Cajun Chicken Alfredo

One of my favorite meals ever is fettuccine alfredo. I saw this recipe for Cajun Chicken Alfredo, by Guy Fieri and had to give it a try. It was amazing! I did make a couple changes.  I didn't use sun dried tomatoes and I didn't have any scallions on hand. If you're looking for a good alfredo recipe, try this!

Ingredients

• 4 (5-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 cup blackening spice (recommended: Paul Prudhomme's Chicken)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 cup roughly chopped marinated sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 3 cups heavy cream
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound cooked fettuccine
• 1/2 cup sliced scallions

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Dredge the chicken breasts in the blackening spice and place in a cast iron skillet over very high heat. Blacken both sides of the chicken and place in the oven for 10 minutes, or until internal temperature of chicken reaches 165 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. Slice in strips on the bias and set aside.
In a saute pan over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil. Add garlic and lightly caramelize. Then add the sun-dried tomatoes and the chicken slices. Deglaze the pan with the white wine. Add the heavy cream, increase the heat to a simmer, and reduce the cream sauce by half.
When the cream sauce is to desired consistency, stir in 1/2 cup Parmesan, salt, pepper, and pasta.
Nest the pasta on large rimmed plates, pour sauce over pasta, and garnish with scallions and the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan. Pin It

Skillet Rotini with Ricotta Balls

I saw a  recipe a couple days ago that had pasta and sauce in a skillet with ricotta balls dropped on top of it. It sounded so good, but when I went to make my weekly menu I couldn't remember where I saw it. After doing some searching online(and not finding the exact recipe), I found out that the ricotta mixture is basically the same as what you would use to stuff shells, minus the egg. I just winged it from there. It was really good and the whole family loved it.

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
Rotini pasta(or any other similarly sized pasta) about  10 oz
1 jar of pasta sauce
1 cup of ricotta cheese
1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup mozzarella cheese

Directions: Brown ground beef in a skillet. Sprinkle with salt and garlic powder. While beef is browning bring water to a boil and cook pasta according to directions on box. Once beef is browned, drain fat. Add sauce and 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese. Simmer. Mix together ricotta cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese and 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, set aside. Once pasta is done, drain and add to sauce. Mix together. Add ricotta mixture to top of sauce and pasta(heaping tablespoons). Cover and simmer till ricotta mixture is heated through. Pin It

Pesto Tortellini Salad

This was such an easy and yummy pasta salad. The dressing recipe came from Knorr. I only added artichoke hearts to our salad, but some other ideas would be tomatoes, olives, onions, etc...

Ingredients:

Cheese filled tortellini, cooked and cooled
Artichoke hearts
1/3 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 package Knorr pesto sauce mix

Mix olive oil, vinegar and pesto sauce mix together. Mix with remaining ingredients. Chill and enjoy!

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Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

I have been wanting to try making my own spaghetti sauce for awhile now. I came across this recipe for Mom's spaghetti sauce on FoodNetwork.com a few weeks ago. It was really yummy with a ton of flavor! The sauce wasn't difficult to make, but it seemed to take a long time to put it all together. I guess anything would compared to just dumping a jar of premade sauce into a slow cooker. If you want to try making your own sauce, I recommend giving this recipe a try. Be forewarned though...it makes a ton! I made it in my large slow cooker instead of a pot and it was practically overflowing! The only thing I didn't love about this recipe was the sausage, so if you don't like Italian sausage just leave it out.

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 pound ground pork(I didn't use pork. It had plenty of meat without it)
• 1 pound Italian sausage
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, pressed
• 5 large cans tomato paste
• 10 tomato paste cans water
• 4 tablespoons Parmesan
• 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
• 6 leaves fresh basil or 1 tablespoon dried basil
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Directions

In a large saucepan over medium heat, saute the ground beef, pork and sausage until it is brown. Drain off excess fat. Add the remaining ingredients and stir until smooth. Cook for 3 to 4 hours on medium heat, stirring often to prevent scorching.

Recipe courtesy Chris Divito

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Chicken Tortellini Soup

 

The other night I decided to make chicken noodle soup with tortellini in place of egg noodles. I had seen some other tortellini soup recipes with more of an Italian twist, but I decided to just stick with my homemade chicken noodle soup recipe that I always use and love. My only change was the noodles. Everybody loved it! My daughter had 3 bowls that night. My husband even commented again on how much he liked the soup, the following day(that surprised me). I think this recipe is definitely heartier than regular chicken noodle soup, making it feel more suitable for an everyday meal. Enjoy!

 

Chicken pieces with bone in, skinned(I used 4 thighs, but it could have used a little more chicken)

1 cup carrots, sliced or baby carrots

1 cup sliced celery

Chicken boullion cubes(about 8 more or less depending on amount of water used)

water

Salt

Pepper

Frozen or refrigerated cheese tortellini

Directions:

Put chicken and vegetable in a large stock pot. Fill pot with approx 10 cups of water. Add boullion cubes and salt and pepper to taste. Use approx. 1 cube per every cup of water. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 90 minutes. Remove chicken from broth. Remove chicken from bones, cut up, discard bones and return chicken to pot. Bring soup back to a boil and add tortellini. Cook tortellini according to directions on packaging.

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Cheese and Beef Filled Manicotti

 

I love love love pasta, and I love cheese even more! That's why I can never get enough of ravioli, stuffed shells and manicotti, the perfect combination of the two. My husband does not, however, share my same love for cheese, so this time I decided to stuff my manicotti with half cheese and half ground beef. Not my preference, but surprisingly good. Here is the simple recipe that came right off the back of the Ronzoni pasta box.

Ingredients:

14 pieces (8 oz.) manicotti pasta
4 cups (2 lb.) ricotta cheese (I substituted 1lb of cooked ground beef for 1lb ricotta)
2 cups (8 oz.) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided(I put all of the mozzarella and parmesan cheese in the manicotti, instead of saving half to top)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
2 eggs
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)(I did not use nutmeg)
2 cups spaghetti sauce

Directions:
Cook pasta according to package directions; drain. Cool. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. In large bowl, stir together ricotta cheese, 1-1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, eggs, parsley, pepper, salt and nutmeg; spoon into cooled pasta tubes. Arrange filled pasta in single layer in prepared dish. Pour spaghetti sauce over pasta. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Bake 35 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

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Turkey Veggie Soup

My mother-in-law is ill right now with a cold. My father-in-law called to ask where he should get some soup for her and I thought, why buy when you can make? I made a turkey a couple days ago and still had leftover turkey so I created this soup with my left over veggies and turkey (both dark and white). It is perfect for these cold days of winter. I hope you enjoy it. Remember you can add anything you have in your kitchen. I have never loved making homemade stock so I used the pre-boxed kind.

2Tbl Olive Oil

1 medium onion diced

1 cup carrots, peeled and cubed

1 cup celery, washed and sliced thick

2 medium squash, washed and cut into cubes

32 oz. chicken or turkey stock

2 cups water

2 cubes poultry bullion cubes

2-3 cups of shredded turkey or chicken

1 cup of orzo pasta

salt and pepper to taste

In a dutch oven or large stock pot on medium heat add olive oil and heat until oil is hot. Add onion cook until almost tender. Add carrots and celery, cook for 1 min. Add pasta, cook for 1 min. Add squash, chicken stock, water and bullion cubes. Bring to boil then reduce to low. Add chicken or turkey and simmer for 15 minutes. Season to taste. Serve hot.

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Turkey Alfredo

Now I am sure at this point you all must think that we only make the most fattening foods we can find. While I do love a good, full fat treat, the majority of my meals include fish and this year alone I have lost 76 lbs while enjoying all of these foods in moderation. It is my intention to start posting my fish recipes at the beginning of the year when everyone wants to get off the holiday weight. I made this tonight for my family, using light whipping cream. I will write all of my changes next to the recipe but I want to post the original for three reason- 1. not everyone is dieting, 2. this is a great, fast and easy treat to enjoy once in a while and 3. it will help you get rid of any leftover chicken or turkey. It truly is delicious and so much cheaper than a restaurant.

Chicken Fettuccine in Alfredo Sauce

courtesy of Kevin Larson

3/4 cup heavy cream or half and half (I used light whipping cream but try with milk)

3/4 cup butter (I used 1/2 stick which still gave it a buttery taste though maybe not as rich)

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated (I used 1/4 cup of the real stuff, grated from a block)

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 cup white wine (optional)

pinch of Italian seasoning

pinch of garlic salt

1 1/2 lbs boneless cooked chicken cut into strips (I used left over white meat turkey, shredded)

Fettuccine or other preferred wide noodle (I used Whole Wheat spaghetti noodles)

In large deep skillet, pour 3/4 cup of heavy cream. Add butter. Warm slowly until butter melts. Turn up heat up it starts to simmer. Add 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese and garlic. Simmer 2 minutes stirring constantly. Add Italian seasoning and garlic salt. Spoon off 1/4 cup of sauce, put into small bowl and add 1-2 TBL flour, mix until smooth and add back to pan. Continue cooking until thicker, add chicken, cover and simmer for 2-4 minutes longer. Serve over noodle of your choice.

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