Cajun Chicken Pasta

This recipe is both easy to prepare and easy to eat! My husband and I love the balance of spices.  I think it is well worth buying the Konriko brand Creole Seasoning to make this dish.  I posted information about it on my previous entry.  It used to be available in the grocery stores, but lately I can only find them online.

The recipe calls for linguine pasta, but any pasta will do.  We find the Penne pasta to be the easiest to pick up and eat and Barrilla’s penne has ridges so the sauce stick to it a bit and it quite good.  I found this recipe in an old Taste of Home Magazine.  They had a column called “I wish I had that Recipe” that featured a recipe of a restaurant.  It truly is a favorite of ours.  I hope you enjoy it too.

Cajun Chicken Pasta – Taste of Home Magazine
Serves 2

Ingredients

• 2 large Chicken Breast halves — cut into strips
• 2 tsp. Cajun or Creole Seasoning (Konriko brand Creole seasoning is wonderful)
• 2 Tbsp. Butter
• 8 slices Green Pepper
• 8 slices Red Bell Pepper
• 4 large Mushrooms  — sliced
• 1 green Onion, sliced
• 1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
• 1/4 tsp. dried Basil
• 1/4 tsp. Lemon Pepper
• 1/4 tsp. Salt
• 1/8 tsp. Pepper
• 4 ounces Linguine — cooked and drained (or other pasta)
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions
Place chicken strips and Cajun/Creole seasoning in a bowl or resealable plastic bag; toss or shake to coat.
In a large skillet over medium heat; saute chicken in butter until almost tender about 5-7 minutes.  Add peppers, mushrooms and green onion; cook and stir for 2-3 minutes.  Reduce heat.  Add cream and seasonings; heat through.  Add linguine and toss, heating through.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.  Enjoy (I usually double the recipe and have left overs).  This recipe serves two, but you may increase it to the size of your family.

I usually prepare a separate batch of chicken without Creole seasoning for my kids who do not like spicy foods too much, but every family is different.

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Warm Italian-Style Pasta Salad

Italian Pasta Salad

I originally found a recipe in “Taste of Home” Magazine that was an Italian Pasta, but I accidentally heated it up the first time I made and we discovered we loved it that way.  Plus it had grated carrots in the original and we didn’t like it.. so a few changes later it is mine!

Italian Style Pasta Salad
Serves 6
Ingredients

• 14 1/2    ounces Tomatoes, with garlic and onion — canned
• 16    ounces    Caesar Dressing — Marie’s is good
• 2        Onions, Green — thinly sliced
• 15    ounces    Artichokes, Canned — hearts, cut up
• 20    ounces    Tortellini pasta, Cheese — refrigerated
• 1    medium    Green Pepper — chopped
• 6    ounces    Olives, Ripe — drained, pitted
• 3    ounces    Pepperoni — sliced, mild
• 1/2    cup    Cheese, Parmesan — shredded

Instructions

In a 13x9x2 inch baking dish combine first 7 ingredients.  Add cooked tortellini pasta and toss to coat.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, cover with foil and heat at 325° F for 30 minutes.

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Basil Cream Chicken

Basil Cream Chicken is one of our families favorite recipes. I enjoy making it and everyone, especially my husband enjoys it. It is fairly easy to make too which is nice.

The recipe for this delightful dish is:

Basil Cream Chicken

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 eggs beaten
• 1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs ( I like Progresso Italian)
• 4 chicken breast halves, cut into smaller pieces to ensure it is cooked through)
• 3 Tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream (not whipped)
• 1/4 cup chopped roasted peppers (from jar is great)
• 1/2- 3/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated (plus extra to serve)
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper

Beat eggs and milk together in a bowl. Put seasoned bread crumbs in another bowl.

Dip the chicken pieces first in the egg mixture and then coat in bread crumbs.

Breaded chicken

Melt butter in a large stainless steel saucepan

Melted Butter

Fry the chicken pieces until golden brown turning once over medium high heat, until juices run clear.

Transfer the chicken to a glass dish and keep them warm (I usually have the oven temperature at 275F until the rest of the meal is finished.

Add chicken broth and loosen browned bits from the pan with a whisk.

Add your heavy cream and bring to a boil. Boil for one minute.

Add parmesan cheese

and chopped basil and roasted peppers

Heat just until heated through and season with black pepper.

Transfer the warm chicken breast halves to a platter

Ladle sauce over the chicken.

I serve this with cooked pasta and serve extra basil cream sauce for the pasta and top with additional parmesan cheese. Add a green salad and you have a meal. Add garlic bread and you have a feast!

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Avgolemono Soup

Avgolemono Chicken Soup

Strange name I know, it’s Greek and is a wonderful Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup.  I went to a ladies night out and a friend brought this soup to the event.  I went back for thirds and then took some home with me to share with my husband.  Delicious!  My kids all love it too and it is a frequent request now.  I make it about every other week now.  The recipe is from Cat Cora on the Food Network.  I made a few changes to suit my family’s tastes.

Just today my daughter announced that every Restaurant should have this recipe and serve it because she would order it every time!  It really is that good.  Do try it!

Source:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/cat-cora/avgolemono-chicken-soup-with-egg-lemon-sauce-recipe/index.html

Avgolemono: Chicken Soup with Egg-Lemon Sauce – Cat Cora

• 1 (3 pound) free range chicken
• 2 quarts water
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, finely diced
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 leek, cleaned and quartered
• 1 carrot, peeled and quartered
• 2/3 cup Aborio rice
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground pepper

Directions

Place the chicken in a large pot with 2 quarts cold water, enough to cover the chicken. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low, skimming when necessary.

In a separate pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil and add the onions. Sweat the onions until clear. Set aside.

When chicken is cooked through, remove from the broth. Let the chicken cool and pull the meat from the bones. Dice into large cubes. Set aside.

Add the onion, bay leaves, leek, and carrot to the broth and simmer for 1 hour. When finished, remove the carrot and leek from the broth and add the rice. Bring to a boil and then turn heat to medium high to simmer until the rice is cooked to al dente, about 30 minutes. Add the chicken back into the broth. Add more water if needed.

In a small bowl beat the eggs and lemon juice together. Pour 2 cups of broth slowly into the bowl of egg and lemon, whisking continuously. Once all the broth is incorporated, add the mixture into the pot of chicken soup and stir to blend well throughout. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot.

Recipe Notes

Prep     10 min

Cook    3 hr 10 min

Total:     3 hr 20 min

Serves 8-10

Becky’s NOTES:

After I remove the carrots and leeks I chop the carrots into small pieces (last time I even squeezed them through my potato ricer) I add the carrots back into the soup with the chicken.  I do not add onions, my kids don’t care for the texture, but I do let them simmer in the broth with the leeks and carrots, but do not add them to the final product.  Very very yummy and fairly easy to make!  Do go out and buy some Aborio rice, it is perfect for this soup.

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