Browned Butter Pork and Butternut Squash Lasagna

This isn’t your traditional lasagna, but oh good heavens, the flavors of pork, butternut squash, browned butter, sage, and cheese is pure comfort! Browned butter pork and butternut squash lasagna is about to be your new favorite lasagna recipe!

You won’t find tomatoes, ricotta cheese or tomato sauce in this lasagna, but it is bringing all the feelings of warm winter comfort food to our family! The flavors are the most amazing combination! I mean it’s got pork, one of my all time favorite meats, browned butter-pure heaven, carbs-who doesn’t love carbs, and melty, gooey, delicious cheese. BOO-YAH!

I love comfort food more than anything else. Sure smoked pulled pork is stinking delicious, and Hawaiian Pulled Pork is absolutely mouth watering, but make me choose between one of those recipes and a comfort food like Browned Butter Butternut and Pork Lasagna and hands down the lasagna wins.

Creating Butternut Squash Lasagna

As soon as I got the email from the National Pork Board to create a few recipes for them I knew I’d say yes to working with them, but then they wanted comfort recipes?! Heck yeah I’m on board with that. And this lasagna was born. And we loved it. And now you will too.

I was looking through the recipe section on the Pork Be Inspired site and man, everything looks so juicy and delicious! I’ve found many a wonderful recipe there, but I was actually trying to make sure that there wasn’t a recipe like this one, which there isn’t. Butternut squash actually smells comforting. It’s so warm, nutty, and creamy. I just knew that a combination of my favorite fall/winter flavor with pork was totally the way to go. Oh, and there’s a secret in the puree, Ginger Snap cookies. Trust me, it’s exactly what the puree needs.

Ingredients for Butternut Squash Lasagna

I’m going to divide this recipe into 3 different parts – the butternut squash, the browned butter sauce (béchamel sauce) and the lasagna layers.

For the Squash

• Butternut Squash: peeled and chopped, ready for roasting
• Olive Oil: helps roast and caramelize the squash
• Salt & Black Pepper: adds flavor
• Sage: you’ll want fresh sage and we will use it to add flavor to the butternut squash puree
• Ginger Snap Cookies: an unexcepted ingredient but the flavor it adds it crucial

For the Browned Butter Sauce

• Butter: browned for added flavor and creates the base for the béchamel
• Garlic: adds flavor and can be increased or decreased to your liking
• Flour: combined with the butter is creates the creamy base for the béchamel
• Low Fat Milk: helps thin out the sauce
• Half and Half: adds creaminess and richness
• Nutmeg: adds flavor and warmth
• Salt and Black Pepper: adds flavor

For the Lasag

The Easiest Korean Ground Beef Recipe

This easy Korean ground beef recipe is a tasty dinner idea that is light on the budget but heavy on the bold Korean flavors! You’re family is going to love it!

So, you need an idea for ground beef that isn’t casserole, taco, or soup? Yeah, me too, so I set out to make something wonderful and delicious and then couldn’t help myself and made it a budget friendly dinner idea too!

I grew up with the same plate my entire life:

• Meat
• Veggie
• Carb

And then I grew up and did the exact same thing with a few twists to our staple dinners that Mom had made:

• Cheesy Ground Beef and Rice Casserole
• Pork Chops and Rice
• Stew
• Potato Soup
• Idaho Tacos (don’t knock it until you try it)

But then I got to thinking, just because it isn’t 1999 doesn’t mean that mom’s don’t want quick, easy and cheap dinner ideas. It just means they need them with a modern twist! So, Korean Ground Beef was born. It’s a cheaper version of bulgogi, and we love bulgogi!!

I’ve made it with mushrooms, peas, peppers, and all sorts of additions but the truth is, it doesn’t need anything but ground beef, sauce and rice. It’s easy to make, even easier to freeze (both pre and post cooking) and all you have to serve is a little steamed veggie next to it.

Recommended Equipment

• Meat Chopper
• Cast Iron Pan

Before You Begin…

If you’re planning to serve this Korean ground beef over rice, then the first thing you will want to do is get your rice cooking. That way the rice will be ready when the beef is finished.

Ingredients for Korean Ground Beef

I mentioned that this recipe is budget-friendly so let me prove it now by listing out the ingredients you will need. Everything is easy to find at the grocery and might even be in your pantry already. Here is your shopping list:

• Canola or Vegetable Oil: used to cook the ground beef and garlic
• Ground Beef: You can also use ground chuck.
• Garlic: adds flavor to the meat
• Soy Sauce: adds Asian flavor and saltiness
• Orange Juice: adds flavor and acidity
• Brown Sugar: adds depth of flavor and sweetness
• Sweet Chili Sauce: adds a little heat and sweetness

Chicken Chile Verde

Tender, juicy chunks of chicken simmered in a bold chile verde sauce. Serve it over rice or load it up in a burrito! It’s so flavorful and melt-in-your-mouth scrumptious!

I love this even more than our pork chile verde which means I must be going crazy! Usually I’m all about a bunch of tender, shredded pork but there’s just something so good about this chicken dinner recipe that calls my name! I especially love it with rice and beans but my family is starting to prefer it in a freshly made tortilla from our most recent cookbook, Raised in the Kitchen.

Whichever way you eat it, you’re going to devour this yummy Mexican chicken dinner.

What is Chile Verde?

The term “chile verde” translate to “green chile” or “green chili” and is a Mexican stew that is traditionally made with chunks of pork that is simmered until tender in a roasted tomatillo and green chile sauce. For this recipe we are swapping out the pork for chicken.

We have a salsa verde recipe on the blog that is inspired by this same flavor profile. It is so yummmmmmmm!

The Ingredients You Need for Chicken Chili Verde Recipe

I’m going to break up the recipe ingredients into two parts – ingredients for the verde sauce and ingredients for the chicken. Here is your shopping list:

For the Verde

• Vegetable Oil – used to roast the veggies
• Tomatillos – those green tomato looking things in the produce section that have a papery layer on the outside. They are used a lot in Mexican recipes and are so tasty!
• Poblano Chiles – large, mild peppers popular in Mexican cuisine
• Red Onion – these get blended into the sauce and add so much flavor
• Garlic Cloves – flavor of course
• Jalapeño – roasted jalapeño adds heat and tons of flavor to the sauce
• Pepper – flavor
• Cilantro – freshness and flavor

For the Chicken

• Chicken Thighs – boneless, skinless and cut into bite size chunks
• Kosher Salt – helps dry brine the chicken
• Bacon – flavor
• Chicken Broth – helps deglaze the pan after cooking the bacon and adds moisture to the chicken
• Dried Oregano – flavor
• Cinnamon – may seem strange in a savory dish, but trust me!
• Cumin  – it has to be in pretty much all Mexican dishes
• Ground Cloves – again, trust me here!
• Sugar – enhances the flavor
• Bay Leaves – flavor
• Orange Juice – acidity and tenderizing the chicken
Read more

Rosemary Orange Glazed Roasted Pork Tenderloin

Orange glazed pork tenderloin is marinated in a delicious rub and then glazed in a sweet and tangy sauce making it juicy on the inside and crusty on the outside.

I have not had many pork tenderloins and it hasn’t helped that Cade hasn’t been interested in them either. Every now and again I’d step into the ol’ Pinterest app and sure enough another pork loin was front and center. Now I know all about algorithms and that Pinterest had caught on that I slowed my scrolling seeing the pics but even so, it worked.

I’ve been testing and testing to turn an often flavorless meat into dish for a Sunday dinner that wasn’t a hassle but looked and tasted like the best home cooked meal ever. The key? Letting the rub sit on the meat for a whole day. And what rub is that? Based off of an old orange and cranberry relish my sister used to stuff breaded chicken with. Oh it’s so good!

What Ingredients Do You Need for Orange Glazed Pork Tenderloin?

Aside from the pork tenderloins, you will need a few ingredients for the rub and few ingredients for the sauce. A phenomenal homemade meal is just this easy. Here is your shopping list:

• Pork Tenderloin
• Orange
• Orange Juice
• Garlic
• Smoked Paprika
• Olive Oil
• Kosher Salt
• Yukon Gold Potatoes
• Brussels Sprouts

Sauce

• Orange Zest
• Orange Juice
• Brown Sugar
• Orange Marmalade
• Rosemary
• Cinnamon

The measurements for each ingredient can be found in the recipe card below.

How to Make Orange Glazed Pork Loin

I love when a Sunday dinner is quick and easy but tastes like you’ve been in the kitchen for hours and hours. That is this pork tenderloin recipe in a nutshell! Here are the basic steps:

• Combine all the ingredients for the paste in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
• Rub all over the pork and cover with plastic wrap. Keep in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours.
• Remove from fridge and wipe off the excess rub. Let rest.
• Combine all the ingredients for the sauce in a saucepan and let simmer until it thickens.
• Preheat oven and bake, adding some sauce for the last 20 minutes.
• Prep the veggies and add them the last 20-30 minutes.
• Pour the remaining sauce over the top with fresh herbs for garnish.
• Let rest then slice and serve.

The complete instructions can be found in the recipe card at the end of the post.

Is Pork Loin The Same As Pork Roast?

Pork loin is a cut of meat.  The proper term is po

20 Minute Tomato and Basil Angel Hair Pasta Recipe [+ Video]

This 20 minute cherry tomato and basil angel hair pasta recipe comes together in a jiffy, and will satisfy the whole family, even the kids!

Every time the holidays are over and new year rolls around, I’m immediately drawn to a simpler way of cooking – lighter, healthier meals, fresh ingredients, less ingredients, and just an all around relaxed attitude. I don’t like anything too fussy or involved, and this 20 Minute Cherry Tomato and Basil Angel Hair pasta is the perfect example of what you might find on our dinner table this month.

Cooking Class in Italy

I’ve made a variation of this sauce for years – ever since I studied abroad in Italy. On the back end of my trip, my family came over, and my Mom and I took a cooking class for four days on the Amalfi coast in a little town called Positano. We learned the basics of Italian cooking – how to make the best margarita pizza with only the freshest ingredients, how to make pasta dough with our bare hands, and how to make a killer tomato sauce using only cherry tomatoes, olive oil and garlic.

I can still remember closing my eyes while I ate, and wondering if I’d ever taste something as delicious as that sauce back at home – or if I’d even come close to being able replicate it myself.

Less Than 30 Minute Dinner Recipe

Since then, I’ve made a bazillion different variations, all equally as delicious as they were in Italy. I’ve used it as a topping on fish or grilled chicken, slathered it on garlic-rubbed crostinis and tossed it with scrambled eggs, but I think today’s version may be my favorite adaptation yet. Not only because it’s simple and delicious, but because the cooking time from start to finish is less than 30 minutes – pure gold in my book.

Ingredients for Tomato Basil Angel Hair Pasta

You will only need 8 simple ingredients to make this easy angel hair pasta recipe! A whole meal with just 8 ingredients in less than a half hour…you can’t get much better than that! Here is what you will need:

• Angel Hair Pasta: it cooks up quickly and soaks up the flavor of the tomatoes and garlic
• Olive Oil: used to sauté the tomatoes and garlic, extra virgin olive oil is preferred for best flavor
• Garlic: adds bold delicious flavor
• Cherry Tomatoes: or grape tomatoes
• Fresh Basil: adds bright fresh flavor, if you don’t have fresh basil, use 2 teaspoons of dried basil
• Salt: adds flavor
• Granulated Parmesan: adds depth of flavor
• Lemon: a pop of citrus rounds out the dish perfectly

All the measurements for each ingredient can be found in the recipe card at the end of the post.

How to Make Cherry Tomato and Basil Angel Hair Pasta

You will want to start by cooking the angel hair pasta. Get a large pot of salted water going on the stove top until the water is boiling. Add the p