Garlic Chicken Pasta With Spinach

I tried the most fabulous dish last night. I think you'll love it. It really is a 'healthy' and delicious pasta. It is Jen Dyer's recipe which was in the Dyer Cookbook. It is best eaten immediately....not nearly as tasty reheated. I hope you'll like it. Next time I make it, I'll take a pic. It was so pretty with the bright green spinach.

Garlic Chicken Pasta with Spinach

6 garlic cloves, minced salt and pepper to taste

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes (this doesn't make it spicy just right amount of flavor)
1 lb. penne pasta (try whole wheat)

1 (5 oz.) bag baby spinach

1/4 C chopped fresh basil or 1 T. dried

6 Tbsp olive oil
6 Tbsp juice from 2 lemons

2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 C grated Parmesan cheese (about 1 lb.)

Bring 4 quarts water to a boil in a large pot. Meanwhile, combine garlic, pepper flakes and oil in a small microwave-safe bowl and microwave until garlic is golden and fragrant, about 1 minute. Pat chicken dry with paper towel and cut into bite-size pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer 1 tablespoon of the garlic/red pepper oil to a large skillet and heat over medium heat until oil is rippling. Add chicken and cook until well browned and cooked through. Transfer to a plate and tent with foil. Add 1 tablespoon salt and the pasta to boiling water and cook until tender but still slightly firm. Reserve 1/2 cup cooking water. Drain pasta and return to the pot. Stir in chicken, spinach, basil, lemon juice, Parmesan, and remaining garlic mixture, adding reserved pasta water (I did not add any) as needed. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Hope you enjoy! Let me know how you like it.

Yummy Raspberry Yogurt Pie

I know yogurt pie is a family favorite. I found this recipe and it is so good! Hope you enjoy!

Raspberry Cream Pie

Ingredients

• 25 whole Oreo Chocolate Sandwich Cookies
• 4 Tablespoons Butter, Melted
• 1 cup (generous) Raspberries
• 3 Tablespoons Sugar
• 2 containers (6 Ounce Each) Raspberry Yogurt
• 1 package (3.4 Ounch) Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix
• 1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
• Extra Raspberries For Garnish

Preparation Instructions

To make the crust, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Crust cookies in a food processor (or smash in a Ziploc bag with a rolling pin). Stir in melted butter until all combined. Pour into a regular pie pan and press crumbs all over the pan and up the sides. Bake for 3 to 4 minutes—just long enough for it to set. Cool crust completely.

Place raspberries on a plate or in an empty pan. Smash them with a fork, then sprinkle on 3 tablespoons of sugar. Stir together and allow to sit for 15 minutes.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine raspberry yogurt with the instant vanilla pudding mix (just the powder itself.) Beat on low until combined, about 1 minute. Pour in heavy cream and whip on low for 30 seconds. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula. Turn mixer on medium-high speed and beat for two minutes, or until mixture is thick.

Turn off mixer, then fold in raspberries until just combined. Pour into cooled pie pan and spread evenly. Freeze for two hours, or until very firm. Cut into slices and top each slice with cookie crumbs, dollops of whipped cream, and extra raspberries. Keep in freezer, allowing time to thaw before serving.

Pasta Al Forno

This is one of Ken's everyone needs to try.

1 lb Italian sausage (optional)
1 onion coarsely chopped
1 stalk celery finely chopped
1 carrot finely chopped
2 mushrooms finely chopped
3-5 cloves garlic minced
28 oz. crushed tomatoes
1 pt heavy cream
1 lb rigatoni pasta
mozzarella cheese
fresh or dried basil or other herbs

Brown sausage. Remove sausage, leaving pan drippings. (add some olive oil if you choose not to use sausage). Add carrots, celery, and mushrooms to pan and "sweat" cook for several minutes until tender. Add onion and garlic and saute for several minutes.

Add can of tomatoes, with salt, pepper, and basil to taste. Add sausage back in. Simmer about 20 min.

Cook pasta al dente. In large baking dish, put a tiny bit of sauce on bottom. Layer pasta, cream, cheese, then sauce. Add more cheese on top. Cover and bake 45 minutes at 350. Uncover and bake until cheese is bubbly. Add Parmesan at table.

ps...I like to add more veggies because it helps the sauce to stretch a bit further. I do more carrots and celery, but any kind of veggies would be yummy. Enjoy!!

Blender Pancakes

My new favorite pancake recipe! We just had an enrichment on cooking with food storage and it was so good. (Let me know if anyone is interested in a good wheat berry recipe or black bean brownies!) This is a great way to use some of that wheat we've been storing. Great flavor and healthy!

1 cup wheat kernels
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1 T honey
1/4 tsp salt
2 T baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup oil (or applesauce)

Place wheat and milk in a blender. Blend at high speed for one minute. Then add rest of the ingredients. Blend until thick. Cook on a hot griddle and enjoy!

Kendra's Hearth Bread

For those of you who haven't tried this yet...you've been missing out. This goes so well with a lot of things and it's easy to make.

1 T yeast
1 T sugar
1 T salt
1 1/2 T Herbs de Province
1/2 tsp pepper
3-5 cups flour
2 cups warm water
2 T olive oil

Add yeast, sugar, and water to activate. Add 2 cups flour, salt, pepper, herbs, and oil. Mix. Add flour till pulls away from bowl. Place in greased bowl till double in size. Cut in half & let loaves rise till double again. Cook on pizza stone or cookie sheet. Before baking baste loaves with olive oil and sprinkle tops with kosher salt. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Chickpea (Garbonzo) Pasta with Almonds and Parmesan

Hey Girls, now that the dread is over and winter has passed, let's get this going again!

I love this recipe. It's really light and easy. It's just as good warmed up the next day. I'll give you the exact recipe, then in parenthesis I'll tell you what I do.

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
3 cloves garlic (I only use 2)
7 cups chicken broth (I only use 5, but I sometimes don't use as much pasta)
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (I skip these for Hai's sake)
Kosher salt (pinch)
1 lbs. angel hair pasta
1 15 oz can chickpeas (garbanzos), drained, rinsed
1 cup flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup chopped almonds (I just use whatever I have)
1/2 cup grated parmesan

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 min. Add the broth, red pepper and salt - bring to a boil. Add pasta and cook, stirring, until the broth is nearly absorbed and the pasta is al dente - about 6 mins. Stir in chickpeas and parsley. Divide among individual plates and top with almonds and parmesan.

Parmesean Pork

So I absolutely love this recipe! It is so easy and very tasty... hope Jer doesn't get too tired of it!

2 lb Pork Loin Roast cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
3/4 cup Bread Crumbs
Salt, Pepper, Garlic Salt, and Parsley to season
2 Egg Whites
2 teaspoons water
1/3 Cup Flour
Olive oil

Have your butcher counter cut the pork for you... it saves time and they are completely willing to do it. Mix Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs in a shallow bowl. Add spices to crumb mixture. In another shallow bowl beat egg whites with water. In 3rd shallow bowl place flour. Heat skillet with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil (just enough to coat bottom of pan for frying). Coat pork pieces in flour, then dip in egg mixture, and finally coat with crumbs pressing them into the pork. Cook in skillet for about 2 minutes on each side. The pieces are very thin and cook quickly. Lay cooked pork pieces on a paper towel to soak up any additional oil. You can put them in a warm oven to keep until you are finished cooking the pork and ready to serve. I usually serve some angel hair pasta and marinara sauce along side this. ENJOY!