Bacon Ranch Chicken

This recipe came from a pin on Pinterest which linked to the Healthified Kitchen blog.

Bacon Ranch Chicken

2 Turkey Bacon Strips, cooked and chopped

1 teaspoon Minced Garlic

1 package Ranch Dressing/Seasoning Mix

1 10.75 can Fat Free Cream of Chicken Soup

1 cup Fat Free Sour Cream

16 oz Chicken Breasts (1 package)

8 oz Pasta

1. Combine the bacon, garlic, dressing mix, soup, and sour cream.

2. Place chicken in bottom of crock pot and cover with mixture.

3. Cook on high for 3.5 hours.

4. At least 30 minutes before you want to eat open the crock pot and shred the chicken.

5. Cook the pasta per instructions.

6. When you're ready to eat, stir the pasta into the chicken mixture in the crock pot and serve.

Tortellini Alfredo

This recipe is totally stolen from others but it is way too good not to pass on! I saw the recipe on Kristen's blog Raising Acorns and she said that she got the recipe from Amanda's blog Kevin & Amanda. So, I give them credit, because this recipe is great and super easy! Also, I went with Kristen's version that included peas and it made it fantastic! It was good the night I made it, but honestly, even better reheated the next two days for lunch!
Tortellini Alfredo
1 (8 oz) pkg cheese tortellini
1 cup ham, diced
(8 oz) cream cheese
1 pkg dry Italian dressing
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup milk
1/2 stick butter
1 cup frozen peas

Add tortellini to a large pot of boiling salted water and let cook for 8 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat a skillet to medium heat. Add the cream cheese, butter, cream of chicken soup, Italian dressing, and milk and stir until smooth. Once smooth, add in ham and peas and stir to coat. After the tortellini finishes boiling, drain, then add to cream sauce. Stir to evenly coat and serve warm.

Greek Chicken Pasta

When I was on the tail end of being sick a few weeks ago Mom called and told me that she had made a pasta dish and they had lots of leftovers and she wondered if we wanted them. I'm always up for not having to cook a meal, especially when I'm not feeling 100%, so I jumped on the opportunity. I'm sure glad I did because this was one of the best pasta dishes I've had in a while! Thanks Mom for the recipe!

Greek Chicken Pasta
Makes 5-6 servings
2 cups uncooked penne pasta
1/4 cup butter, cubed
1/2 large onion, chopped
1 teaspoon fresh garlic, minced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 can (14.5 oz) chicken broth
3 cups cubed rotisserie chicken
1 jar (7.5 oz) marinated, quartered artichoke hearts, drained
1 cup (4 oz) crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
1/3 cup sliced, pitted Greek olives
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

1. Cook pasta according to package directions
2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, melt butter.
3. Add onion; saute until tender. Add garlic and cook about a minute more.
4. Stir in the flour until blended; gradually add broth.
5. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in the chicken, artichoke hearts, cheese, tomatoes, and olives.
6. Drain pasta; stir into the pan. Broil 3-4 inches from the heat for 5-7 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown. Sprinkle with parsley.

Napa Pasta

My parents came up with this recipe and I'm sorry that I don't have a picture to share with you because this is really a fantastic recipe and I feel like you won't get the full effect until you see the finished dish.  They used spices from Napa Style and I looked online and couldn't really find anywhere else that sells these salt's, but I bet there is somewhere.  I would also link to the salts but the Napa Style website keeps crashing my browser...not good.  Regardless, this is a wonderful recipe that is different and pretty light.  And, the best part, it is almost better re-warmed up or eaten cold the next day!  Great job Mom and Dad! Enjoy!

Napa Pasta

Package of refrigerated pasta (we used three cheese ravioli)
NapaStyle Citrus Rosemary Gray Salt
NapaStyle Roasted Garlic Gray Salt
NapaStyle Prosciutto Bits
Roasted Chicken, pre cooked and cut into pieces
Parmesan Cheese, grated
Olive Oil
Sprinkle chicken and Prosciutto bits with a little of each salt and heat in skillet in olive oil until heated through.  Put in serving dish, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and heat in oven on low while preparing the pasta.   Brown pasta in olive oil with a little of each salt (I did this one layer at a time, lightly browning on each side.  It took about four skillets full.).  Move browned pasta to serving dish in oven until all pasta is finished.  Sprinkle more Parmesan cheese on top, stir and serve.

Shells with Chicken and Mozzarella

I don't remember where I found this recipe so I can't give credit but if you run across it in a recipe search let me know. I made this last week and it was soooo yummy! Jason and I both thoroughly enjoyed it! And it was really easy too!

Shells with Grilled Chicken and Mozzarella
Coarse salt and ground pepper
Vegetable oil, for grates
1 1/2 pounds chicken cutlets (Note: I used two packages of pre-cooked grilled chicken breast and it was great!)
8 ounces medium pasta shells
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
4 ounces fresh mozzarella, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
2 tablespoons butter

1.Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for pasta. Meanwhile, heat grill to medium; lightly oil grates. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Grill until cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove from grill, and cut into thin strips, halving if long.
2.Cook pasta until al dente, according to package instructions. Reserve 1 cup pasta water; drain pasta, and return to pot. Add chicken, tomatoes, mozzarella, parsley, Parmesan, and butter. Toss to combine. Add reserved pasta water a little at a time to create a sauce that coats shells (you may not need all the water). Serve with more Parmesan.

It is a lot easier and quicker if you use the pre-cooked chicken. Two packages put plenty of chicken into the mix. The way the cheeses melted and blended with everything else was just so good! I want to go back and remake this recipe already!

Pasta with Tomatoes and Sausage

I had never really thought of this as a recipe until I was thinking this week about some new things I could try or talk about in the weeks leading up to Charlotte's birth.  It was then that I realized that just because I kind of throw it together doesn't necessarily mean that y'all wouldn't enjoy my haphazard attempt at cooking!  So, here goes!  This is super easy and is something that is different every time I make it.  It is really good and you can make as much or as little as you want since you're controlling what you put into the sauce and how much pasta to make.  You can also control how spicy or seasoned to make the sauce.  This is something that you need to just experiment with to see how you like it best but I'll give you a general recipe.  

So you start by finding your favorite type of sausage.  Lately we've been using the packs of four sausage links that are "natural".  With this recipe I used the Sweet Italian Sausage but you can use the Sun Dried Tomato sausage or Spicy sausage or whatever you prefer.  Before I found these packs of sausage links I would use the Hillshire Farms sausage.  Just find whatever kind of pre-cooked sausage you prefer and cut it up into slices.  Like I said, it's precooked so you just have to make sure and get it warm enough but you don't have to worry about truly cooking cooking it.  

While you're cutting up the sausage go ahead and put the pasta on to cook.  Again, whatever you favorite type of noodles are will be fine.  This time we used bowties.  And cook it to whatever texture you prefer.

As the pasta starts to boil put the cut up sausage pieces into a skillet with some olive oil and start to cook them.  At that point add at least one 14 1/2 oz can of tomatoes.  You can get the diced tomatoes, crushed, whole....again, this is all about what you want!  If you like your sauce chunkier then get bigger tomato pieces.  Pour the whole can (juice and all) in with the sausage.  Then add about 1 1/2 cans of Tomato Paste.  This is going to make the sauce thicker.  So if you like it thicker add both full cans.  If you like it thinner either add the tomato paste and then add water or just don't add as much tomato paste.  Stir around and bring the sauce to a simmer.

Now this is the fun part.  When I'm buying tomatoes just to make this pasta I buy them with some spices already built in.  Same with the tomato paste.  But sometimes I make this spur of the moment and in those cases the tomatoes and tomato paste don't have anything in them.  Regardless, the sauce is going to need more seasoning.  And that's where your imagination comes in!  Here's what I added tonight: garlic powder, onion powder, basil, oregano, and ground black pepper.  Probably 1/2 teaspoon each of the garlic powder, onion powder, and pepper and 1 teaspoon each of the basil and oregano.  Rosemary is also really good in the sauce as is anything else you want to throw in!  Add some spices, stir it up and then taste the sauce and see what you think.  The sauce is pretty thick so you aren't really going to overseason unless you dump in tablespoons at a time of the seasoning.

Once the pasta gets done you drain it.  Make sure the sauce has had at least a minute or two to simmer with your final spice combination.  And then serve up the sauce over the pasta!  Like I said, VERY simple and something that you can make up your own recipe to the sauce.  It's a pretty straightforward recipe but here are some highlights.

Pasta with Tomatoes and Sausage

Your favorite type of pasta (amount depends on number of servings you want)

Your favorite type of fully cooked sausage (Sweet Italian, Sun Dried Tomato, Hickory Smoked...)

14 1/2 oz can of Diced Tomatoes

2 small cans of Tomato Paste

1/2 t Garlic Powder

1/2 t Onion Powder

1 t Basil

1 t Oregano

1/2 t Ground Black Pepper

Water to bring sauce to your preferred consistency

1. Boil pasta.

2. Cut up sausage into small pieces.  Saute shortly in olive oil.

3. Add tomatoes and tomato paste to sausage and olive oil.  Bring to a simmer.

4. Add spices as desired and water if needed to bring about desired consistency.  Simmer.

5. Serve pasta with sauce on top.

Spicy Chicken Pasta

This recipe from our local hospital foundation's cookbook is great!  My mom used to make it when we were little and I always loved it.  No that I'm older I know that it's pretty easy to make and makes a lot of pasta!  However, it is spicy so if you are looking for something to make for someone who just had a baby or is sick this probably isn't the dish the take.  But, for something like my friend Leigh's shower a few weeks ago, it was the perfect pasta with chicken dish.  Please note that the picture above is from Leigh's shower and this was about 2/3's of the recipe.  I also filled a disposable round cake pan full of pasta and Jason and I ate that for dinner one night.  I'm not kidding when I say that it makes a lot!

Spicy Chicken Pasta

4 to 6 chicken breasts

12 oz Vermicelli Noodles

1 small Onion, chopped

1/2 c Melted Margarine (you can use about half of this amount and it still be great)

1 10 oz can Cream of Chicken Soup

2 cans Tomatoes with Green Chilies (aka Rotel)

1 T Worcestershire Sauce

1/2 t Garlic Powder

1 lb Velveeta cheese, cubed

Parmesan Cheese

Rinse chicken.  Boil chicken in water until tender.  Remove skin, if needed, and chop.

Cook noodles using package directions.

Saute onion in margarine in sillet.

Combine soup, tomatoes with chiles, Worcestershire Sauce, Garlic Powder, and Velveeta Cheese in bowl.  Add chicken and onions to soup mixture.  Layer pasta and soup mixture in a 9x12 glass baking dish.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until hot and bubbly.  Sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese.

Creamy Fettuccine with Asiago and Thyme

Kelly gave me  this recipe and I made it as one of the three pasta's that I offered at my friend Leigh's shower a few weeks ago and it was great! It's pretty simple to make and the thing that I loved (and was looking for) was a white sauce pasta that baked so that I could have it in the oven with the guests arrived and just pull it out and put it on the table ready to eat.  This recipe was perfect for that.  It rounded out my offerings as a meat-less pasta to go with Baked Ziti and Spicy Chicken Pasta (coming up next week).  

Creamy Baked Fettuccine with Asiago and Thyme

1 lb Fettuccine Pasta

2 cups Grated Asiago Cheese, plus 1/4 cup

2 8 oz containers Creme Fraiche (we used Sour Cream since we couldn't find this)

1 cup Grated Parmesan

1 1/2 T fresh Chopped Thyme Leaves

1/2 t Salt

1/2 t Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta reserving 1 cup of the pasta cooking liquid.

In a large bowl combine the 2 cups Asiago cheese, creme fraiche, Parmesan, thyme, salt, pepper, cooked pasta, and pasta cooking liquid. Gently toss until all the ingredients are combined and the pasta is coated. Place the pasta in a buttered baking dish and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup asiago cheese. Bake until golden on top, about 25 minutes. Let sit for at least 5 minutes and serve.

Creamy Rotini and Salmon

Here's another great recipe from Family Circle. This one is pretty good for you to with the salmon, enriched pasta, and fat-free half and half! It's pretty easy too!

Creamy Rotini and Salmon

Makes 6 servings

1/2 pound Salmon Fillet (1 piece)

1 box (14 1/2 oz) omega-3-enriched Rotini Pasta

2 c Fat-Free Half and Half

2 t Cornstarch

1/4 t Salt

1/4 t Ground Nutmeg

1/8 t Cayenne Pepper

1 box (10 oz) Frozen Peas, thawed

1/2 c Parmesan Cheese

1/3 c Toasted Walnuts, coarsely chopped

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Coat a small baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add salmon to pan and bake at 450 for 12 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Keep warm.

2. Meanwhile, cook pasta following package directions. Drain and return to pot.

3. While pasta is cooking, whisk together half-and-half, cornstarch, salt, nutmeg, and cayenne. Place in medium-size saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer on low for 1 minute until sauce thickens.

4. Add peas and simmer for an additional minute, until peas are heated through. Remove from heat; stir in 1/4 c of the Parmesan cheese

5. Stir sauce into drained pasta.

6. Remove skin from salmon and discard. Flake salmon into bite-size pieces and gently stir into pasta. Top with remaining 1/4 c cheese and the nuts and serve.

Arrabbiata Sauce with Chicken and Mushrooms

This yummy pasta dish from Family Circle is pretty easy. With chicken and pasta you don't need much else to make a full dinner! But beware, depending on how much red pepper you use this dish can get spicy in a hurry!

Arrabbiata Sauce with Chicken and Mushrooms

Makes 6 Servings

3 T Olive Oil

4 c (10 oz) Sliced Mushrooms

1 1/2 lb boneless, skinless Chicken Breast, cut into 1 inch pieces

1/2 t Salt

3 cloves Garlic, chopped

3 cans (8 oz each) Tomato Sauce

3/4 t Red Pepper Flakes

1/4 t Salt

1 lb Large Shell Pasta

1/2 c Shredded Ricotta Salata or Mozzarella Cheese (we used Mozzarella)

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil over high heat.

2. Heat 2 T of the olive oil in a large skillet over M/H heat. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes. Push the mushrooms to one side of the skillet and add the chicken adn cook for about 7 minutes or until cooked through, turning halfway through cooking. Season the chicken and mushrooms with 1/4 t of the salt. Remove chicken and mushrooms to a plate and reserve.

3. Add the remaining 1 T olive oil and cook garlic for 1 minute. Stir in the tomato sauce, red pepper flakes, and remaining salt. Cook for 2 minutes. Return chicken and mushrooms to skillet and heat through.

4. While sauce is cooking, prepare pasta following package directions. Drain pasta thoroughly.

5. Add pasta to skillet and toss. Serve immediately with shredded cheese.

Let me know how it turns out if you try it!

Greek Spaghetti

My aunt Carrie gave me this recipe along with quite a few others when we got married.  This is a really great meal to take to others because this one recipe makes a ton of food!  And you can control the amount of flavor based on how much seasoning you put into the pasta.  It's a really good dish that includes lots of good for you items like tomatoes and bell peppers.  And even the pickiest eaters seem to like it!

Greek Spaghetti

Serves 12 - 16

2 lbs Boneless, skinless Chicken Breasts

16 oz Spaghetti noodles

2 bell peppers, diced

1 c chopped Onion

2 (15 oz) cans diced tomatoes, undrained

1 (4 oz) can sliced Mushrooms, undrained

1 (8 oz) sliced Water Chestnuts

1 c reserved Chicken Broth

2 T Greek Seasoning (or less if you want to keep the flavor mild)

1 c Grated Mozzarella

1 c Grated Colby Cheese

- Rinse chicken and place in 5 qt Dutch oven.  Cover with water and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover, and simmer 1 hour.

- Remove chicken from broth; remove 1 c broth for use in casserole; reserve remaining broth.

- Chop or tear chicken into bite size pieces.  

- Bring remaining broth to a boil and add spaghetti noodles.  Cook until tender (add water if needed).  Pour cooked noodles into colander.

- Place bell pepper, onion, and tomatoes in skillet and saute until tender.

- In a large (very large!) bowl combine chicken, noodles, pepper, onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, water chestnuts, 1 c broth, and Greek seasoning.  Toss until thoroughly blended.

- Place in two 9x13 baking dishes.  Sprinkle with cheeses.

Bake in 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or until heated through.

Note: I put this into 3 square dishes this week when I took dinner to others in our Sunday School class that had just had babies.  It filled those dishes to the brim!

Let me know how it turns out if you make it!

Shrimp with Tomatoes over Pasta

So I'm back from the massive bug that attacked me last week.  Sorry for missing last week's recipe, apparently I do have some readers who wait anxiously for the weekly recipe although I think Carrie might be the only one! I had a little trouble deciding what to post today since my two staple recipes (the BBQ Pork Chops and the Parmesan Chicken) were posted weeks ago.  Jason and I decided last night that we'd just have to start cooking more recipes often in order to keep up with the pressure that is Recipe Wednesday!  But that just means that he has to try a lot of new things so that works for me.  :)

In the end I chose a recipe that I don't cook as often as I'd like because I forget about it but we love it every time I make it.  

Shrimp with Tomatoes over Pasta

12 oz Fresh or Frozen Shrimp

3 T Olive Oil

2 cloves Garlic, minced

1/4 t Dried Oregano, crushed

1/4 t Dried Basil, crushed

1 c. Cherry Tomatoes

2 t Lemon Juice

2 T Grated Parmesan Cheese

1 T snipped parsley

Pasta

1. Cook pasta

2. Thaw shrimp (if frozen).  Pat dry with paper towels.  In a 10" skillet heat olive oil over medium/high heat.

3. Add shrimp, garlic, oregano, and basil.  Cook about 3 minutes or until shrimp turn opaque, stirring frequently.

4. Add tomatoes and lemon juice.  Cook and stir about 30 seconds or until heated through.  Sprinkle with cheese and parsley.

5. Serve shrimp and tomatoes over pasta.

Let me know how it turns out!  Also, let me know if there is a type of recipe you're wanting more of (desserts, sides, breads, fish, etc)!