Asian Noodles - LOTS OF VEGGIES HIDDEN IN THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is an easy dish that is so good. My kids LOVE it. We eat it with chopsticks if I remember to get them. And... it is full of veggies (this time I had 4 different ones in there, plus the garlic and herbs) but they have no idea. This time I even snuck in some cabbage too - no complaints. Next time I am going to try to add some butternut squash. You can add some chicken, pork, or beef too (I usually add it if I have some left over). This makes just enough for our family, so cut it in half if you don't have a "herd" of people to feed. It also makes your kitchen smell REALLY good. Enjoy!

Veggies:
1 onion, cut in chunks
1 red pepper, cut in chunks (you could use yellow or orange too.)
1/2 bag of baby carrots, cut in half
1 hot pepper, cut in chunks (optional)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 to 1/2 a cabbage, chopped as small as you want.


Preheat oven to 400 to 425. Spray 9 by 13 pan with non stick spray. Add veggies to pan. Drizzle with EVOO (1 to 2 Tablespoons). Stir to coat veggies, add more EVOO if you want. Roast in oven for 40 minute, stirring halfway. Drizzle a large stir fry pan with EVOO (about 1 to 2 Tablespoons) and cook chopped cabbage for about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

Sauce:
1/2 cup soy sauce (I use low sodium)
6 garlic cloves (I press mine, but you can use the canned kind too.)
1/4 cup rice vinegar
4 Tablespoons sesame oil (you can use more or less if you want, I like about 4 T.)
1/2 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
4 Tablespoons sugar (I like to use half white sugar, half brown sugar.)
3 Tablespoons lime juice
2 to 4 Tablespoons cilantro (I use 2 small handfuls and just have the blender chop it up for me.)

Add all ingredients to blender or magic bullet and blend. Dump contents into a bowl.

Puree veggies in blender or magic bullet, adding a little bit of water, or some of the sauce to make it easier to puree. I usually use 1 to 2 Tablespoons of water and then some dressing.
Mix pureed veggies and sauce together. Add to cabbage and heat until heated through.

Pasta
16 oz. Linguine (You could also use angel hair or thin spaghetti)
Green onions, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
You could also add snow peas, broccoli, fresh or frozen green beans, there are several possibilities.

Cook pasta according to directions once veggies are pureed and sauce is made. Add pasta to sauce in large stir fry pan and stir to make sure all of it is coated. Top with green onions, or meat and enjoy. I have made this twice this week and it has been a hit each time.

Favorite Tomato and Basil Pasta

This is one of my absolute favorite things to make when fresh tomatoes are ready to pick in the garden. It is easy tastes REALLY good. Hope you enjoy!!
6 cups Chopped tomatoes (if I don't have fresh tomatoes you I use petite canned tomatoes, just drain them)
1/2 cup chopped Fresh Basil (chop it first then measure it)
3 Tablespoons EVOO
3 Cloves Garlic, minced or chopped (I just use the kind in a jar, lazy, I know)
1 Tablespoon Sugar
Sprinkle of Salt
Sprinkle of Pepper
3/4 Cups Chicken Broth
3/4 Cups White Grape Juice (or apple juice, or cooking wine)
Pasta
Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, or Grated Parm Cheese
Grilled Chicken, optional

Combine chopped tomatoes, basil, EVOO, Garlic, Sugar, Salt, and Pepper in a non metal bowl and let it sit for at least an hour. Combine Chicken Broth and juice and bring to a boil. Let it reduce by half (I think it usually takes about 8 to 10 minutes - I don't measure it, just estimate). Cook pasta. Add tomatoes to chicken broth mixture until they are heated through. Toss sauce and veggies, add cheese, and enjoy!!!

Chicken and (Hidden) Veggie Pasta

This was a "what's in my fridge that is going to go bad soon" meal. And...it turned out really good. I don't feed my kids rotten food, but I just wanted to use the peppers and spinach before they "matured", I guess is a better way of saying it. I had the chicken cooked and in the freezer from my prep day, so it was easy to throw together. My kids loved it and they had at least 4 veggies in this meal, and I also gave them carrots, so all 5 in one meal, that is awesome. This calculated out to about 340 calories per serving. I said it serves 8, but we had a ton left over, and everyone had a lot. So, I think it serves more than 8 and may be less calories than that.

Ingredients
2 peppers (I prefer yellow or red because they blend well with the tomatoes and have a sweeter taste.)
1/2 a large onion (I prefer sweet onions, but whatever kind you have works.)
1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil, plus 1 teaspoon EVOO
1 Tablespoon chopped garlic (about 6 fresh cloves)
1/2 bag baby spinach
2 cups shredded or chopped cooked chicken (about 1 pound)
1 28 oz can tomatoes (whole, diced, stewed, I prefer Italian flavored)
1 14 oz can tomatoes (same as above)
1 16 oz. box of pasta (I used linguine, but I think next time I will use something like rigatoni or shells)
Shredded Parmesan Cheese, optional

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut peppers and onion in chunks. Drizzle 1 Tablespoon EVOO over them and spread them in a pan (I used my 8 by 8 pan.) Roast for 40 min, stirring once.
Remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. Puree veggies and tomatoes in a food processor or blender (if you drain tomatoes the sauce will be thicker, if you want a thinner sauce, keep the juice.) Heat a large pan, add 1 teaspoon EVOO and allow it to heat up. Add garlic, saute for about 1 minute. Add veggie puree and allow mixture to heat up. Add chicken and spinach. I cooked it for about 15 more minutes. Cook pasta according to directions. Serve together, or separate (I mixed mine together, but if you have kids that are "separatists" I understand. I have one of those and told her "too bad" tonight.) Top with some parm cheese - ENJOY!!

Pasta with Summer Veggies

Not sure what to do with all that zucchini and those tons of tomatoes? This meal was so easy, I think it took maybe 15 minutes to make, gotta love that. You can use many different veggies, these are the ones that I had on hand.

Ingredients:
4 large tomatoes, chopped
1 or 2 small zucchini, cubed (or diced, cut in small squares, whatever)
4 cloves garlic
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil (you could probably use way less and be just fine)
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup white grape juice (or white cooking wine)
salt and pepper to taste
5 to 10 fresh basil leaves, torn (or more if you wish)
Cheese to top
1 pound of pasta (I had bow ties)

Boil water and cook pasta according to directions. While that is happening, cut up veggies, heat oil in pan. Add garlic and saute, do NOT let it turn brown. Add zucchini and let it cook for about 4 to 5 min. Add chicken broth and white grape juice. Bring to a boil and then turn down for a few minutes. Add tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper. Ladle over hot pasta and top with cheese. Serve immediately. I also had some cooked chicken in the freezer that I added too.

Asparagus and Bacon Pasta

Again, super easy pasta recipe that is REALLY good. I can make the sauce in the time it takes to boil the water for and cook the pasta. You can use whole wheat pasta and give this dish more fiber.

Ingredients:
6 slices of bacon, cooked (I usually cut mine in small chunks with a pizza cutter, then cook them in the pan. Drain and leave a little grease in the pan)
3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 14 or 15 oz cans of Italian flavored tomatoes, un-drained and pureed in blender
1 cup of evaporated milk
1 bag of frozen cut up asparagus
1 pound of your favorite pasta, cooked
Mozz or Parm cheese to top
Fresh chopped tomatoes (optional)

Cook bacon, drain. Leave a little grease in pan. Add EVOO and heat. Add garlic, stir for about a minute. Add pureed tomatoes tomatoes. Mix in well. Add evaporated milk. Let mixture heat through. Cook asparagus according to package directions. Add to sauce. Add pasta to sauce and toss to coat. Top with fresh tomatoes and cheese.

Easy Chicken and Spinach Pasta

This meal was so easy to make and EVERYONE ate it and had seconds. That is always a plus. I make a version of it at least once a week. The sauce can be made in about the time it takes to boil the water and cook the pasta. You could prep the sauce ahead of time and add everything except for the spinach.

Ingredients:
2 to 3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 cans of undrained tomatoes, Italian flavored. (I puree mine in the blender because my kids are not big on chunky foods)
1 cup evaporated milk
2 cups cooked chicken
1/2 bag of fresh spinach, chopped (I have also used a box of frozen spinach, thawed, and it was good.)
Cheese to top (optional, I recommend the fresh Mozz, but shredded Mozz or Parm would be great too.)
Chopped fresh tomatoes to top (optional)
1 box of pasta (I used a 14.5 oz box of Rotini)

Cook pasta according to directions. Heat pan, add EVOO and let it heat up. Add garlic and saute for 1 to 2 minutes, do not let it turn brown because it will be bitter. Add tomatoes. Heat for a few minutes. Add evaporated milk (you could also use cream but I don't have that on hand all of the time), mix well. Let heat through. Add chicken, mix in well. Add spinach when pasta is done cooking. Stir sauce into pasta and top with cheese (I recommend mozz or parm) and tomatoes. Serve immediately.

Pasta Puttenesca

I used to make this all of the time when Mike was in vet school because it tastes great and is very inexpensive to make. I like to add chicken or tuna to it to give it more protein. It is kind of a "whatever you have in your cupboard and fridge" dish. I have to double this to feed our whole family. I got this recipe a long time ago from a cook book I no longer have. I have changed it quite a bit too, so sorry to the original author.

1/2 sweet onion, chopped very small

1 pepper chopped very small (optional, I just try to add more veggies when I can and peppers are easy to get away with. I prefer red, yellow, or orange, but you can use green. The others just taste sweeter)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Garlic (I use about 4 cloves, minced, but you can use however much you want)

1 28 ounce can of petite diced tomatoes (the Italian seasoned ones work really well. I drain about 1/3 of the juice off and then add the rest)

1 8 oz. can tomato sauce

1/2 can of black olives, sliced in half, or you can just add them whole (and you can use the whole can if you want. We usually only get about half in there because the other half gets eaten.)

1 Tablespoon of capers (optional)

1 to 2 teaspoons of dried basil, or I like to use 1/4 cup fresh if I have it. Some people like to add dried oregano, I prefer not to, but the original recipe did call for about 1 teaspoon.

Salt and pepper to taste

Sometimes I add a dash of sugar too

1 to 2 cups cooked chicken or 1 can of tuna, drained

Shredded Italian or Parm cheese

8 oz. of your favorite pasta

Saute pepper and onion, when they are soft add garlic. Saute for a few minutes. Add tomatoes, and tomato sauce. (After I do this I puree it because my family prefers a smoother sauce.) After they are heated through add black olives, capers, and chicken or tuna. Cook until heated through. Spoon sauce over your favorite pasta. Sprinkle with cheese. Enjoy!!

Asparagus Pesto Pasta with Chicken

This is an easy meal, especially if you already have the chicken cooked. I used 2 cups of the Asparagus soup I made yesterday. Seriously, no one knew that this was different than usual. When Aldi has their Italian specials, I buy about 20 of the pesto sauce packets( they cost way less there than at Walmart). Then I am stocked for a long time.


Ingredients:
This served 7 of us (granted, 2 of us don't eat a whole lot)
2 cups cooked chopped or shredded chicken
2 cups of Asparagus soup (recipe in previous posting)
2 packets of pesto sauce mix
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3/4 cup Water (If you want the sauce to be thinner, add more water and EVOO)
Pepper to taste
16 oz of your favorite pasta
Italian blend or Parmesan cheese

Mix EVOO and water with 2 cups of Asparagus soup. Add contents of pesto packets and heat. Add cooked chicken. Cook pasta. Mix together and top with cheese to serve.