I'm ALL For Taking Shortcuts!

When I first started cooking, I wanted to make everything from scratch. I baked my own bread, slow-roasted meats and even attempted to make homemade pasta. (THAT was not a good idea!) I guess I must've watched way too much Food Network and realized very quickly that cooking wasn't my fulltime job! Nowadays, I'm all about pre-chopped onions, cooked chicken and tonight, I discovered Hormel's Roast Beef. Of course with most shortcuts in life, you have to get a lil creative unless you like the taste of microwave dinners. Tonight, I transformed my convenience food into Penne with Roast Beef, Balsamic Goat Cheese Sauce. Made from scratch, it's not but homemade tasting, it definitely was!

Ingredients:

1 oz dried Porcini mushrooms
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 c onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 lb roast beef tips, cooked
3 oz goat cheese
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
Penne, cooked until al dente

Prep:

1. Place dried mushrooms in a microwaveable bowl with 1/2 cup water. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave on high for 2 minutes until water starts to boil. Let stand, covered for 5 minutes, until mushrooms are reconstituted.

2. Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook for 5 minutes, until softened. Add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook 1 minute, until fragrant.

3. Add beef and mushrooms along with the water. Bring to a boil and simmer 10 minutes, until reduced by half.

4. Turn off heat and stir in goat cheese, balsamic vinegar and pasta until cheese is melted.