Christine's Penne Rosa

This is my version of Penne Rosa that I use to win over Chris and all of his friends. It never fails, I’m the coolest girl they know. Haha. 

I’d say use about ¾ a box of penne pasta
1 Tbs butter
Small drizzle of olive oil
2 Garlic cloves – minced
¼ Tsp Crushed Red Peppers
1 Red Bell Pepper – Diced
2 Plum tomatoes – Diced
1 cup of Chopped mushrooms
½ a bag of Spinach – loosely chopped
1 can of diced tomatoes
½ TBS Freshly chopped basil or 1 ½ Tsp dry basil
A pinch of Cayenne pepper
A little less than 1/2 Cup of Heavy cream
Feta and/or parmesan

Cooking pasta is an art… sort of. You don’t want to start cooking it too soon and overcook it. Even if you take it out of the water, it will keep cooking and mushy pasta will insult the pasta gods, I’m sure.  Always try to cook your pasta “al dente” (soft to the touch, firm to the bite). Also, salt the water that you’re cooking the pasta in. It’s your only chance to season the pasta. I’d say, start cooking the pasta once all of your sauce ingredients are in and simmering for 15 minutes. 

  

 

 

Normally I use only olive oil in my pastas, but butter makes red peppers really tasty… so in this recipe we’re going to use  in a large saucepan, 1 TBS of butter and a small drizzle of olive oil. You’ll want to pre-dice your vegetables before you start cooking the garlic because you really don’t want the garlic to burn. That is not tasty. So once the butter melts, add the minced garlic and crushed red pepper. Keep the heat med-low, when you start to smell the garlic…before it starts browning, it’s time to add your red peppers and tomatoes that you cut up. Simmer those for about five minutes on medium heat and then add your diced mushrooms (but you don’t have to use mushrooms.) and simmer them about another five minutes on medium heat. Next add the chopped spinach. It will seem like a LOT of spinach… but once it cooks down a little, life will make more sense. Once the spinach has wilted, it’s time to add your can of diced tomatoes, chopped (or dry) basil, and pinch of cayenne pepper. Give this about 10 minutes to simmer on med high heat. Next add the heavy cream and simmer medium to med high heat for 15-20 minutes on occasionally.

 Your sauce will start to thicken and smell like heaven… if it doesn’t already. Now it’s time to toss with the pasta in a large serving dish, toss in some shredded Parmesan too! Top with feta, of course, and dig in. you can thank me later. 

 

My Food Personality.

Loves:

-          I love, love, love feta! I would put it on everything if I could!

-          My specialty is Italian. Pasta dishes are where my love for cooking began.

-          Lemon Zest!

-          Basil Pesto – from scratch

-          My cute red mini food processor

-          Cooking from the beginning. You know, from scratch. I try to cook as homemade as possible… but its hard sometimes!

-          Plum tomatoes. Best flavor, best sauces.

-          Spinach and mushrooms. I’ve really grown to love cooking with mushrooms!

-          Creating something new…that actually turns out good!

-           The word “julienned”, I’m not that great at it, but I like to say the word.

-          When whoever is trying my food – goes back for seconds! It’s the ultimate food compliment.

Dislikes:

-          Bacon, pancetta, and pork in general – If you’re looking for a good bacon wrapped bacon ball recipe… you won’t find it here!

-          Marinating chicken. I won’t do it. The thought, makes me vomitous. I prefer to season right before I cook.  

-          Overcooked pasta. There’s nothing worse than squishy-mashed-potatoey- fall apart noodles!

-          When I run out of cheese. I can’t imagine my life without cheese.

-          Onions.

-          Doing the dishes. Bummer!

Tell me yours!

Shredded Chicken Burritos

This recipe is for 4 burritos, so feel free to use more ingredients as needed.
Shredded Chicken
1 lb Boneless skinless chicken
Salt and Pepper
½ Tbs Olive oil
½ Cup chicken broth
1 small can Tomato Sauce

Directions
In a pan, add olive oil, broth, and tomato sauce to medium high heat
Place salted and peppered chicken into pan and cook on medium high heat 5 minutes each side
reduce heat to med low and simmer covered for about 20 more minutes flipping the chicken to the other side a couple of times throughout.
You’ll notice all of the broth and sauce start to cook into the chicken. You’ll know it’s done when it can easily be pulled apart with a fork and is cooked thoroughly throughout. Remove from heat and place on a plate. I shred my chicken the old school way – two forks. Just criss-cross the forks and pull the chicken apart to whatever thickness makes you happy. Shred to your heart’s desire.

1 package wild rice – cooked according to package directions
1 can refried BLACK beans (I was skeptical, but it was great)
1 can enchilada sauce
2 Cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 can sweet corn
4 fresh flour tortillas (I use the uncooked ones from Costco, they’re so great and the closest thing to homemade – since so far, my tortilla making skills are poo)
1 fresh plum tomato - diced

Preparation
Preheat oven to 400. Add a thin layer of enchilada sauce to the bottom of a baking dish – this will keep the burritos from sticking.
Cooking the tortillas and not letting them burn… is a skill. It involves med low head and a lot of flipping.
Prepare the burritos in any order you like.
I did:
Black beans, then wild rice, then chicken, a little cheese, small drizzle of enchilada sauce (Chris’ also had a little corn too). Roll up that burreet and place it in the baking dish.
Once all your burritos are in the dish, pour remaining enchilada sauce to cover them and top with cheese. Cook in the oven for about 20-30 minutes (you be the judge) and then let them cool for 10 minutes or so before eating. Cooling them a little will give the sauce a chance to set and not be too runny.  Garnish with the diced tomato and enjoy! This is a delicious burrito!

Chicken Alfredo Lasagna

This was one of the best things I've eaten.
Try this!

Ingredients

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3/4 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 cup Alfredo sauce (I used Butoni)
• 3/4 cup 2% cottage cheese
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese, divided
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning (I went with a mixture of dried basil, oregano and a little garlic salt)
• 6 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained
• 1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions

• In a large skillet, saute the chicken and mushrooms in oil until chicken is no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in flour until blended; gradually stir in Alfredo sauce. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes or until thickened.
• In a small bowl, combine the cottage cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, egg and Italian seasoning.
• Spread 1/2 cup Alfredo mixture in an 8-in. x 4-in. loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Layer with two noodles (trimmed to fit pan), half of the cottage cheese mixture, 3/4 cup Alfredo mixture and 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers. Top with mozzarella and a little parmesan.

Cover and bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Uncover; bake 10 minutes longer or until bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.

Creamy White Bean Chicken Chili

I don’t know why I’ve been making so much chili lately! Must be the weather. I found a couple white bean chili recipes, but they were all pretty different from each other.  I decided to take the best from all the recipes and combine it into one master white bean chili delicious soup. Sometimes my inventions don’t turn out so great... but this one did, and it was really great.

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts – diced
2 jalapeño peppers – finely chopped (don’t rub your eyes!)
3 large garlic cloves – finely minced
2 TBS olive oil

2 (4oz each) cans of chopped green chilies
14 oz chicken broth
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
½ tsp pepper
¼ tsp cayenne pepper

2 cans white beans
½ cup of heavy whipping cream

Sour cream
1 cup Monterey jack cheese - shredded

In a large saucepan, sauté chicken, garlic, and jalapeños in olive oil until chicken is no longer pink. Add the broth, chilies, and seasonings. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.  

After simmering 2 hours, add the cream and beans and simmer another 30 minutes.

Top with Monterey cheese (and sour cream if you like it).