Penne with Chicken and Ham Sauce

I haven't used this cookbook in ages because, while it has some great recipes, alot of them seem kind of labor intensive or require tricky ingredients. But this recipe seemed pretty simple. The only hold up was finding "crème fraîche." Time for a quick cooking lesson, with some help from wikipedia:

"Crème fraîche [IPA: krɛm frɛʃ] (French for "fresh cream") is a heavy cream slightly soured with bacterial culture, but not as sour or as thick as sour cream. Originally a French product, today it is available throughout Europe (and in speciality stores in the States, such as Trader Joes where I eventually found it, pictured above).

"Crème fraîche is made by inoculating unpasteurized heavy cream with Lactobacillus cultures, letting the bacteria grow until the cream is both soured and thick and then pasteurizing it to stop the process.Thus, it cannot be made at home with pasteurized cream—the lack of bacteria in the cream will cause it to spoil instead of sour. If unpasteurized heavy cream is not available, a substitute for crème fraîche can be produced by adding 1–2 tablespoon of cultured buttermilk to two cups of pasteurized (not ultra-pasteurized) heavy cream and letting the mixture stand at room temperature for 8 - 24 hours until thick. (time which I totally did not have and didn't want to even begin to attempt)

"In general, crème fraîche and sour cream can be used interchangeably in most recipes, but crème fraîche has two advantages over sour cream: it can be whipped, and it will not curdle if boiled. (since this recipe calls for you to bring the sauce to a boil AND I had never made it before AND the idea of curdled anything really grosses me out, I decided to just hunt down some crème fraîche myself)"

So, this dish, crème fraîche and all, was actually pretty easy and delicious. I used smoked gouda because I like it and it was cheaper, and it added a really great flavor to the dish (though I'm sure regular gouda would be delicious as well). The sauce is kind of strong, so make sure you have enough pasta to spread it out. I prepared the chicken myself before putting the whole thing together, but you can use pre-cooked chicken easily. I used canadian bacon again (personal preference) and added some peas at the end. This got a big thumbs up from the boy. We had it with thick slices of Garlic Basil Parmesan Bread from the farmers market.

Penne with Chicken and Ham Sauce
from Best-Ever Chicken ed. by Linda Fraser, with mods.
Serves 2-3
9/10

1 cup cooked chicken OR 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast--cubed small, garlic salt, and 1 TBS oil

2 cups penne
1 TBS butter
1/2 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 bay leaf (I used some dried chopped bay leaf)
1 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup crème fraîche
1/3 cup cooked ham or canadian bacon
1/2 cup frozen peas, defrosted
3/4 cup grated (smoked) Gouda cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried mint (original recipe: 1/2 TBS fresh mint)
salt & pepper to taste

1) Cook pasta according to package directions (if you start the water boiling just as you begin cooking it should all be ready together).
2) If cooking chicken, heat oil in skillet and, when hot, add chicken and garlic salt and sauté. Add canadian bacon once the chicken loses it's raw color. Cook until browned, drain, and set aside.
3) Heat butter in skillet and fry onion until softened.
4) Add the garlic, bay leaf, and wine and bring to boil. Boil rapidly until reduced by half. Remove bay leaf, then stir in crème fraîche and bring back to boil.
5) Add chicken, ham, and cheese and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until heated through. Add peas towards the end and mix.
6) Add the mint and seasoning. Drain pasta and toss in large serving bowl with sauce.

Pasta with Sweet Peppers and Canadian Bacon

So first of all, last night we tested out the grill with some pork chops and a very basic marinade. Paired with steamed fresh snap and snow peas and some leftover pasta salad, it was delish. I now want to grill all the time, but I'm not sure if I can persuade the boy. We will have to see. I'm totally willing to do the grilling, but I'm not sure if his man-pride will allow it. We shall see.

But back to the real story. Tonight's dinner was a re-attempt at a recipe that I had marked "Good" for it's general flavor, but was rather unexciting: "Pasta with Sweet Peppers and Ham." I love pasta and peppers and, while not a big ham eater, was willing to take the plunge, esp. since the fiancé likes ham. But the original attempt was rather bland. I am now able to attribute that to, of all things, the ham that I used. I originally bought "Diced ham in water" which sounded about as close as I could get to "boiled ham, diced" without going out and buying a ham steak, boiling it, and actually dicing it up myself. Needless to say, the ham was pretty blah so it did nothing to enhance the flavor of the dish, leaving it sorely lacking. This time, a fortuitous lack of "Diced ham in water" at my ever stockless local grocery, caused me to purchase canadian bacon as a subsitute. I thought that it might spice up the flavor, while still being of the same general consistency and, at least, animal.

I think it was what really made the dish (that and me going a little crazy on the red pepper and adding a dash of garlic salt). The bacon brought a nice smokiness to the dish that made me wish for more by the end. The peppers and onions added a delicious sweetness that paired very nicely with the saltiness of the pork. The red pepper flakes gave it that extra kick. Next time I think I'll cut back a little on the pepper, but definitely go for the canadian bacon again. Though I'm sure good leftover ham steak would work as well. Just go for the good stuff.

This is really quick and easy--you can prepare the sauce in the same time that it takes for the pasta to cook so it's all done together. Huzzah!

Pasta with Sweet Peppers and Canadian Bacon
from Prevention's Ultimate Quick & Healthy Cookbook (with obvious modifications)
Serves 2
8/10

1 tsp olive oil
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
a dash of garlic salt!
3 oz canadian bacon (or other good ham), diced
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/2 lb penne pasta
1 oz parmesan cheese
2 TBS chopped fresh parsley
black pepper (to taste)

1) Bring a pot of water to boil for the pasta. Cook according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1/4 cup cooking liquid, drain pasta, and place in serving bowl.
2) Meanwhile in a medium sauce pan, warm oil until very hot but not smoking. Add bell pepper, onions, garlic, oregano, garlic salt, and red pepper flakes. Sauté, stirring, for 2 -3 minutes or until the vegetables begin to soften and relase their juices. Add canadian bacon and sauté until the bacon begins to brown. Add 2 tablespoons of broth and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally for 8 - 9 minutes, or until vegetables are very tender (I found this took a little longer). If the pan gets too dry, add another tablespoon of broth.
3) Add remaining broth and reserved liquid to the mixture. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil and simmer for 3 minutes, until liquid is reduced slightly.
4) Pour sauce over pasta. Add parmesan, parsley, and black pepper. Toss to coat well and serve!