus more for seasoning
½ cup Grated Pecorino Romano
Meatballs:
1 small Onion, grated¼ cup Chopped Fresh Flat-Leaf Parsley
⅔ cup Grated Parmesan Cheese, plus ¼ cup
⅓ cup Italian-Style Bread Crumbs
1 large Egg
2 Tbsp Ketchup
3 Garlic Cloves, minced
¼ tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
1 tsp Kosher Salt, plus more for seasoning
½ tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper, plus more for seasoning
16 ounces Ground Beef
2 ounces Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, cut into 16 (½-inch) cubes
1/2 pound Bucatini Or Other Long Pasta (I used fettucine)

Directions:

1. For the sauce: In a large heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring constantly, until golden brown, about 5 to 7 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the pancetta and reserve. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper, and the cooked pancetta. Simmer, uncovered, over medium-low heat until the sauce thickens, about 15 minutes. Stir in the cheese and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

2. For the meatballs: Position an oven rack in the lower ⅓ of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

3. In a large bowl, combine the onion, ½ cup parsley, ⅔ cup Parmesan, bread crumbs, egg, ketchup, garlic, red pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper. Add the beef and veal. Using your hands, combine all ingredients gently but thoroughly. Shape the meat mixture into 16 (1 ½-inch-diameter) meatballs and place on the prepared baking sheet. Make a hole in the center of each meatball and place a cube of mozzarella inside. Reform the meatball so that the mozzarella is completely covered with the meat mixture. Bake the meatballs for 15 minutes until cooked through.

4. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain and place in a large serving bowl. Add the meatballs and sauce. Toss gently and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Sprinkle with the remaining parsley and Parmesan.

Roasted Chicken Purses and Panzanella

Because I used part of a rotisserie chicken for my Chicken Salad Sandwiches, I decided to try and get another recipe that I could use the rest for. I found this dish, Roasted Chicken Purses, and made a simple Italian salad to go with it. I did have some trouble with the purses opening in the boiling water, but I think it was mostly because I was in a hurry and didn't seal them well. So, make sure if you make this dish, take the time to seal the wontons well. I think they seal better with water than with egg, which is what the recipe called for. Here's how they looked...

Roasted Chicken Purses

Panzanella

Roasted Chicken Purses
Here's the recipe adapted from Giada De Laurentiis

Prep Time: 30 min | Cooking Time: 20 min | Difficulty: Easy | Serves: 4


Ingredients:
1 ¼ cups Shredded Roasted Chicken (Or Any Leftover Chicken, light and/or dark meat)
¾ cup Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese
½ Lemon, zested
½ tsp Chopped Fresh Thyme Leaves
½ tsp Salt, plus more for sprinkling
¼ tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper, plus more for sprinkling
32 Small Square Wonton Wrappers
4 Tbsp Butter
¼ cup Grated Parmesan
Water, for sealing wontons


Directions:
1. In a small bowl combine the chicken, ricotta cheese, lemon zest, thyme, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.


2. On a dry work surface place 8 wonton wrappers. Place a rounded teaspoon of the chicken mixture in the center of each wrapper. Using a pastry brush, brush the egg wash around the chicken mixture. Bring four corners of the wonton square together over the filling to form a purse. Press the edges together tightly to form a seal. Wipe the board with a towel until dry and continue making batches of 8 with the remaining wonton skins.


3. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. 


4. Add the purses and cook until they float to the surface, stirring occasionally, about 4 to 5 minutes. Drain the ravioli.


5. Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a medium skillet. Turn off the heat, add the cooked pyramids and gently toss. Transfer the pyramids to 4 serving plates. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.


Panzanella
Here's the recipe adapted from Ina Garten


Prep Time: 15 min | Difficulty: Easy | Serves: 4-6


Ingredients:
3 Tbsp Good Olive Oil
1 small French Bread Or Boule, cut into 1-inch cubes (6 cups)
1 tsp Kosher Salt
2 Large, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 English Cucumber, unpeeled, and sliced ½-inch thick
1 Red Bell Pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
½ Red Onion, cut in ½ and thinly sliced
10 large Basil Leaves, coarsely chopped
3 Tbsp Capers, drained
For The Vinaigrette:
1 tsp Finely Minced Garlic
½ tsp Dijon Mustard
1 ½ Tbsp White Wine Vinegar
¼ cup Good Olive Oil
½ tsp Kosher Salt
¼ tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper


Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a large saute pan. Add the bread and salt; cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently, for 10 minutes, or until nicely browned. Add more oil as needed.


2. For the vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together.


3. In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, red onion, basil, and capers. Add the bread cubes and toss with the vinaigrette. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Serve, or allow the salad to sit for about half an hour for the flavors to blend.

Three Cheese Tomato Tart, Tortellini Pasta Salad, and No Bake Raspberry-Lemon Cheesecake

Sorry it's been so long since I last posted, but I have been at work almost non-stop for a week and a half! I'm exhausted, but so glad I finally had a break to cook dinner! Naturally, I went all out and made 2 dishes and a dessert. They all turned out delicious, but dinner was quite rich. Dessert was a little lighter, but quite sweet and tangy. Without further ado...

Three Cheese Tomato Tart
Here's the recipe adapted from The Kitchn.


Prep Time: 45 min | Cooking Time: 30 min | Difficulty: Easy | Serves: ~9 slices


Ingredients:
2 Ripe Heirloom Tomatoes, cut into ⅛-inch slices 
1 Sheet Frozen Puff Pastry
3 Tbsp Light Mayonnaise
½ cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese (I may have accidentally used too much cheese, so measure it!)
½ cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
2 Tbsp Finely Chopped Basil
Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese, to taste
Kosher Salt And Freshly Ground Black Pepper


Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400°.


2. Lay out the tomato slices on a large sheet of paper towels. Cover with more paper towels and allow to drain for approximately 30 minutes (this is crucial to not getting a watery tart). Meanwhile, remove the sheet of puff pastry from the freezer and allow to thaw at room temperature for 30 minutes.


3. Unfold the puff pastry onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, pinching to close any holes in the seams. Using a fork, prick the dough all over to prevent it from puffing up during baking.


4. Spread a thin layer of mayonnaise over the entire puff pastry. Sprinkle evenly with shredded cheddar and mozzarella cheeses. Arrange the tomato slices over the cheese. Season generously with kosher salt and pepper. Grate a generous amount of Parmesan cheese on top and garnish with freshly chopped basil.


5. Bake for 30 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown and the cheese is melted. Remove the pastry from the baking sheet and let cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Cut into 9 squares and serve immediately.


Tortellini Pasta Salad with Bacon, Broccoli and Basil
Here's the recipe adapted from Cookin' Canuck.


Prep Time: 10 min | Cooking Time: 15 min | Difficulty: Easy | Serves: 4-5


Ingredients:
12 Oz. Cheese Tortellini
4 slices Bacon (or just use a 1/4 cup of real bacon bits, which is what I used because we had it and we didn't have bacon)
1 Head of Broccoli
Vinaigrette:
¼ cup White Wine Vinegar
2 Tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice
1 ½ tsp Honey
1 tsp Kosher Salt
½ tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper
½ cup Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
6 large Basil Leaves, chiffonaded (rolled and thinly sliced)


Directions:
1. Set a large pot of salted water over high heat and bring to a boil. Cook tortellini according to package instructions. Drain and immediately rinse with cold water. Drain again. Transfer to a large serving bowl.


2. In a large nonstick skillet set over medium heat, cook bacon until crunchy. Set aside on a piece of paper towel to drain. When cool, crumble the bacon (not too small) and reserve. (Skip this if you used bacon bits)


3. Pour out all but 2 teaspoons of the bacon grease from the pan, increase the heat to medium-high, and add the broccoli florets. Saute until the broccoli is tender-crisp, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir into tortellini.


Vinaigrette:
1. In a medium bowl, whisk together white wine vinegar, lemon juice, honey, salt, and pepper. While whisking constantly, slow pour in olive oil until combined.


2. Pour the vinaigrette over the tortellini and gently toss. Stir the basil into the pasta salad. Serve.


No Bake Raspberry-Lemon Cheesecake
Here's the recipe adapted from My Baking Addiction.


Prep Time: 15 min | Difficulty: Easy | Serves: 6-8


Ingredients:
For The Crust:
¾ cup Graham Cracker Crumbs
1 Tbsp Sugar
3 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, melted
For The Filling:
⅔ cup Sugar
Zest On 2 Lemons
1 (8 ounce) Package Cream Cheese, softened
2 tsp Fresh Lemon Juice
1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
1 (8 ounce) Tub Frozen Whipped Topping, thawed
1 cup Fresh Raspberries, slightly mashed with a fork


Directions:
1. In a medium bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs and 1 tablespoon of sugar and melted butter. Spread the mixture evenly in a glass or metal pie tin.

2. In a large bowl, mix together the sugar and lemon zest until the sugar becomes moist and fragrant. Add cream cheese and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Add lemon juice and vanilla mixing to combine. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the whipped topping until well blended, then fold in the raspberries.

3. Spread the mixture over the crust and spread smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving. If desired, garnish with fresh raspberries and a sprig of fresh mint.