Rae Bates - Independent Consultant with The Pampered Chef

Rae Bates - Independent Consultant with The Pampered Chef Great tools! Feel free to all, text, email, or Facebook message me at any time. My listed hours are Pampered Chef offers quality tools at reasonable prices.

The vast majority of our products are $20 or less. Of course, you can always get our products for free or at a discount by hosting a party. I have been at this for a long time, so I can answer most questions. If I can't answer yours, I can find the answer. I'd love to be YOUR Pampered Chef Consultant.

What's your favorite pasta dish? Mine is spaghetti with my homemade sauce.
09/11/2026

What's your favorite pasta dish?

Mine is spaghetti with my homemade sauce.

Which pasta should you choose? It depends on your sauce. Generally speaking, light sauces pair best with thinner pasta. ...
09/11/2026

Which pasta should you choose? It depends on your sauce. Generally speaking, light sauces pair best with thinner pasta. The thicker and richer the sauce, the thicker and heavier the pasta you'll want to use.

A light lemon sauce is going to go best with a linguine or angel hair pasta. If you're serving a hearty bolognese sauce, you'll want to use something heavier like rigatoni. If you serve a bolognese with angel hair pasta, you'll never taste the pasta.

This is one of the best and easiest recipes I've ever found for fettuccine alfredo. I got it from The Chew. It's a Micha...
09/10/2026

This is one of the best and easiest recipes I've ever found for fettuccine alfredo. I got it from The Chew. It's a Michael Symon recipe.

FETTUCCINE ALFREDO
1 1/2 pounds dried fettuccine
1 stick butter (unsalted)
1 large shallot (finely minced)
1 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano (freshly grated; plus more for garnish)
1/3 cup Parsley (chopped; plus more for garnish)
Olive Oil
kosher salt and freshly grated black pepper

directions
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta one minute less than the package instructions.

Meanwhile, place a large saute pan over medium heat and add 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan. Add the shallots and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until just tender. Add the butter and swirl it in the pan to melt. Add the parsley.

Drain the pasta, reserving some of the water, and add it to the pan. Add about 1/4 cup of pasta water to the pasta and add the Parmesan and toss to combine, cooking for about 1 minute more. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Plate and garnish with more cheese and more parsley. Serve immediately.

Helpful Tips:
1. Aggressively season the pasta water; the water will become part of the sauce.
2. Add the pasta water to the pan to stop the shallots from cooking.

Want more recipes? You'll find them on my website www.pamperedchef.biz/rae.
Click on Recipes and browse to your heart's content.

Here's another of our family favorites. It's my lasagna. Rae’s LasagnaMeat Sauce1½ lbs ground beef¾ c finely chopped oni...
09/10/2026

Here's another of our family favorites. It's my lasagna.

Rae’s Lasagna

Meat Sauce
1½ lbs ground beef
¾ c finely chopped onion
1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes*
1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce
1 T dried parsley
2 t salt
1 t sugar (I use evaporated cane juice)
1 t garlic powder
¾ t black pepper
1½ T dried oregano
1½ T dried basil

Cheese Blend
2 c shredded sharp cheddar cheese
3 c shredded mozzarella cheese
1 c shredded provolone cheese
¼ c grated parmesan cheese
1 t dried oregano
1 t dried basil

6-8 Lasagna noodles, cooked according package

Directions
Brown ground beef and chopped onion.

Add remaining meat sauce ingredients. Simmer for 1 hour.

Mix cheese blend ingredients together.

In a 9 x 13 pan layer half of meat sauce, lasagna noodles, and then cheese. Repeat.

Bake at 350° for 40 minutes, until bubbly and brown. Let sit 15 minutes before cutting.

*I use San Marzano tomatoes. (I don’t care for Cento brand, but that’s a personal thing.)

Notes: I like my cheese browned a bit on top. If you prefer yours not to be browned, cover the pan until the last 5 minutes.

I often make a double batch and freeze one. If you do that, let it thaw completely before putting it in the oven. Add 10-15 minutes to the cooking time.

NEVER cover lasagna with foil for storage. The acid in the tomato sauce will eat through the foil, which will add a metallic taste to your lasagna.

Want more recipes? You'll find them on my website www.pamperedchef.biz/rae.
Click on Recipes and browse to your heart's content.

More pasta tips!Save a little bit of your pasta water. I generally do this by dipping up a cup or so of the water in a b...
09/09/2026

More pasta tips!

Save a little bit of your pasta water. I generally do this by dipping up a cup or so of the water in a big mug before I drain the pasta. You can then use this water to revive the drained pasta before storing. You can also add the water to your sauce, but more about that later.

Drain your pasta, but don't let it dry. If you're saving your pasta separately from the sauce, don't let it dry out. Once it's reached approximately room temperature, pour the cooled pasta water over it and loosen it up a bit. This will keep it from drying out and sticking together. (I always store my pasta separately from my sauce. I think the acid in the tomato sauce makes the pasta mushy after a while.)

Add a bit of pasta water to your sauce. It will help your sauce stick to the noodles better. It also adds a bit of richness to your sauce. Also, if you're using a cream sauce that has split, the starchy water can bring it back together.

Generally speaking, cooking your pasta should be the last step unless you're making a baked pasta.

I have several friends for whom this is a favorite recipe. To be honest, I haven't eaten it. (I've made it for others, t...
09/09/2026

I have several friends for whom this is a favorite recipe. To be honest, I haven't eaten it. (I've made it for others, though.) I'm weird, and I dislike the textures of poultry and pasta together.

The bow tie pasta is a kid favorite, but you can use any pasta shape.

Italian Chicken Pasta Toss

INGREDIENTS
6 oz (175 g) uncooked bow tie pasta (about 2 1/2 cups/625 mL)
2 plum tomatoes
1 small onion
1 medium zucchini
1 small yellow or red bell pepper
8 oz (250 g) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 tsp (10 mL) olive oil
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1/2 cup (125 mL) frozen peas
1 tsp Italian Seasoning Mix
1 tsp salt
Grated fresh Parmesan cheese (optional)

DIRECTIONS
Cook pasta according to package directions in (4-qt./3.8-L) Casserole; drain and keep warm.
Meanwhile, dice tomatoes using Santoku Knife and chop onion with Food Chopper. Slice zucchini into 1/2-inch-thick (1-cm) pieces with Crinkle Cutter. Cut bell pepper into thin strips and chicken crosswise into 1/2-in. (1-cm) strips using Utility Knife.

Heat oil in (12-in./30-cm) Skillet over medium-high heat 1-3 minutes or until shimmering. Press garlic into Skillet using Garlic Press. Add chicken. Cook and stir 4-5 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Add onion, zucchini, bell pepper, peas, seasoning mix and salt; cook 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook 1-2 minutes, stirring gently until heated through. Remove Skillet from heat and stir in pasta. Serve with Parmesan cheese, if desired.

Yield:
6 servings
Nutrients per serving:
Calories 190, Total Fat 2.5 g, Saturated Fat 0 g, Cholesterol 20 mg, Carbohydrate 27 g, Protein 14 g, Sodium 430 mg, Fiber 3 g

U.S. Diabetic exchanges per serving:
1 1/2 starch, 1 low-fat meat (1 1/2 carb)

Cook's Tips:
When tomatoes are out of season, substitute 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes, drained, for the fresh tomatoes.

Fresh garlic imparts a wonderful flavor to Italian foods. A garlic bulb or head consists of 12 to 15 cloves, each encased in a papery skin. When buying fresh garlic, choose bulbs that are heavy, firm and plump. Store bulbs in an open container in a cool, dark place. When using the Garlic Press you'll find you won't need to peel the cloves before pressing.

Want more recipes? You'll find them on my website www.pamperedchef.biz/rae.
Click on Recipes and browse to your heart's content.

More pasta tips!Bring your water to a rolling boil before adding your pasta. The starch in pasta absorbs water quickly. ...
09/08/2026

More pasta tips!

Bring your water to a rolling boil before adding your pasta. The starch in pasta absorbs water quickly. If it's not hot enough your pasta will be soggy and yucky.

Stop, drop, and stir! The instant you drop your pasta in, be sure to to stir it right away. this will keep it from sticking together or sticking to the pot. Stir it a couple of times during the cooking to break up any clumps that may have started to form.

Use the package as a guide. Long, thin noodles will cook faster than short, thicker pasta shapes. If the package says to cook for 7 minutes, start checking it at 5 minutes. You want the pasta to be al dente. That's Italian for "to the tooth." In other words, it should still have a bit of resistance to it. When you bit into it there should be the teeniest bit of white in the middle. If you're going to be adding the pasta to sauce and cooking it a bit longer, you should stop cooking it while there is still a little bit more white inside.

More tips tomorrow.

09/08/2026

Here's my signature sauce. I got the original recipe from a Sicilian family I went to church with as a kid. I've tweaked it a bit over the years until it just barely resembles the original. This sauce has a sweet start but ends with a kick of heat. If you don't like the heat use sweet Italian sausage and don't add any cayenne pepper.

Do you fiddle with recipes? I do it all the time. The Furry Guy has occasionally suggests that I submit a recipe to a contest. I remind him that almost all of my recipes originate elsewhere. He reminds me that what I make now is little like the original recipe.

Rae’s Spaghetti Sauce
Sweet & Spicy

1 lb hot Italian sausage*
1 clove garlic, pressed
2 T olive oil
3 t salt, divided
1 can, 29 oz, crushed tomatoes
1 can, 8 oz, tomato sauce
3 cans, 8 oz each, tomato paste
3 tomato paste cans of water
2½ T sugar
1 t garlic powder
2 t black pepper
2 T oregano
2 T basil
1 T parsley
1 t cayenne pepper

In a large, heavy skillet brown sausage, garlic, olive oil, and 1 t
salt. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer for at least 2 hours.

*If you use mild or sweet Italian sausage, add ¾ t cayenne pepper to
sausage as you’re browning it.

I use San Marzano tomato products. I don't care for the Cento brand, though. San Marzano tomatoes are grown in a particular area. They taste much fresher than most canned tomatoes. Though, any brand will work.

Want more recipes? You'll find them on my website www.pamperedchef.biz/rae.
Click on Recipes and browse to your heart's content.

Some pasta tips!Do NOT put oil in your water. It doesn't keep your pasta from sticking. It just makes it harder for your...
09/07/2026

Some pasta tips!

Do NOT put oil in your water. It doesn't keep your pasta from sticking. It just makes it harder for your sauce to stick to your pasta.

Use the right amount of water. Use enough cold, fresh water that the pasta can move once it expands. You also want to make sure you have enough water that it will come back to a boil quickly once you add the paste. A good rule of thumb is 12 cups of water for every 8-10 ounces of pasta.

Salt your water. This is the only real chance you'll have to add a bit of flavor to the pasta. Mario Batali says it should be to the salinity of the sea. In other words, put about 1 T of salt into your 12 cups of water.

More tips tomorrow.

Theme for this week: Pasta! I'll be sharing tips and recipes. Is there a theme you've been waiting for? Let me know if t...
09/06/2026

Theme for this week: Pasta! I'll be sharing tips and recipes.

Is there a theme you've been waiting for? Let me know if there's a theme you'd like to see me utilize. I can't promise anything, but I'll do my best to work in your request.

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