Stir It Up - Baked Three Cheese Pasta, Pecan Pear Muffins - WFMJ.com News weather sports for Youngstown-Warren Ohio

Stir It Up - Baked Three Cheese Pasta, Pecan Pear Muffins

Baked Three Cheese Pasta

 1 pound spaghetti

4 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons dried parsley

2 cup cottage cheese

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

12 ounces (3 cups) shredded mozzarella cheese

4 ounces crumbled feta cheese

 

Meat Sauce:

1 pound lean ground beef

2 clove garlic, minced

1 onion, chopped

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

6 cups spaghetti sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

4 ounces (1 cup) shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Drain and return to warm pot. Add butter and stir until butter is melted. Add parsley, and three cheeses, stirring to combine. Spread pasta-cheese mixture in the bottom of a greased 13 by 9 inch baking dish. Set aside. Cook onions until soft. Add the ground beef and brown with the garlic and onion. Add pepper, spaghetti sauce, sugar, and Italian seasoning. Stir well and then pour over the pasta, spreading evenly. Sprinkle cheese on top. Bake the pasta, uncovered, in the preheated oven for 35 minutes or until the cheese is browned and spaghetti is bubbly.

 

Pecan Pear Muffins

 3 cups flour

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 cup canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 cups chopped pears, about 6 medium pears

1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In one bowl mix the dry ingredients. In another mix the eggs, oil and vanilla. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in the pears and pecans. Fill paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from the muffin pan and cooling on a wire rack.