We wanted to cook something for Camp Christmas this year that was NOT sweet, knowing that the girls would be getting a stocking full of candy and Krispy Kreme donuts to start their day.  We also wanted to keep the spirit of Christmas in cooking class and so Christmas pasta was invented-spaghetti with red sauce and green sauce!  When we first told the girls we were making GREEN pasta sauce, a lot of them turned up their noses, but by the end of class a majority of them loved it and some even preferred it to the red sauce.  You could also use these sauces as a great jumping off point for other recipes.  We froze the red sauce and used it later in the week in our vegetable soup and the green sauce is great with grilled chicken and roasted vegetables.  Merry Christmas Merr-Mac!

-Leslie

P.S.  The other surprising thing for many of the girls was that they LOVED the red sauce, even though it was chock full of those dreaded vegetables!  Sometimes the food processor is your friend-my kids have been unknowingly eating these vegetables for years!!

 

Camp Merri-Mac Christmas Spaghetti

  • 1 pound of pasta for every 4-6 people, when serving as an entrée

Red Sauce (Marinara) for 20 people:

  • 2 small onion

Clean, cut, and place in food processor to finely chop.

2 bell peppers

  • 2 carrots
  • 2 cloves garlic

Sautee finely chopped vegetables in olive oil with S&P.

¼ cup olive oil

  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground pepper

Add crushed tomatoes, bay leaves, oregano, and basil.  Simmer for 30-90 minutes.  In the last 10 minutes add additional S&P and chopped fresh herbs.

30-40 ounces of crushed tomatoes

  • 2 bay leaves
  • ½ to 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • ½ to 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • additional salt and pepper to taste
  • additional chopped fresh herbs including basil, oregano, parsley, rosemary

Green Sauce (Spinach Basil Pesto) for 20 people:

  • ½ bag (2+ cups) spinach leaves
  • 1 large bunch basil

Place spinach leaves, basil, garlic, lemon juice, parmesan cheese, S&P in food processor and chop.  Slowly drizzle in olive oil until completely combined.

Put spinach basil pesto in a sauté pan and warm over low heat.  Add half and half and continue to heat, stirring gently until sauce thickens.

 

3 cloves garlic

  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • ½ cup toasted pine nuts (optional)
  • 1/3 cup parmesan cheese
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • ¼ teaspoon ground pepper
  • ½ cup olive oil
  • 1 ½ -2 cups half and half

Additional grated or shredded parmesan cheese for sprinkling on top of spaghetti.

 

Camp Merri-Mac Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:

  • 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 small onions-chopped medium fine
  • 5-6 carrots-peeled and sliced thinly
  • 3-4 stalks of celery-sliced thinly
  • 2 medium zucchini-sliced thinly

*you may add these vegetables or any other combination—I usually make this soup on Sundays with whatever veggies are left over from the week

  • 2-3 tablespoons flour
  • 2 16-ounce boxes of vegetable broth
  • 4 cups of Merri-Mac red (marinara) sauce

*if you don’t have any red sauce, use a can or two of crushed or diced tomatoes and add some seasonings like garlic, basil, and oregano

  • salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Chop vegetables.
  2. Heat olive oil in large stock pot and add vegetables, sautéing until almost tender.
  3. Add flour and stir to coat vegetables.
  4. Add vegetable broth and marinara sauce.
  5. Simmer for 30-40 minutes, adding seasoning to taste.

We served this soup with grilled cheese sandwiches, which the girls loved making.  We had four different types of bread, five kinds of cheese, ham, roasted vegetables, tomatoes, mayonnaise, butter, and assorted mustards.  Not many of us ate lunch that day!