garlic – Page 15 – The Pajama Chef

Neely’s Lemon Pasta Salad

April 3, 2013April 5, 2013 Sarah

So this pasta salad. I’ve made it twice already–on Saturday with my mom for dinner, then again on Monday night so I could enjoy it for lunch all week long. Recipe repeats aren’t my style so this is how you know that it’s pretty darn incredible. It’s basically spring in a bowl. YUM! Those Neelys sure know what they’re doing–I hardly changed a thing! 🙂

It’s a lovely combination of light, fresh veggies–asparagus, tomatoes, and peas–mixed with a lemony mustard dressed pasta and a punch of feta cheese.

I seriously can’t get enough of this salad, and suspect I’ll be making it weekly for the rest of asparagus season. Even Ben, who isn’t such an asparagus lover, thinks this pasta salad is pretty fabulous thanks to the bright flavors in the dressing and the satisfying crunch of the veggies. I can definitely see adding some shrimp or grilled chicken to make for a more filling meal. However, that’s completely not necessary–this is a great vegetarian dish or side dish. Perfect for a BBQ or a family dinner, like with these sloppy joes. Just a warning though–it’s addicting, so be prepared for the deliciousness!

Neely’s Lemon Pasta Salad [from The Neelys]
click to print

Ingredients:

12 ounces whole wheat rotini
1 pound asparagus
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon dried dill
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup frozen peas, defrosted
4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente. When there are 3 minutes left of cook time, add the asparagus to let it blanche until slightly tender. Drain and rinse pasta and asparagus, then remove asparagus to a cutting board.

Cut off ends of asparagus, then slice into bite-sized pieces.

In a small jar, combine mustard, garlic, lemon juice, oil, and dill. Cover and shake well.

In a large bowl, combine pasta and asparagus, then add tomatoes, peas, and feta. Pour dressing over and toss to coat. Season with pepper as desired.

Time: 30 minutes.

Yield: 8-10 servings.

Linked with: Weekend Potluck.

Chicken, Main Dishes, Recipes

Sweet and Sour Chicken {Repost}

March 20, 2013March 17, 2013 Sarah

So, I used to post once a month on a blog called Today’s Housewife. Last fall, the group decided together to stop posting due the busyness of life and families and such. Though sad, I enjoyed being part of the group. As of early January, the blog was officially taken down. But I don’t want to lose my recipes, so periodically I will be reposting them on here. Enjoy!

this post is originally from October 13, 2011

Chinese is Ben’s favorite ethnic food, so I’m constantly on the look out for ways I can surprise him with some special dinners at home. First it was Healthy Fried Rice, next it was Sweet and Sour Chicken. Before I tried any of these recipes, I expected them to be really difficult. But you know what? Making Chinese food at home really isn’t that hard. It’s actually pretty simple; all it takes is a bit of effort.

In almost no active preparation time at all, you can have restaurant-quality Sweet and Sour Chicken on your table for everyone to enjoy. We loved how sweet and tangy this dish was, as well as the freshness and healthiness factors. Because nothing beats the impressiveness of homemade!

Sweet and Sour Chicken [from Mrs. Schwartz’s Kitchen]
click to print

Ingredients:

1-2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
salt and pepper
1 cup cornstarch
2 eggs
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup pineapple chunks or tidbits
1 cup ketchup
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup rice vinegar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
brown rice, for serving
stir fry vegetables, for serving
sesame seeds, for topping

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet.

Put cornstarch in a shallow bowl. Crack eggs into another shallow bowl, and beat slightly with a fork. Season chicken with salt and pepper then dip in cornstarch and egg.

Working in two batches, brown the chicken, tossing every so often so that all sides crisp. Remove chicken to a large baking dish and arrange in a single layer, using a paper towel to degrease if necessary.

In a medium bowl, stir the sugar, pineapple, ketchup, vinegars, soy sauce, garlic, and red pepper together until sugar dissolves and sauce is fully mixed. Taste and adjust seasonings if desired. Then pour half of the sauce over the chicken and toss to fully coat.

Bake the chicken for 60 minutes, turning every 15 minutes. [This would be a good time to start your brown rice, if you haven’t already.]

Meanwhile, pour remaining sauce in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Turn heat to low and simmer to reduce, about 20 minutes.

Serve chicken over rice and vegetables and top with additional sauce and sesame seeds.

Yield: 5-6 servings.

Time: 90 minutes [30 minutes active].

Appetizers, Recipes, Sides, Vegetables

Asian Peanut Veggie Dip

February 18, 2013June 5, 2015 Sarah

I’m one of those weird people who loves to eat their veggies. Every Sunday, without fail, I chop up a week’s worth of vegetables, crudites if you will, for lunch and snacking. Anything goes–carrots, bell peppers, cucumbers… just whatever looked good at the grocery store. Except celery. I’m not a big celery snacker–that’s Ben’s territory. 🙂 Mostly, I eat these veggies plain and it really doesn’t bother me. I love the taste of veggies. [See, I’m weird!] Carrots and peppers are my fave! But I know that everyone isn’t as weird as me, and sometimes people need incentive to eat their veggies. Is this incentive enough?

Though I don’t usually need much incentive to eat my veggies, I can polish off even more when I have a bowl full of this awesome dip on hand! It’s super simple to make, and has just the right amount of sweetness and spice to make me happy. The Asian dressing [I used bottled but you can make your own] is gingery and garlicky which pairs perfectly with sweet honey, creamy peanut butter, and just a bit of crushed red pepper for spice. You guys, this is SO good! When I first made it for a church event, I wasn’t sure how it would go over, but it turned out to be insanely popular. I’m kind of sad it took me so long to blog about it, actually. But I guess it’s a good thing… now that I’m reminded of it, I can make it again for this week’s lunches.

This is a dip you could totally eat by the spoonful, but why not pile it up on some veggies and enjoy it that way? It is totally yum-o! I’ll take it with some red peppers, please. What about you? What’s your favorite veggie? Enjoy!

Asian Peanut Veggie Dip

Servings: 8
Time: 5 minutes
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adapted from Kraft

Ingredients:

1/4 cup Asian Toasted Sesame Dressing [like this version from Kraft or this version from Marzetti–I’ve had both and they taste similar… or make your own here or here]
1/4 cup peanut butter [I’ve used natural and regular… both work, but it’s a little thinner with natural]
1/4 cup honey
crushed red pepper

Directions:

Add dressing, peanut butter, and honey to a small bowl. Whisk well and then add crushed red pepper to taste. Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 1 week.

Chicken, Main Dishes, Recipes

SRC: Chicken Tinga Tacos

January 7, 2013January 5, 2017 Sarah

Whoa, it’s been awhile since I’ve done a recipe post! Since before Christmas, in fact. Between Christmas, and my little sister’s wedding[!!!], and a quick trip to Chicago with my parents and Ben for New Years’… I’ve been busy. And got sick. 😦 But now it’s back to real life… and that means plenty of recipes! To start off the new year, it seems fitting to begin with a dose of the Secret Recipe Club! We took a break in December, but I’m so happy to be back in the swing of things. I absolutely love being part of the SRC. It’s a fun way to try new blogs and recipes and be part of a great community. If you’ve missed my past SRC posts, the premise is this: you’re assigned a different member’s blog every month. You visit their blog, choose any recipe you want, then make it and share it on your blog… all while keeping your assignment a secret! Everyone else posts about their secret blog the same day. It’s fabulously fun to try out new blogs. If you have a blog, definitely check it out and consider joining! I highly recommend it.

This month, my assignment was for Holly’s blog, PheMOMenon. Holly is a mom of three, and uses her blog as an outlet to “conquer [her] world, one recipe at a time.” Sounds like a good thing, if you ask me!! I had a hard time deciding which recipe to choose, because it’s no lie to say that everything I looked at sounded so amazing! If I had my act together and made this recipe in December, before I OD’d on sweets, I probably would have made these crepes or this Sugar Plum Puff Pastry. YUM. Definitely pinned.

Instead of sweets, I decided to make a flavorful, spicy taco dish as our first home-cooked meal of 2013. Holly’s Chicken Tinga Tacos are absolutely incredible, and so super easy. I had never heard of chicken tinga before, but I had a suspicion that it was something legit, so I turned to the powers of Google to learn that it is a traditional Mexican dish of shredded chicken in a tomato and chili chipotle sauce. The source of that knowledge, Muy Bueno Cookbook, is definitely a site to check out too. But back to Holly.

Normally, to make a shredded/marinated chicken dish like this, I would throw these ingredients in the crockpot to marinate and cook all day long. In fact, I’ve made many similar Mexican-inspired shredded chicken recipes that way…and they are good. But sometimes the crockpot leaves everything tasting kinda the same, if you know what I mean. Or is that just me? Regardless, there’s just something to be gained by preparing this meal on the stove.

Instead of all day like a crockpot would take, the whole meal came together in less than an hour, most of which was idle simmer time. The taco meat was smoky, juicy, and pretty much perfect. And while our first-day tacos were super, I must say the leftovers may have been even better, as these flavors got better over time. As a special bonus, I’ll be sharing one of my leftover recipes on Wednesday… so be sure to come back for Mexican Cornbread Pot Pie. It is so good! Enjoy!

Chicken Tinga Tacos

Servings: 6-8
Time: 60 minutes
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from PheMOMenon as appearing on Smart Balance’s blogger recipe contest on Facebook

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup chipotle salsa or 2 chipotles in adobo, pureed with a 6 ounce can tomato paste
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts [Holly used thighs]
tortillas
lettuce, cheese, sour cream, salsa, pico de gallo, guacamole, etc. for serving as desired

Directions:

Melt butter in a large skillet or dutch oven set over medium heat. Then add onions and garlic, and season with black pepper before cooking until soft, about 5-6 minutes. Next, reduce heat to low and add salsa and chicken broth. Simmer for 10 minutes, then add chicken to the pan.

Spoon salsa mixture completely over the chicken, then cover pan with a lid. Simmer, covered, for 35 minutes or until chicken can be easily shredded with a fork.

Shred the chicken in the sauce with two forks, then simmer for another 5 minutes. Serve in warmed tortillas with toppings of your choice.

Be sure to check out the other fabulous recipes posted today [click below] for this week’s SRC reveal. Have a great day!

This recipe is also linked up with: Weekend Potluck.

Main Dishes, Recipes, Turkey

Teriyaki Meatball Bowls

November 28, 2012November 29, 2012 Sarah

I’ve said before that I don’t really repeat recipes… but it seems like I have so so many one and done meals or desserts or whatever. The exception, of course, is tried and true family recipes that I grew up on or that Ben adores. Repeating recipes is boring. Usually I’m just game to try a new variety of soup, chili, pasta, chicken, brownie, cake, or pie. You get the idea. It’s not like I intend to have so many one and done recipes, because everything I blog about is something I’ve made and loved–otherwise, why would I share it? But these Teriyaki Meatballs Bowls? They are most certainly not a one and done recipe.

Beth posted the recipe at the end of January, and I can think of no less than three, maybe four, occasions over the past months that I’ve made this awesome dish for dinner. Sometimes it’s been just for us to enjoy; other times, I’ve made them for new baby meals for friends. This meal is great for entertaining or for new baby/sympathy/etc. meals [so I’ve heard] because it’s hearty and filling, but still sort of light… a good alternative to the typically heavy, cheesy meals people love to serve and give away. Those are good too, of course, and I love them, but sometimes you just need something different. Something more complex.

And complex this teriyaki sauce is! It’s sweet and salty, with rich overtones of ginger and garlic. You can practically eat it with a spoon! Don’t be scared of making what’s normally a bottled sauce–it comes together in a flash, while the meatballs are cooking, so no panicking about making a sauce and cooking meatballs and making rice. We’re all about using multiple appliances for less stress here. 🙂

Though I love how the homemade teriyaki sauce coats the meatball [that is the emphasis of this dish, after all], my absolute favorite bites of this meal are the last ones at the bottom of the bowl. Here, if you’ve added enough sauce, the rice is absolutely saturated with rich teriyaki goodness! Nothing could be better. Homemade teriyaki is where it’s at! If you don’t agree, well… haters gonna hate. That’s all there is to it. Though I do always want for you to try the recipes I post, this is one you really should try because it’s absolutely incredible. One tip though: use low sodium soy sauce. That will be salty enough–I promise. 🙂 Enjoy!

Teriyaki Meatball Bowls [from Budget Bytes]

click to print

Ingredients:

for meatballs

1 pound ground meat [I’ve used ground turkey most often, but also ground beef, and the original recipe calls for ground pork.]
1 egg
1/2 cup bread crumbs
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 inches fresh ginger, peeled & grated [I’ve also subbed 2 teaspoons ground ginger.]
1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
2 green onions, minced [green and white parts]
freshly ground black pepper

for teriyaki glaze

1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
2 inches fresh ginger, peeled & grated [I’ve also subbed 2 teaspoons ground ginger.]
2 tablespoons corn starch
1 tablespoon sesame seeds

for serving

hot cooked rice
minced green onions

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a large rimmed baking sheet or glass baking dish with foil.

In a large bowl, add ground turkey, egg, bread crumbs, ginger, soy sauce, onions, and some freshly ground black pepper. Use your hands to massage ingredients together, then roll into tablespoon-sized balls, placing on prepared pan.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown.

Meanwhile, begin making teriyaki glaze. In a saucepan set over low heat, combine soy sauce, brown sugar, water, oil, and ginger. Stir until brown sugar dissolves. At this point, you can also start preparing the rice, if you haven’t already.

Next, dissolve the cornstarch in a small amount of water–just enough to be pourable. Add to the saucepan, then turn heat to medium-high. Cook unti thick, stirring occasionally. When glaze has thickened, add sesame seeds.

By this point, meatballs should be about done. Remove from baking sheet and degrease if needed, then add to the glaze, tossing gently to coat. Serve meatballs over rice with extra sauce and green onions. Enjoy!

Time: 45 minutes.

Yield: 4 servings.