One Pot Pasta

There are some recipes I see on Pinterest that are just too interesting not to try. They look good, and sound easy. But once I read the instructions, I wonder if it's too good to be true. 

This Martha Stewart 'One Pot Pasta' dish is one of those recipes. The premise is this: throw the pasta and some veggies in a measured pot of water and let it cook, while stirring constantly. 

It worked perfectly. I added a few things to enhance the flavor, and this was a delicious dinner. Basically, it's pasta cooked risotto style, and it's a perfect easy weeknight dinner!

One Pot Pasta
(Adapted from this one.)

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces uncooked spaghetti noodles
• 1 pint of cherry tomatoes; halved.
• 1 large red onion, thinly sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, mined
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves
• 6-8 basil leaves; chopped
• 4 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 15 oz. can of artichoke hearts; drained & halved
• Sliced kalamata olives (optional; garnish)
• Parmesan cheese (optional; garnish)

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients except olives & parmesan in a large stock pot. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to a low simmer & cover. Stir about every two minutes until pasta is al dente and almost all of the liquid has evaporated.
2. Season to taste with salt & pepper, and serve with a sprinkle of parmesan, some chopped olives and a little more basil. 

"Clean out the kitchen" Penne

 So the other day I ate a lot of crap at work. For our weekly staff meetings the kitchen is filled with lots of sweets & baked goods. I had two croissants filled with a sweetened cream cheese. On top of that I had a handful of Starbursts. All I wanted for dinner was something light and full of vegetables.

I had no idea where this was going when I started grabbing things from the fridge, produce bowl & the pantry, but I am VERY happy with where it ended up. There wasn't anything for a sauce, just the moisture given off by the vegetables, but it was just enough to coat the pasta and the flavors were fantastic. At the last minute I decided it needed something else, so I drained a can of tuna in water and added it to the simmering vegetables. This was an absolutely amazing dinner and is going into my weeknight meal rotation. I wish I had something better to call it, but I'm not good with names =) Hopefully you'll try it, and if you think of something better to call it let me know =)

"Clean out the kitchen" Penne (You can find a PDF printable here!)
(Serves 4)
Ingredients:

• 1 zucchini; quartered and chopped.
• 1 1/2 cups of cherry tomatoes; halved
• 1/2 cup of kalamata olives; halved
• 1/2 of a red onion; thinly sliced
• 2 cloves of garlic; minced
• 2 T. of olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups of penne (whole wheat would make this healthier)
• 10 fresh basil leaves; torn.
• 1 5.5 ounce can of tuna in water
• 1/2 t. of crushed red pepper flakes
• salt & pepper to taste
• Optional: Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the penne and cook according to package directions.
2. In a large pan (with a lid) heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions & zucchini. When they have softened (about 3-4 minutes) add the garlic. 
3. Add the tomatoes, olives, drained tuna & red pepper flakes.
4. Place the lid on the pan and let simmer until the pasta is finished cooking.
5. Add drained pasta and the basil to the pan of vegetables and toss well. 
6.  Serve with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese on top.

Pesto Cream Sauce

Graham and I are down to a handful of days left together before he deploys, so I wanted to make a couple of his favorite dinners this week. He absolutely LOVES my chicken pesto pizza, so that was on our menu for the other night. However, when I got home from work Tuesday night, I wasn't in the mood to cook, so we went out for pizza.

Not wanting to have pizza two nights in a row, I decided to use the same flavors and combine them in a different way. And it was every bit as successful as the pizza always is. The pesto was so delicious stirred into a creamy Alfredo sauce, and the addition of the olives and tomatoes gave it a little something extra. Topped with a perfectly grilled chicken breast and served with garlic bread, this is one of the best dinners I've made in a while.

I won't make this very often, because I made the mistake of calculating the calories (ouch!), but I'll definitely keep this in my repertoire  for special nights where calories don't matter.

Fettuccine with Pesto Cream Sauce & Grilled Chicken (6 servings)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of heavy cream
• 1/2 stick of butter; chopped into small pieces (about 8)
• 1 cup of pesto (I was lazy & used jarred...)
• 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup of grape or cherry tomatoes; halved
• 1/4 cup of kalamata olives
• 3/4 of a box of fettuccine
• salt & pepper to taste
• Cooked chicken breasts; optional

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta according to package instructions.
2. Heat heavy cream to a simmer in a large sauce pan.
3. Reduce the heat to low and add the butter in, one piece at a time. Whisk the sauce while you're melting the butter.
4. Stir in the pesto and the Parmesan cheese.
5. Fold in the tomatoes and olives.
6. Drain the pasta and add to the sauce. Mix well, making sure the pasta is evenly coated with the sauce.

This would be absolutely perfect at this point, but we topped ours with a chopped chicken breast to give it some lean protein.

Enjoy!

Chicken Pesto Pasta

I love pasta dinners, and this one was a quick and easy weeknight dinner. It was really delicious, and really simple to make.

Chicken Pesto Pasta
(Recipe adapted from this one.)
Ingredients:

• 1 lb. of farfalle pasta
• 1 jar of sundried tomatoes, drained (reserve 2 Tbsp. oil)
• 1 bunch asparagus, ends trimmed and cut into thirds
• 1 green bell pepper, cut into bite sized pieces
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and cut into bite sized pieces
• 1/2 cup pesto
• freshly-grated  Parmesan

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta, and cook according to package directions.
2. In a large skillet, heat the reserved oil from the jar of sun-dried tomatoes over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the asparagus and bell pepper and sprinkle salt & pepper. Cook for 3-4 minutes. Then add in the sun-dried tomatoes, and continue cooking for another 4-5 minutes, or until veggies are tender and remove from heat.
3. When pasta is done, drain and add in the asparagus/tomatoes, pesto, chicken, arugula, and pesto, and toss until well-combined. Sprinkle with the cheese.

Rachael Ray's Pizzagna



I first started getting interested in cooking and food in 2003. I used to watch Rachael Ray religiously. This meal is supposed to be a cross between pizza and lasagna. My family and my boyfriend at the time loved it, so I made it quite frequently. This is still a really delicious dinner, especially with a side salad.

Now that I actually care with what I eat, and portion control, my issue with this is the number of servings that she says that you get out of this. She says you get six, and that is absolutely ridiculous. This recipe calls for one pound of pasta, which in and of itself is eight servings. Not to mention you're adding ricotta cheese, a ton of vegetables and 28 ounces of tomato sauce. I baked this in my large lasagna dish, and Graham and I had TWELVE meals out of this. Twelve. I figured out the nutritional information for this today on My Fitness Pal. Calculating it with twelve servings, it's less than 300 calories per serving, and 8 grams of fat per serving.

So make this. It's tasty. But bake it in a large lasagna pan, and either share it with 11 other people, or be prepared to eat leftovers for days.

Pizzagna
(Adapted from here.)
Ingredients:

• 1/4 c. of olives; sliced.
• 8-10 slices of pepperoni; sliced.
• 1 bell pepper; diced into bite sized pieces
• 1 large onion; thinly sliced
• 1 package (I think it's 12 ounces) of sliced baby bella mushrooms
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced.
• 1 cup of part skim ricotta cheese
• 1/2 c. of grated parmesan cheese
• 1 cup of reduced fat mozzarella cheese
• 1 28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes
• 1 14.5 ounce can of whole tomatoes, drained
• 1 t. of red pepper flakes
• 1 lb. of a short pasta (I used cellantini from Barilla)
• 2 T. of olive oil

 
Directions

1. Preheat broiler.
2. Boil pasta in salted water. When finished, reserve 1/2 a cup of cooking water and drain.
3. While boiling water, heat olive oil in a large skillet. Saute onions, bell pepper, mushrooms and garlic until tender, about 10 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes, the whole tomatoes (break them up a little with a spoon), and the red pepper flakes. Bring to a simmer and then reduce heat to low.
4. When pasta is done, add the reserved liquid to the ricotta in a large bowl, and mix until smooth. Then add the parmesan, olives and pepperoni. Mix until well combined, and then toss the cheese mixture with the hot pasta. Pour into the bottom of a large baking dish (I used a large lasagna dish) and then top with an even layer of the tomato sauce.
5. Sprinkle with mozzarella and place under broiler until cheese is golden and bubbly (mine took about 2-3 minutes).

Enjoy!

 



Six servings? Really?



Pioneer Woman's Pasta Puttanesca

I love the Pioneer Woman. Love her. I want to start a new blog where I do nothing but cook her recipes over and over again. But out of everything I've made of hers (mashed potatoes, pizza crust, blackberry cobbler, pot roast, pork with mango fried rice, tuscan bean soup), I think this is my absolute favorite.

The only change I made to the recipe was use more olives than she calls for (I really, really love olives) and I added some red pepper flakes for heat. To me, a puttanesca sauce is supposed to have some heat to it, and this was lacking that. But seriously, this was so, so delicious. Oh, and if you think you don't like anchovies, make this anyway. I was hesitant, but I remembered how Rachel Ray always said they just kind of melt into the sauce, and give it a rich, salty flavor. So, I went with it. And she was right. The tiny, chopped up anchovies completely disappeared when cooked with everything else. Nothing tasted strange or fishy. Just straight up delicious.

Pioneer Woman's Pasta Puttanesca
(Recipe originally found here.)

Ingredients

• 8 ounces of whole wheat spaghetti
• 2 Tablespoons of olive oil
• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1-1/2 cup of grape/cherry tomatoes, halved
• 3/4 cups of white wine (I used Yellow Tail Chardonnay)
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 4 whole anchovy filets
• 1/2 cup of kalamata olives & green (Spanish) olives
• 12 whole basil Leaves
• 2 teaspoons of red pepper flakes
• 4 ounces of parmesan cheese 

Directions

1. Cook pasta until al dente (about 8-10 minutes).
2. Finely chop garlic, anchovies, and olives; then pile them up and run your knife through the whole pile a few times. Set aside.
3. Coarsely chop parmesan cheese, and set aside.
4. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add sliced red onions and cook until tender. Add the tomatoes and let cook for a about 3-5 minutes. Pour in wine and cook for another two minutes, then pour in the garlic/anchovy/olive mixture. Add in the red pepper flakes. Stir and let simmer together until sauce has reduced. Add salt and pepper to taste (trust me... it will not need much salt, if any!).
5. Drain pasta and add to the skillet. Add the crumbled Parmesan and toss to coat pasta in the sauce.
6. Roll basil leaves into logs and chiffonade. Sprinkle over the top.

Greek Spaghetti with Grilled Chicken, Tomatoes, Olives, Garlic, & Feta

The moment I saw this on Pinterest, I knew I had to make it. It includes some of my absolute all time favorite things: kalamata olives, feta & tomatoes. My obsession with those three things is pretty much borderline ridiculous. One of my favorite foods of all time is a chopped vegetable Greek salad (cucumbers, tomatoes, feta & of course olives). During the summer I basically eat vats of it.

The original recipe calls the fresh tomatoes the star of the dish. Since it's winter, and tomatoes aren't exactly at the height of freshness, I decided to take it up a notch by adding some grilled chicken. You could also make it a little more health conscious by using whole wheat spaghetti, like I will next time. I only had regular spaghetti on hand, and when I looked at the nutritional label I about died.

I think this would be awesome with some sauteed shrimp too. Just saute it in the oil for a minute before adding the pasta. Yum!

Try this! It is so delicious. The heat of the pasta, and then of course the oil & the hot pan melted the feta slightly and made the "sauce" creamy and delicious. The husband and I absolutely loved it and I hope you will too!

Greek Spaghetti with Grilled Chicken, Tomatoes, Olives, Garlic, & Feta
(Adapted from Food & Wine Magazine)

Ingredients

• One pint of cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 C. of pitted kalamata olives, halved
• Four ounces of crumbled feta
• 1.5 T. of drained capers
• 6 T. of  Olive Oil
• 4 cloves of Garlic
• 1/2 LB. of whole wheat spaghetti
• *** Two grilled chicken breasts. OPTIONAL***

Directions

1. Put the tomatoes, olives, capers & half of the feta in the bottom of a large bowl.
2. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, salt the water and drop in the spaghetti. Cook til al dente. 
3. When the pasta is done, drain and pour into the bowl with the chopped tomatoes, olives & cheese.
4. In a separate pan, heat the olive oil on medium and then add the garlic. Cook for a minute, stirring every so often. 
5. Pour the pasta mixture into the oil & garlic. Use tongs to combine thoroughly. Let hang out in the pan for about a minute, letting the flavors come together. 
6. Plate the pasta and top each plate with the remaining feta. If desired, add some sliced grilled chicken for some extra delicious protein!

Spaghetti & Meatballs

I've never been a fan of spaghetti & meatballs. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE spaghetti, but I usually make it with a super chunky, very thick sauce (lots of peppers, onions and mushrooms). Half the time, I don't even add the meat. My fiance is a hardcore carnivore though, and I know he likes meatballs, so when I saw this recipe on Our Best Bites last week, I knew I had to try it. These were FABULOUS! The meatballs were made of spicy Italian sausage and ground beef. They were flavored with lots of garlic, basil, salt & pepper and were so, so good. 

The sauce was delicious as well. It definitely had a kick to it (maybe from the fact that I added extra heat from the red pepper flakes). It didn't thicken up as much as I thought it would, but the flavor was fantastic and made up for a thinner sauce than I usually prefer.

Spaghetti & Meatballs

(Recipe adapted from this one here.)

Meatballs

Ingredients

• 1 lb. lean ground beef
• 1 lb. spicy Italian sausage
• 1/2 c. Panko
• 1/2 tsp. pepper
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 C. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 T. basil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. salt

Directions

1. Combine meatball ingredients in a medium bowl. 
2. Shape into balls, whatever size you like (mine were about one inch), and then rolling it between your hands to make them round. 
3. Place on a baking sheet and broil until the meatballs start to brown (about 5 minutes).

Spaghetti Sauce
Ingredients

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4-5 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
• Olive oil
• 2 28-oz. cans crushed tomatoes
• 16 oz. tomato sauce
• 14 oz. can of diced tomatoes; drained
• 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp. of red pepper flakes
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Pinch of baking soda (to help neutralize the acid)
• Basil (to garnish)

Directions

1. Heat olive oil in the bottom of a dutch oven. Add onion and garlic and cook until onions are translucent and garlic is fragrant (about 3 minutes). 
2. Add remaining sauce ingredients and combine well. Bring to a simmer and then add meatballs. 
3. Simmer on low, uncovered, until desired consistency is reached; about 25-30 minutes for a sauce that's of medium thickness.
4. Serve over spaghetti with some freshly grated Parmesan on top.

This sauce is now my go to for any time I need sauce. Anytime I need tomato sauce, I make a pot of this.