Homemade Pasta

Wow.. It's been 8 months since my last post. Moving to a new house has disrupted my life but with 2011 upon me, I plan to start back up with my cooking blog. I have still been cooking and trying new recipes but not updating. So, lets begin the year with homemade pasta!

I recieved a pasta maker attachment for my Kitchen Aid mixer and tried it out for the first time tonight. I suspect that making pasta will be trial and error for awhile but my first attempt was very successful. The only real issue I had was the spaghetti noodles stuck together a bit.

Spaghetti Egg Noodles (Kitchen Aid Pasta Attachment Manual)

Ingredients:

4 large eggs
1-3 tbs water
3.5 cups sifted flour
1/2 tsp salt

Directions:

Place eggs, water, flour, and salt in a mixer bowl. Attach bowl and flat beater. Turn speed to 2 and mix 30 seconds. Only add as much water as needed for the dough to come together (start with 1 tbs and add more as needed).

Exchange flat beater for dough hook. Turn to Speed 2 and knead for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from bowl and hand knead for 1 to 2 minutes. Let it rest for 20 minutes. Divide dough into 4 pieces before processing with the Pasta Roller attachment.

Starting with level 1, roll a pasta. Fold it in half and roll again. Repeat until pasta is very pliable. Then roll once at level 2, then level 3. Now dust with flour and then us the Spaghetti cutter a attachment to cut the pasta. Hang to dry and separate pasta. I found that dusting with generous amounts of flour made it easier to separate the pasta but I need to master this skill more. Hang to dry on a drying rack for 5 minutes.

Cooking in salted boiling water for 2-5 minutes.

Spicy Shrimp & Bell Pepper Pasta

This pasta is delicious and very easy to make on a weeknight. You can control the level of heat by adjusted the amount of cayenne pepper you add.



Spicy Shrimp & Bell Pepper Pasta (Joelen's Culinary Adventures)

Ingredients:
1 cup syrah wine
1 1/2 lbs frozen raw shrimp, de-shelled with tails on
2-3 cloves minced garlic
dried rosemary, oregano, thyme to taste
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (I used 1.5 teaspoons to give it more of a kick)
2 cups homemade or prepared tomato sauce
1/4 cup minced fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup chopped bell peppers (red, yellow, orange, green)
1-2 tablespoons butter
1/2 box dried bow tie pasta, cooked

Directions:
In a saute pan, pour in wine and allow it to reduce by half over medium heat.
Once reduced, add your tomato sauce and garlic and stir to combine.
Season with dried rosemary, oregano, thyme to taste.
Add 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper and stir.
Add the shrimp and bell peppers and cook until shrimp turns pink and absorbs the wine sauce.
Add the cream and butter; stir.
Add the pasta, toss to combine and serve with freshly grated parmesan.

Macaroni and Cheese

Can you believe I have never made home made macaroni and cheese? I found this recipe and decided to give it a shot. It was very simple and tasty, but too cheesy for my husband. I guess thats kind the point of mac and cheese though, right? If you like comfort food, you'll enjoy this.



Macaroni and Cheese (crumblycookie.wordpress.com)

I did not make the bread crumb topping, but just sprinkled more cheddar on top and broiled as directed. Thats just a personal preference of mine.

Bread Crumb Topping:
6 slices white sandwich bread (good-quality, about 6 ounces), torn into rough pieces
3 tablespoons unsalted butter (cold), cut into 6 pieces

Pasta and Cheese:
1 pound elbow macaroni
1 tablespoon table salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons powdered mustard
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
5 cups milk
8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese , shredded (2 cups)
8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese , shredded (2 cups)
1 teaspoon table salt

Directions:

1. For the bread crumbs: Pulse bread and butter in food processor until crumbs are no larger than 1/8 inch, ten to fifteen 1-second pulses. Set aside.

2. For the pasta and cheese: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat broiler. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in Dutch oven over high heat. Add macaroni and 1 tablespoon salt; cook until pasta is tender. Drain pasta and set aside in colander.

3. In now-empty Dutch oven, heat butter over medium-high heat until foaming. Add flour, mustard, and cayenne (if using) and whisk well to combine. Continue whisking until mixture becomes fragrant and deepens in color, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk; bring mixture to boil, whisking constantly (mixture must reach full boil to fully thicken). Reduce heat to medium and simmer, whisking occasionally, until thickened to consistency of heavy cream, about 5 minutes. Off heat, whisk in cheeses and 1 teaspoon salt until cheeses are fully melted. Add pasta and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is steaming and heated through, about 6 minutes.

4. Transfer mixture to broiler-safe 9 by 13-inch baking dish and sprinkle evenly with bread crumbs. Broil until crumbs are deep golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes, rotating pan if necessary for even browning. Cool about 5 minutes, then serve.

Three-Cheese Chicken Penne Florentine

If I manage to take a picture tomorrow, I will post it, but this recipe is delicious and will be a repeat in our house. Its so easy to make and makes leftovers.

Three-Cheese Chicken Penne Florentine
(Cookinglight.com)

Ingredients
1 teaspoon olive oil
Cooking spray
3 cups thinly sliced mushrooms (skipped because my store was out of mushrooms!)
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped red bell pepper (I used 2 red bell peppers to make up for no mushrooms)
3 cups chopped fresh spinach (I used one package frozen chopped)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 (16-ounce) carton 2% low-fat cottage cheese
4 cups hot cooked penne (I used a 16oz package and it worked great and made a lot)
2 cups shredded roasted skinless, boneless chicken breast
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided
1/2 cup 2% reduced-fat milk (I used fat free)
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed reduced-fat, reduced-sodium cream of chicken soup, undiluted
(I also added about 1-2 tablespoons red pepper flake for some heat)

Preparation
Preheat oven to 425°.

Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms, onion, and bell pepper; sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Add spinach, oregano, and black pepper; sauté 3 minutes or just until spinach wilts.

Place cottage cheese in a food processor; process until very smooth. Combine spinach mixture, cottage cheese, pasta, chicken, 3/4 cup cheddar cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, milk, and soup in a large bowl. Spoon mixture into a 2-quart baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup cheddar cheese and remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Bake at 425° for 25 minutes or until lightly browned and bubbly.

Nutritional Information
Calories: 345 (25% from fat)
Fat: 9.7g (sat 5.1g,mono 3.1g,poly 1g)
Protein: 31.7g
Carbohydrate: 32.9g
Fiber: 2.1g
Cholesterol: 56mg
Iron: 2mg
Sodium: 532mg
Calcium: 275mg

Gnocchi with Asparagus and Pancetta

I found this gnocchi to be ok, but nothing spectacular. Don't get me wrong, it tastes good, but I tend to like my food with more of a kick. Its a great way to use asparagus though.



Gnocchi with Asparagus and Pancetta (CookingLight.com)

Ingredients:
1 (16-ounce) package vacuum-packed gnocchi (such as Vigo)
2 ounces pancetta, cut into thin strips (about 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup thinly sliced shallots
1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup (1 ounce) shaved Parmesan cheese


Directions:
1. Cook gnocchi according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain in a colander over a bowl, reserving 1/4 cup cooking liquid. Keep warm.
2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add pancetta; sauté 3 minutes or until lightly browned. Transfer to a paper towel–lined plate.

3. Add shallots and asparagus to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add gnocchi, pancetta, reserved cooking liquid, juice, salt, and pepper to pan; cook 1 minute. Serve with cheese.

Chicken-Orzo Salad with Goat Cheese

I'm alive! Sorry for the lack of updates. I have been cooking, but I have not had time to update this blog, but I am trying to get caught up.

Last month, I made a Chicken-Orzo salad with goat cheese. I really loved it and its great for a really hot night when you don't feel like cooking or turning on the stove.



Chicken-Orzo Salad (CookingLight.com)

Ingredients
1 1/4 cups uncooked orzo (rice-shaped pasta)
3 cups chopped grilled chicken breast strips (such as Tyson)
1 1/2 cups trimmed arugula
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/4 cup prechopped red onion
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon extravirgin olive oil
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
6 tablespoons (1 1/2 ounces) crumbled goat cheese

Preparation
1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain well.
2. Combine pasta, chicken, and the next 6 ingredients (through oregano) in a large bowl; toss well.

3. Combine vinegar, oil, salt, and black pepper in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Drizzle vinegar mixture over pasta mixture; toss well to coat. Sprinkle with cheese.

Cajun Seafood Pasta

This cajun seafood pasta was really good and its also somewhat healthy. I had enough for 3 dinners (for 2 people) out of this recipe. The leftovers tasted just as good!

Cajun Seafood Pasta (Adapted from allrecipes.com)

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 pound fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 pound bay scallops

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoon Cajun seasoning (I added 1 tab more in the last step.. but you can skip that if you want)

1 package whole wheat spaghetti pasta

2 tablespoon butter

1 package fresh mushrooms,sliced

2 tablespoon chopped shallots

1 cup white wine

1 16oz package fat free sour cream

2 tablespoon cornstarch

1 can (15oz?) vegetable broth

1 red pepper, sliced


DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine peeled shrimp, scallops, oil, and Cajun seasoning in a medium bowl. Set aside.
   
2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
   
3. Meanwhile, melt butter over medium heat in a large frying pan. Cook and stir mushrooms, red pepper, and shallot in butter until tender. Remove from pan. Add shrimp and scallops cook until the shrimp turn pink about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from pan. Add 1 cup wine to pan, and bring to a boil. Cook, uncovered, until reduced to 1/2 cup (2 to 3 minutes).
   
4. In a small bowl, stir together sour cream and cornstarch; mix in vegetable broth. Stir into reduced wine in the frying pan.
5. Cook and stir until thick and bubbly. Cook 1 minute more.
   
6. Stir in shrimp, mushroom/pepper mixture. Heat through, and season to taste. (I added more cajun seasoning at this point..). Serve over pasta.
   

Pumpkin and Sage Pasta

Forgive the crappy photo. Its very hard to take pictures of food and I don't have the setup many bloggers have. So these pictures will have to do. I'm still catching up on recipes that I made last week before I started this blog. Last week I made a Pumpkin and Sage Pasta that a friend of mine recommended. It turned out really good! My only advice is to use a small onion. I used what I considered a medium and it was way too much. Otherwise, enjoy!




Pumpkin and Sage Pasta, from Rachael Ray's Everyday Magazine

1 pound penne with lines
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1 pound bulk sweet Italian sausage
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken stock
1/3 cup heavy cream
10 leaves sage, cut into thin slivers
1 14-ounce can pumpkin puree
1 cup shredded Pecorino Romano cheese
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (eyeball it)
1 bunch chives, chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Heat a medium, non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add EVOO and brown the sausage, breaking it up with the back of a spoon. Transfer sausage to a paper towel-lined plate, and add the onion and garlic to the pan. Cook over moderate heat until tender but not brown. Add the wine and return the sausage to the skillet, continue to cook a couple of minutes. Add the chicken stock, heavy cream, sage and pumpkin. Bring up to a bubble and simmer until thick, a couple of minutes. Add the pasta and cheese and season with the nutmeg. Toss to coat the pasta with the sauce. Taste and check seasoning, add salt and pepper to taste. Serve the pasta garnished with a sprinkle of chives.