Tuesday Recipes

Enjoy!

CHICKEN, CHEESE, AND PENNE PASTA BAKE

This comes from Diana Rattray, About.com’s Southern Food expert. Diana wrote, “Serve this chicken and penne bake to your family any day of the week, or take it along to a potluck. Add a tossed salad and warm bread or rolls to this casserole for a perfect meal.” Prep Time: 20 minutes; Cook Time: 35 minutes; Total Time: 55 minutes; Yield: 6 Servings

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

8 ounces penne pasta

1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 to 1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken breast halves, cut in small cubes

6 to 8 ounces sliced mushrooms

1/2 teaspoon Creole seasoning or a seasoned salt blend

2 tablespoons butter

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 cup half-and-half or whole milk

1 cup chicken broth

2 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese, divided

1 cup natural shredded Parmesan cheese, divided, about 3 ounces

salt and pepper, to taste

1 package frozen artichoke quarters or halves, cooked, or 1 can (about 15 ounces), drained

paprika, optional

Preparation

Heat oven to 350°. Grease a 2- to 2 1/2-quart baking dish.

Cook penne pasta in boiling salted water following package directions. Drain in a colander, rinse, and set aside.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add chicken, mushrooms, and Creole seasoning. Cook until chicken is cooked through and mushrooms are lightly browned. Remove the chicken and mushroom mixture to a bowl and set aside.

Melt the butter in the same skillet and stir in garlic. Cook, stirring, for about 1 minute. Blend flour into the butter mixture until smooth and bubbly. Stir in milk and chicken broth. Cook, stirring, until thickened. Add 1 1/2 cups of the Mozzarella cheese and about half of the Parmesan cheese and cook until melted. Stir in the chicken and mushroom mixture and the artichokes. Taste and add salt and pepper, as desired.

Combine the sauce and pasta; transfer to the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheeses and sprinkle lightly with paprika.

Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, until lightly browned and bubbly.

TANDOORI-STYLE CHICKEN

This is from Melissa Clark in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. If you haven’t already signed up for the Times’ cooking e-newsletter, I highly recommend it.

For this recipe, Melissa wrote, “Cooking chicken the night before to serve cold or at room temperature the next day is a brilliant plan for summer soirées, picnics or potlucks. Since the flavors of something cold are usually less pronounced than when they were warm, and since flavors are always muted during storage anyway, the key is to start with more flavor: a blast of herbs, a rub or a marinade. A fiery jalapeño and ginger spiked yogurt marinade to give life to my take on tandoori chicken, for example. The lack of any messy sauces means that they can all be packed up and taken on a picnic without worrying about dripping, leaking containers. A resealable plastic bag or sheet of aluminum foil will work just fine. You could even happily eat everything with your fingers — if, say, you eschewed (or forgot) the plastic forks and knives and just packed a stack of paper napkins.” Time: 50 minutes; makes 6 servings.

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 small onion, peeled and cut into chunks

1 jalapeño, stemmed, and seeded if desired

1 inch-long piece gingerroot, peeled and sliced into coins

2 garlic cloves, peeled

4 pounds skinless chicken drumsticks and thighs, rinsed and patted dry

Vegetable oil, for brushing

Lime wedges, for garnish

Preparation

For marinade, combine all ingredients except for chicken, oil and lime wedges in a food processor and purée until smooth.

With a sharp knife, make several incisions on each chicken piece to help marinade penetrate meat. Transfer chicken to a large glass or ceramic baking dish and pour in marinade, turning chicken pieces to coat. Cover dish with plastic wrap and transfer to refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Remove chicken pieces from marinade. Transfer chicken to a roasting pan and drizzle with vegetable oil. Roast, basting occasionally, until juices run clear and meat is just cooked through, about 25 minutes. Let cool completely, then wrap and refrigerate. Bring to room temperature for at least 1 hour before serving. Serve with lime wedges.

BAINGAN BHARTA

This is from Mark Bittman, also in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Time: about 45 minutes; makes 4 servings.

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

2 pounds eggplant

2 tablespoons lime juice

2 to 3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 medium onion, peeled and chopped

3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

1 fresh hot green chile like a jalapeño, or more to taste, thinly sliced (discard seeds for less heat)

1 pound fresh tomatoes, chopped

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon kosher salt or to taste

1/2 cup chopped cilantro, thin stems included

2 teaspoons garam masala

Preparation

Prick the eggplant with a thin-blade knife. Grill over or next to very high heat, turning as necessary until the skin is blackened and the eggplant collapses. Or broil, or roast on a heated cast-iron pan in the hottest possible oven. It will take about 20 minutes.

When the eggplant is cool enough to handle, peel (this will be easy) and trim away the hard stem. Chop or mash in a bowl, with lime juice.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat; add the onion. Cook, stirring often, until the onion is golden brown, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and chiles and cook for another minute. Add the tomato, turmeric and salt. Cook until the tomato is soft, 5 minutes or so.

Stir in the eggplant purée and cook, stirring, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the cilantro and garam masala and turn off the heat. Serve hot with warm chapati bread or pita, or over rice.

SOUTHERN FRUIT AMBROSIA

This is from the infamous long-since-forgotten-emailing-list. Serves ten.

11 oz can mandarin oranges, drained

15 oz can pineapple tidbits, drained

8 oz can fruit cocktail, drained

1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows

1/2 cup coconut, shredded

1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

1 cup sour cream

Combine ingredients and let set overnight.

BLUEBERRY-RICOTTA PANCAKES

This comes from WebMD, and begins, “Serve these light pancakes with our Chunky Blueberry Sauce, maple syrup or honey. Sprinkling the berries on top of the cooking pancakes ensures even distribution. Keep finished pancakes warm in a 200°F oven, if desired, while cooking the rest.” Makes 4 servings.

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

1/2 cup whole-wheat pastry flour

1/4 cup all-purpose flour, plus 2 tablespoons

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

3/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese

1 large egg

1 large egg white

1/2 cup nonfat buttermilk

1 teaspoon lemon zest, freshly grated

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons canola oil, divided

3/4 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen; not thawed

Instructions

Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and nutmeg in a small bowl. Whisk ricotta, egg, egg white, buttermilk, lemon zest and juice in a large bowl until smooth. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined.

Brush a large nonstick skillet with 1/2 teaspoon oil and place over medium heat until hot. Using a generous 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake, pour the batter for 2 pancakes into the pan, sprinkle blueberries on each pancake and cook until the edges are dry and bubbles begin to form, about 2 minutes. Flip the pancakes and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes more. Repeat with the remaining oil, batter and berries, adjusting the heat as necessary to prevent burning.

NO BAKE CHOCOLATE BANANA ENGERY BALLS

This comes from an e-newsletter that I recently discovered, Julie’s Eats & Treats. What I’ve seen so far looks pretty good! Prep Time: 45 minutes; Total Time: 45 minutes; Yield: 30 Energy Balls; Serving Size: 1 Energy Ball

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

2 c. quick oats

2 ripe bananas

2/3 c. unsweetened coconut flakes

1/2 c. peanut butter

2 Tbsp flaxseed

1 Tbsp chia seed

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla

1 Tbsp Truvía® Nectar

1/2 c. mini chocolate chips

Instructions

Mix all ingredients together in a mixing bowl. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Roll into 30 balls.

Refrigerate for up to one week or freeze.