This Weeknight Italian Chicken Pasta is so simple, I'm not even going to give you a recipe. Well... I am, but not a traditional recipe. It's more of a formula. A framework. It's for your own good. You see, I read a really interesting article the other day titled The Myth of Easy Cooking. Tag line: "An entire industry has been built on the premise that creating gourmet meals at home is simple and effortless. But it isn't true." Dang. It made … [Read more...]
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Creamy Pesto and Pasta
It's that dreaded question... "What's for dinner?" Listen for the dramatic "Dun! Dun! Duuuun!" to follow. I've been known to make things complicated before. To lean toward elaborate dishes. Impressive. Fancy. Because when I have time to blog, I usually also have time to cook. Let's be real, I started food blogging when I quit my full time job at the end of October 2013. I had lots of time then because I intentionally took time to myself … [Read more...]
Pumpkin Sage Spaghetti Squash Casserole
Pumpkin and sage are one of my faaaav flavor combinations. Every fall, I bring it out in my cooking! No but seriously. Let me explain... So there's this old Rachel Ray recipe where you make a pumpkin sage sauce and serve it over penne with sausage. I looooved it when I made it. Making it sort of became this fall tradition of mine. … [Read more...]
Creamy Avocado Basil Sauced Spaghetti
Avocados are oh so trendy. I really feel like they're "cool". Eating them, taking pictures of them... it's like a universally loved and accepted food right now. I really feel like if an avocado was in high school, she'd win homecoming queen. So hot right now. They're everywhere: mashed straight up (with a 'lil salt of course) on toast, in guacamole (obbbviously), baked with an egg cracked inside, in smoothies, in faux chocolate pudding, or … [Read more...]
Soul Mac
Soul mac and cheese. I learned recently that another term for legit mac and cheese is Soul Macaroni and Cheese. So not mac and cheese from a box. And not my mom's legendary, simple, everyday, staple mac and cheese I grew up eating (which I will share with you at some point). Soul mac and cheese is legit - you thicken milk with a traditional roux (fancy word for cooking flour in fat like melted butter). Then you add cheese. Then you … [Read more...]
Easy Baked Chicken Parmesan
Chicken parmesan is usually made with the traditional breading procedure: chicken dipped in flour, dipped in egg, then dipped in breadcrumbs. Then it's pan fried. This recipe, is a liiiitle different. No traditional breading. Makes it a bit easier. Also, I find baking is easier on the cleanup than pan frying. The secret ingredient for this Easy Baked Chicken Parm? Mayonnaise. That's right. Mix some mayo with parmesan, coat the … [Read more...]
Sweet Potato Spaghetti Bolognese
I went out to eat a few weekends ago to a local Durango spot. The husband and I had a little date night. Gotta keep things romantic, ya know? It was probably my favorite meal/restaurant we've had in town yet! He started with a whiskey cocktail, me with sparkling rosé, and we kicked the night off right with some oysters. Gosh, I love those things. The first time I ever had one … [Read more...]
Parm & Parsley Spaghetti Squash
Parmesan and parsley reminds me of my mom :). She used to make me mac and cheese every day. By every day I mean every day from preschool through high school. I take that back, she didn't make it every day. It's one of the first things she taught me to cook when I was seven years old so she didn't have to do it ev-er-y-day. And I'll get into that recipe more someday, but for now I bring it up because every once in a while I'd want it just a … [Read more...]
Spinach and Sun Dried Tomato Pasta with Chicken
Here's a classic dish I made all the time in college turned "whole foods". In college, I used to make this dish for lunch or dinner when … [Read more...]
Nana’s Italian Tomato Sauce with Pork & Sausage
I come from an Italian family. My mom's side is from Sicily and my dad's side is from Calabria. Like any good Italian family, we have a spaghetti sauce that's been passed down through generations. Grandma DiCello's tasted a little different than my mom's, and Grandma Purpura's tasted a little different from hers. As for "Grandma Purpura", that just sounds odd. To us, she's Nana. (In Italian nonna means grandmother. I guess when my sister … [Read more...]
Basic Spaghetti Squash
This recipe is the base for many creations. It's your starting point. You can take it from here and put sauce on it, sauté it in ghee (or butter), season it up, add some herbs, toss it with pesto (like Arugula Lime with Walnuts and Jalapeno), whatever you like. Whether you follow a special diet or not, spaghetti squash is a great sub for pasta if you're looking to increase your vegetable intake. It's not the most vitamin-, mineral-, … [Read more...]
Asian Shrimp & Noodles with Tahini Sauce
I feel I've opened up a whole new world of true paleo "pasta". I'm talking about the sea vegetable, kelp noodles. I was quite wary, but the noodles really were totally neutral in flavor. It did NOT taste like I was eating a "sea vegetable". So I'm documenting my first experience cooking with kelp noodles as a success. While I am a fan of spaghetti squash, the kelp is more noodle-like. You can take your fork and twirl it... just like pasta. … [Read more...]