Spinach Chicken Pasta

Okay, this is going to taste familiar to you. It's just another twist on the combination of chicken, pasta, spinach, and tomatoes. But it's easy and good.

Saute 2 onions and 2 (or more) cloves of minced garlic in 1 Tbsp olive oil.
Add 2-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts that have been cut into approx. 1" cubes or larger.

When chicken is almost done, add:
1 pkg frozen, chopped spinach
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained
basil, oregano, thyme and chili pepper to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Let simmer until sauce is reduced a bit. It will still be somewhat watery, but just serve lots of garlic bread for soaking it up.
Serve over spaghetti or pasta of your choice.

Olive Damper – from Jenny B. in Uganda

Serves 8

2 cups (250 g) self-rising flour

1 tsp salt

1 oz (30g) butter, chopped

½ cup (50 g) shredded parmesan cheese

½ cup (60 g) sliced, pitted black olives

1 Tbsp chopped fresh rosemary

½ cup (125 ml) milk

¼ cup (60 ml) water

1 Tbsp milk, extra

2 Tbsp shredded parmesan cheese, extra

Preheat oven to 415*F (210*C).

Brush a baking tray with melted butter or oil, and sprinkle lightly with flour.

Sift flour and salt into mixing bowl. Add chopped butter, and mix into flour with fingertips until the mixture is fine and crumbly.

Add cheese, olives and rosemary and stir.

Combine milk and water; add to dry ingredients. Mix to a soft dough with a flat-bladed knife.

Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead briefly until smooth.

Shape into a ball, and flatten out to a 3/4” (2cm) thick round.

Place dough on prepared baking tray. Using a large knife, score dough deeply into 8 wedges.

Brush with extra milk and sprinkle with extra cheese.

Bake 25 minutes or until golden brown and crusty.

These are delicious, but I’ve never made them. Jenny told me that she found a substitute online for self-rising flour and they turned out fine. (I think it’s flour, baking powder and salt, but I don’t know the proportions.)

Alicia's Aloo Gobi

I was looking for a new vegetarian recipe and found this one online. I made it last night and it is really good. My changes: I left out the ground coriander and the cardamom because I didn't have any. I also used lite coconut milk to reduce the calories, and added a bunch more cayenne pepper. Next time I may try using broccoli and/or carrots and leave out the potatoes or cauliflower for added nutrition and less starch. We ate it over rice, but they suggested eating it plain with naan. Also, don't be surprised if it looks like there won't be enough sauce. There will be when all is said and done. Whew, ok, here it is:

1/4 cup olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can coconut milk
2 tablespoons ground coriander
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon ground turmeric
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
3 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 medium head cauliflower, chopped into bite size pieces
1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained
2 tablespoons garam masala

Heat oil in a large pot on medium-high heat and add onion. Cook until softened, about 4 minutes, then stir in garlic and cumin. Continue to cook until onion begins to brown. Stir in tomatoes and coconut and the coriander, salt, turmeric, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, ginger, and cardamom. Stir until mixture begins to boil, then put in the potatoes, cauliflower, and garbanzo beans. Blend well. Reduce heat to low and cover. Simmer until the potatoes are tender, 45 minutes to an hour (this will depend on the size of the potato chunks). Sprinkle in the garam masala, stir, and cook for an additional 5 minutes.

French Quarter Cheese

1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon grated onion
4 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
1 cup finely chopped pecans

Combine cream cheese, garlic, and onion. Spread onto a plate, and refrigerate. Combine remaining ingredients in a sauce pan, heating until butter melts. Cover chilled cheese with nut mixture. Serve at room temperature with crackers (wheat thins are great). it makes 10-12 servings.

i had this at hans and joelle's wedding reception, and kirk and i both loved it! when i made it, i only used about half the amount of pecans and it was plenty. also, i used reduced fat cream cheese.

Rigatoni Bolognese

1 box (1 lb) rigatoni pasta
2 medium carrots, halved
1 medium onion, quartered
1 pkg (8 or 10 oz) whole mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, peeled
2 tsp olive oil
3 links Italian turkey sausage (about 10 oz), casings removed
1⁄2 tsp crushed rosemary
1⁄4 tsp each salt and pepper
1⁄2 cup white wine (optional)
1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes in thick purée

Cook pasta in large pot of salted boiling water as box directs. Meanwhile, put carrots, onion, mushrooms and garlic in a food processor; pulse until finely chopped. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté chopped vegetables 6 minutes. Add turkey sausage and cook, breaking up clumps, 4 minutes or until no longer pink. Stir in rosemary, salt, pepper and wine, if using; boil 1 minute. Stir in crushed tomatoes, reduce heat and simmer, covered, 5 minutes. Spoon over drained pasta.

Notes: I just used ground turkey instead of sausage and it was fine. Also, it was a little bland so I added more rosemary and salt and put in some basil. It's very good, but my favorite thing about it is the use of vegetables. This is also from Woman's Day.

Slow-Cooker Chicken Posole

1 can (15 oz) yellow or white hominy, drained
1 can (14.5 oz) Mexican-style diced tomatoes
1 can (10 oz) mild green enchilada sauce
2 carrots, diced
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp cumin
1 1/2 lbs chicken thighs, skin removed
Chopped cilantro (optional)
lime wedges (optional)
Tortilla chips (optional)

Combine hominy, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, carrots, onion, garlic and cumin in a slow-cooker. Add chicken and stir to combine. Cover and cook on high 3 to 3 1⁄2 hours until chicken is cooked through and vegetables tender. Skim and discard any fat from the surface.

Remove chicken; pull meat off bones into large shreds. Stir back into slow-cooker. Stir in cilantro, if using. Serve with lime wedges and tortilla chips.

Karissa discovered this recipe in a Woman's Day magazine, and it was a splendid discovery indeed. So far we haven't bothered with any tortilla chips. Also, for those not around Spanish-speaking people, it's pronounced poh-SOH-lay. :)

Carrot Muffins

In the Nisly cookbook, Aunt Becky has a recipe for Carrot Bread. I changed it up a bit to make muffins and am very, very happy with the result. I really love the texture, and I think it comes from the idea of finely shredding the carrots. (Like, "Kraft finally shredded cheese....Kraft finely shredded cheese." Anyone else remember that commercial?)

Beat together:

¾ cup oil

2/3 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

Mix together in another bowl:

1 cup white flour

½ cup whole wheat flour

½ tsp cinnamon

1 tsp soda

½ tsp salt

Add to egg mixture, but do not stir.

Add the following and mix just until everything is combined:

1 ½ tsp vanilla

1 1/3 cup finely shredded carrots (I believe this is the key to the texture of the muffins!)

1/3 – ½ cup finely chopped pineapple and the juice that is on the cutting board after you’re done chopping (I’d guess you could use canned pineapple tidbits or crushed pineapple, if you don’t have fresh)

1/3 cup (or more!) chopped walnuts

Bake in greased muffin pan at 350*F for 12-18 minutes. Do not overbake!! Makes 12 muffins.

Oat and Flax Bread

Robyn asked if I found a different kind of flour for baking bread. No, but I found a recipe that seems to work well with this flour. I added the oatmeal and flax seed because I only have white flour right now and wanted to add some fibre.

Mix together:

2 ½ cups flour (I use white, cause that’s what I have...I’m sure whole wheat would work, too)

1 tbsp salt

3 tbsp sugar

1 heaping cup oatmeal

3 tbsp flax seed (the kind that is “pre-chewed”...ha ha. I can’t remember what it’s called, but it says it doesn’t need to be ground.)

2 tbsp margarine or Crisco

2 tbsp instant or regular yeast

Add:
2 1/3 cups very warm water

Mix together for at least one minute.

Add flour, one cup at a time, kneading well between each cup. When the dough is like bread dough should be, knead it well for 5-10 minutes. (Yes, I do this all by hand, and find it therapeutic. If you have a fancy machine, I have no idea how long to knead it.)

Cover and let rise for 45 minutes. Form into two loaves and let rise again for 25-40 minutes, until almost doubled. Bake at 350 for 30ish minutes.

Sticky Buns

1 C packed brown sugar
1/2 C corn syrup
1/2 C butter
1 C pecans
Cook on medium heat until sugar is dissolved. Add pecans and pour into 9"x13" pan. Place cinnamon buns on top. Bake at 350F until golden on top. Invert onto serving tray. Don't share too many. :-)

Italian Peasant Soup

*the credit for this goes, I believe, to Sabrina's mother-in-law. She made it at their wedding rehearsal and I asked for the recipe.
*another thing - I don't usually use chicken and sausage, since that seems a bit excessive. If you're going to leave one out, I'd leave out the chicken. But for something heartier, it is really good with both!

1 lb. hot Italian sausage, cut into 1" slices (or just scramble fry it)
2 onions, chopped
6 cloves of garlic - uh huh, you heard me, baby
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1" pieces
2 cans navy beans, or whatever white beans you want to use
2 cans -28 oz total - chicken stock
2 cans - 28 oz total - diced tomatoes, don't drain them!
1 tsp (or more) dried basil
1 tsp (or more) dried oregano
6 C fresh spinach leaves, chopped (I use one pack of chopped frozen spinach, thawed)
parmesan cheese for garnish
*Optional: I added small shell pasta, cooked separately last time and we really liked it like that. Just makes it a little more filling.

Cook sausage and chicken until no longer pink. Drain and add onions and garlic; saute until onions are tender. Add beans, chicken stock, tomatoes and spices. When simmering, add spinach and cook just until wilted.
Serve with parmesan cheese and garlic bread!