36 posts tagged “pasta”
I love lo mein. It's one of those things I love to eat at a Chinese restaurant (or for take out), but I've never actually made at home. A few weeks ago, I was doing my usual aimless wandering around Whole Foods when I saw some lo mein noodles. I decided to pick some up and, well, here we are.
I made this almost exactly like I make my stir fry and I thought it turned out quite tasty. One of the great things about this is that it's a way to curb your craving for Chinese food without all the fat and oil that is typical of restaurant Chinese restaurant food. In fact, one of my favorite places to get lo mein is SO oily that when I reheat the dish the next day, I usually pour out a good 1/4 cup of grease that has accumulated at the bottom of the container. Ick. Any by "ick" I mean "mmmm tasty, but I really shouldn't eat this."
This is meant to be a healthier version of the dish, so I didn't use a lot of oil but you could definitely add more if you'd like. The addition of the sesame oil at the end gives it a nice extra nutty flavor in addition to making it a little more fatty and luxurious without being horrible :) Some fresh ginger would be great in this, but unfortunately I didn't have any around. And, of course, you can use any vegetables you want, have around, or like.
I am submitting this over to Ruth for Presto Pasta Night.
Chicken Lo Mein
Serves 2
4 oz. lo mein noodles
1 Tbsp. oyster sauce
2 Tbsp. low sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup chicken broth
pinch of red pepper flakes
1/2 Tbsp. canola oil
1 medium chicken breast, cut into strips or bite sized pieces
1/2 small onion, sliced or diced
1 large carrot, cut into coins or matchsticks
1 large celery stalk, sliced
4 oz. mushrooms (I used a combo of shiitake and oyster)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup peapods, whole or sliced
2 tsp. toasted sesame oil
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add lo mein noodles and cook, then drain and rinse under cold water. In a bowl, make your sauce by combining the oyster sauce, soy sauce, chicken broth and red pepper flakes. Set aside.
Bring canola oil to just under a smoking point in a large nonstick skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until done.
Add the vegetables and stir fry until tender-crisp, just a couple minutes. (If you want certain veggies more done, just cook them longer and stagger your vegetable additions; I often add onions around the same time as the chicken because I like my onions to be totally sauted and for their flavor to come through the whole dish).
Add the sauce, and then add the noodles. Mix everything together well. If the veggies need to cook longer, cover and steam until done. Drizzle with toasted sesame oil.
Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 448 / Fat: 9.4g / Saturated Fat: 1.2g / Carbs: 58g / Fiber: 4g / Protein: 29g
Well, we're back. We had a great time visiting family in Michigan and I ate my weight in Greek desserts (and lamb and potatoes and tzatziki and bread and...). Calorically speaking, the last 5 days didn't happen ;)
As a result of being out of town, we came home to a pretty empty kitchen. We won't be getting groceries until later tonight so in the meantime, I had to make due with what I had around. Frozen shrimp is one of the greatest things for those kinds of nights. You can cook it from frozen or just thaw it under some cold water for a few minutes. And there you go, you have a lean protein that is great in pasta or rice, grilled, in tacos, whatever you want.
A while back I came across two recipes for shrimp baked with feta and below is my version of this dish, made a little more Greek with the use of hilopites. Normally, I would make this with fresh basil and parsley but we didn't have any around. I did have the chopped/frozen basil from Trader Joe's, though, so I actually used a couple cubes of that.
This is a really simple, delicious and healthy dish. Hey, it won't erase the diples from the past weekend, but it will still make you feel great.
Baked Shrimp and Feta Pasta
Serves 2
1/2 lb. raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup hilopites (or orzo)
2 tsp. olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. dried basil (I used 2 of the fresh/frozen TJ's cubes)
1/4 cup white wine
1 (14 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1/4 cup feta, crumbled
salt and pepper
Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook hilopites until just al dente (won't take long at all for such a small pasta). Drain.
Meanwhile, in a skillet or a small dutch oven, heat the olive oil until shimmering and then add the onions and cook until transulent. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Then, add the white wine and reduce by half. Stir in the tomatoes, oregano, red pepper flakes, basil, and salt and pepper. Simmer for a few minutes to combine the flavors.
Off the heat, stir in the shrimp and the hilopites. Move the mixture to a small baking dish (unless you are using a dutch oven; if so just keep it like that) and top with the feta. Bake about 10-12 minutes or until the shrimp has cooked through.
Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 422 / Fat: 11g / Carbs: 46g / Protein: 28g
A few weeks ago, I went to Greektown with my friend for dinner. I was meeting her there and was a little early, so I decided to duck into the Greek market. I hardly ever go there because it's really out of the way and it always seems to be closed when I'm in the area. Whenever I go, I tend to stock up on...well, cheese, primarily. (And, shh, don't tell but I prefer the Bulgarian feta to the Greek kind).
At any rate, when I was browsing the aisles for long, tubular noodles for making pastitsio, I came across hilopites and just about ran up to the clerk to hug him. I had never seen them there before, and I have been wanting (and searching for) hilopites for a while now. Hilopites are small, square egg noodles. When I was young, about 90% of my diet consisted of things with hilopites and soups made with fithe (or is it fide? Or...I can never type Greek words in English. But, it's similar to vermicelli.)
Hilopites are just one of those things that are so nostalgic for me. To be honest, more than anything, they bring back memories of what a picky eater I was. I remember visiting Greece and begging my great aunt to make me plain broth with fide or hilopites every day I was there. I probably haven't eaten them in a good 15 years. So maybe now you understand why I was SO excited to find them!
This recipe is really nothing new. It's similar to my manestra but with a little added spice. I make something like this very often, both with beef and with chicken (dark meat). Sometimes I just serve the sauce over spaghetti instead of cooking pasta along with the meat. Sometimes I use allspice and bay instead of cinnamon and cloves. But I always top it with myzithra :)
You'll have to excuse the monotone picture, here. I forgot to put the extra parsley on before photographing!
Beef with Hilopites
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 lb. beef, cut into 1" pieces
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. dried or about 3 Tbsp. fresh parsley
3 Tbsp. tomato paste
3 cups water
1/4 heaping tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 lb. hilopites
salt and pepper
Heat olive oil in a deep saute pan. Season the beef with salt and pepper and then add to the oil to brown, in batches if necessary. Remove with a slotted spoon.
Add the onion to the pan and cook until translucent. Stir in the garlic and parsley (if you are using dried) and saute an additional minute before adding the tomato paste. Cook off the tomato paste for about 30 seconds, and then add the water. Be sure to scrape all the browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Add the cinnamon, cloves, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and then add the beef back in. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for about an hour or really as long as you'd like (the longer you simmer, the more tender the beef gets).
Add the hilopites and simmer, uncovered, until done, stirring occasionally. If you are using fresh parsley add it around the same time as you add the hilopites.
Originally, I had wanted to make a really simple pasta with some grilled steak, goat cheese, tomatoes and fresh basil. But, as I find way too often, the basil at my grocery store looked horrible and Trader Joe's was all out (Seriously? I don't think I have seen basil at TJ's in 8 or 9 months). So, onto Plan B.
In the event that I find basil that doesn't look awful, it inevitably comes in a large amount that Tom and I just never get through. So, I make a batch of pesto, which I freeze in small portions. Pesto freezes beautifully, and it's a great thing to have around for adding some oomph to anything from fish, to potatoes, and of course pasta.
That said, this isn't really much of a recipe so I debated whether or not to even include it in my blog. But hey, why not? If anything, maybe it will give someone a simple pasta idea or convince them to freeze some pesto. :)
For this dish, I took a pint of grape tomatoes and sauteed them in just a little olive oil (with salt and pepper) until they started to burst. I tossed those with some whole wheat penne, the pesto, and a steak I cooked and thinly sliced.
Voila!
I'm also submitting this to Ruth over at Presto Pasta Night.
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Ruth over at Once Upon a Feast has been hosting Presto Pasta Nights for a whole year now. Thanks, Ruth! I really wanted to participate in this week's roundup--the big PPN birthday--so hopefully I am not too late!
Speaking of events, for those of you who have posted your entry to Eat to the Beat, thanks for participating! I have seen some really delicious and really creative things. If you haven't emailed me your info, please do that. I am using my emails to do the round-up so I don't want to accidentally forget anyone. If you emailed me your info and you didn't hear back from me that either means I didn't get your email or I did, but you didn't get mine. The interwebs is crazy like that! So either way, please email me again. Thanks!
Anywho, like any "presto" kind of dish, this meal came together with ingredients I always manage to have on hand (OK, I did have a minor panic attack on Monday when I made pizzas and realized, to my horror, that I was out of goat cheese but I have since remedied that situation). It's a dish that's easy to prepare but definitely not lacking in flavor. The goat cheese gives this pasta a creamy consistency (and makes it a pretty color!) and is a *little* better for you than heavy cream. Plus, it just gives that little tang of extra flavor. I'm really glad I made enough to take leftovers for lunch tomorrow.
Penne with Goat Cheese-Tomato Sauce (and peas, mushrooms, and chicken sausage...)
Serves 4
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 (4-5 oz) hot Italian sausages, casings removed (I use chicken sausage)
1 small onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
1/4 tsp. (or to taste) crushed red pepper flakes
a few tbsp of wine or broth (not necessary but it's good for deglazing)
1 (28oz) can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup frozen peas
3 Tbsp. fresh basil (more for garnish if desired)
1 small (4oz) log goat cheese
salt and pepper
10-12 oz. penne, cooked
Heat a large skillet or saute pan over medium heat, and add the olive oil. When shimmering, crumble in the sausage and saute until browned. Add the onion and saute for about 2 minutes before adding the mushrooms and garlic. Once the mushrooms and onions are tender, add the tomato paste and red pepper flakes. Cook for about a minute before adding a few splashes of broth/wine to deglaze the pan and scrape up all the browned bits.
Add the crushed tomatoes and salt and pepper to taste. Turn the heat to medium-low and simmer to combine the flavors, 10 or 15 minutes. Add the peas and heat through for a minute or two. Stir in the basil and the goat cheese. Remove from the heat and continue stirring until the goat cheese has melted into the sauce. Season to taste if necessary and combine with the cooked pasta.
I had every intention of making lasagna rolls yesterday. Aren't these supposed to be the "easier" alternative to lasagna? Me thinks not. I boiled my noodles to al dente (with some oil so that they wouldn't stick together), stirred them around as they cooked. Guess what? Half the noodles stuck together. When I tried to pry them apart from one another, I ended up with some interesting noodle shapes, definitely not suitable for the pretty lasagna rolls I had envisioned.
So, onto Plan B. A regular ol' lasagna (with the torn pieces hidden in the middle layer, of course). I decided to make a healthier-than-usual lasagna, and it turned out really well, even if it wasn't as pretty to photograph as rolls would have been. I wanted to make a vodka sauce with this, but I was out of cream, and after the noodle fiasco, I just decided to use some jarred sauce. I'm just going to say this is pretty healthful and leave it at that (without posting nutritional information), since so many things can vary that based on what you use. I personally used 9 whole wheat lasagna noodles, 2% mozzarella (full fat goat & romano cheeses) and about half a jar of jarred pasta sauce. I cut my lasagna into 6 servings, at 370 calories a piece.
Whole Wheat Chicken Lasagna
1/2 box whole wheat lasagna noodles; cooked al dente (this could vary based on size of the noodles; mine were shorter than regular)
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 lb. chicken, cooked and shredded or diced
1 small onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
oregano and basil, to taste
8 oz. cremini mushrooms, chopped
2 cups fresh spinach, coarsley chopped
4 oz. (1 small log) goat cheese
1 egg, beaten
1.5 cups pasta sauce
3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup shredded or grated romano cheese
salt and pepper
Preheat oven to 375.
Heat a large pan over medium heat and add olive oil until shimmering. Add the onions and mushrooms and cook until tender. Stir in the cooked chicken, garlic, oregano, basil and salt and pepper to taste. Add the spinach and saute for a few minutes to develop the flavors and wilt the spinach. Put the mixture into a bowl and cool slightly. Stir in the goat cheese and then the beaten egg.
Spray a baking dish with some cooking oil and then pour about 1/2 cup of pasta sauce over the bottom. Layer 1/3 of the noodles over the sauce, and then pour half the chicken mixture over the noodles. Repeat layering (sauce, noodles, chicken). Add a final layer of noodles, followed by the last 1/2 cup of sauce. Top with the shredded mozzarella and parmesan. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes, until bubbly.
On Saturday, Tom and I ventured outside in the freezing cold. It turns out this was not the best idea for me since I tend to fall when there is even a tiny bit of ice out, and there was more than a tiny bit on Saturday. Ah, it was a sight to see; me clinging for dear life to the fences along the sidewalk. But I still fell. Sigh. Luckily, it was for a good cause because we were headed to the meat market to buy something for dinner. I debated between lamb and veal and eventually landed on veal stew meat because it sounded good and it was much more cost effective (not that this mattered, of course, because we bought other things and ended up spending too much, anyway).
I debated between a veal stew or some sort of veal pasta sauce and landed somewhere in between, with what I guess I could (and will) call a veal ragout. The meat stewed for an hour so it was extremely tender and stew-like, and then I added some small pasta (ditalini) in at the end, so it was a great one-pot meal and extremely comforting on a blistering cold Saturday.
Ragout of Veal with Ditalini
Serves about 4
3-4 slices bacon, chopped
1 lb. veal, trimmed and cut into 1" pieces
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz. mushrooms, quartered
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
1/3 cup marsala wine
1/2 cup crushed tomatoes
4 cups chicken broth
1 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried marjoram
1 bay leaf
2 cups ditalini pasta
3 cups fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
salt and pepper
Heat a pot or dutch oven over medium heat. Add the chopped bacon and cook until it begins to crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Pour off all but 1 Tbsp. of the bacon fat.
Season the veal with salt and pepper. Add to the dutch oven and brown on all sides. Remove with a slotted spoon. Add the onions and cook until translucent. Stir in the garlic and tomato paste and saute until the garlic is fragrant, about one minute.
Add the marsala to the dutch oven and cook until it's reduced by half. Stir in the mushrooms, chicken broth, crushed tomatoes, thyme, marjoam, bay leaf, and salt and pepper. Bring to a light boil and then add the veal back in. Cover and simmer for an hour (or as long as you want).
Stir in the ditalini and cook, uncovered, until most of the liquid has been absorbed and the pasta is cooked. During the last 2 or 3 minutes of cooking, stir in the spinach so that it wilts. Add the bacon back in to warm through.
After coming across a couple different recipes in Gourmet and on Ellie Krieger's show featuring baked shrimp, orzo and feta, I was thinking of ways to combine the recipes and make the dish. But, then I saw Peter's post for Greco Shrimp Linguini and I was tempted to make that (quite similar) dish, instead.
As you know, I cannot follow a recipe to save my life, so I adapted the recipe and the method a bit. I used basil in place of parsley, kalamata olives in place of throumpes and I also lightened the dish a little (but, you know me, I increased the amount of cheese...). This made for a delicious and quite healthy dish. Thanks, Peter!
Greco Linguini
Serves 2
4 oz. thin spaghetti or linguini (I used whole wheat)
1 Tbsp. extra virginn olive oil, divided
1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes
dried oregano
1 cloves garlic, whole
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 small to medium zucchini, sliced into half moons
a drizzle or two of balsamic vinegar
8-10 black olives (I used kalamata), pitted and chopped
1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
2-3 Tbsp. fresh chopped basil
salt and pepper
extra virgin olive oil for drizzling (optional)
Preheat oven to 350. On a baking pan, toss the tomatoes and one whole clove of garlic with 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil, and dried oregano, salt and pepper to taste. Roast in the oven for about 15 minutes, until the tomatoes have burst slightly.
Meanwhile, cook your linguini in boiling salted water until al dente and prepare the rest of the dish. In a skillet, add the remaining 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil. When shimmering, add the zucchini and minced garlic and saute until the garlic is fragrant, about a minute. Add the shrimp and olives and cook until the zucchini becomes tender and the shrimp is about halfway done. Stir in the balsamic vinegar and tomatoes (and their juices, pitch the whole garlic clove) and toss to coat everything. Turn off the burner.
Add the hot linguini, basil and feta into the pan. Toss to coat everything and finish cooking the shrimp (the residual heat from the pan as well as the linguini will be enough to do this). Drizzle with additional olive oil, if desired, and season to taste.
Nutritional Info (without drizzling additional olive oil at the end): Calories: 468 / Fat: 16.3g / Carbs: 53.2 / Fiber: 9g / Protein: 27.2g
Many, many months ago, Tom and I had dinner at copperblue. I ordered beef tenderloin and it was accompanied by this great orzo side dish that serves as the inspiration for this blog entry. Their orzo had pancetta, swiss chard and cardoons. Again, I ask you, can you ever go wrong with any form of bacon? That's a resounding No. The one and only time I've ever eaten (or seen) a cardoon was on my plate at copperblue. Obviously, cardoon stalks are not terribly popular at my grocery store. But, they are related to the artichoke, so I decided to use artichoke hearts in my orzo dish, as well as make a few additional changes to suit the orzo to our tastes (and what I had on hand).
This was a really simple dish that we both enjoyed. I am submitting this over to Ruth for Presto Pasta Night.
Orzo with Pancetta, Swiss Chard and Roasted Artichoke Hearts
1 cup artichoke hearts (fresh, jarred and drained, or frozen and thawed)
1/2 Tbsp. olive oil and a little extra for the artichokes
1/4 lb. pancetta, chopped
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup white wine (I used pinot grigio)
1 2/3 cup chicken broth
1 cup orzo
3 cups swiss chard, chopped
salt and pepper
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with foil. Toss the artichoke hearts with a little olive oil and salt and pepper. Roast them for about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat a skillet or saute pan, and then add the oil. Add the pancetta, cooking over medium heat until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon. To the pan, add the chopped onion and saute until tender. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant.
Increase the heat slightly and add the wine. Cook until the wine has almost completely evaporated. Add the chicken broth and bring to a light boil. Stir in the orzo and reduce the heat. Simmer, covered, about 8 minutes or until done. Add the roasted artichokes, pancetta, and swiss chard to the pan. Cover, turn off the heat, and let stand a couple minutes or until the swiss chard wilts. Season to taste.
This will be my last entry for a while. Tom and I leave tomorrow evening to spend the rest of the week with my family in Michigan. I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!
That said, we don't really have much in the way of groceries, and I just wanted to use up what we did have--a little half and half and some mushrooms. Thanks to the frozen sliced peppers and shrimp in my freezer (thank you Trader Joe's) and the pasta that is inevitably always in my cupboard, this really quick (and pretty healthy!) meal came together nicely. I decided to make a cream sauce (but one that is not terrible for you) and give it some spice with Cajun seasoning. Delicious!
I am submitting this to Ruth over at Once Upon a Feast for Presto Pasta Night.
Cajun Shrimp Spaghetti with Cream Sauce
Serves 2
4 oz. cooked spaghetti or pasta of your choice (I use whole wheat)
1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 lb. shrimp, peeled/deveined
4 oz. sliced mushrooms
1/2 small onion, diced
1 cup sliced bell peppers (I used yellow, green and red)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. flour
1/3 cup half and half
salt, pepper and Cajun seasoning to taste
Heat the butter over medium heat in a skillet. Sprinkle the shrimp liberally with Cajun seasoning, and then saute in the pan for 1 minute per side (you are not cooking it through here). Remove with a slotted spoon.
To the skillet, add the onions, peppers, mushrooms and garlic. Saute until the vegetables are tender. Add the flour and stir it for a minute or two, to cook off its rawness. Add the half and half and stir, thickening. Put the shrimp back into the skillet to cook through. Season to taste with salt and pepper (and more Cajun seasoning, if desired). Toss with hot pasta and serve.
Nutritional Information Per Serving (whole wheat pasta): Calories: 454 / Fat: 17g / Carbs: 53g / Fiber: 7g / Protein: 21.3g
