Salmon with Pesto Pasta

We still have a good few weeks of wild, fresh salmon available. I like to make this recipe with salmon and I buy and freeze later because texture and appearance is not as crucial. However, my girls love and I mean love this dish. My oldest wants it every year for her birthday and it is a sure fire hit for anyone who comes over--who I ask you does not love pasta?!

It's also a snap to make if you have some leftover pesto (jarred pesto is OK too).

Salmon with Pesto Pasta

1 1b. wild salmon

1 box angel hair pasta nests

1/2 C pesto

olive oil

salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Season salmon (skin on OK) and rub 2 tablespoons pesto on top. Fold up in parchment paper, sealing edges. Place on cooking sheet and bake 9-11 minutes (remember the fish should flake easily when done and should be a nice pink).

While cooking, boil water. Season with salt and add angel hair. Cook based on package instructions (mine is two minutes). In a large bowl, add pesto. When pasta is complete, drain and add to bowl with pesto. Quickly mix (if any sticks, add some olive oil).

Remove salmon from the oven. Carefully unwrap (lots of steam escapes from the paper so be careful). Using a fork, shred small pieces and add to the pasta until you have added the entire fish.

Serve immediately (And because it is fish, left overs are not OK. Fish has a very quick shelf-life and can go bad quickly.). 

Sea Scallops with Mushroom Risotto

This one truly takes work but if you have the aid of a kitchen helper (older grade schooler) who knows kitchen safety and has helped stirring for you, it can be a fun family activity.
I got this recipe from an old Tyler Florence ‘How to Boil Water’ episode--it’s from the Valentine episode because it really is a romantic meal. My kids are fans of risotto and this is a nice change of pace in our house. I love serving it with baby bok coy.

2 tbsp olive oil
1 lb sea scallops (muscles removed)
Salt and pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb portabella mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
Handful fresh thyme sprigs (stems removed)
Handful chopped Italian parsley
2 bay leaves
2 cups Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine,
8 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Fresh flat-leaf parsley (garnish)

In a large sauce pan, heat chicken stock until simmering. Keep on low heat and set to back burner.
Season scallops with salt and pepper. Over medium-high heat, add one tbsp oil to a large deep saute pan. When the oil starts to smoke, add scallops and brown well on both sides, about 2 minutes (do NOT over cook) . Remove and cover with a plate to keep warm while you make the risotto.
Reduce the heat to medium. Add remaining olive oil. Add garlic and cook until soft--this will be quick--be sure garlic does not brown. Add in the mushrooms and herbs and cook until the mushrooms reduce their size and are lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the rice and stir until well coated; the rice with become clear. Season again. Stir in the wine and cook until it is reduced by half.
***This is the point where you enlist help in your older child (7-10 years old and understands the stove).
Slowly pour in 1 cup of the warm chicken stock stock and stir with a wooden spoon until the rice has absorbed all of the liquid; then add another cup--repeat this process, stirring constantly until you have added all the stock but one cup. This will take a little while.
If the risotto does not look creamy after all the stock is added, warm up a bit more stock--you want the risotto slightly firm but creamy.
Fold in the scallops with the last cup of stock to warm them up. Continue to stir. When the risotto is cooked, gently add the butter and cheese, and a bit more olive oil. Serve hot. Garnish with parsley.
Serve with the baby bok choy!

Chicken Cacciatori

This morning I was prepping for tonight’s dinner and realized I forgot to share this gem. It’s based on Ellie Krieger’s recipe from Healthy Appetite from the Food Network. I added pasta to make it more tempting to card loving kiddos!

Chicken Cacciatori

2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken cutlets
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 pound baby portabella mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (less if you like things not so hot)
Salt and pepper
whole wheat pasta (cooked to al dente)

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a large saute pan. Brown the chicken on both sides, about 4 minutes per side. Remove the chicken and place on paper towels on plates (drains the oil).
Reduce the heat to medium. Add pepper and stir until soft, about five minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook until mushroom reduce in size and begin to brown. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the wine and cook until reduced by half. Add the diced tomatoes with juice and spices. Cover and simmer for ten minutes.
Return the chicken to the pan and simmer, covered, for about twenty minutes.
Serve over pasta.
Enjoy!

Fusilli with Sausage, Artichokes and Sun-dried Tomatoes

I adore this recipe! It’s from Everyday italian with Giada (with a few minor touches). I actually prefer using the whole wheat pasta--it adds a very nice touch to the flavor.

Fusiili with Sausage, Artichoke and Sundried Tomato

3/4 cup drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, chopped in bite size pieces, 2 tablespoons of oil reserved 
1 lb bulk italian sausage
2 (8-ounce) cans artichoke hearts (rinsed and drained) 
2 large cloves garlic, chopped 
1 3/4 cups chicken broth 
1/2 cup dry white wine 
16 ounces whole wheat fusilli pasta 
1/2 cup shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus additional for garnish 
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil 
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta in boiling water until al dente (about a minute less then the cooking time on the box). Drain the pasta (do not rinse). Heat the oil reserved from the tomatoes in a heavy large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the sausages and cook until brown, breaking up the meat into bite-size pieces. Transfer the sausage to a colander and run under cold water until water runs clear (this washes off excess fat)l. Add the artichokes and garlic to the same skillet, and saute over medium heat until the garlic is tender, about 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth, white wine, and sun-dried tomatoes. Boil over medium-high heat until the sauce reduces slightly, stirring occasionally.
Add the pasta, sausage, 1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, basil, and parsley to the artichoke mixture. Toss until the sauce is almost absorbed by the pasta. Season with salt and pepper. Top with remaining Parmigiano-Reggiano and a couple parsley leaves.

Rigatoni with sausage, butternut squash and kale

It’s getting really cold here and I am seeking a warm, comforting dish. Pasta, sausage and a heavy cream sauce always seem to warm my soul. To keep things a bit more healthy, this dish includes butternut squash and the super-hero veggie, kale. For tonight, I am using white pasta; whole wheat is obviously a better choice but the whole wheat doesn’t compliment the creamy sauce as well and since this is a once in rare while treat, I decided to go all out! If you want to make this dish, a lot--go for whole wheat or half whole/half white.
This recipe was adapted from Lauren Deen and “Kitchen Playdates”.

Rigatoni with Sausage, Kale and Butternut Squash

1 lb. mild Italian bulk sausage (if you don’t have bulk, remove castings from sausage)
1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cubed in 1/2 in chunks
3 tbs olive oil
5 cloves garlic, smashed
8 sprigs fresh thyme
1 large bunch kale, torn into bite size pieces (tough stems removed)
2 c half and half (original recipe calls for heavy whipping cream)
1 1/2 c Pecorino Romano, shredded (Southern Italy's parmesan--a bit milder)
Few handfuls of Panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
1 lb. rigatoni
salt and pepper

First preheat oven to 400 degrees and heat a large pot of salted water for the pasta.
Place butternuts quash and three garlic cloves in a large baking pan (think lasagna pan). Coat with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place sprigs of thyme on squash. Put in the oven.

On stove, cook sausage in a touch of olive oil until no longer pink. When done, drain in sink and run water over sausage until water under sausage runs clear (this takes out excess fat without removing flavor). Add the kale and remaining garlic to the pan (don’t clean out the sausage remains--the oil add flavor). Cook until kale wilts. Combine sausage and kale in large bowl; remove garlic.

At this point, the water should be ready for the pasta. Add it and cook for two minutes less than the required cooking time.

Check on the squash. You want it to be soft*. Once it is soft (this could take almost thirty minutes), take out of the oven and reduce heat to 375. Now remove the sprigs of thyme (letting the leaves stay on the squash or scraping them off the twig) and garlic. Add sausage and kale mixture to the pan. Add the cream and milk. Mix and add the pasta and 1 cup of the cheese.

Once mixed well, top with the remaining cheese and panko. If you have a while until dinner, let the dish hit room temperature and store covered with foil in the refrigerator for no more than 24 hours.

If ready, cover with foil and cook in the oven for 25 minutes. Take off foil and cook an additional 5-10 minutes (until topping is crispy).

Let sit five minutes before serving.

* It’s OK if it gets mushy, some of the squash will simply blend with cheese and adhere directly to the pasta (great if you have a kid that won’t touch veggies!)

Pesto pasta--EASY EASY

For the big game, I wanted to make something quick and easy that the kids would love.
I have a great deal of pestos; the one here is a basil based one. Pesto is great because it goes with so many dishes. You can put it n fish or chicken or use as a spread for a sandwich. With it being so easy to make, always try to have some on hand.
You can use a 1/2 and 1/2 whole wheat/white pasta go all whole wheat

Pesto pasta with Sundried tomatoes

1/2 lb. any pasta shape (try something ‘kid fun’)
Pesto (see below for today’s choice)
Sun-dried tomatoes, diced and padded dry from oil (always buy sundried tomaotes packed in olive oil, dry ones are not the same)

In a pot of salted boiling water, cook pasta until al dente. Drain and place in large bowl. Add desired amount of pesto and the sundried tomatoes (the more the better here!). Try this with a romaine garden salad.



Basil Pesto
1 clove garlic
3/4 cup pine nuts (lightly toasted at 350 for 5 minutes)
Salt and pepper
1 bunch basil (leaves only)
1 bunch Italian parsley
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Blend all ingredients in food processor until you have a paste. Adjust ingredients based on your taste.
*Note--add olive oil slowly; you may need more or less than described.

Dinner Experiment #473

The original plan was quesadillas and halfway through cooking the chicken, I discovered I didn't have enough monteray jack so I decided to switch gears and make enchilladas with the chicken but the baby woke up and wanted me right then so I never had time to make the sauce. I decided to take the chicken and the liquid it was cooking in and make it into a sauce over whole wheat pasta garnished with the small amount of monteray jack I had left. The kids loved it and my oldest asked me to make it again. Moral of the story--no recipe is ever set in stone, tweak to fit your needs and if it turns out to be a disaster, you can get a fresh pizza in about 30 minutes :)

Mexican Spaghetti:

1 tsp. olive oil
1 clove garlic, diced
3 C Shredded chicken (pref. leftovers from a plain rotessori)
2 tsp. Hungarian paprika
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregnao
Pinch a red pepper
salt and pepper
1 26 oz can diced tomatoes plus juice
1 small can Hatch green chilis
1/2 lb whole wheat pasta
monteray jack (amount based on taste)

In a large saute pan, saute garlic in olive oil (don't let brown). Add the chicken and spices and saute for about 5-10 minutes or until everything is well blended and cooked. Add tomatoes and chilis; bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook spaghetti until al dente (slight crunch). Drain pasta.
Plate pasta followed by a laddle of the 'sauce' and garnish with monteray jack; make sure it melts!
Serve with a very basic spinach salad.

Enjoy!