This pasta is a super easy dish if you haven't figured out your dinner plans. The best thing about it for me was Michael actually ate it! I guess I shouldn't be surprised since it involved pasta and cheese, but he even ate the spinach... and it's not like it's exactly hidden in there.

Ingredients:

- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 to 1 small onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (14.5 to 15 oz) can diced tomatoes
- 3/4 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp dried basil
- dash of red pepper flakes
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste
- 2 oz cream cheese
- 1/2 lb penne pasta
- 1 to 2 C spinach
*Optional: 1/4 to 1/2 C parmesan cheese
Salt & Pepper to Taste*

Directions:

- Cook your pasta according to directions on package.
- While waiting for you pasta, heat your oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add your onion and garlic. Sautee for five minutes or so, until tender and starting to brown.
- Add your tomatoes (with juice), herbs/spices, and tomato paste. Mix and let cook for a couple of minutes.
- Cut your cream cheese into pieces (or scoop it out in sections) and whisk in your tomato mix until nice and creamy. Add around 1/4 of your *optional* parmesan cheese if desires, whisking in to the sauce.
- Add your fresh spinach, gently stirring until it is wilted in to the sauce.
- Last, but not least, add your pasta. (Make sure you've drained it before doing this, of course.) Mix gently so it soaks into the sauce and you don't have any of it flying out of the skillet.


Remove, sprinkle with more parmesan, add some salt and pepper, and serve directly.

For Clark's last first day of school he requested a special dinner. Never mind that it was a busy day, I gave in. He even requested a specific dinner- something with feta, he said. He remembered seeing a pin on Pinterest about chicken wraps with feta and spinach. "But light on the spinach, please," he said.

Yes, I do have a demanding husband... every now and then, at least.

So, here it is! After some research, there really is nothing to this recipe.

Ingredients:

- 1 lb of chicken breasts, pounded and halved (through the middle... not like strips, but thin breasts... does that make sense? Look at the pictures!)
- bread crumbs
- Spinach (as much as you would like), preferably fresh
- Around 1/2 C Feta Cheese (crumbled)
- Salt & Pepper
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced

Directions:

- Preheat your oven to 350.
- In a sauce pan, heat your olive oil and garlic over medium heat until the garlic has browned.
- Add the spinach (as much as you desire, I used about a half of a 9 oz bag) and mix until wilted. Next add your Feta, salt & pepper (go easy on the salt-- the Feta definitely makes it salty).

- Line a pan with tin foil. Lay out your prepared chicken breasts and fill them with your spinach mix. Use toothpicks to "pin" then so they are rolled, like the picture below.
- Sprinkle the chicken with bread crumbs. Make sure to roll it onto its side to get the bottom as well!

*You can roll the chicken breasts in bread crumbs but then I think it's a bit trickier than just sprinkling the breadcrumbs on top, because you may get breadcrumbs in the middle that will mess up your spinach and feta.*
- Put in the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. If you have a meat thermometer, use that to make sure the chicken is cooked! (I don't own one, nor have ever used one, but I'm assuming you know how to work it if you have one!)

Eat and enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from: Food.com.

Clark loves Greek food. Especially spanakopita. As for me... spanakopita is one of the only things I like when it comes to Greek food. Maybe I haven't tried enough, or maybe the food that I have tried hasn't been authentic enough... but it just hasn't settled well for me.

ANYWAY.

This is not spanakopita, but Clark said that the filling tasted quite a bit like the filling in spanakopita. So, if you like that sort of thing, this is for you. If you don't, I still suggest trying it!

Ingredients:

- 2 tubes of regular Pillsbury (or any brand) crescent rolls (8 in each tube)
- Half of a bag of pre-washed spinach, finely chopped (about three cups of whole leaves *before chopped*)
- 1/2 C shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 heaping C of crumbled feta
- 1/8 to 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Directions:

- Preheat your oven to 350. Spray/prepare a cookie sheet.
- Mix together your mozzarella, feta, and cayenne pepper.

Then add your chopped spinach.

- Roll our your crescent dough onto a plate, cutting board, table, or whatever surface you wish to use. Make sure you have plenty of room!
- Fill each roll with a heaping tablespoon of the spinach mix.


- Carefully roll the dough over the mix and place on your prepared cookie sheet.
*I always make a mess, and I think these pretty much guarantee you'll make some sort of mess, but I'd say they still turned out "presentation-worthy".*

- Cook the rolls for about 15 minutes.
*If you like, you can brush the top of each with an *egg white* so they turn golden brown on top.*


Serve warm as an appetizer or delicious snack!