Tag Archives: Pasta

Looking for a quick and easy weeknight meal that tastes JUST like it came from a restaurant?  I have you covered!  I want to share my recipe for Instant Pot Chicken Fettuccini Alfredo that comes together in 30 minutes or less and is something the whole family will enjoy. The recipe can be found here. In the bowl of an Instant Pot, add chicken broth, heavy cream, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper. Break the noodles in half and place in the Instant Pot.  Use a spoon to gently push down the noodles to cover with the liquid.  You don’t want to press too hard or you’ll break the noodles and you also don’t need to stir the ingredients at this point. You want to use pre-cooked chicken for this recipe.  If you don’t have any pre-cooked chicken breasts, make sure to either bake them or fry them before starting … Continue reading

Posted in Pasta, Poultry, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Instant Pot Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo

Roasted Red Pepper Rigatoni is a sweet yet savory pasta dish with a lovely roasted red pepper sauce that is ready in about 20 minutes.  The sauce is creamy, the roasted red peppers add a bold flavor, and the noodles are perfectly cooked, al dente.  It’s easy to make and creates and explosion of flavor with every bite. The recipe can be found here. Start by bringing a large pot of water to a boil.  Make sure to salt the water!  Add the noodles and cook according to package instructions.  Stir once you’ve added the noodles and again every few minutes to ensure the noodles aren’t sticking together.  Once the noodles are cooked al dente, then are done.  Drain the noodles and return to the pot.   While the pasta is cooking, add butter to a large skillet and melt over medium heat.  Add the shallots and cook until translucent, … Continue reading

Posted in Pasta, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Roasted Red Pepper Rigatoni

Do you ever struggle to find a weeknight meal option that’s not only quick and easy to make but also something your whole family will enjoy?  I think that’s something we all go through but even more so now with spending more time at home.  How do you keep the meals exciting?  How do you add variety to your weekly menu?  It’s easy to get stuck in a rut and eat the same old meals week after week, and COVID hasn’t helped! The occasional takeout meal is fine, but I’ve definitely been getting good use out of my kitchen appliances.  Some of which I rarely use, but it’s been fun to find recipes to make in them and familiarize myself with the appliance so I can use it more often. My most recent recipe is for Simple Instant Pot Mac & Cheese.  Like the recipe name says, it’s simple 🙂 … Continue reading

Posted in Pasta, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Simple Instant Pot Mac & Cheese

Vegan Buffalo Mac & Cheese will make your dreams come true one bite at a time.  It’s the ultimate comfort food!  Each bite is creamy, loaded with buffalo spice, and has the slightest crunch from toasted breadcrumbs.  It’s the perfect recipe to take your dinner game to the next level.   The recipe can be found here. The first step is to bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles according to package instruction.  Drain and set aside.  I like to use chickpea noodles because they are packed with protein and fiber but use any noodle you prefer.  I think the texture of chickpea noodles is very similar to regular noodles, as well as the taste. Next, bring a small pot of water to a boil (you can also do this while the noodles are cooking).  Once the water is boiling, turn off the heat and … Continue reading

Posted in Pasta, Uncategorized, Vegan | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Vegan Buffalo Mac & Cheese

In the midst of COVID-19 and the stay-at-home order, meals can be a little harder to plan.  Grocery stores are working hard to keep the shelves stocked but that doesn’t mean you will find every item on your list.  I think that creates a great opportunity to clean out the pantry and make some meal using existing items on home.  Maybe you have a lot of canned goods or items that are nearing expiration…use them! I created 5 different pantry meals last week that I’m going to share with you today.  I didn’t use a recipe for any of them.  They all resulted from items found in our pantry, fridge, or freezer.  It was a great way to use the food, especially from the fridge, before it spoiled and a fun way to create some new meals.  I highly suggest doing this at home.  Who knows, you might create something … Continue reading

Posted in Pasta, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Pantry Meals

Spicy Chicken Rigatoni is hands down one of my top 5 favorite pasta dishes!  It has large pieces of tender chicken, perfectly cooked noodles, and a lot of heat (in a good way).  Should I go on?  There is as little or as much garlic as you would like, alfredo sauce, marinara sauce, and butter…. yes, butter…. for a wonderfully creamy sauce. This dish is so simple to make and tastes amazing.  You’ll think you’re eating at a fancy Italian restaurant.  Perfetto! The recipe can be found here. In a large skillet or deep pot, heat oil over medium heat.  You want the skillet or pot to be large enough to fit the sauce and noodles so you can toss everything together at the end. Add the crushed red pepper, salt, black pepper, and garlic.  Sauté just long enough for the garlic to caramelize and red pepper to release flavor … Continue reading

Posted in Pasta, Poultry | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Spicy Chicken Rigatoni

Creamy Hummus Pasta with Sun Dried Tomatoes is something we tried recently.  We both like pasta and we both like hummus, so why not try them together, right? It’s savory, delicious, and light.  You’ll be satisfied without the heavy feeling of being too full.  The hummus replaces traditional pasta sauce, so you have a creamy and slightly nutty flavored sauce.  The sun dried tomatoes are roasted with garlic so they are tender and give off great flavor.  This recipe is a winner in our house! The recipe can be found here. Start by bringing a large pot of water to a boil and cooking the pasta according to package instructions.  Reserve 1 cup of pasta water before draining, then set the reserved water and noodles aside. In a large skillet, heat the sun dried tomato oil over medium heat.  Add the sun dried tomatoes and garlic, and sauté for about … Continue reading

Posted in Pasta, Uncategorized, Vegan | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Creamy Hummus Pasta with Sun Dried Tomatoes

We’ve been eating a lot of meatballs at our house lately!  Our idea was to take traditional dishes and turn them into meatballs.  The idea is you get the same great taste but in bite-sized morsels.  The recipes I’m going to share with you today are easy to assemble, wonderful weeknight dinner options, crowd pleasers, and make great leftovers!  The fight at our house is no longer “what’s for dinner” but “which are we going to make first” 🙂 Orange Chicken Meatballs are everything you love about a classic takeout meal!  The flavor is incredible – you will think you are eating orange chicken from your favorite Chinese restaurant but with fewer calories and fat.  I like to serve the Orange Chicken Meatballs on top of Cilantro Lime Rice.  You could serve these with rice, noodles, or as is. The recipe can be found here. Start by preheating the oven … Continue reading

Posted in Poultry, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Chicken Meatballs 3 Ways

We recently committed to a vegan diet for about 2 weeks and have to admit, it was delicious!  We had done this once before, but enough time had passed that we wanted to try some different foods and see how we could handle meals without any meat, once again.  We both lost weight, our bodies felt great, and we enjoyed creating recipes. It might be surprising, but some types of food you already eat are vegan, like pasta, if you skip the cheese and use a red sauce.  If you’re up for the challenge, I recommend starting with a week of vegan eating.  If it works out well, try for another week.  Baby step your way into it!  We don’t plan on going vegan by any means.  We love food too much and would miss some of our favorite meals!  BUT… we do plan on incorporating more vegan meals into … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized, Vegan | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Vegan Meals

National Pasta Day is today and what better way to celebrate than with homemade pasta!  If you haven’t had a cheat day yet this week, I highly recommend it be today 🙂 If you don’t mind putting in a little elbow grease and work, homemade pasta is the way to go.  If you’re on a time crunch or just not that interested in cooking, boxed noodles or a heat-and-serve pasta dish is just fine.  My preference is homemade pasta.  Yes, it can be time consuming, but the flavor is incredible, and it has a great texture! My go-to recipe is for Homemade Egg Noodles.  You do need a stand mixer and pasta attachment for this recipe to work.  You can also use this recipe with a hand cranked pasta maker, but I have yet to try that method. Start by adding your ingredients to the bowl of the stand mixer.  … Continue reading

Posted in Pasta, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on National Pasta Day