pesto pasta

Posted on September 12, 2011 by natalie @ wee eats

I never realized how often I make pasta until I saw the number of pasta recipes in queue for this site. I don’t feel like we eat pasta that much, I don’t even particularly like pasta. It must just be that it’s so easy to just boil some water and throw a sauce together after 8 hours of work, 2 hours of commuting, and an hour of gym time. When all I want to do is just go home and crash, apparently pasta is my go-to dish.

One type of pasta that I started making often just involves sauteing some fresh veggies, adding a bit of butter, a splash of cream, and a bit of garlic then tossing it with the pasta. On the off-chance that I have a bit of pesto lying around – even better. Add a tablespoon or two of pesto and voila – delicious creamy pesto pasta.

This dish has all the nutrition of fresh veggies mixed with the bright flavor of basil pesto, all rounded out with a dash of cream. Just a dash – not so much to make you feel guilty but just enough to turn it saucy. Of course, if you’ve been good all week – add as much cream as you like 🙂 If you’re the type who feels guilty (like yours truly), just a splash of cream and a bit of starchy pasta water will do.

Creamy Pesto Pasta

[ Printable Recipe ]

Pasta (enough for 2 -3 people)
1/2 – 1 cup chopped, cooked chicken (optional)
1/2 onion, chopped
1 – 2 cloves garlic, minced
1 – 2 tomatoes, diced
2 – 3 Tablespoons pesto (fresh is better, but store-bought will do)
Splash of heavy cream
1/4 – 1/2 cup chicken (or vegetable) stock
1 Tablespoon of butter

1. Cook & drain pasta, set aside in a bowl. Reserve a bit of the cooking water.

2. Saute onions in a drizzle of olive oil until translucent, add chicken and heat through. Add tomatoes and garlic, stirring constantly until heated through. (Make sure not to burn your garlic) Transfer to bowl with cooked pasta.

3. Melt butter in pan, stir in pesto, chicken stock, and a splash of heavy cream. Let simmer, stirring, until slightly thickened (a few minutes). Add pasta, chicken (if using), and veggies and toss to coat. If you need more sauce, add some reserved pasta water or cream and continue to toss until sauce completely covers the pasta. Taste and adjust seasoning (lots of cream means you will probably need to add more salt).

Creamy Cheesy Pasta

Posted on July 30, 2011 by natalie @ wee eats

While I usually will make pasta with a red sauce or just some fresh sauteed veggies, it’s always good to change it up now and then with something new. This particular recipe comes to us from a recent issue of Cooking Light. I used skim milk and added some shredded chicken for extra protein.

Creamy Cheesy Pasta

Print Me!

· 8 ounces uncooked pasta
· 1 cup milk
· 2 Tbsp chopped fresh basil, divided
· 1/2 tsp salt
· 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper
· 1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
· 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
· 1/2 C (2 oz) shaved fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided
· 1 1/2 Tbsp mascarpone cheese
· ½ – 1 C cooked, shredded chicken* (optional)

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and keep warm.

2. While pasta cooks, whisk together milk, 2 teaspoons basil, salt, and pepper in a bowl.

3. Heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add flour to pan, and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

4. Add milk mixture; cook for 3 minutes or until slightly thickened, stirring frequently. Remove from heat, and add 1 1/2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano and mascarpone cheese to milk mixture. Add pasta and chicken to pan and toss with tongs to combine.

5. Sprinkle with remaining 4 teaspoons basil and remaining 1/2 ounce Parmigiano-Reggiano. Serve

[Adapted from Cooking Light]

pesto

Posted on July 13, 2011 by natalie @ wee eats

My love affair with pesto and all things basil started at an early age. I remember the first time I had pesto – my dad took me to dinner at Avenue Bistro in Toledo, OH. I was a nasty hybrid of vegetarian + picky-teen-eater at the time so my dinner was essentially a house salad and this mystery green concoction on the table. I probably ate at least two loaves of bread covered in pesto. My dad must have been horrified at the amount of food I consumed, since he was the type who ran five miles a day and lived off of iceberg lettuce alone. But oh man that stuff was good.

Now that I’m a “grown up” I can make my own pesto. Honestly, it’s so easy I’m sure I could have made it back then, too. The bright flavor of basil with the salty parmesan cheese, plus the subtle depth added by the toasted pine nuts (mmm, pine nuts)… pesto is just divine on all accounts. It’s a perfect, refreshing snack in the summer – just buy a loaf of crusty bread at the store, rip off a piece, and dunk it on in! Don’t want the guilt that accompanies realizing you’ve eaten a whole loaf of bread in one sitting? Try using it as a pasta sauce – just toss it with pasta. Maybe add a splash of cream if you feel so inclined… I think I like where this is going….

[[PS – I’m entered in a kitchen contest – VOTE FOR ME HERE!]]

Pesto

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1 C basil leaves
1/2 C freshly-grated parmesan
2 – 3 Tbsp pine nuts, toasted (some stores will sell them pre-toasted if you’re not a fan of toasting them yourself)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
Splash of fresh lemon juice (optional)
salt and pepper
1/4 – 1/2 C olive oil

1. Whir everything except the oil in a food processor until it forms a paste.

2. Pour oil in, a few tablespoons at a time, while the food processor is running until the pesto reaches your desired consistency. (Some people like theirs with less oil, ideal for spreading, while others like it with more oil, which makes it more dip-able)

3. Taste and adjust salt and pepper

*Tips

*This recipe can easily be doubled or tripled for company

*It’s not baking – so don’t worry about exact amounts. Adjust the taste to your liking – you can even add a different kind of cheese or different leafy greens – spinach & feta perhaps?

*A splash of lemon juice is always a welcome addition to pesto

*Extra pesto can be frozen in ice cube trays – it makes a great addition to pasta sauces. I like to add a pesto cube to red sauce for an extra boost of flavor.

Pasta al Pomodoro

Posted on June 16, 2011 by natalie @ wee eats

I don’t know if anyone subscribes to Bon Appetit, but May’s issue had a KILLER cover picture. It was just a simple pasta pomodoro, but it looked A-MAY-ZING. After wiping the drool from my chin, I decided I had to make it. I really think I’m the only person who loves a simple spaghetti with red sauce… However, since my kitchen was in pieces at that time, I marked the recipe page and went along with my life. A couple of days ago, I was cleaning and was elated to stumble upon that magazine again. Realizing I already had all of the ingredients it called for, I immediately got to work.

The May issue was packed with all kinds of “secrets” to making perfect pasta. Things most people know, like adding salt to your pasta water, reserving some of the pasta’s cooking water for your sauce, and adding cheese to your sauce (not just on top of it). It also had some new tips, like using a skillet instead of a large pan, adding butter when you toss the pasta, and finishing the pasta for the last couple minutes in the sauce, so that it absorbs the flavor of the sauce while it finishes cooking.

The recipe isn’t anything mind-blowing, just another simple (but enjoyable) pasta sauce recipe. It actually doesn’t vary a whole lot from my current pasta sauce recipe, but I just couldn’t help myself.

We used bowtie pasta (per BF’s request) instead of spaghetti or bucatini. I also feel bad whenever I eat an entree that is void of protein, so I seared some chicken breasts, chopped them up, and added them to the sauce while it simmered. Topped with freshly-grated parmesan and pecorino, this pasta was easy to make and a delight to eat.

Pasta al Pomodoro – from Bon Appetit

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1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
1 28 oz. can peeled tomatoes, puréed
Kosher salt
3 large fresh basil sprigs
12 oz. pasta
2 Tbsp. cubed unsalted butter
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan or Pecorino (I used both)
1 – 2 cooked chicken breasts, cubed or shredded* (optional)

Heat extra-virgin olive oil in a 12″ skillet over medium-low heat. Add minced onion and cook, stirring, until soft, about 12 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for 2-4 minutes. (Make sure it doesn’t burn- burned garlic is bitter!!) Add crushed red pepper flakes and continue to cook another minute.
Increase heat to medium and add puréed tomatoes and season lightly with kosher salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens slightly and the flavors meld, about 20 minutes.** (see tips) Remove pan from heat, stir in basil sprigs, and set aside.
Meanwhile, cook your pasta! Bring water to a boil in a 5-qt. pot. Season with salt; add pasta and cook. Remove 2 minutes before tender and drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta cooking water.
Discard basil and heat skillet over high heat. Stir in reserved pasta water to loosen sauce and bring it to a boil. Add pasta and cook, stirring, until sauce coats pasta and pasta is al dente, about 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat; add butter and cheese; toss until cheese melts

*Tips

*Purchase canned, whole tomatoes and puree them before adding them to your sauce. You can puree your tomatoes in the food processor, with a food mill, or an immersion blender.

*You can add your chicken at step 2 (while it simmers) or step 3 (when you add the pasta). Adding it earlier will result in it absorbing more of the flavor from the sauce, though.

*While my pasta simmers, I cover it with aluminum foil or parchment with a hole cut out- allowing the sauce to be able to reduce without making a huge tomato-y mess on my stove and counter.

simple red sauce

Posted on April 20, 2011 by natalie @ wee eats

This isn’t about the meatballs, or the pasta, or the cheese. This, my friends, is about the sauce. You know all those complicated recipes for red sauce that you’ve read over the years? With secret blends of secret spices, with food mills, sugar, someone’s grandmother’s “secret ingredient”? Simmer for 40 hours, stirring constantly, standing on one leg while humming an authentic Italian tune? Smoke and mirrors, my friends, smoke and mirrors. Continue reading →

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