pasta – Page 3 – Fun Foodie Family

Creamy Chicken and Bacon Bake

Evening, folks! So tonight is the last night of freedom. School starts tomorrow and I will be pulled in lots of directions; mom, teacher, chauffeur, etc. It will be great, and I will be a little glad to be back in the routine of it all, but I will always mourn summer’s ending.

Tonight, I made this yummy dinner for my family. Everyone loved it! Lots of leftovers for the week. I hope you will give it a try!

Creamy Chicken and Bacon Bake

Ingredients
1 package of pasta- I used Rotini
About 2 cups Alfredo sauce- homemade or jarred- I used a combo of each- After I mixed everything together, I found it a little dry, so I eyeballed some extra parm and heavy cream plus a bit of pasta water.
2 chicken breasts- You could also use leftover or rotisserie here to save time.
5 strips of cooked bacon, chopped
6 slices or 2 cups shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup Italian breadcrumbs
1/4 stick cubed butter

Directions

Boil pasta water with plenty of salt. Cook pasta a little under, about 8 minutes.
Cut up your chicken in bite sized pieces and brown in a pan. Add in sauce and chopped bacon.
Stir in cooked pasta to Alfredo mixture.
Spray casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray.
Add everything in the casserole dish.
Add cheese, then breadcrumbs, then cubed butter on top of your pasta mixture. Bake at 350 until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

One Pot Wonder… Chili-Mac

Beef, One pot meal, Pasta

Evening fellow food bloggers and lurkers! Today was my first day back at school. I drug my heels all the way, but I guess I am ready to get back in to this thing called a crazy school year! It is our preplanning week, so today was rich and heavy in information. The rest of the week will be filled with meetings and getting prepared for my precious babies that will be arriving next week!!! I saw some of their sweet little 10 year old faces and I think I might have shed a tear or two; they are too cute!

Speaking of cute, have you ever witnessed a large room full of cheerleaders? Like a huge high school cafeteria full of K-12 cheerleaders all together in one place? Probably one of the happiest places on Earth. I have these two cuties starting practice this week. Last week was camp and they were just so precious I almost couldn’t stand it.

So I got off work, picked up the girls, and got Becca ready, (she has practice 3 times a week and Katie has it twice), and I dropped her off at cheer practice. While she was there, I relaxed a bit, then cooked dinner. The hubby picked her up while I finished up cooking dinner. Here is what I made.

Chili Mac

Ingredients

1 pound macaroni noodles
1 pound ground beef (chicken, turkey, or even black beans or soy crumbles if you want to go veggie)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 28 oz. can of diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon cumin
1/2 tablespoon of onion powder, garlic powder, and chili powder
red chili flakes to taste
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups of water
3/4 cup of heavy cream

Directions

Brown your meat. Add in spices.
Add in tomato paste. Cook down for about 3 minutes. Add in canned tomatoes. Mix well.
Add in pasta and water. Cook about 8 minutes. Stir pasta at the 4 minute mark. If it looks thick, add in a bit more water. Stir well. After 4 more minutes, check pasta. It should still have a bite to it. Add in your cream and cook until done.

Popsicles for dessert!

Tomato Garlic Linguine with Mozzarella and Chicken

Chicken, Pasta

Evening folks! Hope everyone is having a great start to this holiday weekend! Lots of fun today and tonight! We all woke up late and hit Waffle House for some breakfast. The girls always share an All Star; a waffle, scrambled eggs with grits and raisin toast, half sausage (for Katie) and half bacon (for Becca). The hubby always gets an All Star with hash browns and white toast buttered.

I myself change it up…BLT, egg and cheese biscuit, cheesy eggs with raisin toast and bacon, etc…. Today I got the ham and cheese melt with hash browns. Awesome! The ladies always take good care of us. We hadn’t been in a while after Lizzie passed, and when we finally went, they asked about her right away. These silly girls love them some Waffle House!

This afternoon Poopaw and Phee (our North Carolina grandparents) came in to town for a visit. The girls and Brutus always go crazy when they get here. They stayed with the girls while the hubby and I hit the grocery store for essentials for the week.

First up, dinner for tonight…So good. Everyone had seconds. The only complaint I got was from Becca who hates tomatoes (except for tomato sauce, pizza sauce, and ketchup). I made her eat one and you think I would have made her eat a rotten tomato. These little beauties came from my garden and they are super sweet!

Tomato Garlic Linguine with Mozzarella and Chicken

Ingredients

1 onion or 2 shallots, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pint cherry tomatoes or if you are lucky, a couple handfuls from a garden or farmer’s market
3-4 chicken breasts
1 handful fresh basil
1 tablespoon of salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning
1/3 cup white wine or chicken stock
Fresh Mozzarella cut in to cubes
1/2 cup of Parmesan (or more!)
Olive Oil- about a cup in all, but I eyeballed it all along the way.
1 lb Linguine- I ❤ Barilla!

Directions

Cut your chicken breasts in half. Add the salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning over all your chicken. Cook in a large cast iron pan until each side is brown and the middle is mostly cooked through, about 4 minutes on each side. Take out of pan. Slice or cut in to bite sized pieces.

Meanwhile, boil a pot of salted water for your pasta. Drop pasta and cook a minute under the time suggested.

Cook your onions, garlic and tomatoes on med heat in a few tablespoons of olive oil, 8 minutes. Mix well. Cover for the last 4 minutes to help tomatoes to burst.
Add in your wine or stock and reduce down with the veggies for about 3 minutes.

Add in your pasta, a cup of the starchy cooking water, another glug of olive oil, and your chicken. Mix well. Serve with some garlic bread. Homemade is easy, but Cole’s brand is easier!

Have a great holiday weekend! New chicken wing recipe tomorrow plus fireworks. Sunday we are having a cookout with friends =) So happy to celebrate our Freedom! It has been an amazing month for our country! ❤

Cannelloni Beans and Veggie Lasagna

Pasta, Vegetarian

Happy Saturday! Yesterday I did this…

Today was amazing! The girls had an awesome birthday party at a horse stable.

For dinner, I told the girls they could have breakfast for dinner. That ended up being cheesy scrambled eggs and frozen waffles. I made this for me and my friend who came over last minute. I used random ingredients in my fridge, pantry, and garden. I hope you always have some random ingredients to make a magic dinner! =)

Cannelloni Bean and Veggie Lasagna

Ingredients
2 carrots – sliced
1 small onion – chopped
2 Garlic cloves – minced
1 handful of cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
1 pepper; 1/2 red, 1/2 yellow pepper, chopped
1 can chopped green chilies
1 small can diced tomatoes
1 can crushed tomatoes
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1-2 squash, sliced
1 handful of fresh herbs, sliced sage, basil, marjoram, oregano
1 small can Cannelloni beans- rinsed and drained
9 No-boil lasagna noodles
1 small package mozzarella cheese

Directions

Add all veggies (except squash)in a large pan and cook down for about 5 minutes. Add in your tomato paste. Mix well and let cook for about 3 more minutes.
Add diced and crushed tomatoes. Mix well.
Add herbs and salt and pepper to taste.
Layer sauce, sliced squash, pasta, and cheese to pan
Cook at 350 for 20 minutes until cheese is brown and bubbly…

Clean Out the Fridge- Veggie Pasta

Leftovers/ Freezer Meals, Pasta, Side dishes...veggies, Vegetarian

Evening guys! Hope everyone is having a spectacular week! 8 more days of school!!!! Monday night I made pasta with some leftover sausage and mushrooms and a random jar of marinara I spied in the cabinet. Something kind of like this, except with jarred sauce…https://funfoodiefamily.com/2013/09/30/spaghetti-with-mushroom-and-meat-sauce/
I have to say that whole wheat pasta is slowly becoming a family favorite. No one really notices the difference! I can eat just enough to fill me up and still feel great all during my yoga class.

Tonight the hubby made some fish sticks and fries. I had him time it so they would be ready when I got home from my Zumba class. There were not very many fish sticks, so I heated up a couple of veggie burgers in a pan while I cooked the Steam-fresh frozen corn. The girls gobbled up their dinner. Success!

As I was cleaning the kitchen, I decided to make something for lunch using some things in the fridge; leftover spaghetti, sliced mushrooms, an onion, a bag of snow peas, leftover corn, sun-dried tomatoes, and some pine nuts.

So I cooked the mushrooms and onions for about 10 minutes. Then I added the snow peas and corn.

Then I added the pasta and mixed it up with the sun dried tomatoes, and pine nuts. I topped with grated Parmesan cheese. Delish!

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