Cherry Blossoms

Recently my mom decided to share the job of cooking with the rest of the family. Spreading the love, you know? So now that’s one more job piled on top of my list. But the good thing is that I can make the rest of my family eat what I want (hehehe). At first I thought it would be easy to find a meal to make, but then I realized that it was harder than I thought. For one, I couldn’t cook meat, in case of salmonella. Also, it had to be easy to make in thirty minutes, because I don’t have much patience to stand around for too long.

Every Saturday my sister and I have to cook dinner for our family, starting last week. So, what is an easier first meal than pasta? Using the recipe from Washington Post’s Food Section, we cooked our pasta, and to be honest, it actually tasted pretty good!

Ingredients:

– 1 pint cherry tomatoes (sliced in half lengthwise)

– 1 sweet bell pepper, any color, I used red (cut into 1 inch pieces)

– 1/2 large red sweet onion (cut into small pieces)

– Olive oil

– Salt and pepper to taste

– 8 oz farfalle (or bow-tie) pasta

– Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Spray olive oil onto a tray and spread the tomatoes, bell pepper, and onion onto it. Put salt and pepper onto the vegetables. Place tray in oven for around 35 to 40 minutes, or until the tips of the bell pepper pieces are brown.
3. As the vegetables are roasting in the oven, make the pasta according to the instructions provided on the package. Drain the pasta.
4. In a pan pour some olive oil and add the pasta and vegetables. Don’t let the pasta stick to the pan. Remember to keep stirring, and if the pasta sticks, add a little more olive oil.
5. While serving, add cheese if desired.

My family enjoyed this dish very much, and I hope the same comes to you!

My dad, my sister and I had just come back from drawing classes and my mom wasn’t home because she was on a volunteer course for teaching others that don’t know English to learn English. So, I thought we could make some easy quesadillas… with a special twist…

Materials:

• Medium – Large whole wheat tortillas
• Shredded cheese – your favorite type
• Brocolli
• Bell pepper (red, yellow or green)

Directions:

1. Boil the broccoli and bell pepper or toast them in a toaster oven without turning them brown 
2. Put a flat pan onto the stove and light the stove to medium temperature
3. Put the tortilla on the pan
4. Sprinkle some cheese and put the bell pepper and broccoli on the tortilla
5. Fold the tortilla in half on the pan
6. Flip the tortilla over once or twice
7. Take the finished quesadilla and serve with a side of salad if wanted