Garlic Chicken & Veggies Over Angelhair

As the days of summer bring climbing temperatures I find myself not wanting to be in the kitchen cooking.

And when I do go in to cook, I want the meal I'm creating to be light and fresh. Nothing too heavy. It's too hot for that.

Mostly, I'm loving my grill. But sometimes you just don't want to stand out in the heat over a fired up grill.

Instead, let's stay in a nice, air conditioned kitchen. Yeah...that sounds nice.

One of my favorite dishes to make when the weather heats up is this light pasta dish that I learned from my mother in law.

I love it because it's not an exact science. It all depends on how much you want of each ingredient.

You can make this meal as veggie heavy or as chicken heavy as you want.

The only thing that you can't slack on is the garlic. But you all know how I feel about garlic!

So...kick up that a/c and let's get cooking!

Start by putting some water on to boil. Add some chicken bouillon to give it a...well...a chickeny flavor.

Heat up your skillet, toss in some olive oil and some garlic and saute about 30 seconds to a minute.

Add your carrots, sprinkle with garlic salt and saute until tender. Once cooked, remove the carrots and set them aside.

Now we start the process again. Oil, garlic, saute 30 seconds. But this time we add broccoli with a sprinkling of garlic salt. Saute until tender. Remove to the bowl with the carrots, set aside.

About now you want to throw your noodles into the boiling chicken flavored water. When they are done cooking, drain the noodles, reserving 1 cup of the broth. Toss the noodles in a little olive oil to keep them from sticking together.

And one more time! Oil, garlic, 30 seconds. Chicken, garlic salt, saute until cooked through. Instead of removing the chicken though...

(PS. This is the original dish I made for the Tyson Grilled & Ready recipe. I used 1 1/2 cups of the diced chicken here)

We add the veggies back into the skillet so everything can heat back up.

Add in the broth from the noodles and let it cook for about 5 minutes to let the juices soak into the broccoli.

Serve chicken and veggies over a bed of angel hair pasta. Enjoy with a crisp cold glass of fruity white wine on a hot summer night. Enjoy!!

Garlic Chicken & Veggies Over Angelhair

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Ingredients:

• 4 large carrots, sliced
• 1 bag broccoli florets
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, diced
• 1 package angelhair pasta
• 1 cube chicken bouillon
• 4 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil, plus more for tossing in pasta
• 3 Tablespoons garlic, minced
• Garlic salt

Directions:

1. For the pasta: Cook the pasta according the the package. In the boiling water add chicken bouillon before adding pasta. Reserve 1 cup of broth prior to draining. Toss pasta with Olive Oil.
2. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. 
3. Add 1 Tablespoon olive oil and 1 Tablespoon minced garlic. Saute about 30 seconds. 
4. Add carrot slices, sprinkle with garlic salt. Cook until almost tender, about 5 minutes. Place carrots in a large bowl, set aside.
5. To the skillet, again add 1 Tablespoon olive oil and 1 Tablespoon minced garlic. Saute about 30 seconds.
6. Add broccoli florets, sprinkle with garlic salt. Cook until almost tender, about 5 minutes. Place broccoli in bowl with carrots. Set aside.
7. To the skillet, again add 1 Tablespoon olive oil and 1 Tablespoon minced garlic. Saute about 30 seconds.
8. Add diced chicken, sprinkle with garlic salt. Cook until heated through, about 8 minutes.
9. Add veggies back into skillet with chicken. Pour in reserved broth from pasta. Cover and let simmer another 5-10 minutes or until broccoli soaks up some of the juices.
10. Serve chicken, veggies and juice over a bed of the pasta.
11. Serve and enjoy!!

Roasted Red Pepper Pesto Pasta

Okay guys.

Are you ready for the best pasta I've ever made???

Because this stuff was good.

And not just good...but GEWD!!!

I recently joined Foodbuzz's Featured Publisher program and was excited when I received my first Foodbuzz Tastemaker email.

The email was about Tyson® Grilled & Ready® frozen, prepared chicken or beef.

I wracked my brain for a couple weeks (while we were moving) as to what I would make for this program.

To be honest, I made a different dish first. But after throwing together this dish a night or two later (and tasting how delicious it was!) the consensus with me and my family was that this is the dish I should post.

This dish is super easy and amazingly good.

Now let me tell you about the Tyson® Grilled & Ready®. It's actually pretty awesome.

The Hubble was suspicious about the whole thing and didn't think it would taste like real meat. But it does. It's fantastic to have on hand (I'm buying another bag on our next grocery trip) for those weeknight dinners when you just need to throw some stuff together and feed people quickly.

Okay. On to today's dish. Which you seriously will NOT want to miss.

Remember this pesto we made on Monday??

Roasted Red Pepper Pesto

We are going to need that. We are going to use a couple cups of that and turn it into a pasta sauce. YUM!!

This is literally beyond any pasta dish I've made yet. And every person who has tasted it agrees that it trumps the meal I made for the Tastemaker program previously.

So let's get cooking...

Spray your skillet with non-stick cooking spray. Heat it over medium-high heat. Now toss in your onion and garlic until tender, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Toss in your Tyson Grilled & Ready diced chicken and heat until cooked through, 3-5 minutes.

Now dump in your pesto...

And cream. Stir it all up and heat it until warmed through. Add garlic salt to taste.

Toss the sauce over your prepared noodles until the noodles are all coated. Serve it up with some garlic bread (and extra grated Parmesan on top if you like). Enjoy!!!

As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program, I received a coupon for free Tyson® Grilled & Ready®. But the thoughts provided are my own.

Roasted Red Pepper Pesto Pasta

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Ingredients:

• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 Tablespoons minced garlic
• 2 cups Tyson Grilled & Ready diced chicken
• 2 cups roasted red pepper pesto
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• Linguini noodles
• garlic salt, to taste
• grated Parmesan (optional)

Directions:

1. Prepare pasta as per directions on the package.
2. Spray a large skillet with non-stick cooking spray. Heat over medium-high heat.
3. Saute garlic and onion in skillet until tender, about 5 minutes.
4. Add Tyson Grilled & Ready diced chicken until cooked through, about 3-5 minutes.
5. Add pesto and heavy cream, heat until warm.
6. Add garlic salt to taste.
7. Toss over linguini, making sure pasta is fully coated with sauce.
8. Top with grated Parmesan. Serve and enjoy!

Garlic Chicken (Indian Style)

Why hello there!

It's been a while hasn't it???

I mean, I know I've kind of been in and out over...oh...the past month or so??

But I've totally missed you! Yes YOU!

I hope you enjoyed all the fabulous guest bloggers who came over to play. I know I did.

But now...you are stuck with me again. Muahahahahahahaha! Sucka!

Haha! Just kidding. You know you love me. Right??

Anyway.

So...as you already know, thanks to my little confession, I love garlic.

I love it so much that most of the time I even see garlic in a recipe I mark it to be made immediately!

Then...if it's not in a recipe...I try to work it in. Though, I still haven't figured out how to work it into sweet dishes. But that may be better left alone.

Okay. Now I have another confession to make.

Don't laugh at me!

I made this dish...back in September!

I KNOW!!!!

I'm such a bad blogger!

I just kept getting carried away with so many other recipes that I never got around to sharing this one.

And it is a shame. Because this recipe is DE-LICIOUS!

No lie. Really.

This dish was so good that not only did I make it once for a friend and her hubby, but I also made it several days (yes, days) later for a dinner party.

And just looking at these pictures (though they aren't my best since I was playing with lighting at the time) makes me want to make and eat it all over again.

All right, all right. You are tired of waiting. I hear ya!

Let's get cooking!

Ingredients please! We've got: chicken (whatever you have to make a pound. I had drummies and boneless skinless thighs), plain non-fat yogurt, whole cloves, whole cardamom, lemon, jalapenos, garlic salt (or regular salt if you're into that kind of thing), fresh ginger, red onion, garlic cloves and turmeric (for color).

In a food processor you want to add the ginger, jalapenos (with or without the seeds depending on the heat you are shooting for) and 10-12 cloves of garlic.

Puree it all up until you have a nice paste.

Now stir in the yogurt and lemon juice until the ingredients are well combined. If you want to add a little salt or garlic salt at this point, now is your chance.

Place the chicken in a container and completely smother with the 'sauce' you just made. For the chicken I placed the drumsticks in whole and diced the boneless skinless thighs into bite sized pieces. Now cover and let marinade for a couple hours.

Once the chicken is done marinating, it's time to get cooking. Smash about 5-6 garlic cloves and throw them in a cold skillet (as you can see, I have more than 5-6 cloves. I was hosting a dinner party and doubled my recipe). Also toss in the whole cloves and cardamom.

Pour some olive oil over the ingredients in the cold skillet. Turn the heat on medium and allow the oil to infuse with the flavors of the garlic, cloves and cardamom while it heats.

When the oil is hot, add the sliced onion and sautee until golden.

Add the marinated chicken and turmeric...

And let the magic happen! LOL! Cook the chicken on Medium-Low heat, stirring occasionally until the chicken juice no longer runs pink. About 20-30 minutes. Since I doubled my batch, I had to let it cook a bit longer. I also covered mine though the original directions do not indicate this step.

When the chicken is done, serve yourself a healthy portion along with some jasmine rice and naan bread. Oh...and throw in a glass of wine for good measure.

Enjoy!!

Garlic Chicken (Indian Style)
Adapted from Indian Simmer

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Ingredients:

• 1 pound cut chicken (whatever kind you enjoy)
• 15-20 cloves of garlic
• 2-3 jalapenos (with or without seeds depending on desired heat)
• 1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup plain non-fat yogurt
• 1/2 Tablespoon lemon juice
• 6-8 whole cloves
• 2 whole cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• Garlic (or regular) salt to taste

Directions:

1. In a food processor, puree together the jalapenos, 10-12 cloves of garlic and ginger to make a paste.
2. Blend in the yogurt and lemon juice until well combined; add a pinch of garlic salt.
3. Place chicken and 'sauce' in container, seal and marinate 2-3 hours.
4. When chicken is done marinating, place 5-6 cloves smashed garlic, whole cloves and whole cardamom in cold skillet. Add olive oil. Turn heat on medium to allow the oil to infuse with the flavors of the cloves, garlic and cardamom while heating.
5. When oil is hot, add sliced onion and sautee until golden.
6. Add chicken and turmeric to skillet.
7. Cook on medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until chicken juice no longer runs pink, about 20-30 minutes. Add salt to taste about half way through cooking. Cover and cook longer if needed.
8. Serve with jasmine rice and naan bread.
9. Enjoy!!

Chicken with Forty (Twenty) Cloves of Garlic

The Hubble and I are not television people. As a matter of fact, we didn't have "television" for about 6 years. We had a television...but we only used it to watch DVDs. When Little Butt came along and we moved to a tiny town called Philadelphia...NY (Didn't know there was one?? Me neither...until I moved there). Since there was absolutely nothing to do in Philadelphia, NY (they didn't even have a grocery store) we decided to finally bite the bullet and get 'television.'

The magic of television consumed me and I immediately discovered the two channels that would save my sanity that year...The Disney Channel and The Food Network. I quickly picked out my favorites from both channels and filled the DVR with tons of shows and recordings. As I watched The Food Network shows I would take notes and jump on my computer to put the recipes that interested me in my 'recipe box.'

I fell madly in love with the Barefoot Contessa, or Ina Garten. She's just so sweet and lovely and I drooled over pretty much everything she would make. One of the first recipes I tried was her Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic. Upon taking his first bite, The Hubble fell in love with Ina as well.

Now, I haven't made this recipe since then so it just goes to show what an amazing recipe it is since The Hubble asked for it specifically after a couple years. Now I will share it with you. However, I didn't make Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic since it was just us...mine is more Chicken with Twenty Cloves of Garlic. Don't be scared because of the amount of garlic used. I promise...The Hubble still loved me afterward and he still gave me kisses. That's true love for ya folks. Okay...on to the food!

Ingredients!

Separate all the little garlic cloves.

Throw them in a pot of boiling water for about 60 seconds.

Take them out and drain them.

Peel off all the little skins and set them aside.

Dry off the chicken with a paper towel.

Sprinkle on some salt.

And some pepper.

Melt some butter in a Dutch Oven.

And cook the chicken in batches, browning skin side down first, then flip them (about 3 to 5 minutes on each side).

At this point, if you are like me and JUST remembered you were supposed to make garlic mashed potatoes with this meal, you can call in reinforcements. I put The Hubble to work peeling the potatoes. A man has to work for his supper right?? Or is that sing?? Either way...

Here's the flipped chicken. Nice and brown on the top, now it needs to brown the bottom.

Finish browning all the chicken and set aside on a separate plate. The chicken doesn't have to be fully cooked at this point because we are going to cook it some more in a bit.

Throw all your garlic in the pot.

And saute until they are nice and golden brown (about 5 to 10 minutes).

Pour in 2 Tablespoons of the Cognac and all the wine and bring to a boil.

Go ahead and scrape the bottom of the pot to get all those bits loose while you are at it.

Return the chicken...

With the juices, back into the pot.

Sprinkle with thyme...

Cover and simmer on low heat about 30 minutes or until all the chicken is thoroughly cooked.

When all the chicken is cooked and you can hardly stand it anymore because it smells so good and if you don't eat it now you might just have to gnaw off your own arm...before you lose a limb...

Put the chicken in a separate dish.

And take about a 1/2 cup of the sauce/juice out of the pot and put it in a separate bowl.

Add in the flour and whisk it all together.

Then whisk that mixture back into the pot (we do it this way so you don't have big flour clumps in the sauce when you are done).

Add in the rest of the Cognac and some cream. Raise the heat and let the sauce boil for a few minutes until it's the desired thickness.

Then scoop some of that delicious sauce onto the chicken, serve and enjoy!

Chicken with Twenty Cloves of Garlic
Adapted from the Barefoot Contessa via The Food Network

Ingredients

nocoupons

• 2 whole heads garlic, about 20 cloves
• 2 1/2 to 3 lbs chicken (I used a package of thighs and a package of drummies)
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons good olive oil
• 3 tablespoons Cognac, divided
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream

Directions

1. Separate the cloves of garlic and drop them into a pot of boiling water for 60 seconds. Drain the garlic and peel. Set aside.
2. Dry the chicken with paper towels. 
3. Season liberally with salt and pepper on both sides. 
4. Heat the butter and oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. 
5. In batches, saute the chicken in the fat, skin side down first, until nicely browned, about 3 to 5 minutes on each side. Turn with tongs or a spatula; you don't want to pierce the skin with a fork. If the fat is burning, turn the heat down to medium. When a batch is done, transfer it to a plate and continue to saute all the chicken in batches. 
6. Remove the last chicken to the plate and add all of the garlic to the pot. Lower the heat and saute for 5 to 10 minutes, turning often, until evenly browned. 
7. Add 2 tablespoons of the Cognac and the wine, return to a boil, and scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. 
8. Return the chicken to the pot with the juices and sprinkle with the thyme leaves. 
9. Cover and simmer over the lowest heat for about 30 minutes, until all the chicken is done.
10. Remove the chicken to a platter and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. 
11. In a small bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup of the sauce and the flour and then whisk it back into the sauce in the pot. 
12. Raise the heat, add the remaining tablespoon of Cognac and the cream, and boil for 3 minutes.
13. Add salt and pepper, to taste; it should be very flavorful because chicken tends to be bland. 
14. Pour the sauce and the garlic over the chicken and serve hot.