Deck the halls of your home like a pro this holiday season! Food Network’s Katie Lee stopped by Us Weekly’s studio to share easy ways to upgrade your tabletop with quick DIY tips that anyone can do — even the most craft challenged. Watch the video above to see the Kitchen host in action!
The Endless Summer cookbook author, 38, and her husband, TV producer Ryan Biegel will be spending the holidays making new traditions with each other this year.
“In December, we’ll pick a night that we go to kind of a fancy restaurant that we wouldn’t normally go to. We get dressed up, we’d go have a little holiday cocktail, then have our dinner and then go see the tree at Rockefeller center,” Lee told Us. “We’re kind of tourists in our own city.”
The chef admits that the first year of marriage was “great” and said: “We are such good friends and I think that feeling of really liking someone that you’re with, and not just loving them [is important.] I get to experience all of these fun things with a person that kind of sees the world the way I do as well.”
Lee married Biegel, 37, in an intimate Italian ceremony in September 2018, and explained how her partnership with Vero Gusto by Barilla celebrates their love of the country since the pasta sauces are made in Italy with authentic ingredients: “They taste like homemade. So it’s a great shortcut to get a holiday meal ready.” For three of Katie’s easy holiday recipes, scroll down.
You can also catch Katie on The Kitchen on Food Network every Saturday at 11 a.m. ET. Plus check out her new digital series What Would Katie Eat?
Vegetable Manicotti
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 1 small zucchini, finely diced
- 1 small yellow squash, finely diced
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- One 15-ounce container whole-milk ricotta
- 3/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, divided
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 1 jar Vero Gusto Tomato Basil
- 12 manicotti shells, cooked according to package instructions and drained
- 1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
INSTRUCTIONS:
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- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add the garlic and onion and cook until softened, about 4 minutes.
- Add the zucchini and yellow squash, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until the squash softens but is not mushy, about 4 minutes.
- Pour the mixture into a medium bowl and let cool.
- Add the ricotta, ½ cup Parmesan, parsley, egg, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper to the cooled vegetables. Stir to combine.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with oil or cooking spray.
- Transfer the filling mixture to a large resealable plastic bag. Snip a large hole out of one corner of the bag with scissors and use the bag to pipe the mixture into the cooked manicotti shells.
- Spread about 1 cup of the tomato sauce on the bottom of the baking dish. Place the manicotti shells into the baking dish. Spread the remaining sauce over the manicotti. Top with the mozzarella and remaining Parmesan. Bake until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melted, 35 to 40 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
Lightened Up Skillet Chicken Parmesan With Chickpea Pasta
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 pound ground chicken breast
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 ½ cups Vero Gusto Marinara (plus more for pasta)
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- 2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese (plus more for serving)
- 4 fresh basil leaves, torn
- Barilla chickpea pasta, cooked to package directions
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Preheat oven to 400 F. Spray an ovenproof 9 or 10-inch skillet with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, combine chicken with garlic powder, oregano, salt and pepper. Mix to combine. Transfer to prepared skillet and use your fingers to spread into a thin layer that covers the bottom of the skillet.
- Bake 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and top with marinara. Sprinkle with mozzarella and Parmesan. Return to oven and bake 15 to 20 minutes, until cheese is golden brown and bubbly. Top with torn basil leaves.
- Serve with chickpea pasta tossed in marinara with Parmesan.
Eggs in Purgatory
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- ½ yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 1 jar Vero Gusto Calabrian chili sauce
- 6 to 8 eggs
- Freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese
- Minced flat leaf parsley
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and bell pepper and sauté until tender, about 8 to 10 minutes.
- Stir in sauce and bring to a low simmer.
- Using a spoon, and working one at a time, create a well in the sauce and crack the egg into it.
- Sprinkle each egg with salt and pepper.
- Reduce heat to low, cover and cook eggs to desired doneness.
- Serve with toasted crusty bread.
