Rotini with Chicken, Broccoli and Tomatoes

I just recently subscribed to Cooking Light... what a treat! So many tasty dishes and beautiful food photos. This is from their November issue. I really hope to make the delicious looking pecan pie that is proudly displayed on it's cover for Thanksgiving dessert. We'll see if there's time!

This recipe originally called for asparagus (which I love) but we had broccoli that needed using and we used whole-wheat pasta. Other than that, I was pretty faithful to the original (though I halved it for two). Light, tangy, and tasty (the feta adds that extra punch). Pretty quick and easy too!

I also find it easy to blanch the broccoli in the pasta cooking water before sautéing, to speed up the cooking process. If you're concerned about mixing the flavors, steam the broccoli briefly in the microwave before adding to the pan.


Rotini with Chicken, Broccoli, and Tomatoes
from Cooking Light (with mods.) Serves 2 8/10

6 oz. uncooked (whole-wheat) rotini
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 cup broccoli florets
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved (or diced fresh tomato)
1 garlic clove, minced
1 TBS fresh basil, chopped
1 TBS balsamic vinegar
1/2 TBS olive oil
1/2 cup feta or other tangy goat cheese

1) Cook pasta according to package directions. (Blanch broccoli florets in the boiling water for 2 minutes, then remove and drain, before adding pasta).
2) Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Add chicken and broccoli to pan. Sauté about 5 minutes.
3) Add tomatoes and garlic. Sauté 1 minutes.
4) Stir in pasta, basil, vinegar, and oil. Remove from heat. Serve with feta (and a nice crusty bread).

Steak and Penne Stir-fry

So originally I was planning on doing a more Asian type stir-fry, but since we had rice last night, we decided to use pasta with tonight's dinner, and I felt inclined to shy away from typical Asian flavors. I still used all the same kinds of veggies, but the base of the very light sauce was beef broth rather than soy or teriakyi sauce (though I did use soy to marinate the beef... so sue me :) ). This is a nice, simple, light meal, and it's pretty quick (took me maybe 30 minutes) as long as you prep things in advance to cooking. Things go so much quicker if everything is already chopped to just toss in the pan when the time comes.

Steak and Penne Stir-Fry
Serves 2-3
8/10

1 lb. top-sirloin steak, sliced and cut into pieces about the size of a postage stamp
3 TBS soy sauce
2 TBS olive oil
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 TBS scallions, chopped
hamburger seasonings

1/2 red pepper, coarsely chopped
1/2 green pepper, coarsely chopped
1/2 onion, coarsely chopped
1 cup broccoli florets
1/2 cup snap peas, trimmed
2 TBS beef broth
2 TBS beef broth plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch, mixed to a paste
2 1/2 cups dry penne
2 TBS olive oil

1) Set a pot of water on to boil for the pasta. Plan to put the pasta in at about the same time you start cooking.
2) Combine steak, soy sauce, oil, garlic, scallions, and seasonings in a bowl or plastic bag. Marinate for at least 15 minutes.
3) Add pasta to boiling water. Set the timer for 3 minutes less than the suggested cooking time.
4) Heat 1 TBS oil in frying pan or wok until hot. Add steak, but discard marinade. Cook over medium to high heat until no longer pink. Remove meat and any remaining liquid from pan. Set aside.
5) Add second TBS oil to pan and heat. Add onions and peppers and cook until tender and the onions begin to brown (turn down the heat if the vegetables are cooking too quickly)
6) When timer goes off, add broccoli florets to the pasta and water for the remaining 3 minutes. When finished, drain pasta and set aside. Add broccoli to pepper/onion mixture.
7) Add steak and snap peas to the pan and toss. Add broth and cornstarch/broth mixture and stir until thickened and heated through.
8) Add pasta to pan and toss to coat.
9) Serve immediately!

Cheesy Sausage and Tortellini Toss

There was a used book sale at our local library branch and I bought two cookbooks! The first one is Cooking for Today: Better Homes and Gardens PASTA which seems to have lots of yummy but simple pasta recipes. This first one we tried was quick and simple because it calls for pre-cooked sausage. The original recipe suggested just dumping the sausage and broccoli in with the tortellini as it finishes cooking, but I chose to sauté the sausage first to get it browned, just because i feel like that give it more flavor (not really sure if it does). I also am not a big fan of swiss cheese, which the original recipe called for, so I used an italian cheeses blend. This came out pretty well, though I would suggest cutting the sausage and broccoli pieces so that they're about the same size as the tortellini. Also, a little salt and pepper goes a long way.

Cheesy Sausage and Tortellini Toss
from Cooking for Today: Better Homes and Gardens PASTA with mods.
Serves 2
8/10

1 1/2 - 2 cups dried tortellini
2 cups broccoli florets (i used frozen)
6 oz. fully cooked smoked Polish sausage, thinly bias-sliced
1/2 TBS butter
1/2 TBS flour
1 teaspoon caraway seed (I didn't have this so I used nutmeg)
1/2 cup milk (add more if the sauce is too thick)
1/2 cup shredded swiss or italian cheeses
1/2 TBS brown mustard

1) In a large pot cook tortellini in salted water, according to package directions, about 10 minutes. Add broccoli (and sausage, if you choose) and return to boiling, about 3 min, or until pasta is tender but slightly firm and broccoli is crisp-tender. Drain, keep warm.
2) Meanwhile, if you are sautéing the sausage instead of boiling, do so in a medium non-stick skillet over med-heat with just a drizzle of olive oil. Cook until sausage is slightly browned. Add to tortellini.
3) In same pan, melt butter. Gradually add flour while stirring until thick and blended. Add caraway or nutmeg and stir. Add milk all at once. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Add cheese and mustard, stirring until cheese melts.
4) Pour sauce over tortellini mixture and toss to coat.

Chicken and Pasta Salad

Also prepared just before leaving for the 4th, I tried this recipe for "Spicy Chicken and Pasta Salad" mostly because I wouldn't need to buy any new ingredients. I had the sour cream from the fajitas, a jalapeño from salsa making, scallions from the dumplings, mayonaise and lemon from my last pasta salad, chicken broth from the penne and ham dish, parsely from just about everything, and vegetables from general salad making.

This was very easy to make and the vegetables were delicious and making them the way this recipe called for, is now my new favorite way to prepare these veggies to go in a pasta dish. The dressing was a bit unexciting and not at all spicy, which I attribute to the lack of a food processor. I also attempted to reduce too little chicken broth. The boy also complained of too much mayo, even though I used less than half of what the recipe called for for the mayo and all of what it called for for sour cream. So in the recipe I'll list what I feel is the appropriate amount of broth, mayo, and sour cream, but feel free to adjust as you see fit. It could also certainly do with a spot of salt and pepper.

This dish was by no means bad, but certainly has room for improvement. A nice light meal that would work just as well chilled as warm. Perhaps letting the flavors mingle in the fridge overnight would enhance the flavor.

Chicken and Pasta Salad
from Prevention's Ultimate Quick & Healthy Cookbook, "Spicy Chicken and Pasta Salad"
Serves 2
6/10

1/2 cup chicken broth (i tried with 1/4 cup and failed)
1 large chicken breast, cut into 1/2 inch strips
8 oz. gemelli pasta
1 cup broccoli florets
1/2 cup carrot sticks (I quartered baby carrots)
1/2 cup snow peas
2 TBS fresh parsley
1 scallion, diced
1/4 - 1/2 fresh jalapeño, cut into chunks (depending on how spicy)
1 TBS mayonaise
2 - 3 TBS sour cream
1 TBS lemon juice

1) Bring a large pot of water to boil over high heat.
2) Bring the chicken broth to boil in a covered medium sauce pan over high heat. Stir in the chicken strips, return to boil, and reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer, turning occasionally, for 3-4 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Transfer chicken to plate and cover loosely with foil. Increase heat to high and boil broth fro 3-5 minutes or until reduced to a syrupy consistency. Remove pan from heat.
3) Add pasta to boiling water and return to boil. Cook 8 - 10 minutes or according to package directions until al dente. About 4 minutes before the pasta is done, add the broccoli and carrots. One minute before the pasta is done, add the snow peas. Cook until veggies are crispt and tender and pasta is done. Drain and cool under cold running water. Drain again. Transfer to large salad bowl.
4) Combine parsley, scallion, jalapeño, mayo, sour cream, lemon juice, and reduced broth to food processor. Process until puréed.
5) Pour dressing over pasta and veggies, add chicken, and toss to combine.

Asian Dinner Part II: Beef and Broccoli

I recently bought The New Best Recipes cookbook and have eagerly been perusing it for the past few weeks. I tried their recipes for Macaroni and Cheese as well as their Red Salsa with great success. So when I discovered their fairly basic recipe for beef and broccoli, I was inspired to try it. I was worried about the dominance of "oyster sauce," not being a huge seafood fan, but I think it was what made the dish taste so good. The boy commented that it was "not as sweet" as the typical Chinese restaurant dish, but it was still quite delicious.

The key here is to make sure you have everything prepped and ready to go when it comes time to start the actual cooking process. It makes life so much easier. If you are making this in conjuction with dumplings as I did, put the dumplings in to poach right around the time you start to make the beef broccoli. That way they should be done around the same time, or you could serve up the steaming dumplings to hungry guests while you put the finishing touches on the main course.

Beef and Broccoli
from The New Best Recipe
Serves 2
9/10

1/2 lb flank steak, sliced across the grain into thin 1 inch pieces
2 TBS soy sauce

1/2 TBS dry sherry
1 TBS chicken broth
3 TBS oyster sauce
1/2 TBS brown sugar
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp cornstarch
3 medium cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
1/2 TBS minced ginger
1 1/2 TBS vegetable or peanut oil
1/2 lb broccoli florets
2 TBS water
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1 med scallion, chopped

1) Combine beef and soy sauce in bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refridgerate for at least 10 minutes or up to an hour, stirring once.
2) Whisk together sherry, chicken broth, oyster sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, and cornstarch in a measuring cup. Set aside.
3) Combine garlic, ginger, and 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil in a small bowl. Set aside.
4) Drain beef and discard liquid. Heat 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil in a non-stick skillet over high heat until smoking. Add beef to skillet and break up clumps. Cook without stirring for one minute, then stir and cook until beef is browned. (If doubling the meat, cook in batches). Transfer beef to a bowl and set aside.
5) Add 1/2 TBS oil until just smoking. Add broccoli and cook for 30 seconds. Add water and cover, lowering heat to medium. Steam until tender, about 2 minutes. Transfer to paper towel lined plate.
6) Add remaining oil (~1 teaspoon) to skillet. Increase heat to high and heat until just smoking. Add bell pepper and cook, stirring frequently until browning, about 2 minutes.
7) Clear the center of the skillet, add the garlic and ginger mixture to the clearing and cook, mashing the misture with a spoon, until fragrant, abotu 15 - 20 seconds, then stir the mixture into the peppers. Return the beef and broccoli to the skillet and toss to combine. Whisk the sauce to recombine, then add to skillet. Cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce is thickened and evenly distributed, about 1 minute. Transfer to serving platter, sprinkle with scallions, and serve.