Italian Chicken and Gnocchi with Ragu Homestyle Pasta Sauce (and a giveaway!!)

Growing up, it was our family tradition that every Sunday we would go to my grandmom's house for the afternoon and dinner. Walking in I knew that either Lawrence Welk, Hee Haw, The Three Stooges, or the Phillies would be on TV and my grandmom would either be in the kitchen cooking, baking or relaxing on her rocking chair after spending some time in the kitchen.

My favorite days were gnocchi days because I always got to help. We would work in her blue kitchen at her white, pink and gray formica table, and everything was done by hand, right down to hand press ricer for the potatoes. I would watch her mix everything up, roll out the dough, and then I got to cut the gnocchi and roll it down the grater. I still remember her telling me to get my thumb in there to shape them. And of course the gnocchi was served with her homemade tomato sauce.

These days it can be hard to spend hours and hours in the kitchen, but so many shortcuts are full of things we don't want to feed our family. That's why I was so happy to learn about Ragu's new Homestyle Sauces.

The sauces are Simmered in Tradition, a recipe based on Aussanta, the founder of Ragu, who sold the pasta sauce from her porch in NY.  She reminds me a lot of my grandmom! These new sauces have no artificial flavors, no artificial colors, no high fructose corn syrup, and they are made using farm grown ingredients. They don't take any shortcuts, peeling, chopping and simmering all of their ingredients and a special blend of herbs - basil, fennel, oregano and black pepper - to layer and build the flavor. I am happy to serve Ragu Homestyle Sauces to my family!

Reading the story of Aussanta and Ragu Homestyle Sauces, I immediately thought of my grandmom and knew I'd make something that reminded me of her. My grandmom always cooked chicken in her tomato sauce, so I put on my grandmom's green checked apron and made chicken simmered in the Ragu Homestyle Sauce and served it with gnocchi.

There are several flavors of Ragu Homestyle Sauces to choose from, and the options for recipe creations are endless. I went with the Thick Hearty Traditional with vine ripened tomatoes, garlic, and fragrant herbs - there is no need to doctor it up, just heat and serve! The thick sauce coats everything perfectly, and as soon as I poured it out of the jar I could see how thick it was. It definitely reminded me of eating at my grandmom's house!

My daughter was "mmmm-ing" her way through dinner. And the best test - my husband. He could not believe that I didn't doctor up the sauce! It was perfect right out of the jar.

Visit Ragu to learn more about the new line of Ragu Homestyle Sauces and find a taste of home. Check out my recipe below, and don't forget to enter my giveaway at the end of this post!!

Italian Chicken and Gnocchi with Ragu Homestyle Pasta Sauce
#MyHomestyleRecipe

Ingredients

• 1 jar of Ragu Homestyle Thick & Hearty Traditional Pasta Sauce
• 2 chicken breasts
• Salt, pepper, garlic powder
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 package frozen or fresh gnocchi
• Freshly grated Parmesan Cheese

Directions

• Heat olive oil in a saute pan
• Season the chicken with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Add to the pan and cook 4 minutes per side. 
• Pour in the Ragu Homestyle Sauce over the chicken and let simmer 20 minutes
• Serve with gnocchi

The Giveaway is closed... congrats to Mami2jcn!!!! 

Earn entries -

 - Visit the Ragu Home Page and tell me in the comments below your favorite Homestyle Sauce
 - Visit the Ragu Homestyle Sauce page and comment below how many sauces are in the collection

BE SURE to leave your email address in the comments as well so I can contact the WINNER!

Once you earn those entries, earn additional entries by:
 - Like Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations on Facebook and comment below
 - Follow Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations on Instagram and comment below with your user name
 - Follow Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations on Pinterest and comment below with your user name

Open to US residents only, must be 18 to enter. This giveaway is hosted by www.MaryEllensCookingCreations.com and has no affiliation with Amazon or Ragu. Entries accepted through June 6, 2016. Void where prohibited.

Classic Pulled Pork with Rated X Sauce

A few weeks ago I went to a cooking demonstration that showcased products made by a local company, Offbeat Gourmet. Offbeat creates premium condiments using locally sourced and mostly organic ingredients.  At the demonstration we were able to try everything that they cooked as well as sample a bunch of Offbeat's other products. I ended up sampling and buying several products, including a sauce they call Rated X. 

This sauce tricks you in the best of ways - the first flavor you get is sweet and tangy from the oranges, but then that heat kicks in and man is that some heat!!! It's not a spicy burn your tongue kind of heat, but more like a slowly developing heat that hits you at the back of our mouth. It's a sauce that is complex and adds to the dish with its heat instead of just being spicy for the sake of being spicy. SO, so good. And just look at that thick consistency - 

I knew I'd have to use Rated X the next time I made pulled pork. And with the heat coming from applewood smoked ghost peppers, I knew Jon would love it.  I made a rub for the pork using smoky, sweet and slightly spicy flavors to complement the sauce. For liquid I chose an IPA beer, a touch of cider vinegar and just a tiny bit of the sauce since we'd be using more on our sandwiches. 

We put the sandwiches together on soft-on-the-inside, crusty-on-the-outside rolls with cole slaw and more of the sauce. I wish you could reach into the screen and taste this pork and the sauce. On its own the pork had just a hint of the heat, so adding that touch of sauce on the sandwich was perfect. Sticky, sweet and then hot all in one bite. 

Pulled Pork with Rated X Sauce Original recipe by Mary Ellen of Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations, inspired by Offbeat Gourmet's Rated X Sauce Serves 8-10 Ingredients

• One 2 lb pork loin or tenderloin; I prefer to use a loin or tenderloin instead of a butt or shoulder as there is less fat and gristle
• 1 Tbsp onion powder
• 1 Tbsp garlic powder
• 1/2 Tbsp paprika
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 Tbsp cumin
• 2 Tbsp light brown sugar
• 1 tsp Kosher salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• One onion, sliced
• 3 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
• 1 bottle of IPA (I use Goose Island IPA)
• Splash of cider vinegar (maybe 1/2 tsp)
• 1/2 tsp of the Rated X sauce (or more), plus more for serving
• Your favorite cole slaw and rolls, for serving

Directions

• In a bowl, mix the onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, chili powder, cumin, brown sugar, salt and pepper. Rub the mixture generously all over the pork.
• Put the onions and garlic in the bottom of your crock pot
• Pour in the beer and cider vinegar, and then add the Rated X sauce, stirring to combine.
• Place the pork in the pot and cover
• Cook on high for 5 hours, turning the pork once
• Turn to low and cook 2-3 more hours. In the last hour shred the pork with 2 forks.
• Keep pork on warm until ready to serve. 

Roasted Vegetables and Graziano Marinara Sauce over Creamy Polenta

Graziano Marinara Sauce is made by a local company using only the freshest ingredients and I was really excited to try it. And now that I have, I'm excited to use it in my kitchen again.

 Photo courtesy of Graziano Products

 About Graziano Products -
Over a century ago, the Graziano family immigrated from the small Italian town of Guardia Perticara in the province of Potenza. Establishing themselves in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the young family was raised on the finest traditional Italian cooking. Over the years, friends and family alike have come to love the exceptional meals served from the Graziano kitchen. Graziano's founder, Thomas Graziano and his wife Jackie have continued the old world family tradition of enjoying home cooked meals every day of the week. They have maintained the classic integrity of the Graziano family recipes and they now look to share these delicacies with you. Chi mangia bene, Vive Bene!

When I got the sauce I fell in love with the packaging. The jar itself is rustic and screams home cooking, and the label is modern, bold, and perfectly simple. The two elements combine to make the perfect package.

Then you get a little closer to take a look at the sauce in the jar and you know how fresh it is. You can see the chunks of tomatoes and pieces of garlic and I could not wait to get it home and open it to smell and taste it.

I planned my menu for our Sunday family dinner using the sauce as my inspiration. I wanted something simple so the sauce could shine, yet comforting and rustic so I decided to roast vegetables and serve them in the sauce over creamy polenta (recipe follows at the end of this post). From looking at the jar I knew this sauce would give me the texture and consistency I wanted, and it did. And unlike every other jar of sauce I have ever tried, Graziano Marinara doesn't need any sort of "doctoring up."

This sauce is not your typical jarred sauce, but rather home cooking in a jar. The sauce looks and tastes of the freshest ingredients and it has the perfect balance of acidity and sweetness. You can taste all of the ingredients with none of them dominating the tomato flavor. The texture is exactly what I want in a good marinara sauce - the chunks of tomato let you know those are real tomatoes!

If you are looking for the perfect jar of marinara sauce, try Graziano Marinara. If you want to make a quick Italian meal that will taste like you cooked all day, use Graziano Marinara sauce. And even if you like making your own sauce sometimes you just don't have the time, right? This sauce will be the one  you can turn to in those situations. I know that I will definitely be cooking with this again, and soon!

To buy Graziano Marinara sauce locally you can purchase it at these stores:
   Olive Oil Etc., Doylestown Food Co-op, Del Val Market and None Such Farms in Doylestown, PA
   Tredici Market in Wayne Pa 
   Luigi and Giovanni's Market in Newtown Square
Coming soon - Graziano's Fra Diavolo will be available at Suzies Hot Shope in New Hope, PA very shortly.

Additionally, you can buy it online at www.grazianoproducts.com and have it shipped to you. You can follow them on Facebook - Graziano Products, LLC - and Instagram - @GrazianoProducts.  Finally, to meet the people behind this brand, I suggest you check out a great event being held in Doylestown, PA on February 26 - the Locavore. Details here.

Roasted Vegetables and Graziano Marinara Sauce over Creamy Polenta

Ingredients

• 1/2 red pepper cut into 3 slices
• 1/2 bulb of garlic separated into cloves and gently crushed
• 1 sm zucchini, halved
• 1 sm yellow squash, halved
• 1 sm eggplant, halved
• Handful of sliced mushrooms (crimini or baby bella)
• Olive oil (I like using my oil mister for spraying the veggies)
• 1.5 c low sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 c whole milk
• 1/2 c stone ground yellow cornmeal
• Salt and pepper
• Parmesan cheese

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Place veggies on a baking sheet and gently mist with olive oil. Roast for 30 minutes or until the veggies are tender. Slice everything into bite sized pieces.
• Put sauce in an oven safe sauté pan and gently heat. Stir in the veggies.
• Optional: top with freshly grated Parmesan and put the pan under the broiler for 2-3 minutes.
• While the veggies are roasting, make the polenta: Add chicken broth and milk to a medium pot and bring to a low boil. Reduce the heat and very slowly stir in the cornmeal - take your time to add it slowly and continuously stir so you don't get lumps. Continue to stir until you have a thick and creamy polenta. Season with salt, pepper, and Parmesan cheese.
• Put polenta on a plate or in a flat bowl and top with the veggie-marinara mixture.  

Reviewers note: Graziano Products supplied me with a jar of sauce for the purpose of this recipe and review.