Pasta

Ingredients
1 pound penne pasta
3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon cumin
¹⁄₂ teaspoon coriander
2 tablespoons flour
2 ²⁄₃ cups milk
2 teaspoons salt
8 ounces cream cheese
12 ounces shredded cheese (Cheddar, Mexican blend, Colby, jack, or some mixture.)
1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes, drained

Instructions
1. Heat oven to 350*F and spray 9- by 12-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. 

2. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook pasta 2 minutes less than package directs.  Drain well and place in large bowl. 

3. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in large skillet over medium heat and cook chicken cubes, stirring occasionally, until cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes.  Add chicken to bowl with pasta. 

4. Heat remaining oil in now-empty skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and garlic.  Cook until onion begins to soften, about 3 minutes.  Add cumin, coriander, and salt.  Cook until spices become fragrant, about 2 minutes. 

5. Add flour and cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.  Gradually add milk and stir until smooth.  Increase heat to medium-high and simmer until thickened.  Turn off heat and add cream cheese and 8 ounces of shredded cheese, stirring until melted.  Stir in Ro-Tel tomatoes. 

6. Add cheese mixture to bowl with pasta and chicken.  Stir well until fully incorporated then pour into baking dish.  Top with remaining shredded cheese and bake 20 to 30 minutes or until sauce is bubbly and cheese has melted.  Let stand 5 minutes before serving. 

Comments
When I saw this recipe on the blog Evil Shenanigans, I knew that I needed to make it when Art was home. He loves chicken, pasta, and queso, so this would be a clear winner.  Art did, indeed, love the dish!  So did Lance and I!  Everything came together quickly which would make this an easy meal for a busy weeknight or a night when I’m not feeling too thrilled with cooking.  I modified the recipe a bit to take into account that I greatly dislike using partial containers of ingredients.  I believe that the only change I might make next time is to use green onions instead of yellow onions, and maybe to reduce the cooking time in the beginning of step 4 so that the green onions would retain more of their rawness.  I will definitely be making this again in the future.

Internet - Evil Shenanigans

Ingredients
For the Ragù
³⁄₄ cup olive oil
1 ¹⁄₂ pounds ground goat meat
¹⁄₂ cup carrot, finely diced
¹⁄₂ cup onion, finely diced
¹⁄₂ cup celery, finely diced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 ¹⁄₂ cups red wine
1 cup tomatoes, chopped (I used fresh since I had them, canned is also fine.)
3 cups chicken broth or water
2 bay leaves
¹⁄₄ teaspoon red pepper flakes
¹⁄₂ teaspoon ground cumin
¹⁄₂ teaspoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves, chopped
¹⁄₂ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₄ teaspoon coarsely ground pepper

For assembly
1 pound spaghetti, orecchiette or other pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
¹⁄₄ cup chopped mint (I couldn’t get fresh mint, so I omitted it.)
¹⁄₄ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions
1. For the ragù: Place a large Dutch oven or skillet over medium-high heat. Heat oil and add goat, stirring to break it up. Raise heat to high and cook until browned, about 5 minutes. Spoon off excess liquid. Add carrot, onion and celery, stirring for about 2 minutes. 

2. Add tomato paste and stir until blended, about 1 minute. Add wine and stir, scraping bottom of pan, until completely evaporated, about 2 to 5 minutes; adjust heat as necessary to prevent burning. Add tomatoes, chicken broth or water, bay leaves, red pepper flakes, cumin, coriander, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper.

3. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer uncovered until most of the liquid evaporates, about 1 ¹⁄₂ hours, scraping down sides of pot as necessary to avoid burning. Meat will turn dark brown and liquid dark orange.

4. For assembly: Cook pasta as desired, drain and add to sauce. Stir over medium-low heat, adding olive oil, butter and mint. Top with cheese and serve. 

Comments
A friend of mine suggested I use the ground goat meat I bought some weeks ago for a ragout.  While trying to find a recipe for ragout, which is a main-dish stew, I ended up finding this recipe for ragù which is a sauce typically used to dress pasta.  And now you know the difference between these two words!  I certainly didn’t. 

We all thought this was tasty; Art even had seconds which is always a good sign of the success of a dish.  We also came to the conclusion that we don’t really see the need to add goat to our regular diet.  While the flavor of goat is certainly enjoyable, we prefer the other meats we’ve had.  I’m sure we’ll still enjoy having goat meat once in a while for variety, but not as a staple meat. 

In step 1 I wish that I had drained the meat through a sieve instead of just spooning off the fat, so consider taking this additional step if you make the dish. I would have liked the end result to have been a bit less fatty.

Internet - NY Times

Ingredients
16 ounces chicken broth
Salt, to taste
1 pound orzo pasta
¹⁄₂ cup half and half
¹⁄₄ cup olive oil
¹⁄₂ pound feta cheese, crumbled
1 tablespoon fresh dill, chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried dill
Pepper, to taste
¹⁄₃ cup kasseri or Romano cheese, grated (I always use Romano since I can never find kasseri.)

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350*F. 

2. Pour broth and an equal amount of water into a large pot.  Add salt and bring to boil.  Stir in orzo and boil until just tender.  Drain well and return to pot.  Mix in half and half, oil, feta, and dill. Season with salt and pepper.  Transfer mixture to 2-quart baking dish. 

3. Top with kasseri cheese.  Bake until heated through, about 40 minutes. 

Note: This can be prepared through step 2 up to a day in advance and kept in refrigerator.  Allow to come to room temperature before proceeding with step 3. 

Comments
When I first made lamb many years ago, I made this dish to go along with it.  It’s sort of like adult macaroni and cheese and I’ve loved it ever since.  In fact, this was probably one of the first (recipes I ever made from epicurious.com.  This time I used sheep feta from the West Chester Growers Market, but I’ve used regular feta every previous time and it’s delicious.  The only thing I might ever change would be an increase in the feta content. 

Shown here with Grilled Marinated Leg of Lamb.

Internet - Epicurious

Ingredients
1 pound elbow macaroni
4 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
¹⁄₄ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¹⁄₄ teaspoon paprika
¹⁄₄ teaspoon dry mustard
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups milk (I used 1%.)
2 cups shredded cheese (I used a mixture of sharp cheddar, Mexican blend, and mozzarella since that’s what I had.)

Instructions
1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat and cook pasta as directed on package.  Drain.  Mix the flour, salt, pepper, paprika and dry mustard in a small bowl. 

2. In a large saucepan over low heat, melt butter.  Once butter has melted, add the flour mixture and stir to combine.  Continue stirring and slowly add the milk.  Increase the heat to medium and simmer, stirring often, to thicken the sauce.  Once thickened, remove from heat and add the cheese.  Stir until cheese has melted.  Add the pasta to the sauce and stir to coat. 

Comments
Stovetop macaroni and cheese is just about the easiest thing to make.  I’m not sure why it took seeing the recipe on the Amanda’s Cooking blog to inspire me to make it!   The recipe is your basic Béchamel with cheese – a Mornay sauce.  You can use any cheese you’d like and have around. 

I’ve been fighting the urge to get a box of the Kraft stuff every time I’ve gone to the store in the last 6-7 weeks.  This is infinitely better and my macaroni and cheese craving has now been sated.

Internet - Amandas Cookin

Ingredients
¹⁄₄ cup slivered almonds
12 ounces cherry or grape tomatoes
¹⁄₂ cup fresh basil leaves
1 clove garlic
¹⁄₂ teaspoon red wine vinegar
¹⁄₄ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Table salt
¹⁄₃ cup olive oil
1 pound pasta (linguine or spaghetti)
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated or shredded

Instructions
1. Toast almonds in small skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until pale golden and fragrant, 2 to 4 minutes. Cool almonds to room temperature.

2. Process cooled almonds, tomatoes, basil, garlic, vinegar, red pepper flakes, and 1 teaspoon salt in food processor until smooth, about 1 minute. Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula.   While processor is running, slowly drizzle in oil.

3. Meanwhile, bring large pot of water to boil. Add pasta and 1 tablespoon salt and cook until al dente. Reserve ¹⁄₂ cup cooking water; drain pasta and transfer back to cooking pot.

4. Add pesto and ¹⁄₂ cup Parmesan to cooked pasta, adjusting consistency with reserved pasta cooking water so that pesto coats pasta. Serve immediately, passing extra Parmesan at the table. 

Comments
This recipe, from the 2009 Cook’s Illustrated Annual, caught my eye because I’m always interested in experimenting with pesto.  In some ways, the dish reminded me of Pasta Caprese because of the tomatoes and basil, but the other flavors helped to differentiate this dish from that one.  (Of course, it did make me long for summer tomatoes.)  After surviving the first bite, Lance polished off two helpings, so I’d say it gets his vote as well!  I will turn to this recipe in the future when I’m looking for lightly sauced, and extremely flavorful, pasta.  And I’m sure you could use pretty much any pasta shape you wanted to use.

Cook’s Illustrated 2009

Ingredients
1 pound farfalle pasta
2 heads broccoli, trimmed to florets
¹⁄₄ cup olive oil
4 tablespoons butter
3 cloves garlic, chopped
5 anchovy fillets, diced
¹⁄₄ teaspoon red pepper flakes
¹⁄₂ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₂ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¹⁄₂ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions
1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat.  Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally.  After 5 minutes, add the broccoli to the pasta and cook for another 4 minutes.  Drain pasta and broccoli, reserving 1 cup of pasta water.  Return pasta and broccoli to pot. 

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the olive oil and butter over medium heat.  Add the garlic, anchovies, and red pepper flakes and cook for 5 minutes. Add the sauce, salt and pepper to the broccoli and pasta.  Stir well to coat, adding some of the reserved pasta water if necessary.  Sprinkle with Parmesan before serving. 

Comments
This is another recipe from Giada De Laurentiis.  I used to be leery of cooking with anchovies, but I’m finding that they add a subtle and non-fishy flavor.  The broccoli was nicely done and everything tasted delicious. 

Shown here with Salmon with Lemon, Capers, and Rosemary.

Internet - Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients
1 pound thin spaghetti
Salt
4-8 ounces sliced deli pepperoni, stacked and cut into thin strips
1 onion, chopped
3 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
¹⁄₄ teaspoon red pepper flakes
³⁄₄ cup half and half
¹⁄₂ cup fresh basil, chopped
2 cups Mexican cheese blend, shredded

Instructions
1. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 475*F. Spray casserole dish with cooking spray. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add pasta and 1 tablespoon salt to boiling water and cook until al dente. Drain pasta and return to pot.

2. Meanwhile, cook pepperoni in large skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Add onion and cook until softened. Stir in tomatoes, pepper flakes, and ¹⁄₄ teaspoon salt and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until sauce is thickened and reduced to 4 cups, about 15-20 minutes; cover and keep warm.

3. Transfer 2 cups tomato sauce to pot with hot pasta. Add half and half, basil and cheese and toss to combine. Transfer mixture to prepared casserole dish and press with spatula to flatten surface. Bake until golden brown and bubbling, 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes. Serve, passing remaining sauce at table. 

Comments
The original recipe, which is from the 2009 Cook’s Country Annual, calls for a regular pie plate but there is no way I would have been able to fit all of this into a regular pie plate!  So I used a deep, round casserole dish instead.  This made a delicious, and filling, dinner.  The pepperoni adds fantastic flavor and heat to the sauce and the Mexican cheese blend adds a good depth to the taste.  I used about 6 ounces of pepperoni when I made this and, hindsight ²⁰⁄₂₀, I wish that I had used the entire 8 ounce package.  Next time!

Cook’s Country 2009

Ingredients
1 large (1 ¹⁄₄ to 1 ¹⁄₂ pound) eggplant, cut into ¹⁄₂-inch cubes
Kosher salt
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 anchovy fillets, minced (The ones I bought were rolled around capers, so I minced the capers too.)
¹⁄₄ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 pound ziti, rigatoni, or penne
6 tablespoons fresh basil leaves, chopped
3 ounces ricotta salata, French feta, pecorino romano, or cotija, shredded (I used pecorino romano since it was the only one of those cheese I could find in my store.) 

Instructions
1. Toss eggplant with 1 teaspoon salt in medium bowl. Line surface of large microwave-safe plate with double layer of paper towels and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray. Spread eggplant in even layer over towels; wipe out and reserve bowl. Microwave eggplant on high power, uncovered, until dry to the touch and slightly shriveled, about 10-20 minutes, tossing every 5 minutes to ensure that eggplant cooks evenly. Let cool slightly.

2. Transfer eggplant to now-empty bowl, drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil, and toss gently to coat; discard paper towels and reserve plate. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high until shimmering, but not smoking. Add eggplant and distribute in even layer. Cook, stirring or tossing every 1 ¹⁄₂ to 2 minutes (more frequent stirring may cause eggplant pieces to break apart), until well browned and fully tender, about 10 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and transfer eggplant to now-empty plate and set aside.

3. Add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, garlic, anchovies, and pepper flakes to now-empty but still-hot skillet and cook using residual heat so garlic doesn’t burn, stirring constantly, until fragrant and garlic becomes pale golden, about 1 minute (if skillet is too cool to cook mixture, set it over medium heat). Add tomatoes, return skillet to burner over medium-high heat, and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, 8 to 10 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts of water to boil. Add pasta and 2 tablespoons salt and cook until al dente. Reserve ¹⁄₂ cup cooking water; drain pasta and transfer back to cooking pot.

5. While pasta is cooking, return eggplant to skillet with tomatoes and gently stir to incorporate. Bring to simmer over medium heat and cook, stirring gently occasionally, until eggplant is heated through and flavors are blended, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir basil and 1 tablespoon olive oil into sauce; season to taste with salt. Add sauce to cooked pasta, adjusting consistency with reserved pasta cooking water so that sauce coats pasta. Serve immediately, sprinkled with cheese. 

Comments
This recipe is from the 2009 Cook’s Illustrated Annual and, being a lover of eggplant, it seemed like it would be tasty.  As seen by my naming of this, it wasn’t.  There was an extremely off-putting taste in the dish and I’m fairly certain it was due to the cheese, which I stirred into the dish.  Sadly, I can’t judge the taste of the dish aside from this, because it was so overwhelmingly wrong.  If I do make the recipe again in the future, which I hope I will during market season, I will serve the cheese on the side and see if that yields an improvement.

Cook’s Illustrated 2009

Ingredients
1 pound penne pasta
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into small pieces
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
¹⁄₂ cups white wine
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1 cup half and half
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, minced
2 tablespoons fresh basil, minced
Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions
1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat and cook penne as directed by packaging.  Drain and set aside. 

2. Heat 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add chicken and cook until done, 5-10 minutes.  Remove from skillet and set aside. 

3. Add remaining butter and oil to skillet and melt.  Sauté onion and garlic until onion is soft.  Add wine and simmer for 3-5 minutes, or until most of the wine has evaporated, stirring occasionally. 

4. Add tomato sauce and half and half, stir until combined.  Add chicken and reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.  Add penne, parsley, basil, and salt and pepper to taste.  Stir to combine and serve. 

Comments
This recipe is based on Pioneer Woman’s Penne a la Betsy.  The original contains shrimp, which is a no go in my home.  Chicken, however, is always a go.  Lance enjoyed the dish, but I felt that it was lacking something and I have no idea what.  I’d definitely like to make the dish again, and I’ll try to figure out what it needs the next time!

Internet - Pioneer Woman

Ingredients
6 ounces center-cut bacon, cut into ¹⁄₄-inch pieces
8 large fresh sage leaves, whole, plus 1 tablespoon, minced
2 pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into ¹⁄₂-inch dice
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
6 green onions, sliced thin
¹⁄₄ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and pepper
2 cups chicken broth
1 pound penne
¹⁄₄ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
Juice of 1 lemon
¹⁄₃ cup pine nuts, toasted (Toast in a dry skillet over low heat until fragrant and starting to colour.) 

Instructions
1. Cook bacon in large skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 10 minutes. Add whole sage leave and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Strain mixture through fine-mesh strainer into small bowl, reserving bacon fat and bacon-sage mixture separately.

2. Return skillet to high heat, add 2 tablespoons reserved bacon fat (adding olive oil if necessary) and heat until shimmering. Add squash in even layer and cook, without stirring, until beginning to caramelize, 4 to 5 minutes. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until spotty brown, 3 to 4 minutes longer. Add butter and allow to melt, about 30 seconds. Add green onions, nutmeg, sugar, ¹⁄₂ teaspoon salt, ³⁄₄ teaspoon pepper, and minced sage; cook, stirring occasionally, until green onions are softened, about 3 minutes. Add broth and bring to simmer; continue to cook until squash is tender, 1 to 3 minutes longer.

3. Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts water to boil in large Dutch oven over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon salt and pasta. Cook until just al dente, then drain pasta and transfer back to Dutch oven.

4. Add squash mixture to pasta; stir in Parmesan cheese, lemon juice, and reserved bacon-sage mixture, and pine nuts.  Serve with additional Parmesan if desired. 

Comments
This recipe is from the 2009 Cook’s Illustrated Annual.  Art love butternut squash and pasta so I picked this recipe to make just for him.  Sadly, I was foiled by the weather since he is stuck in sunny Arizona while Lance and I are eating butternut squash pasta in snowy Maryland.  It was, however, delicious. 

I recommend toasting the pine nuts in the skillet before you cook the bacon. 

Shown here with Roast Beef Tenderloin with Shallot and Parsley Butter.

Cook’s Illustrated 2009