CEiMB: Penne with Roasted Tomatoes, Garlic and White Beans

It's Thursday! That means it is time for another Craving Ellie in My Belly recipe. This week's recipe was chosen by Bri of Yoshimi Vs. Motherhood. She chose for us to make the Penne with Roasted Tomatoes, Garlic, and White Beans from The Food You Crave: Luscious Recipes for a Healthy Life by Ellie Krieger. It is a simple dish that takes minimal preparation.

The thing that I love about being part of this group is that there are many recipes that I normally wouldn't think about trying, and this group suggests wonderful recipes that I may have passed right by while flipping through Ellie's cookbooks. This pasta dish is one such recipe, and I am glad I participated this week, because I really liked it. The creamy white beans contrasted nicely with the chewy pasta. I added some crushed red pepper to bring a little bit of heat to the dish, and I used feta cheese instead of Parmesan cheese to give the meal a bit more "bite".

I think this dish makes a great vegetarian meal because the beans are a nice substitute for meat or poultry. The only thing I would change would be to increase the amount of tomatoes in the dish. My tomatoes shrunk a lot while they were roasting, and they seemed rather scarce when added to the pasta and beans. Thanks to Bri for suggesting another great Ellie recipe, and make sure to check out the blogroll to see what other Craving Ellie in My Belly bloggers did with their recipes.

CEiMB: Chicken Paella with Sausage and Olives

It's Thursday! That means it is time for another Craving Ellie in My Belly recipe. This week's recipe was chosen by Margaret of Tea and Scones. She chose for us to make the Chicken Paella with Sausage and Olives from So Easy: Luscious, Healthy Recipes for Every Meal of the Week by Ellie Krieger. The recipe can be found online here.

I had never made paella before, and this recipe is a bit different as far as other recipes I have seen. Traditional paella is made is a special pan that allows the rice to form a chewy, crispy crust on the bottom. Unfortunately, I do not have one of those pans, but I think that the fact that the dish is cooked in the oven adds a nice chewy texture to the rice. For me, what makes this dish different from a common chicken and rice dish is the addition of green Spanish olives and saffron. These ingredients add an extra layer of flavor that makes the dish a little sour (olives) with floral undertones (saffron). With the addition of turmeric, it makes the rice a lovely yellow color.

Of course, like always, I made some substitutions and additions. I am finally seeing the first vegetables pop up in my garden. Earlier this week I picked a handful of sugar snap peas and a small yellow squash. I sliced the sugar snap peas and used them in place of the frozen peas called for in the recipe, which was quite lovely, they were sweet and had a great texture to them. I also sliced the squash into rounds and added that to the dish as well. Unfortunately, I don't have any tomatoes in my garden yet, and the tomatoes at my grocery store looked dreadful, so I substituted about one cup of canned diced tomatoes that I drained and added to the pan. To compensate for the extra liquid, I cut back on the chicken broth and used one 14 ounce can of chicken broth instead of the 2 1/2 cups used in the original recipe. I think that worked really well because the tomatoes added a nice sweetness that balance out the briny-ness of the olives. Finally, to give the dish an extra Spanish flair I added 1/2 teaspoon of smoked Spanish paprika.


I was quite surprised how much I liked this dish. I am not a big fan of olives, and when I do eat them, I prefer the Greek kalamata olives, not green olives. But luckily for me, I live next to a great specialty grocery store that has an olive bar, so I was able to pick up some green Spanish olives that were stuffed with red bell peppers. They were delicious. Another great recipe from Ellie. Be sure to check out Margaret's blog for the recipe as well as the Craving Ellie in My Belly blogroll to see what other bloggers did with their recipes!

Pasta Ponza

I love quick pasta dishes, especially ones that use unique ingredients. I have posted a few here, like Pasta with Chicken and Mixed Vegetables, Pasta with Potatoes, Pesto, and Green Beans, and Pasta with Kalamata Olives, Capers, and Roasted Cherry Tomato Sauce. That is why I was eager to try the Pasta Ponza recipe from Giada De Laurentiis. It is pasta with a roasted tomato sauce, but what makes it unique is that the tomatoes are mixed with breadcrumbs and capers. That combination sounded unique to me, and I love capers. Anytime a recipe has them in it, I take notice.

I liked this pasta dish, but I didn't love it. It's quick and simple, and the roasting of the tomatoes is a great way to bring out their natural sweetness. If I made it again, I would probably leave out the breadcrumbs or I would mix the roasted tomatoes with the pasta and capers, and top the dish with the breadcrumbs, cheese, and some olive oil, then bake the dish so that it would form a crispy crust on top. Some of the breadcrumbs became soggy and the texture was not very appealing. However the tomato/caper/cheese mixture was delicious. I will definitely try the combination again.


Pasta Ponza
from Giada De Laurentiis
serves 4 to 6

• Butter for greasing
• 2 cups (12 ounces) red cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
• 2 cups (12 ounces) yellow cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
• 1/4 cup capers, rinsed and drained
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus extra for seasoning
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus extra for seasoning
• 1/2 cup Italian-style seasoned breadcrumbs
• 1 pound ziti or other short tube-shaped pasta (I used rigatoni)
  
• 1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 ounces) Pecorino Romano cheese, grated
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
  

Directions

Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter an 8 by 8-inch glass baking dish. Set aside.

Place the tomatoes, capers, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in the prepared baking dish. Toss to coat. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the tomato mixture. Drizzle the top with olive oil and bake for 30 to 35 minutes until the top is golden. Cool for 5 minutes.

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 and reserve about 1 cup of the pasta water.

Place the pasta in a large serving bowl. Spoon the tomato mixture onto the pasta. Add the cheese and toss well. Thin out the sauce with a little pasta water, if needed. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and basil and serve immediately.

CEiMB: Shortcut Collard Greens

We haven't had a Craving Ellie in My Belly Recipe in the past few weeks, as our site leader has been out of contact for the past few weeks. We hope all is well for her. Fortunately, Joanne of Apple Crumbles and Peggy of Pantry Revisited stepped up to the plate, and picked this week's recipe, Shortcut Collard Greens from from The Food You Crave: Luscious Recipes for a Healthy Life by Ellie Krieger.

I really like collard greens, I think they have a nice flavor and texture. The way that I usually have them is slow cooked for hours with a ham hock or bacon, therefore, I was interested when I read that this recipe only takes about 10 minutes to complete. It involves first microwaving the greens to soften them, and then adding them to a skillet with onions and Canadian bacon. The recipe also calls for other ingredients that I thought would a twist to the typical collard green recipe. You add apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, and crushed red pepper. This makes for a nice flavor combination. The crushed red pepper balances nicely with the sweetness of the maple syrup and the saltiness of the Canadian Bacon. I also like the slight bite that the vinegar adds to the dish. I cut down the amount of onion the recipe called for because collard greens really cook down, and I felt that the whole small onion would overwhelm them, so I only added half the amount. I also added a minced garlic clove along with the onion. A quick note, the collard greens still had quite a bite to them after 5 minutes in the microwave, so if you like the texture to be a bit softer, I would add a couple minutes to the cook time. This was a quick, unexpected side dish, that I will definitely make again. Thanks to Ellie for another great recipe!

Pasta with Chicken and Mixed Vegetables

In an effort to utilize the ingredients I already have on hand, I created this easy weeknight meal. Everything in this recipe, except for the rotisserie chicken, I had either in my pantry, my freezer, or my refrigerator. And I even got the rotisserie chicken on sale for $2.99, because I was at the grocery store late, and they were trying to get rid of the chickens they had roasted that day. I just went home, popped it in the fridge, and it was ready for me tomorrow.

This is a very simple meal consisting of pasta, chicken, and a mixture of frozen and fresh vegetables. It can be adapted to suit whatever may be in your freezer/fridge at that time. It's easy and comforting, and the addition of the lemon juice at the end brightens up the dish, and makes it an easy, affordable, weeknight meal.


Pasta with Chicken and Mixed Vegetables


Ingredients

• 8 oz. short pasta (I used rotini, but penne, farfalle, or gemelli would also work well)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
  
• 1/2 cup onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup carrots, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3/4 cup frozen corn
• 1 cup frozen mixed greens ( I used Trader Joe's Greens with Envy, see below, which is a mix of broccoli, edamame, asparagus, spinach, and green beans)
• 1 rotisserie chicken, skin and bones removed, and the chicken meat shredded
• 1/2 cup reserved pasta water
• 1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, shredded
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Directions

• In a large pot of salted, boiling water, cook the pasta according to the package directions.
• While the pasta water is coming to a boil, in a large skillet, saute the onions and carrots in olive oil over medium-high heat until they are soft, but not browned, about 5-7 minutes.
• Add the garlic, and saute for an additional minute.
• Add the frozen greens and corn, season the mixture with salt and pepper. Be sure not to over salt the vegetables at this point because both the chicken broth and the cheese also add salt to the dish.
• Once the vegetables have heated through, add the shredded chicken and chicken broth to the skillet and saute until the chicken is heated through.
  
• Drain the pasta, reserving a 1/2 cup of the pasta water, and add the drained pasta and reserved water to the skillet. Stir the mixture until the pasta has absorbed some of the sauce and the sauce has thickened slightly.
  
• Finish by sprinkling the pasta with the cheese and the lemon juice, stir to melt the cheese and incorporate the lemon juice.

CEiMB: Southwestern Hash

It's Thursday! That means it is time for another Craving Ellie in My Belly recipe. This week's recipe was chosen by Melissa from It's Melissa's Kitchen. She chose for us to make the Southwestern Hash from So Easy: Luscious, Healthy Recipes for Every Meal of the Week by Ellie Krieger.

I really changed this one up a bit. First off, I wanted to make this a dinner rather than a breakfast meal, so I eliminated the eggs, and instead, added some Habenero and Green Chile Chicken Sausage to the hash. I also substituted a poblano pepper for the green pepper in the recipe because I think poblano peppers have such better flavor than plain ol' green bell peppers. I upped the amount of cumin from 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon. Cumin is one of my favorite spices, and I can't get enough of it. I also threw in some frozen corn at the same time I added the black beans. Black beans and corn are a staple for me whenever I am making a southwestern dish.

I thought this was a filling, flavorful meal. I am glad that I added the sausage and made it for dinner. It was a complete, one skillet meal, with tons of spice and flavor. Yet another great recipe from Ellie. Thanks to Melissa for picking a delicious recipe and be sure to check out the blogroll to see what other participants made!

Rotini with Tuna and Roasted Red Pepper and Artichoke Tapenade

My pantry is getting pretty full. I tend to do that. I will buy sauces or marinades or jars of delicious concoctions, and they will sit in my cabinets while I keep buying more and more things. That has to stop, my cabinet is way too full, and my grocery bill is still way too high. That is how this dish came about. I was looking for something to throw together based on what I had on hand. You will probably be seeing a lot more of these dishes, because I have a lot of great ingredients just sitting in my cabinet waiting to be used. I made this delicious pasta dish from a few ingredients I had in my pantry, and few ingredients I had in my fridge.

Now, I have stated before how much I love Trader Joe's grocery store, and I had a jar of their Roasted Red Pepper and Artichoke Tapenade (see picture below), so I decided to base a meal around that. I also had some Tomato Pesto tuna (see picture below) and some fresh tomatoes and basil. I made a sauce from those ingredients and served it over whole wheat pasta. It's a very healthy dish that comes together quickly if you have all the ingredients on hand. Now, I know this recipe calls for some specialized ingredients, and if you don't live near a Trader Joe's, you could probably use some roasted red peppers and some marinated artichokes in place of the tapenade. But hopefully you do live near a Trader Joe's because it is a wonderful grocery store.


Rotini with Tuna and Roasted Red Pepper and Artichoke Tapenade
serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
  
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1-10 oz jar Trader Joe's Roasted Red Pepper and Artichoke Tapenade
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1-4 oz pouch of Starkist Tomato Pesto flavored tuna
• 10 oz. whole wheat rotini
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped

Directions

• In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the pasta according to directions on the box, however, make sure the pasta is al dente because we will finish cooking the pasta in the sauce.
• While the pasta is boiling make the sauce. Add the olive oil to a pan that has been heated to medium-high, toss in the onions and cook until the onions are soft, but not browned, about 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute a few more minutes until the garlic is fragrant. Be sure not to burn the garlic, as it will turn bitter.
• Once the onions and garlic are cooked, add the tapenade, tomatoes, chicken broth, and tuna. Cook until the sauce is simmering and everything is heated through.
• Drain the pasta and add to the sauce, toss everything together and simmer for a few minutes until the pasta has absorbed some of the sauce.
  
• Season to taste with salt and pepper. I only needed to add pepper because the tuna, tapenade, and chicken broth all contained salt.
  
• Divide amongst four bowls and top with fresh basil. Serve immediately.
  

Picture from Fun with Jane and Dick

CEiMB: Garlic Basil Shrimp

This week's pick for Craving Ellie in My Belly is from Margaret of Tea and Scones. She chose for us to make the Garlic and Basil Shrimp from So Easy: Luscious, Healthy Recipes for Every Meal of the Week by Ellie Krieger.

I loved this dish. It was extremely easy and delicious. I mean, the whole dish takes about 10 minutes start to finish. The dish has a wonderful balance of flavors, the heat of the crushed red pepper is a good contrast to the sweetness of the shrimp, tomatoes, and wine. I used some vine ripened tomatoes I found at the grocery store instead of the grape tomatoes. I also made some toasted bread with olive oil to soak up the wine sauce. I will definitely make this again, it is so easy. A great weeknight meal. Be sure to check out the Craving Ellie in My Belly website to see what other bloggers did.

Chicken Stir-fry in a Thai Red Curry Sauce

When I lived in Chicago, I lived in an area surrounded by Thai and Vietnamese restaurants. I must have eaten Thai once a week. Now, back in my hometown, a suburb of Cincinnati, it isn't as easy to find that cuisine. Fortunately, I live by a wonderful grocery store, Jungle Jim's, that is full of many ingredients from all over the world. There is a whole aisle devoted to ingredients from Thailand. Therefore, I decided to make this Chicken Stir-fry that is cooked in a Thai Red Curry sauce. It is similar to the Chicken Teriyaki Stir-fry I made previously, with just a different combination of flavors.

I make a sauce of red curry paste, coconut milk, soy sauce and lime juice. I pour this sauce over a mixture of chicken and vegetables. It's a spicy sauce that is mellowed by the coconut milk. It is funny, I can't stand coconut, but I love Thai cuisine that includes coconut milk in almost every dish. It is important to serve this stir-fry over rice because the recipe makes a lot of sauce, and the sauce is quite thin, so you need to rice to soak it up.


Chicken Stir-fry in a Thai Red Curry Sauce

Red Curry Sauce:

• 1 14-oz can light coconut milk
• 2 to 4 Tablespoons Thai Red Curry Paste
  
• 2 Tablespoons soy sauce
• Juice from 1/2 lime

Stir-fry:

• 3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 6 cups assorted vegetables (I used a combination of carrots, snow peas, sliced mushrooms, and water chestnuts, broccoli and bamboo shoots would also work well)
• 1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
• salt
  

For serving:

• green onions, thinly sliced
• fresh cilantro, chopped
• additional soy sauce
• hot cooked rice
  

Directions:

To make the sauce:

• Pour the coconut milk in a medium size bowl, whisk the milk if it has separated in the can. Add the Thai Red curry paste and whisk to combine (it depends on how spicy you want your sauce, I used 4 tablespoons, but that may be too spicy for some, start with a few tablespoons and add until desired spice level is achieved, be sure to taste as you go along). Add the soy sauce and lime juice. Set aside and begin the stir-fry.
• Note on the sauce: It really is all about personal preference. If you want it saltier, add more soy sauce, if you want more of a tart taste, add more lime juice, and if you want it spicier, add more curry paste.

To make the stir-fry:

• Add the 1 1/2 tablespoons of the olive oil to a skillet over medium heat. First add the vegetables that take longer to cook, like the carrots, and stir-fry until tender, then add the vegetable that cook quicker, like the sugar snap peas, mushrooms, and water chestnuts. Season lightly with salt, and stir-fry until all the vegetables are tender. Remove vegetables from skillet and keep warm. Remember that the sauce contains soy sauce, so you don't want to salt the vegetables too heavily.
  
• Next, heat the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons in the skillet and add the chicken and stir-fry until the chicken is cooked all the way through.
• Once the chicken is cooked return the vegetables to the skillet, and pour the sauce over the chicken and vegetables. Cook the stir-fry until it has come to a simmer, and everything is nice and hot.
• Serve the stir-fry over hot cooked rice and top with green onions and cilantro for some fresh flavor. Also, serve with soy sauce if additional saltiness is desired.

Green Beans and Corn with Salsa

If you are looking for an easy, healthy side dish, then this is a good choice. You simple saute green beans in a skillet, stir in corn, then add fresh salsa. I can't wait for summer to come, so I can make this again with ingredients from my garden. I used a store bought fresh salsa this time, but next time I am going to use my recipe for Pico de Gallo. This dish makes a lot, so it is great for parties and gatherings.


Green Beans and Corn with Salsa

2 lbs. fresh green beans, washed and trimmed, cut into large pieces
1 lb fresh or frozen corn
2 cups fresh salsa
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper

Heat the olive oil to medium-high in a large skillet, add the green beans and saute until they become crisp-tender. Add the corn and heat through. Finally mix in the salsa, and simmer the dish until everything is hot and the flavors had blended. Season well with salt and pepper. Serve warm at room temperature.