Whole Wheat Penne with Masses of Broccoli, Green Olives, and Almonds

For my 24th rotation around the sun I prepared a feast for my closest friends that included tomato and herb cheese bruschetta, a fruit bruschetta, a huge salad, this big pasta dish, a wonderful birthday cake, and a tantric chocolate pie (recipe coming soon). My good friend gave me this fabulous cookbook, Vegetarian Suppers, by Deborah Madison and I had found this delightful recipe for a simple penne pasta with broccoli that I slightly modified for my birthday feast. I went to the farmers market on Saturday morning and was able to get my hands on some sweet fresh dark green broccoli for this dish. I didn't add any cheese but I put a chunk of Parmesan on the table for people to help themselves.

I love cooking for my friends - they are so nice about allowing me to take tons of pictures before letting them actually start eating. I try to be fast about the picture taking so the food doesn't go cold but it's not always easy to quickly get a good picture. I like this one of the table setting:

Whole Wheat Penne with Masses of Broccoli, Green Olives, and Almonds
(Serves 8 generously)

Ingredients:
2 large onions, diced
Olive oil
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 cup almond slivers
1 1/2 cups pitted green olives, torn apart
2/3 cup oregano
1 cup raisins
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
4 lbs broccoli, cut into small florets, stems peeled and diced
1 1/2 lbs whole wheat penne
A chunk of Parmesan for the table

Directions:
1. Heat olive oil in a wide skillet over medium heat. Cook the onions, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes - until they are golden.
2. Add the garlic, almonds, olives, oregano, and raisins and turn the heat to a low setting. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add a dash of salt, throw in the broccoli florets and stems and cook just until tender but so that they retain bite - about 5 minutes. Scoop them out and add them to the pan with the onion mixture with a little bit of the water.
4. Add the pasta to the boiling water. When it is cooked drain it and return it to the pot. Toss with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Divide among the pasta bowls and add the vegetable topping in generous amounts on top.

Mediterranean Pasta

I made this pasta recently for my friend, Sarah, and I as a simple, easy week night dinner. I am a huge fan of pretty much any Mediterranean flavor combination. This particular dish pulls from Greece, Spain, Israel and Italy, however, the ingredients are common place in all the countries surrounding the Mediterranean. I really like tahini but I have only ever had it in hummus and halva. I decided to try and use tahini as a base for a pasta sauce and it ended up working out wonderfully and giving the pasta a more powerful flavor. Tahini is essentially a sesame paste. When you see tahini served in Middle Eastern restaurants, it has most likely been diluted with lemon juice, olive oil and garlic so that it can be used as a dipping sauce. Standard tahini paste would be too strong for a dipping sauce. For my pasta I used the paste because I needed something strong to hold up against all the other flavors. Tahini can have a peculiar flavor to some so I recommend adding it slowly and tasting along the way.

Mediterranean Pasta

Ingredients:
Whole wheat penne
Frozen chopped spinach, thawed
Chickpeas
Sun dried tomatoes, chopped
Stuffed Spanish olives
Pitted kalamata olives
Tahini paste
5 garlic cloves, minced
Z'atar
Lemon juice
Olive oil

Directions:
1. Bring pot of water to a boil and prepare the pasta.
2. While pasta is cooking, heat olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and olives and let simmer for a few minutes. Add sun dried tomatoes, spinach, and chickpeas, drizzle with lemon juice and more olive oil if necessary and saute for about 4 minutes. Add pasta and then pour tahini paste over mixture and gently mix with a wooden spatula to incorporate. You want the pasta to be generously coated with the tahini.
3. Allow ingredients and flavors to sit for a little bit to heat the pasta through. Enjoy with some white wine.

Tuna Melt Stuffed Bell Peppers: Refuel from a 9 Mile Hike Over 6 Ridges

 Sunday morning I woke up at 7:00 am, met a group of adventurous city folk and drove 1 hour to go on a 9 mile hike over 6 ridges. Returning to my apartment at 7ish, I had a good friend coming for a last minute dinner. I needed to make something easy, healthy, filling and nice because it was Easter on Sunday and so far my friend had just had pizza all day. With aching legs and still slightly dizzy head I was craving a tuna melt but didn't want to put shoes on again or walk anywhere to get the bread! So I decided to take the tuna melt concept and make it fly with pasta - oh yeah, and stuff bell peppers with it! If it's not obvious, I had bell peppers sitting in my fridge and wanted to use them. While I felt like I had just been beat to a pulp after the hike, I'm happy I pulled this meal together because it ended up tasting great! First, here is a picture of the lake we went to towards the end of the hike: (note, picture does not do it justice)

                                

Tuna Melt Stuffed Bell Peppers
(Makes three bell peppers with enough pasta salad left over for lunch and dinner the next day)

Ingredients:
3 bell peppers
4 servings whole wheat shell pasta
1 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
1/3 cup corn kernels
2 cans canned tuna
1/3 cup grated cheddar
1/3 cup grated soy mozzarella
1/4 avocado, chopped
1/4 cup juice from jar of marinated artichoke hearts

Directions:
1. Bring two pots of water to a boil. Slice the tops off of the bell peppers and place them in one of the pots of boiling water for about 3 minutes. Then let drain upside down over a rack. In the other pot of water, cook the pasta.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
3. When pasta is cooked, drain and rinse with cold water. Place in a bowl and mix in chopped tomatoes, chopped celery, corn, and tuna. Drizzle the juice from the marinated artichoke jar and mix gently until all the ingredients are incorporated.
4. Stuff the bell peppers with a spoonful of the pasta salad, then a layer of chopped avocado, then one more spoonful of the pasta salad and then a generous layer of the cheese. Place stuffed bell peppers on a glass baking dish and bake for about 6-7 minutes, until cheese is melted. Enjoy!

Creamy Fettuccini with Chicken, Potatoes and Broccoli

I has a task at hand: to make an easy, healthy, filling meal for dinner that would use up leftover vegetables and cheeses in my refrigerator. My boyfriend was also making a hummus that would use up leftover artichokes, peppers, sun dried tomatoes and taste surprisingly delicious! I came across a box of Ronzoni Garden Delight Fetuccine that is enriched with tomato, carrot and spinach. Upon tasting the pasta, I couldn't taste any carrot, tomato or spinach but the three colors definitely matched! I have been looking for some healthier options to substitute heavy creams, I used soy milk and it worked perfectly! The roasted vegetables tasted great with the sauteed chicken. When roasting vegetables I have learned not to be afraid of letting them get dark brown spots as those tend to pack the most flavor.

Creamy Fettuccini with Chicken, Potatoes and Broccoli

Ingredients:

Fettuccine pasta

1 russet potato, sliced and quartered

1 10 ounce bag of frozen broccoli, thawed

2 chicken breasts, sliced

Pepper

Olive oil

5 garlic cloves, minced

3/4 Soy milk

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the potato slices on a pan, drizzle with olive oil, ground pepper and garlic powder. On a separate pan, spread out the broccoli florets and drizzle with olive oil, pepper and garlic powder. Place the pans in the oven, cook the potatoes for about 30 minutes and the broccoli for 40.

2. Meanwhile, cook the chicken with olive oil, ground pepper and garlic powder in a pan over medium heat, set aside.

3. Cook  the pasta according to directions. Drain.

4. In a pan saute the garlic with a bit of olive oil. Add soy milk and the parmesan cheese and stir until it is all combined. Add the roasted vegetables and chicken and gently incorporate until they are evenly coated. Lastly add the pasta and mix just until incorporated. Serve warm.

Butternut Squash Stuffed with Creamy Mushroom Medley Pasta

Happy New Year!! Hope everyone had a wonderful happy and healthy holiday! After a little blogging hiatus to spend time with family and friends, I'm excited to be back in my small kitchen cooking and writing. The Taste Tester and I went for a little NYC holiday outing and on our way back home, as we fought the snow and crowds, we walked into Whole Foods to get a vegetable to stuff. Seriously, I wanted to eat a stuffed vegetable and Whole Foods is the perfect place for cooking inspiration. The freshness and colorfulness of the produce is almost overwhelming. With squashes still very much in season, our selection of a lovely pale orange butternut squash seemed appropriate. I also have a growing obsession with mushrooms, it sort of happened when I realized how unfamiliar with the mushroom family I am. I love all the different types of mushrooms and how when cooked they produce meaty and distinct flavors. One of my many New Year's resolutions is to make more dishes that appreciate mushrooms so watch out for mushroom quesadillas and savory mushroom bread pudding! Mushrooms are also delicate creatures in that their flavors can easily be overpowered if combined with too strong of other ingredients. I have often tried to incorporate shitake mushrooms into pad thai only to be disapointed that the peppers alone make the shitake have no taste. I decided that if I was going to buy a medley of exciting mushrooms, I was going to create a simple pasta dish where mushrooms would be the star of the show. I used conchiglie pasta which is shell pasta; it literally translates to 'conch shells.' The shells are good for catching liquidy sauces so it is often cooked with creamy sauces. We ate this with Cod and salad and whole wheat crusty bread and some white wine. This meal is the perfect start to a New Year. You could also swap pasta for quinoa or even couscous or rice. Bon appetite!

Butternut Squash Stuffed with Creamy Mushroom Medley Pasta

(Makes 4 servings of mushroom pasta)

Ingredients:

1 butternut squash

Whole wheat shell shaped pasta

1 cup mixed mushrooms (Nameko, Alba Clamshell, Trumpet Royale), chopped and bottom of stems removed

1/3 onion, diced

2 tablespoons butter

3 garlic cloves, diced

White wine, dry table wine

Soy milk

Nutmeg

Parmesan, grated

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven 425 degrees. Cut the butternut squash in half and carefully cut out the center leaving a 1-2 inch border around the squash. Place mushrooms cut side down on a pan and roast for 35 minutes.  Remove and flip so cut side is facing up. Lower the oven to 375 degrees. 

                             

2. While squash is baking, cook the pasta until it is just a little al dente. Remove, drain and run under cold water.

3. In a skillet over medium high heat melt the butter and add the garlic and onions, saute for a couple minutes. Add the mushrooms and saute for a couple of minutes, then add the pasta, soy milk, nutmeg and wine. Saute just until everything is evenly incorporated.                   

                            

4. Fill the squash with the mushroom pasta mixture and sprinkle grated parmesan on top. Bake for about 30 minutes until the pasta shells on top are golden brown and the parmesan is completely melted. Remove from oven, sprinkle some more parmesan and enjoy!

Andy's Squid Ink Pasta with Sauteed Shellfish

My good friend Andy has been on a mission to cook with squid ink after seeing it on an Italian cooking show about a Christmas feast of the 7 fishes. In the Mediterranean, squid and cuttlefish ink is prepared in dishes such as risotto, paella and pasta. It's a pitch black sauce and usually made with onions or tomatoes. Andy prepared his with onions. Squid ink has to be carefully extracted from the ink sac in the squid. It's a pricey purchase, but well worth the flavors. It tastes a little salty, but it's a mild flavor that is very accommodating in pasta. It tends to stain everything from your teeth to your lips. Here is a picture of the bottle of squid ink that Andy picked up at the Italian grocery in the Chelsea Market.

                           

Andy's Squid Ink Pasta with Sauteed Shellfish

Ingredients:
Spaghetti
Squid ink
1 onion, diced
Scallops
Shrimp
Calamari
Olive oil
Thyme
Dried chili pepper flakes
Pepper
1 red bell pepper, diced

Directions:

1. In a bowl marinate the scallops, shrimp and calamari in olive oil, lemon juice, thyme, pepper and dried chili flakes. Cover and chill for 20 minutes.

2. Prepare the pasta in a large pot with boiling water.

3. In a pan over medium heat, saute the onion and add the cooked pasta. Gradually add the squid ink, stirring to incorporate.

4. In a separate pan, saute the scallops, shrimp and calamari with a bit of their marinade just until cooked.

5. On a plate put the pasta, followed by the shellfish and sprinkle with the diced red pepper. Enjoy!!

Pasta with Pesto Sauce, Tuna, Roasted Broccoli, Chickpeas and Parmesan

I love the combination of whole wheat pasta, pesto sauce, tuna and (insert vegetables here)! Honestly, it's hard to go wrong: broccoli, carrots, zucchini, spinach, bell peppers, squash, you name it and I'm sure it will taste great. I had some leftover broccoli florets and half a can of chickpeas so I thought to incorporate them into this pasta combination. I also had a little but of dried penne pasta and fussili pasta, so I decided to combine them and because they very similar in size, this little medley worked out quite well! Also, I realize I have a habit of listing all the ingredients in the title of the post, leaving nothing for surprise. Hmmm.....I'll work on that. This dish is easy, healthy and keeps well for a few days making it the perfect dish for a quick weeknight meal and providing left-overs for tasty lunches :)

Ingredients:
Whole wheat penne pasta
Whole wheat fussili pasta
Canned tuna
Broccoli florets
Chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Green onions, chopped
Parmesan, freshly grated
Olive oil
Garlic powder

Directions:
1. Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees. Drizzle a baking pan with olive oil. Place broccoli florets on pan, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with pepper and garlic powder. Roast until the flower part of the broccoli is starting to brown and crisp, about 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in a pot and cook pasta. When pasta is ready drain and run under cold water to stop cooking. Place in a large glass dish. Add canned tuna, broccoli florets, chickpeas, green onions and pesto sauce. Gently mix to incorporate the sauce, adding more if necessary. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and enjoy!

Couscous with Dried Apricots, Raisins, Onions, Honey and Red Wine

A delicious accompaniment to a meat or fish meal with Mediterranean flavors, I made this as a side dish for some grilled fish. It's simple, easy, sweet, healthy and filling. Israeli couscous is thicker than traditional North African, yellow, couscous. It is small round semolina pasta. Israeli couscous resembles barley and after being rolled into small balls, the semolina pearls are toasted over an open flame. Most pasta are dried and not toasted, so the toasting of the couscous provides for a slightly nutty flavor and a very satisfying mouth feel. Israeli couscous has become a staple in my cabinet. It is versatile and absorbs flavors with ease. I also had some Calimyrna figs which are my favorite kind. They are slightly larger and have a golden skin and their flesh has a nuttier flavor.

Ingredients:

Israeli couscous

1 white onion, sliced

Dried apricots, halved

Dried calimyrna figs, halved

Raisins
Cinnamon
Red wine
Honey
Olive oil
Sliced almonds, for garnish

Directions:
1. Cook couscous according to directions on box.
2. Over medium heat, saute onions and olive oil in a pan for a few minutes. Add apricots, figs, raisin, some red wine and honey and sprinkle with cinnamon. Apricots and figs should soften, the onions should be translucent, and the red wine should be fragrant. Add in the couscous and mix until everything is evenly distributed. You may need to add more red wine and/or honey.

Arugula Pesto on Fusilli with Ricotta and Peas

I had quite a bit of left over arugula that I had wanted to use so I decided to make a pesto sauce out of it! Arugula has a peppery taste that really came out in the pesto and tasted fantastic when offset by the ricotta on the pasta. I wish I could have made more of this pesto because I'm sure it would have been rather nice on toasted baguette with some sun dried tomatoes, or as a sauce over a fish. The pesto was very easy to make and I was able to whip up this meal very quickly on a week night. I wasn't so sure about adding the peas to this pasta dish, but their sweet bursts of flavor ended up working out quite nicely.

Arugula Pesto

(Makes enough for 4 servings of pasta)

Ingredients:

10 garlic cloves

4 cups fresh arugula

1 cup grated parmesan

1/2 cup pine nuts

1/2 cup walnuts

1 cup olive oil

Directions:

1. Blend the garlic gloves in a food processor until well minced. Add in all the other ingredients and pulse until you have a consistent texture and all the flavors are blended. Violia!

Fusilli with Arugula Pesto, Ricotta and Peas

Directions:

1. Cook 4 servings of whole wheat fusilli, drain and rinse with cold water. Transfer to a dish and add the arugula pesto, 1 cup of ricotta and 2 cups of peas. Mix thoroughly and enjoy!

Mediterranean Chicken Salad

In the mood Mediterranean flavors, I adapted this recipe from the original by Paulette Sexton of Tustin, CA. This was a big hit at a recent dinner gathering. The flavors are fresh and the tomatoes and artichoke hearts add a juiciness in every bite! The dressing is a little bit tangy too and it's all stabilized by the orzo and chicken. Next time I would like to add some hearts of palm and toasted pine nuts to this!

Mediterranean Chicken Salad

(Serves 5-6)

Ingredients:

1/4 cup olive oil

4 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons chopped tarragon leaves

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Diced cooked chicken

1 cup orzo (the rice shaped pasta)

2 cups halved grape tomatoes

1 1/2 cups marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

1 cup chopped pitted Kalamata olives (I actually bought pitted Kalamata olives and the first two I cut had the pits in them!)

3 tablespoons drained capers

Chopped Italian parsley for garnish

Directions:

1. Combine the first five ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to combine; season with pepper. Taste and add more tarragon or lemon if needed. Place the chicken in a medium bowl and pour 1/2 cup of the dressing over it and mix to evenly coat.

2. Cook the orzo in a large bowl of boiling water until it is at desired tenderness. Orzo cooks very quickly when the water is boiling. Then drain and rinse it under cold water, letting all the excess water drain. Put the orzo in a large non-reactive bowl (preferably a glass bowl).

3. Stir in the remaining dressing to the orzo and mix well. Then add the chicken, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, olives and capers. Season the salad with some parsley or cilantro and enjoy!

Penne Pasta with Butternut Squash Sauce and Chicken

Excited about my new Butternut Squash Sauce by Dave's Gourmet, I decided to make a pasta dish that would bring out the flavors of the butternut squash. I wanted something that was healthy and easy to make. The flavors of the mushroom and tomatoes really punctuate the butternut squash and roasted broccoli tastes great as a side!

Penne Pasta with Butternut Squash Sauce, Chicken and Roasted Vegetables
(2-4 servings, I think this recipe should be for 4 servings, but tonight the entire lot was consumed by 2!)

Ingredients:
3 cups whole wheat penne pasta
3 chicken tenderloins
1 large tomato cut into chunks
1 lb broccoli florets
6 button mushrooms, scrubbed and cut into chunks
1/3 jar of Dave's Gourmet Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce
Olive oil, garlic powder and fresh ground pepper

Directions:
1.Preheat oven to 420
2. Drizzle olive oil on a pan and lay out the broccoli florets, mushroom chunks and tomato chunks.
3. Drizzle vegetables with olive oil and generously sprinkle with garlic powder and ground pepper. Place pan in oven and cook for 25 min, or until the broccoli flours get a spotting of crisp brown and the tomatoes look slightly shriveled and juicy.
4. Bring water to a boil on stove top
5. Cook penne pasta until you have the desired firmness
6. While penne is cooking and the vegetables are roasting, cut the chicken into even pieces and cook over medium high heat on stove top. Be sure to generously sprinkle the chicken with olive oil, garlic powder and ground pepper. Set aside when cooked through.
7. In a small sauce pan, heat up the Butternut Squash sauce over medium low heat, stirring frequently.
8. After draining penne, place in a glass serving bowl and add 2/3 of the heated sauce folding the penne to fully and evenly coat it in sauce.
9. Add in the chicken pieces mixing until evenly dispersed
10. Finally add the mushroom and tomatoes and the remainder of the heated pasta sauce.

Garnish with Parmesan and chili pepper flakes and enjoy with a healthy side of broccoli!