Tag Archives: broccoli

Ham & Cheese Baked Pasta

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I meant to share this recipe last week so you had a use for your leftover Easter ham… but alas, school got in the way. As Stephanie Tanner would say, “how rude!” I mean, why should school be more important than blogging? Kidding!

But despite the delay, this pasta is still as awesome as it was two weeks ago when I made it. I glazed the Easter ham this year with a mixture of 1/2 cup brown sugar, 2 tablespoons whole grain dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons honey, and lots of freshly ground black pepper. Before brushing on the glaze, I scored the ham in diamond criss-cross pattern and stuck whole cloves in the points. After we feasted on the ham for dinner, I whipped up the leftovers into something just as fabulous.

It’s warm, comfy baked pasta dotted with savory ham, crisp broccoli, and sweet red bell pepper all wrapped up in a gooey, garlicky, cheese sauce that is utterly out of this world. Topped with some crunchy Panko bread crumbs, you’ll have a hard time saying no to seconds [or thirds!].

Hungry? Hope so!

Ham & Cheese Baked Pasta
click to print

Ingredients:

  • 9 ounces uncooked pasta, such as penne or ziti [approximately 3 cups dry]
  • 3 cups broccoli florets, chopped
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 2 cups skim milk
  • 8 ounces grated Colby cheese
  • heaping 1/2 tablespoon whole grain dijon mustard
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 small red bell pepper, diced [heaping 1/2 cup]
  • 8 ounces cooked ham, chopped
  • 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
  • 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook pasta to al dente, adding broccoli during the last minute of cooking. Return pasta and broccoli to pan.

Meanwhile, melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, approximately 30-60 seconds, stirring constantly. Stir in flour slowly, cooking until bubbly. Then add milk and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and stir in Colby, mustard, and a generous amount of black pepper. Stir until cheese melts, then pour cheese sauce over pasta. Add bell pepper and ham, and mix until combined.

Pour into ungreased 2 quart baking dish, top with bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese.

Bake, covered, for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly.

Time: 45 minutes [20 minutes active].

Yield: 8 servings.

Crock Pot Honey Sesame Chicken

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So, almost immediately after pinning this awesome looking recipe for Slow Cooker Honey Sesame Chicken, Tina commented on my pin with her rave reviews. I knew it looked good, but hearing how fabulous it was made it even more appealing. But what about this recipe made it so wonderful, when I hadn’t even tasted it?

Was it the combination of garlic and ginger? Honey and soy sauce? Toasted sesame oil and crushed red pepper flakes? Or [gasp] even the ketchup and canola oil and onion?

I’m not sure. Does it even really matter, though? I’m not sure it does.

Simple ingredients come together to make something fantastic in this Crock Pot Honey Sesame Chicken. And the best part is that it only takes four hours to cook in the crock pot. [Side note: I despise calling a crock pot a "slow cooker." It sounds so... ugh... to me. Hence the name change.]

Ben loves anything Asian-inspired, so you can be sure that this was a huge hit in our house. The flavors are just the right amount of sweetness and kick, but feel free to add more spice if that’s your thing. This is a must make, so if you’ve been thinking about it… go for it! Enjoy!

Crock Pot Honey Sesame Chicken [adapted from Six Sisters' Stuff and Foodie with Family]
click to print

Ingredients:

  • 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
  • black pepper
  • 3/4 cup honey
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1/2 cup onion, minced
  • 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons ketchup
  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 4 teaspoons cornstarch
  • 1/4 cup of water
  • hot cooked rice, for serving
  • steamed broccoli, for serving
  • sesame seeds, for serving

Directions:

Season chicken thighs with black pepper and lay in bottom of crock pot.

In a medium bowl, whisk together honey, soy sauce, onion, ketchup, canola oil, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Pour mixture over chicken thighs and flip chicken to coat. Cook on low for 4 hours, then remove chicken to a plate.

In a second bowl, combine cornstarch with water until dissolved. Then pour into liquid in crock pot, return chicken, cover, and cook for 15 minutes or until thick.

Break up chicken with two forks, then serve over hot cooked rice with steamed broccoli. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, then enjoy.

Tangy Chicken Pasta

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If there is one thing that joining a CSA has taught me about my culinary skills is that I am not well versed in cooking greens. Aside from the usual lettuce and spinach, I never really ate greens of any type growing up. No mustard greens, collard greens, or kale to speak of. In recent years I have had kale and mustard greens a time or two, but that’s about it. That’s why I was so excited about how one of my latest pasta dishes turned out.

It all started the night before our CSA pickup where I decided I had to use up some mustard greens, garlic, and lemon thyme that had been hanging around our fridge for the past six days. It was seriously getting ridiculous, so I just threw together a marinade for some chicken, closed my eyes and said a prayer, hoping for the best. You know how some combos are really, really bad? Well, this one was anything but.

My impromptu Tangy Chicken Pasta incorporates a double dose of lemon in fresh lemon thyme and lemon juice, as well as spicy black pepper, sweet garlic, and rich olive oil in the marinade. As the chicken cooked, I steamed the distinctively unique peppery mustard greens and cooked up a batch of noodles to serve as the vehicle for my tangy feast. At the end, I tossed in some broccoli florets as the pasta cooked to bump up the veggie content and mixed everything together with a pseudo lemon-balsamic reduction glaze.

The results? Incredible levels of flavor and depth. For best results, make and serve the same day, but if there are leftovers be sure to add some extra lemon-balsamic glaze to make the flavors pop once more. Enjoy!

Tangy Chicken Pasta
printable version

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound chicken breasts, chopped into 1-inch cubes
  • 1/3 cup lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/3 cup loosely packed fresh lemon thyme, roughly chopped + more for garnishing
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 3 cups loosely packed mustard greens, stems removed and roughly chopped
  • 5 cups broccoli florets
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 pound small noodles, uncooked [I used mini farfarelle]

Directions:

Whisk together 1/3 cup lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, lemon thyme, and black pepper in a small bowl or ziploc bag. Place [raw] chicken in mixture, cover, and refrigerate for at least 30-60 minutes and no more than 24 hours to marinate.

When ready to prepare, bring a large pot of water to boil for the pasta.

Heat a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Pour chicken and marinade into skillet and allow to cook, stirring occasionally, until each piece is cooked through. You could add additional olive oil, but I found it unnecessary due to the marinade. When chicken is cooked, remove to a large bowl, reserving liquid in pan.

While the chicken is cooking, set a third [yes, I know!] pot on the stovetop and fill with several inches of water and a steamer insert. Add mustard greens, cover, and heat to medium. Steam mustard greens until just tender. Remove from heat and spoon out into the bowl with the chicken.

After mustard greens are in the pot, turn back to the pasta water–it should be boiling by now. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions. But… one minute before pasta should be done, add the broccoli to the water and blanch. Immediately remove from heat and drain well, then add to mustard greens and chicken. Toss well.

Lastly, pour 2 tablespoons lemon juice and 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar into the skillet where the chicken cooked. Over medium heat, stir constantly, scraping the sides and bottom of the pan. When mixture has thickened, remove from heat and pour over pasta mixture and toss to coat. Garnish with additional lemon thyme leaves and serve immediately. Enjoy!

Balsamic-Honey Couscous Salad

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couscous saladSo, last Monday, January 10th, I began training for my second marathon. I’m running the Cleveland Marathon on May 15th [eeeek!]. I ran my first marathon, the Cincinnati Flying Pig, in May 2008 with a time of 4:07:27. While it was a great experience, I definitely have room for improvement. Over winter break, I worked hard on putting together a training schedule that would work with my schedule and provide me with challenging workouts so that I can run my best in May. I also made a few nutritional goals to help power me through to a great race.

  1. Cut out soda during my training week. My training schedule has me working out Monday-Saturday. I love Diet Coke and though I am not a huge soda drinker [usually I will drink a can 4-5 times/week], I know it’s not good for me. It’s easy for me to replace water with soda and to ensure that I drink enough water everyday, I decided to cut out soda during the week. After my long run on Saturdays [and on Sundays] I can drink some soda–provided I get enough water first! I used to do this during cross country and track seasons in high school and college and found it helpful.
  2. Eat protein at lunch. It can be really easy for me to just eat a lot of carbs for lunch [pasta or a bagel, anyone?] or to just eat a lot of side dishes. Consequently, I have resolved to make one special lunch entree each week that contains protein. So far, I have enjoyed new varieties of tuna and egg salad that I hope to post soon!
  3. Eat more veggies. I love eating fruit and I like eating veggies. But it’s easy for me to eat a lot of fruit because it’s sweet–I’ll even eat it as dessert sometimes. Veggies though? Not so much. You can only eat so many raw carrots. So I’ve decided to make our Mondays meatless! Yes, I know I’m jumping on the meatless Monday bandwagon pretty late, but eating a meatless meal one day per week is a) not that hard; b) forcing me to be a bit more creative; and c) pretty tasty. Here’s the latest!

bowl of couscousThis Balsamic-Honey Couscous Salad is a great main dish for a lighter weeknight meal or a quick side dish that is nice enough for company. I love how bright and flavorful it turned out. The dressing definitely makes the salad go from bland to a-m-azing! Although I used broccoli and a pepper/onion mix, any vegetables could really be used, so pick and choose amongst your favorites. Tofu is a suggested addition to this salad and really does make it very filling; even my meat-lover of a husband agreed with that! Enjoy!

Balsamic-Honey Couscous Salad [a Pajama Chef original]

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup whole wheat coucous
  • 2 cups broccoli, chopped
  • 10 ounces frozen chopped peppers and onions [or fresh--all the peppers at the store looked blah so I used frozen]
  • 1 pound tofu, optional
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon sesame seeds
  • 1/8 teaspoon red chili flakes

Directions:

If desired, begin by cooking the tofu. I like using Emily’s method at the Daily Garnish. Then, steam the broccoli and peppers/onion mix over medium heat for about 3-5 minutes or until crisp-tender. Finally, prepare couscous according to package directions [usually combine 2 cups of water and  1 cup of couscous; bring it all to a boil and cook for about 5 minutes or until water absorbs]. Place all ingredients in a large bowl and gently toss to combine.

Meanwhile, prepare the dressing. Stir together olive oil, honey, and balsamic vinegar in a small bowl. Add the garlic, sesame, and chili flakes and whisk until emulsified.

Pour dressing into couscous and veggies in a slow steady stream, and then toss once more until dressing is fully incorporated. Serve warm.

Click here for the printable version: Balsamic-Honey Couscous Salad

Question of the Day: What goals are you shooting for this year?