I am baaack! Pasta salad days...

Hi all! It's been a looong while since I last posted. I've been going through some personal stuff and have been in a blogging funk....I think it is time that I snap out of it and get back to work :)

So.....pasta salad...Love it? Hate it or maybe you are one who can take it or leave it? I am one who can take it or leave it. I find pasta salads bland and flavorless, that is until I discovered this recipe. I am huge fan of antipasto and this salad pairs pasta and all the antipasto fixings. If you hate pasta salad or can do without it, you MUST try this one and I guarantee you will be a convert. It is a little time consuming to make but let me tell you, it is well worth the effort. The recipe was adapted from Americans Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook. I have added some marinated artichoke to it, because I love them you can also add olives if you'd like.



8 ounces sliced pepperoni , cut into 1/4-inch strips
8 ounces soppressata or salami, halved and cut into 1/4-inch strips
10 tablespoons red wine vinegar
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 jar pepperoncini (12-ounce), drained, (2 tablespoons juice reserved), stemmed, and chopped coarse
4 garlic cloves , minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper
1 pound spiral pasta
1 pound white mushrooms , quartered
1 cup shredded provolone cheese , aged
12 ounces roasted red peppers , drained, patted dry, and chopped coarse
1 cup chopped fresh basil

1. Place one paper towel on microwave-safe plate. Arrange pepperoni in single layer on paper towel. Cover with another paper towel and layer sopresatta on towel. Top with another paper towel and microwave on highest power until meat begins to render fat, about 1 minute. Set meat aside.

2. Whisk 5 tablespoons vinegar, olive oil, mayonnaise, pepperoncini juice, garlic, red pepper flakes, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in medium bowl.

3. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add 1 tablespoon salt and pasta and cook until al dente. Drain pasta, return to pot, and toss with 1/2 cup dressing and remaining vinegar. Adjust seasonings, spread dressed pasta on rimmed baking sheet, and refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, bring remaining dressing to simmer in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and cook until they release their juices and are lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Transfer to large bowl and cool.

5. Add meat, provolone, roasted red peppers, chopped pepperoncini, basil, and cooled pasta to mushrooms and toss well. Season with salt and pepper. Serve at room temperature. Salad can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.

Shrimp Scampi

Few months ago, my foodie buddy Heather from Heather is at home had a garage sale and was selling whole bunch of her cookbooks...She was kind enough to send me some. This recipe is from one of the books, I've gotten from Heather. "Stirring the Pot" by Tyler Florence. We love shrimp scampi and addition of tomatoes to the classic recipe, was absolutely the right way to go. It is a keeper for us!



* 1 pound linguini
* 4 tablespoons butter
* 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
* 1 large shallot, finely diced
* 5 cloves garlic, sliced
* Pinch red pepper flakes, optional
* 20 large shrimp, about 1 pound, peeled and deveined, tail on
* Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 1/2 cup dry white wine
* 1 28 oz can of San Marzano tomatoes
* 1 lemon, juiced
* 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley leaves

Directions

For the pasta, put a large pot of water on the stove to boil. When it has come to the boil, add a couple of tablespoons of salt and the linguini. Stir to make sure the pasta separates; cover. When the water returns to a boil, cook for about 6 to 8 minutes or until the pasta is not quite done. Drain the pasta reserving 1 cup of water.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter in 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat. Saute the shallots, garlic, and red pepper flakes (if using) until the shallots are translucent, about 3 to 4 minutes. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper; add them to the pan and cook until they have turned pink, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the shrimp from the pan; set aside and keep warm. Add wine,tomatoes and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Add 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons oil. When the butter has melted, return the shrimp to the pan along with the parsley and cooked pasta and reserved pasta water. Stir well and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle over a bit more olive oil and serve immediately.

Breakfast Pasta-Take Two

So, I mentioned in my previous post that you can bake the leftovers of my breakfast pasta and make a casserole. I happen to have some pasta left from last night and decided to make it for breakfast. I just added 1/4 of heavy cream, mixed it together, put in a dish and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Baked it in the oven till heated through and brown on top. All the ingredients are already cooked so you are only re-heating it. It took about 25 minutes in 375'F. Take two was even better than the original. I love the variety of different textures, with soft pasta in the middle and crispy top...sooo delicious!

Breakfast Pasta

How about breakfast for dinner tonight? I decided to make a pasta dish with traditional breakfast flavors...eggs, bacon, cheese. It was a great meal and you can bake the leftovers in a casserole with some heavy cream or half and half for breakfast the next morning,so you can have two meals in one(that is, if you will have any leftovers) :) I hope you enjoy it!



1 lb spaghetti pasta
1/2 lb of bacon
2 TBSP of olive oil
1 onion finely chopped
1 cloves of garlic minced
4 eggs beaten
1 cup of Parmesan cheese (or more to taste)
Handful of chopped cilantro

Saute chopped onions and minced garlic in olive oil till translucent, remove from skillet. Cut bacon in thin strips, and render it in the skillet, transfer to paper towel to drain.

Boil and drain pasta, return to the pot it was cooked in and turn heat on high, add beaten eggs and stir till eggs are scrambled. Add onion mixture, bacon and Parmesan cheese, mix it together. Stir in cilantro leaves and serve immediately.

Chicken Parmesan

Since I can't use my oven, I've been cooking up a storm. I love having company to cook for and since my in laws are still visiting, it's a great excuse for me to experiment. I am not a big fan of chicken breast, but there are few dishes that I love to use it for...I always found that it is dry and flavorless (but then again, it might be me, not knowing how to cook it properly) One of the few dishes that I love to use chicken breast for is Chicken Parmesan. This recipe has always been a HUGE hit! It is very easy, flavorful and produces very crispy chicken that is moist on the inside. I've used Prego pasta sauce because it is my husband's favorite, but you can make your own or use your favorite brand.



* 1/3 cup (1 1/2 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided
* 1/4 cup dry breadcrumbs
* 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
* 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
* 1/4 teaspoon salt, divided
* 1 large egg white, lightly beaten
* 1 pound chicken breast tenders
* 1 tablespoon butter
* 1 1/2 cups bottled of Prego Pasta Sauce or your favorite one.
* 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
* 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
* 1/3 cup (1 1/2 ounces) shredded provolone cheese


Combine 2 tablespoons of Parmesan, breadcrumbs, parsley, basil, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a shallow dish. Place egg white in a shallow dish. Dip each chicken tender in egg white; dredge in the breadcrumb mixture. Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 3 minutes on each side or until done. Set aside.

Combine 1/8 teaspoon salt, pasta sauce, vinegar, and pepper in a skillet. Cook until heated through. Pour the sauce over chicken in pan. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining Parmesan and provolone cheese and fresh basil (if you like it). Put cover on and let the cheese melt.

Serve with spaghetti noodles.

Orzo Pasta Salad

I had some leftover vegetables in my fridge and wanted to make something that is light and refreshing. Few years back when we first moved to Vegas, I attended the luncheon where they served sandwiches... My favorite one was a veggie sandwich, it consisted of grilled eggplant and zucchini with goat cheese, served on sourdough bread. It was soooo delicious! I wanted to make a salad that is healthy and light but still delicious and use grilled vegetables. I love orzo and combined with grilled veggies, fresh tomatoes and refreshing lemon vinaigrette it is a winning combination.



Orzo Pasta Salad

* 1 pound orzo, cooked

Vinaigrette:

* 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
* 1 teaspoon of dry oregano
* 4 teaspoons Dijon mustard
* 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
* 1/2 cup olive oil
* 1 teaspoon of salt
*1/2 teaspoon of black pepper

Mix lemon juice, oregano, dijon mustard and lemon peel. After it is all combined, add olive oil in small stream while whisking continuously to make a vinaigrette. Set aside.


* 1 small eggplant, sliced lengthwise into 1/4 slices
* 1 zucchini, sliced lengthwise into 1/4 slices
* 1 yellow squash, sliced lengthwise into 1/4 slices
* 1 medium red onion, sliced lengthwise into 1/4 slices
* 8 oz of steamed broccoli
* 8 oz of steamed cauliflower
* 1 pint of cherry tomatoes
* Handful of cilantro leaves

Steam broccoli and cauliflower till tender, set aside. Brush eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash and red onion slices with olive oil and grill till tender. Chopped in bite size pieces. Cut cherry tomatoes in half, chop cilantro leaves.
In a large bowl combine cooked orzo, grilled veggies, tomatoes, cilantro, and steamed broccoli and cauliflower. Pour the vinaigrette over the salad and mix well. add salt and pepper if needed.

Chicken sun dried tomato alfredo pasta

So, it seems I have some blogging to do...It's been couple of weeks since I've posted anything and I'm a little...OK, very envious of all of your creations!
I am in mourning... On July 21st, 2009 tragedy striked in my kitchen... MY OVEN DIED :( I was going to roast some potatoes for dinner and it refused to heat up... Now, how often does that happen? This is the first oven EVER that had gone dead on me... I though Bosh appliances supposed to be good! I had a technician come to fix it and was told that my main rely board is fried and is going to cost $530 to get it working again!!! So, here I am two weeks later, with both ovens out of commission, miserable waiting for the new relay board to show up... there is no telling how long it will take Bosh to send the part so I can get some baking therapy. I've never thought that not having an oven will have that much of an impact on my day to day life, but it has been very challenging. I guess I did not realize how much I've used the oven till I no longer had it available.

Needless to say, I've been trying to keep myself out of trouble by cooking...My in-laws are visiting and my mother in law is a HUGE pasta fan... The pasta # 1 is adapted from Guy Fieri's recipe:


Chicken sun dried tomato alfredo pasta



* 4 chicken breasts cut into cubes
* 2 tabelspoons of Cajun spice
* 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 3 tablespoons minced garlic
* 1 cup marinated sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
* 1/4 cup white wine
* 3 cups heavy cream
* 3/4 cup grated Parmesan
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 1 pound cooked fettuccine
* 1/2 cup sliced asparagus
* 1/4 cup of green onions

Generously sprinkle chicken with Cajun spice and brown it in the skillet. Remove the chicken and put it 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, asparagus and chicken. 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.