Cajun Chicken Pasta

My lovely ex-roommate Jess came down and visited me this weekend.  We drove an hour to the lake and got our Hunger Games on having an awesome adventure.  Blazing our own trail around the lake, scaling (or attempting to scale) ridges, jumping over and wading through creeks, walking across a flooded road.  It was awesome.

Needless to say though, by the time we got home we were pretty hungry.  I’ve been meaning to try my hand at Cajun pasta for a while now, so we decided to make that.  Oh man, did this turn out delicious.  Seriously reminded me of Cajun chicken pastas I’ve ordered at restaurants.  Yum.  Jess really isn’t much of a spice person (she lied to her Cajun ex-boyfriend about liking his gumbo), but even she thought this pasta was delicious.  Adjust the spicy-ness for your own personal tastes, but this has a pretty decent kick to it as is.

Ingredients (serves 4):

8oz spaghetti (or linguine, or whatever long pasta you have)

2 chicken breasts, sliced into thin strips

1/4 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

1 green pepper, sliced into strips

1/2 red pepper, sliced into strips

1/2 onion, sliced

4 fresh mushrooms, sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 1/2 cups half and half, divided

1 tbsp corn starch

1/4 tsp dried basil

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 c grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions.

2. Meanwhile, place chicken, paprika, cayenne pepper, onion powder, and pepper in a bowl and toss to coat.

3. In a large skillet over medium heat, saute chicken in olive oil until no longer pink and juices run clear, about 5-7 minutes. Add green and red bell peppers, onion, and mushrooms; cook for 4-5 minutes. Reduce heat, and stir in 1 c half and half. Season the sauce with basil, lemon pepper, salt, garlic powder and ground black pepper.

4. In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and 1/2 c half and half.  Slowly stir mixture into sauce and heat through.

5. In a large bowl, toss pasta with sauce. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese.

Mushroom and Spinach Penne

Sometimes the best dinners come about when you’re just scrounging up random things you have left in your fridge.  This is especially true with pasta.  You can make pasta with anything in it, the random bits of vegetables leftover from previous dishes are perfect to add to a pasta dish.  That’s what I did yesterday when I made this.

I’d been itching to make pasta ever since I got back from spring break (it was fabulous by the way) with the colander my sister bought me.

It would seem she was scandalized last fall when she visited me and found out I was draining pasta with a plate over the top of my pots.  But really, buying a colander seemed so unnecessary…besides, I was absolutely incapable of remembering that I needed one every time I went to the store.  I finally got around to making pasta last night, and decided to throw in all the little bits of veggies I needed to use up.  You can, of course, take the idea of this recipe and use any vegetables you have lying around in your fridge.  In fact, I encourage it!  Green peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, all would be an awesome addition or substitute in this pasta if you’ve got them on hand.  A can of diced tomatoes (which I usually have…gotta go to the store) would be delicious too.  Play around with it and do what’s convenient for you.

Ingredients (serves 4):

12 oz penne pasta

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 onion, diced

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 red pepper, diced

2 cups mushrooms

salt and pepper to taste

5 oz spinach (frozen or fresh will work, whatever you’ve got)

1/3 c white wine

1 tbsp lemon juice

1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions.

2. Meanwhile, saute garlic and onions in olive oil over medium heat until onions become translucent.  Add red pepper and mushrooms, season with salt and pepper.  Saute, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes.  Add spinach, wine, and lemon juice.  Simmer for 5 minutes until spinach is wilted (fresh) or heated through (frozen).

3. Place cooked pasta in a bowl and combine with vegetable mixture and cheese.  Toss and serve with additional cheese.

Chicken with Balsamic Vinegar and Garlic

I’m a big fan of balsamic vinegar.  I usually have a bottle tucked away in my cabinet and, frankly, I prefer it (with a little olive oil) on my salads rather than most dressings.  I’ve made this chicken a number of times, and it’s always a big hit.  After I made it for Adam, I think he put it in his own arsenal of recipes, an impressive achievement that puts it in the ranks of my favorite corn and crab cakes.  Since Katie’s a big mushroom fan, she really enjoyed this chicken when I made it tonight as well.

I like to serve this chicken with roasted potatoes (the sauce with the potatoes is a great combination) and a vegetable, like garlic carrots.

Ingredients (serves 3-4):

2 tbsp olive oil

2 chicken breasts, diced

salt and pepper to taste

3/4 lb mushrooms, sliced

5 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 c balsamic vinegar

1/4 c white wine

1/2 c chicken broth

1 bay leaf

1/4 tsp thyme

1 tbsp butter

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat and saute chicken, seasoned with salt and pepper, for about 5 minutes.

2. Add garlic and mushrooms.  Cook for another 5 minutes, then add vinegar, wine, broth, bay leaf, and thyme.  Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

3. Uncover and continue simmering for 10 minutes.  Swirl in butter and discard bay leaf before serving.

Spinach and White Bean Pasta

I love quick pasta recipes.  Especially quick pasta recipes that are essentially: chop a couple things, open a couple cans, boil water.  How much easier can it get, right?  I wouldn’t have had time to make dinner yesterday, what with track practice after school and Tuesday night trivia at 8, if it wasn’t for this recipe.  Simply and tasty, perfect for a weeknight dinner when you’re crunched for time but don’t want to pick up take out or eat pre-prepared food.

Ingredients (serves 4):

8 oz pasta (I used penne, but only because it’s my fav and what I had on hand)

1 tbsp olive oil

1 clove garlic

1 cup mushrooms, sliced

1 (14.5 oz) can Italian diced tomatoes

1 (14.5 oz) can white beans (like Cannellini or Great Northern), drained and rinsed

1/4 cup white wine

5 cups spinach, chopped

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

 

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions.

2. Saute garlic and mushrooms in olive oil over medium heat for 3-4 minutes.  Stir in tomatoes, beans, and white wine and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

3. Add spinach and continue to simmer until wilted, about 2 minutes.  Spoon bean and spinach mixture over pasta and top with Parmesan cheese to serve.

Parmesan Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta

I was planning on making this (hopefully) delicious Latin Chicken with sweet potatoes and black beans in my slow cooker today.  But…I used the rest of the rice yesterday making curry.  Alas, it’ll have to wait until we get a chance to go to the store.  Sooo, instead, today was basically a random-stuff-in-the-fridge pasta.  The best kind of pasta?  Perhaps.  Definitely always an adventure.  I decided to go with a cream sauce made with the rest of the heavy cream, a half bottle of sun-dried tomatoes, random leftover asparagus and green onions that definitely needed to be eaten like now.  It turned out quite delicious, actually.  Very rich and creamy, definitely not the most diet friendly pasta…whatever I went on a run before I made dinner, so that makes it ok, right?  If you’re not at all concerned about the calorie count, add a few slices of crumbled bacon…that would REALLY make this fabulous.

The only adjustment I’d make, was that the asparagus was really superfluous.  The creaminess of the sauce and the strong flavor of the sun-dried tomatoes really over-powered them.  Oh well, they had to be eaten anyway.  Instead, I’d suggest adding sliced mushrooms.  If I’d had any in the fridge, I definitely would have used those as well, I’m going to put them in the recipe here, because I’d definitely including them the next time I make this recipe.  You could easily make this pasta vegetarian by omitting the chicken.  The flavors are great and the dish as a whole would be just fine without it.

Ingredients (serves 4):

2 tbsp olive oil

1 chicken breast, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 small onion, diced

1/2 c mushrooms, sliced

1 c heavy cream

1/4 c white wine

1/4 c Parmesan cheese

1 cube chicken bouillon

1/2 c sun-dried tomatoes

4 green onions, sliced

1/4 tsp paprika

salt and pepper to taste

8 oz pasta

Directions:

1. Saute chicken in olive oil over medium heat.  After 2-3 minutes, add garlic, onions and mushrooms and saute until onions become translucent.

2. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions

3. Reduce heat to low and stir in cream, wine, cheese, b0uillon, sun-dried tomatoes, green onions, paprika, salt, and pepper.  Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.  Adjust spices to taste.

Lettuce Wraps

Lettuce wraps = asian tacos.  What could be better?  I really can’t think of anything more delicious that is also really quite healthy!  Everyone I’ve made these for (Adam and Jess last year, Katie and Ali tonight) have raved about them and really enjoyed them.  Who needs P.F. Chang’s when you can make lettuce wraps yourself, right?  Good thing too, I’m pretty sure the closest P.F. Chang’s is 2 hours away in Jackson…which is actually pretty impressively close.

The sauce with this recipe is a MUST.  I cannot stress that enough.  The turkey/mushroom mixture for inside the wraps is delicious, but it’s the sauce that really makes dish fantastic.  I know I’m asking a lot with the oyster sauce…when are you ever going to use it again, right?  I’m one of those people, trust me.  But actually, I use oyster sauce all the time when I make asian-inspired dishes (I’ve also substituted it for fish sauce and hoisin sauce in recipes…totally the same thing, right?  Sure…), so you’ll use it.  I promise.  And if you don’t, well there’s just a perfect excuse to make more lettuce wraps!

Ingredients (serves 4):

1 1/s Tbsp vegetable oil, divided

3 c mushrooms, diced

1 lb ground turkey

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tsp ginger

4 green onions, sliced

1 can water chestnuts, chopped

12 lettuce leaves (cut the head of lettuce in half first, it makes it WAY easier to break the leaves apart)

3 tbsp oyster sauce

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp rice vinegar

2 tsp chili garlic paste (the best thing you can put in your fridge…just saying)

1/4 tsp salt

Directions:

1. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add mushrooms and saute 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Set aside in a large bowl.

2. Heat remaining oil in the skillet and add turkey, garlic, and ginger; cook until the turkey is browned, stirring to crumble.  Add the turkey mixture, onions, and water chestnuts to the mushroom mixture.  Stir well to combine.

3. For sauce: combine last 5 ingredients in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk or fork.  Serve sauce with turkey mixture inside lettuce leaves.

Tuna Noodle Casserole

The weather has been all over the place here lately.  From 70s and sunny to 45 and rainy in a day!  The changing weather has really put me in the mood for comfort food.  After Chicken and Dumplings, I think Tuna Casserole is one of my favorite comfort food dishes.  It’s easy, delicious, and makes me feel warm and noodly inside.  Yes, noodly, it’s a good thing, don’t worry.

I made tuna casserole with this recipe for the first time last year.  Two of my students were over hanging out and playing video games after they’d mowed my lawn and I made this casserole for dinner.  It was hilarious.  My roommates and I thought it was delicious, but I don’t think the boys liked it at all.  It was nearly as funny as earlier that day when we made them listen to Dave Matthews Band in the car (The Space Between has NEVER been funnier).  They looked at me like I was the craziest white lady ever, trying to feed them tuna casserole.  But, then, they also thought I was crazy when I offered to let them lick the spoon when I made cookies, sooooo I’m questioning their taste.

Ingredients (serves 6):

1/2 c butter, divided

1 (8 ounce) package uncooked egg noodles

1/2 medium onion, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

8 ounces button mushrooms, sliced

1/4 c flour

2 c milk

salt and pepper to taste

2 (6 ounce) cans tuna, drained and flaked

1 c peas

1/4 c green onions, sliced

3 tbsp bread crumbs

2 tbsp butter, melted

1 c shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a medium baking dish with 1 tablespoon butter.

2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add egg noodles, cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until al dente, and drain.

3. Melt 1 tbsp butter in a skillet over medium-low heat. Stir in the onion, celery, and garlic, and cook 5 minutes, until tender. Increase heat to medium-high, and mix in mushrooms.  Cook and stir 5 minutes, or until most of the liquid has evaporated.

4. Melt 4 tbsp butter in a medium saucepan, and whisk in flour until smooth. Gradually whisk in milk, and continue cooking 5 minutes, until sauce is smooth and slightly thickened. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in tuna, peas, green onions, mushroom mixture, and cooked noodles.

5. Transfer the mixture to baking dish. Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a small bowl, mix with bread crumbs, and sprinkle over the casserole. Top with cheese.

6. Bake 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until bubbly and lightly browned.

      

Vegetarian Stuffed Mushrooms

These were a big hit at our Christmas Eve appetizer soiree, my sister and I ate 2 or 3 each before anyone came over and I think my mom probably ate half of them herself that night!  The recipe these mushrooms were based on called for a couple strips of bacon crumbled into the filling as well, but since my aunt is a vegetarian we decided to opt out of adding that.  They were so delicious, you didn’t even miss the bacon (though I’m sure it would have been delicious with the bacon as well).

Ingredients:

24 large mushrooms

cooking spray

1/4 c green onions, sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 c butter

1/2 c bread crumbs

1/2 c shredded mozzarella cheese

 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Clean mushrooms, remove stems, and set stems aside.  Place mushroom caps, stem sides down, in a baking pan.  Lightly coat mushrooms with cooking spray.  Bake for 4 minutes.  Drain mushroom caps, stem sides down, on a plate with paper towels.

2. Chop the reserved stems to make about 1 cup.  Cook stems, green onions, and garlic in a saucepan in hot butter until tender.  Stir in bread crumbs and cheese.  Turn mushrooms stem sides up and fill with breadcrumb mixture.  Return mushroom caps to paking pan and bake for 8-10 minutes until heated through.

Broccoli and Mushroom Quiche

I’ve had some good ideas in my time.  Recently, for instance, I stumbled upon the fact that eating pomegranate seeds while eating a Reeses peanut butter cup is the most amazing thing in the world (thank me after you try it).  Possibly the best idea I’ve ever had in my life, however, came to fruition yesterday: brunch.  Now, obviously I did not come up with the idea of brunch.  I’d both be incredibly old and (since it’s such a fabulous meal) decently rich if I had.  No, I simply came up with the idea that as teachers we need something to look forward to all week…and brunch (which may or may not have included mimosas) would be the perfect thing!  So this Saturday I had some of the other TFAers who work at my school over for brunch.  Best idea I’ve ever had.  Everyone brought something (mostly from Walmart, but hey, not everyone’s a cook) to share and we ate and drank mimosas and tea (in my new tea set!) and just had an all-around good time.

Being me and needing to make something special and delicious, I decided to make a quiche!  Definitely an impressive brunch item, especially when lots of delicious veggies are involved.  The secret about quiches though, is that they’re actually really easy.  They look fancy and they take a bit of time, but most of that’s time spent in the oven.  The actual work you have to do is pretty minimal and it’s easy too.  This recipe’s for a veggie quiche mainly because I had vegetarians over and wanted to make sure they could eat the quiche too, but this is really just a great basic quiche recipe.  Substitute the veggies in for different vegetables if you want or get rid of the green stuff all together and go with bacon or ham!  Quiches are very adaptable.

Ingredients:

1 (9 inch) pie crust

3 eggs

1 1/2 cups milk

1 tbsp flour

1/2 cup onion, chopped

1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced

1/2 cup broccoli, chopped

1/4 cup shredded swiss cheese

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.  Line pie pan with pie crust, and place a double layer of tin foil over the crust (it always seems like I never have tin foil, so I usually end up skipping this step and just baking the crust for about 10 minutes on its own.  This works fine, but the crust ends up puffing up quite a bit, so if you have the tin foil, definitely put in the extra effort here). Bake in the preheated oven for 5 minutes, and then remove foil. Continue baking until crust begins to set, about 5 to 7 minutes; remove from oven. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F

2. In a mixing bowl, beat eggs with milk and flour. Stir in onion, mushrooms, broccoli, and swiss cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Pour mixture into hot crust.

3. Bake quiche at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes to one hour. The quiche is done when knife inserted in center comes out clean. You can cover the edges of the crust with foil if it starts to brown too quickly, but I usually don’t find that a problem.

Spinach and Feta Pasta

Quick pasta recipes are a must.  I think everyone should have a few quick and easy pasta recipes in their cooking arsenal.  That way, on those days when you just don’t have much time or don’t feel like putting forth too much effort, you can still have a delicious dinner that didn’t come from a box or a drive-thru.  Quick pasta dishes are also great because you can use whatever random bits of vegetable (or even meat) you have left over from previous meals to make them.  This Greek-inspired pasta is perfect for that.  You’ve got half an onion and some random tomatoes leftover from yesterday?  Perfect!  No mushrooms?  That’s ok, use that half a jar of artichoke hearts you’ve had sitting in the fridge for two weeks.  No extra trips to the store necessary.

Ingredients (serves 4)

8oz pasta (I used spaghetti this time because it’s what I had, but in the past I’ve used penne or similar shaped pasta and I think that tends to work a bit better in a dish like this)

2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 a small onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

3 cups chopped tomatoes (thanks Ms. Adam’s for the cherry tomatoes!)

1 cup mushrooms, sliced

2 cups spinach leaves

salt and pepper to taste

pinch of crushed red pepper

splash of white wine (maybe 2 tbsp?)

8 oz feta cheese, crumbled

 

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions.

2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add onions and garlic and cook until golden brown.  Mix in tomatoes, mushrooms, and spinach.  Season with salt, pepper, crushed red pepper, and wine.  Cook until tomatoes are heated through and spinach is wilted, about 2-3 minutes.

3. Remove from heat and stir in pasta and feta before serving.