Category: Pasta

Baked Stuffed Chicken Parmesan

Chicken, Pasta

Hey friends! Thanks for sticking with me! This has been a very challenging start to the new school year. Lots of adjustments… two different times for cheer (elementary and middle school have different practice times), hubby has a newish job as a pilot where he is out of town a lot more, lots of new work challenges for me, etc… So not a whole lot of creative cooking, which I miss, but it is just where I am right now. Tonight everyone was going to be home, so I wanted to cook something I knew everyone would like, but maybe a twist on it… so I decided to make a kind of chicken pasta, which is always a hit.

At first I spied some ham and Swiss cheese, so I thought maybe a chicken cordon blue chicken bake (another idea for another time), but I didn’t have what I needed to make a cream sauce. But I did have marinara sauce, mozzarella, bread crumbs

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So I decided to do a Parmesan Chicken Roll-Up…

Baked Stuff Chicken Parmesan

Ingredients

4 chicken breasts, pounded out very thin
1 large bag of mozzarella cheese or fresh mozzarella
1 jar of your favorite sauce
1 pound of pasta
1 cup Italian Bread Crumbs

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350.

Pound out your chicken breasts with a mallet or pan. I place them on a plastic cutting board and cover them with plastic wrap. I find that this is a great stress relief activity. Salt and pepper all sides.

In the center of all the chicken, place your marinara and cheese. Then roll and cover with a bit of Italian bread crumbs. Then cover with more marinara and top with cheese. img_2843

Cook for about 40 minutes. Cook pasta and warm up the rest of marinara sauce. Combine and top with more Parmesan cheese. Serve with some hot buttered Italian loaf, and your family might forget that you ever left the kitchen!

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Chicken and Veggie Pesto Pasta

Chicken, Farmer's Market Finds, Pasta

Happy Sunday, ya’ll! Going to be a crazy week filled with practices and curriculum night for Becca’s school and my school! Made this yummy pasta for lunches and fast dinners this week. Super easy…I cooked pasta, sauteed some chicken breasts cut in thin strips and veggies (zucchini, yellow squash, and sweet peppers) from the farmers. market, and mixed in a few tablespoons of farmers’ market  pesto at the end. Delish!

Sweet Pepper and Heirloom Tomato Pasta

Pasta, Vegetarian

Hey guys! The second week of school is off to a pretty ok start 😉 Getting back in to a routine is a blessing and a curse. Miss my summer, but I am loving my new students and the girls love their teachers. The girls are also back in cheer, which means cheer practice 3 nights a week at different times and games every Saturday at different times and sometimes different parks.

Phew! A lot of times we just end up eating some sort of breakfast for dinner but occasionally I do make/semi-home make dinner. Tonight I stopped by the store and picked up a rotisserie chicken, some Hawaiian Bread, and a bagged Caesar salad. I roasted some potatoes in the oven while Katie was at practice in time to feed Becca before she went to practice. #rotisseriechickenforthewin

Last night, I wanted PASTA! I had some cherry tomatoes and baby sweet peppers from the farmers’ market I needed to use, so I sauteed them up with some finely minced garlic. Then I added a jar of marinara with some shriveled basil I found in my fridge. I added this all to some cooked Cavatappi and added a ton of Parmesan cheese. YUM!

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Tofu Peanut Noodles

Asian, Dips, Dressings, and Spreads, Pasta, Vegetarian

This is one of my favorite noodle dishes in the summer. For when you feel like eating pasta, but you are tired of regular pasta salad.

Tofu Peanut Noodles

Ingredients
1 package of your favorite Asian Noodle or 1/2 package of Linguine- any long thick noodle will do
3 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp peanut butter
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp of ginger paste or 1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
1 package cooked tofu or you could make yours…
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Directions

Cook the noodles according to the package directions. Normally I don’t drain my noodles, but if I am using Asian noodles of some sort, I always do.

Combine the sesame oil, peanut butter, honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic, and ginger together in a large bowl. Whisk until well combined. The peanut butter should completely break down to create a smooth sauce. I have never tried crunchy peanut butter, but I think it would probably add more of a crunch.

Add the noodles to the bowl with the sauce until evening combined. Cool in fridge. Top with the Tofu (you could warm the tofu up if you like, but I like it cold. I would not mix the tofu, because it will break apart, but this is purely for looks. I mix mine after I serve myself some =)

Instead of tofu, you could add some chicken or just have the noodles plain. For a little heat, you can add in your favorite hot sauce! Top with some sesame seeds,scallions, or more peanuts if you have them!

Except for the honey, it is vegan. You could replace the honey with agave.

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Gluten Free Red Lentil Greek Pasta Salad

gluten free, Pasta

I’m going to be honest and say that I don’t really like most gluten free pastas. I am not gluten free in any way shape or form, but I do like to try new foods and experiment. I saw red lentil pasta in a gluten free pasta recipe on a show once, so I thought I would hunt some down. I found this brand, and I  really liked it!img_1884

I cooked according to the package and let it cook a bit. Then I added a package of feta, 1 cucumber chopped, a carton full of cherry tomatoes cut in half, and a can of black olives sliced in half.  It is really great, but I am partial to anything with feta cheese in it 😉 Happy 4th of July!img_1885-1