orzo with chicken, asparagus and goat cheese

I love coming up with a pasta dish that doesn't involve opening a jar of pre-made sauce. There is something so satisfying about slicing fresh tomatoes, chopping up garlic and fresh basil.

Cherry tomatoes are delicious and convenient. Just cut them in half and saute for a few minutes in olive oil. They start to soften and break apart, creating a light sauce.

Chicken broth, garlic, fresh basil, asparagus, chicken and goat cheese are added. These flavors are so lovely. The asparagus stays crisp and the goat cheese is ridiculously creamy. I love goat cheese! It has such a strong flavor, you don't need to add a lot to get that delicious flavor and texture. To save even more calories, skip adding the cheese into the sauce and just crumble it on top to serve.

This is so fresh and perfect. We had my sister and her husband over for dinner, and he said it was his favorite meal he's had at our house so far.

Enjoy!

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Orzo with Chicken, Asparagus and Goat Cheese

Serves 4 people

1 pint cherry tomatoes, washed and cut in half
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth
8 stalks of asparagus, washed and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 cups cooked orzo pasta (follow directions on box)
2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional to serve: more chopped fresh basil and crumbled goat cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place chicken in an even layer on a cookie sheet or 13 x 9 pan coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle 1 clove garlic, minced (1/3 of the total garlic) over the chicken and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 15-20 minutes, depending on how thick the chicken pieces are, or until cooked all the way through.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add sliced cherry tomatoes and saute for 5-7 minutes, or until the tomatoes start to soften and break apart. Use a wooden spoon to smash the tomatoes a bit. Lower the heat to medium low, and add garlic. Saute for a few minutes being careful not to burn the garlic. Add chicken broth, asparagus, fresh basil, cooked chicken and goat cheese. Stir until combined and let the asparagus cook for 1 minute, then turn off the heat. You want the asparagus to maintain the crisp texture, but not be raw. Add cooked orzo and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper if needed.

Serve warm with some fresh basil and crumbled goat cheese on top, if desired.

(slightly) spicy peanut noodles

Things I bought at the store to make this dish that I've never bought before: Sriracha Chili Sauce and broccoli slaw.

These things are now staples in my kitchen because I want to make this dish once a week for the rest of my life. It is so unique and different than what I usually make, which means it was fun to experiment with. The flavors are so interesting... chicken broth, lime juice, soy sauce, spicy sriracha, honey, peanut butter... it's so complex and delicious.

I cooked some wheat linguine and tossed it in the peanut sauce with chicken. If you are a vegetarian, just skip the chicken and use vegetable broth instead.

Then I sauteed the broccoli slaw, in the same pan that I cooked the chicken, for just a few minutes. I love the texture it adds to this dish. It keeps its crunch and adds delicious broccoli flavor.

Top off the whole thing with chopped fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lime. It's very different, but delicious!

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(Slightly) Spicy Peanut Noodles

Serves 4

1/2 pound chicken breast, cut up into cubes
1/2 pound whole wheat linguine
1 bag broccoli slaw (about 4 cups)
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon Sriracha Chili Sauce
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lime juice (about 1/2 lime)
3 heaping tablespoons peanut butter
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Start by browning your chicken in a large skillet over medium heat. Season with salt and pepper and cook for 5-6 minutes on each side, depending on thickness of chicken. When it's cooked all the way through, take it out of the skillet and set aside for later. Keep the pan off the heat, you will use it later to saute the broccoli slaw.

Meanwhile, boil wheat linguine 7-9 minutes. Drain and set aside.

In a medium sauce pan, heat oil over low heat and add garlic. Stir around for a few minutes until you can really smell the garlic. You just want to heat it up so it loses the raw garlic flavor. Then add chicken broth, Chili Sauce, honey, soy sauce, lime juice and peanut butter. Stir to combine and allow the sauce to heat up. When the peanut butter has melted and thickened the sauce (about 5 to 10 minutes) take it off the heat and add your pasta and chicken. Toss everything together in the sauce.

Reheat the skillet you used to cook the chicken over high heat. When it's hot, add the broccoli slaw and toss for a few minutes. You want the broccoli to keep its crunch but just softened a bit. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

To serve, put noodle mixture on the plate and top with about 1 cup of broccoli slaw. Optional: finish with a few tablespoons of fresh cilantro and a lime wedge to squeeze on top.

garlic chickpea pasta

Chickpeas are loaded with nutrients and high in protein and fiber. They have been known to improve weight loss because their high fiber content makes you feel full after eating them. Score.

We usually associate chickpeas with Mediterranean foods like hummus. However, India is the leading producer of chickpeas. Chickpeas are ground into flour to be used in many Indian dishes.

This is not like hummus sauce over pasta, so don't worry. That would be a strange texture. Instead, I pureed chickpeas and vegetable broth in a food processor until creamy. That gets poured over pasta and tossed with fresh tomatoes, parsley, garlic and Parmesan cheese.

It is so easy to make this, and healthy too! No butter or cream - just vegetables.

I squeezed a little bit of lemon juice over the pasta right before serving it. Such a fresh, clean flavor.

Start by making pasta, of course. While the pasta is boiling away, heat up a pot and throw in some olive oil and garlic. Make sure you rinse and drain the can of chickpeas. The syrup/juice/oil inside canned beans makes me want to die. So gross.

Pour a can of vegetable broth into the pot with the chickpeas. Let the liquid come to a boil, and simmer it for 10 minutes. This allows some of the liquid to evaporate and reduce.

This mixture gets poured into a food processor or blender and pureed until smooth. If you are using a blender, be careful. The hot liquid causes crazy things to happen inside the blender and if you're not careful, the lid will fly off and chickpeas will be all over your kitchen cabinets. This may or may not have happened to me once when I was making butternut squash soup in college. Butternut squash puree may or may not have gotten all over our white cabinets and floor... (right, Lauren?) I always lay a kitchen towel over the lid and press down firmly while blending any hot liquids.

Pour the chickpea sauce over your pasta and mix it together. Then chop up a large tomato and some fresh parsley. Toss everything together and taste it for seasonings. I added a little extra salt and pepper at this point.

Over each individually serving, grate fresh Parmesan cheese and squeeze a little lemon juice over the pasta. I have found that putting cheese on the plate of pasta instead of the whole pot uses less cheese overall, which cuts down the calories. Parmesan is such a strong flavor, you don't need to use that much to get that nutty, cheesy flavor.

This is definitely something different, so I hope you try it!

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Garlic Chickpea Pasta

print this recipe

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (15.5 oz) can chickpeas
1 (14 oz) can vegetable broth (I used low sodium)
1 pound shell pasta
1 large or 2 small tomatoes
1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
Lemon wedges
Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper, to taste

Cook pasta in boiling water for 9 minutes, or until al dente. While pasta is cooking, heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic, saute 1 minute. Drain and rinse chickpeas in a colander, then add to pan. Add can of vegetable broth and stir. Let this mixture come to a boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 10 - 12 minutes.

Place chickpea mixture in a food processor or blender. Process until smooth. Pour sauce over pasta in a large bowl or pot. Toss with tomatoes and parsley. Season with salt and pepper.

Over each individual serving, grate Parmesan cheese and squeeze with lemon wedge. Serve immediately.

penne with sun dried tomato cream sauce

I just looked at my desktop weather application and it says it's 12 degrees here in Delaware. Luckily, I am headed up north to NYC this weekend, where it's even colder.

I have my camera charged and packed, ready to document this weekend. I can't wait to share it all with you on Monday.

Today I am sharing a recipe I came up with because I had leftover prosciutto in the fridge and an old jar of sun dried tomatoes in the pantry. But don't worry, it wasn't too old, plus it was packed in oil so it's preserved. Right?

Turns out the cream sauce was delicious - flavors of garlic, prosciutto and sun dried tomatoes. It doesn't get more Italian than that. Right, Joanne?

Start by chopping up 2 ounces of prosciutto, about 3 slices. Saute in a pan with some olive oil.

Get about 4 sun dried tomatoes, or about 2 tablespoons chopped. Make sure you buy a jar of tomatoes that are packed in oil. If they are dried, you have to soak them in boiling water until they reconstitute. It's much easier just to use these.

Throw in minced garlic and cook this mixture for a few minutes, until everything cooks through and your whole kitchen smells like a 5 star Italian restaurant. Or at least that's what I tell myself.

By the way, don't forget to cook the pasta. That's kind of important.

I made a simple white sauce. The best way I have found to do this, is to use equal parts fat to flour. I melted 3 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan then added 3 tablespoons flour. Whisk it together until it forms a paste. After that cooks for a few minutes, add 2 cups of milk. As you whisk away over medium heat, this will form into a yummy, thick white sauce. You can flavor it with anything you like. Classic is salt, pepper and a bit of nutmeg. I added some Parmesan cheese to keep this legit.

Add all those yummy bits from the skillet into the cream sauce. Then add pasta. Then add a handful of spinach leaves. It adds such a nice color and texture to this. I love throwing greens into a pasta dish.

The spinach will wilt as everything mixes together. This dish is a great way to impress without slaving over a pot for hours. It's really easy to make this even with such complex flavors.

I thought the prosciutto flavor was a little strong, so I wrote the recipe with less than what I used. I hope it is more balanced now. Michael loved it though. He ate a lot of it and was looking for leftovers to take for lunch the next day.

This is the trial and error of cooking... trying things and seeing what works and what doesn't. I love it.

By the way, I plan on eating cookies until my pants burst at the seams at Levain Bakery this weekend. They serve ginormous, warm, melty cookies.

I mean come on. I should just run away but I can't. I love New York.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

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Penne with Sun Dried Tomato Cream Sauce

print this recipe

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 ounces prosciutto (about 2-3 slices)
4 sun dried tomatoes in oil (about 2 tablespoons chopped)
2 cloves garlic
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 pound penne pasta
1 cup raw spinach leaves
Salt and pepper, to taste

Boil pasta 10-12 minutes, drain and set aside.

In a medium skillet, heat up olive oil for 2 minutes. Chop prosciutto and sun dried tomatoes. Add to skillet. Mince garlic and add to skillet. Stir and cook for 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add flour and whisk until a paste is formed. Whisk and cook paste for 1 minute. Lower heat to medium low and add milk. Whisk until sauce is thick, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese. Add the tomato mixture from skillet. Combine everything and taste the sauce to make sure seasonings are right. Add pasta. Take spinach and tear with your hands as you add it to the pot. Combine everything, stirring until the spinach wilts. Serve immediately.

braised short ribs with parmesan risotto

This meal is the best thing I've put in my belly in a long time. Well... since Christmas dinner. That wasn't too long ago actually.

Anyway, it's really good. It's everything a homemade meal should be - slow cooked meat that is super tender and flavorful sitting atop rich, creamy risotto. You have to make this one. This week. I mean it.

Guess what I got for Christmas from my parents? This sweet dutch oven cast iron pot. Be still my heart.

It was another snowy weekend in Delaware. Instead of craving fudgy brownies or soft chocolate chip cookies, I wanted something warm and savory. I also wanted to test the waters with this new kitchen tool, so I bought some short ribs and decided to go all out.

Okay I was still craving brownies and cookies but I made this meal anyway.

Short ribs have a lot of fat on them, but some of it is cooked away during the braising process. Start by sprinkling the short ribs with salt, pepper and flour. Heat up some oil in an oven-safe pot and put the short ribs in.

This will help get a nice crust on the outside of the meat, so only cook each side for about a minute. Once all sides are browned, take them out and set aside for later.

Lower the heat and add whatever kind of vegetables you want. I used onion, celery, carrot, peas, corn and garlic. The scent is out of control.

Let those cook for 7 to 10 minutes, then add beef broth. Let that reduce for another couple of minutes, then nestle those beautiful short ribs into the vegetables.

Cover the whole thing with more beef broth (make sure all the meat is covered), cover the pot, then stick that heavy thing in the oven for 2 1/2 hours. We are talking fall-off-the-bone tender here, people.

While that's cooking, it's time to get some exercise! And by exercise, I mean standing over a hot stove stirring rice for 30 minutes. It's worth it, I promise.

Risotto is a challenging, elusive creature. I have tried (and failed) several times to make it right, but this time was finally a winner. A serious winner. Like, so good I wanted to eat this risotto every day for the rest of my life.

Start with white arborio rice. Heat up a large saucepan over medium-low heat, then add butter, minced shallot and garlic. Let that cook for just a few minutes, then add the rice.

By the way, have another saucepan filled with beef broth warming up on the stove. Every time you add broth to the rice, you want it to be warm.

Let the rice toast for a few minutes before adding any liquid. This gets everything heated up and ready to go.

Start adding your warm broth, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly. Let all the liquid absorb into the rice each time before adding more. Keep working with it - adding broth, stirring, waiting, sweating, wondering why you are doing this and then remembering what risotto tastes like...

Then you magically have this!

Once the risotto is cooked perfectly - creamy, delicious, etc. Add 1/2 cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese and some pepper. Stir until the cheese melts and then go ice your arm for 15 minutes.

Just kidding. Then you can EAT it. Best reward ever.

Plop a big spoonful, or a couple big spoonfuls, of risotto onto a plate. Put 2 short ribs on top, and pour the delicious sauce and vegetables over it. (Just remember to skim some of the fat off the top of pot the short ribs are in!)

It's so good. It really is. Enjoy this one guys!

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Braised Short Ribs

1 1/2 to 2 pounds of beef short ribs, bone in
3 to 4 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 white onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 whole carrot, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1/2 cup peas
1/2 cup corn kernals
4 cups beef stock
Salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Heat up a large oven-safe pot over high heat. Add oil.

Dredge the short ribs in flour, salt and pepper. Shake off excess, then add to pan. Brown each side on the ribs for 1 minute each, until all sides are brown. Put on a plate and set aside.

Reduce heat to low and add in all vegetables. Stir and allow to cook for 10 minutes. Add 1 cup of beef stock and cook 5 minutes or until reduced. Remove pot from heat. Nestle the short ribs back into the pot, and cover with remaining beef broth. Cover pot and bake at 325 degrees for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. When it comes out of the oven, let it sit for 10 minutes, then skim the fat off the top before serving.


Parmesan Risotto

3 tablespoons butter
1 small shallot, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 1/2 cups white arborio rice
8 to 10 cups beef broth
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper, to taste

Pour all the beef broth into a saucepan over medium heat. Keep the broth warm throughout the whole process.

Add butter to large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add shallot and garlic, cook for 4 to 5 minutes until tender. Add rice and stir constantly, letting the rice heat through about 5 minutes.

Add broth, 1/2 cup at a time, allowing the broth to be completely absorbed into the rice before adding more. Keep stirring, adding broth, stirring, adding broth for about 25 or 30 minutes. Check the rice to make sure it's done. You may need to add more broth and let that cook out if the rice still has a strong bite to it.

Once it's done, remove from heat and add parmesan cheese and pepper. Stir until melted. Serve immediately.

pasta with lemon and basil

Isn't it strange that the season for citrus fruits is in the winter? When I think of lemons, I think of fresh lemonade on a hot summer day. I think of lemon bars and iced tea with lemon... you get the idea.

This particular citrus is the most flavorful, crisp and ripe in February. So when all the rest of the produce looks sad and dingy, we have bright beautiful lemons to look forward to.

I know the idea of lemons and pasta sounds strange, but the flavor is fresh and subtle. You get a strong earthy taste from the basil, and in the background is a slight lemon taste. It's really wonderful.

I served this with grilled chicken. I marinated my chicken breasts for 30 minutes or so in a plastic bag. I got a small bowl and whisked together the juice of 1 lemon, about 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar, 1 tablespoon of dijon mustard and 1 tablespoon of honey. Pour that over the chicken and after 30 minutes, cook it on a grill pan. Fantastic flavor.

To make the pasta, cook up one pound of your favorite. I used vegetable rotini because Michael was coming over for dinner and he loves rotini.

The sauce is easy. It's a simple white sauce - milk, butter and flour. Then when the sauce is nice and thick, you turn off the heat and add asiago cheese, a squeeze of lemon juice and a bunch of fresh basil.

Now I'm going to teach you how to chiffonade! I hope this isn't insulting your culinary intelligence. I figured it might be useful for some.

Stack up your beautiful, bright green leaves of basil (not). Thanks, Food Lion, for this wilted basil.

Roll it up like a joint.

Or a jelly roll. Or a log. Whatever you understand the best... (jelly roll).

Just work down the basil leaves cutting thin strips.

Then be amazed by your perfect strips of basil!

Chiffonade. It's the way to go.

If you're in the mood for something a little different, try this recipe!

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Pasta with Lemon and Basil

1 pound cooked pasta
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup 2% milk
2 tablespoons flour
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup fresh grated asiago or parmesan cheese
1 cup fresh basil,CHIFFONADE

Melt butter in a large saucepan. Add flour and mix with butter until it forms a paste, which is your thickening agent for this sauce. Let it cook for just a few minutes, then add the milk slowly, whisking constantly. Keep whisking on medium low heat until thick, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat and add cheese, lemon juice and basil. Combine. Toss with pasta. Top pasta with more cheese and basil, if desired. Serve immediately.

sausage ravioli with asparagus cream sauce

I've been browsing around on other food blogs for the last couple weeks. Everyone has wonderful ideas for Thanksgiving - I've seen about 30 different recipes for cranberry sauce. I think this one is my favorite because you bake the cranberries in the oven, which means no messy stove top! Win: Jane Deere's Cranberry Sauce.

Since I am a newbie food blogger, and I will have Thanksgiving recipes coming out of my ears after Thursday night, I want to share a totally non-related recipe.

I think this may be my favorite recipe that I've shared on my blog so far. Not in terms of the preparation (it's a little tricky!) but the FLAVOR is out. of. control.

The sausage adds a wonderful flavor to the ravioli, then you cover it in a creamy asparagus sauce. It's so delicious. Mom and Michael had a hard time deciding if their favorite recipe so far is my cashew chicken lettuce wraps or this. I think this one was the winner.

Start by making the cream sauce, which doesn't have cream at all! I made a light version, that is still incredibly rich.

Grab a bunch of asparagus, break off the tough ends and rinse them in the sink.

Chop the asparagus into small pieces, and put them in a skillet with some olive oil. Let them cook for a good 10 or 15 minutes, so they get soft. Add minced garlic to the pan and let that cook for 3 or 4 minutes.

Add 1/4 cup of chicken stock, salt and pepper. Let the stock reduce for a few minutes, then remove from heat and let it sit until the stock stops bubbling.

Pour the whole thing into a food processor. Blend it until the asparagus is broken up and a thick paste remains.

 Add sour cream and blend again, until a thick sauce is formed. It's a little too thick at this point, but we are going to add hot pasta water right before we serve it. That will warm and thin it = perfect.

It's a beautiful, rich green sauce. It's slightly tangy from the sour cream.

Now it's time to make the ravioli filling! Exciting.

Cook one pound of sausage. I used sweet Italian turkey sausage. Break it up as much as you can. I learned afterward that the sausage should be smaller than the above picture, it is easier to fill the ravioli. Trust.

Chop up fresh sage and rosemary. Smell. Smile. Add it to the pan.

Next comes ricotta and Parmesan cheese. That's it! You have a perfect, flavorful filling.

 Lay wonton wrappers on a cookie sheet, cutting board, your counter top - whatever works.

Now is the time to learn from my mistakes. Here are some tips I discovered while making these:

1. Break the sausage up as much as possible. The large chunks were splitting the ravioli open = disaster.

2. Use way less filling than in the above picture. Just by looking at it, you can tell the sides did not fold over evenly and the raviolis were coming apart in the boiling water = disaster.

3. It worked the best when I went around with some water and moistened all four sides of the ravioli first, then picked up each one with wet fingertips to form the raviolis.

4. Let the water stay at a gentle boil. A rolling boil is a little too rough for this.

5. Make them in small batches, about 5 or 6 at a time.

6. They only need to cook for a few minutes. I overcooked my first batch. They got too soft and when I tried to scoop them out, they broke apart in the water = disaster.

Basically, by the time I was done, my pot of boiling water was the color of milk. Lesson learned.

Despite the complications of this recipe, I really do hope you try it... because the flavor combination works together so well.

(Lauren, thanks for the plate! I love.)

Here's the recipe!

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Sausage Ravioli with Asparagus Cream Sauce

For the sauce:
1 bunch asparagus
1 tablespoon oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 8oz. container of light sour cream
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup left over warm pasta water

For the ravioli:
1 pound turkey sausage
1 tablespoon fresh sage
1/2 tablespoon fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup part skim ricotta cheese
30 wonton wrappers

To make the sauce, wash asparagus and break off the tough ends. Chop into thirds and put in a skillet over medium heat with oil. Stirring every few minutes, cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until the asparagus is soft. Add minced garlic. Cook for 3 or 4 more minutes. Add chicken broth, salt and pepper. Let the broth reduce a bit, then remove from heat. Let the pan sit until the broth stops bubbling, then pour it all into a food processor. Blend for 20 seconds or so, until the asparagus is pureed and forms a thick paste. Then add container of sour cream. Blend for another 10 seconds, or until it forms a thick sauce. Pour into a bowl and set aside.

To make the ravioli, brown sausage in a skillet over medium heat, about 6 minutes. Break up the sausage as much as possible, you don't want large pieces. Chop sage and rosemary, add to pan. Add Parmesan cheese, stir. Remove from heat and add ricotta cheese, combine. Filling should be thick.

Spread the wonton wrappers out on a cookie sheet or large cutting board. Put one teaspoon of filling in the middle of each wrapper. Put some room temperature water in a small bowl.  Moisten all four sides of the ravioli, then with wet fingertips, fold the wrapper in half over the filling, forming the ravioli. Pinch the sides together, set aside.

Once all raviolis are formed, carefully place them into a large pot of gently boiling water, in small batches of 5 or 6 at a time. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes, until they come to the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Once they all are cooked, add 1/2 cup warm pasta water to the asparagus sauce. This should thin the sauce and make it easy to pour over the ravioli. Add more water if necessary. Serve ravioli on a plate drizzled with sauce.