Lemon Chicken Pasta

My girl Britney has done it again! Another delicious, easy, healthy, recipe. Love her!

Ingredients:

4-5 cups of penne pasta (I do about 1 cup of dried pasta a person)
1 can 98% fat free cream of chicken soup
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 water
zest of 1 lemon
juice from 1 lemon
2-3 chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
fresh parsley, chopped
salt & pepper

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add salt and the pasta. While your pasta is cooking you will cook up the chicken and make the sauce.
2. In a small skillet, bring it to medium heat. Drizzle it with a bit of olive oil. Season your chicken with salt, pepper, and onion powder and place into the pan. Cook for about 7-9 minutes, until cooked through.
3. Now, while your chicken is cooking we will make the yummy sauce. Drizzle a bit of olive oil in a medium skillet. Heat at medium heat and cook the garlic for just a minute. Stir the garlic as you cook it. You DON'T want it to burn. It will taste bitter, so keep stirring and as soon as you start to smell the garlic you know that it is beginning to soften and cook. Next add in your soup. Whisk the soup and garlic together and add in the zest and lemon juice. Now at this point you will add the water. You can make your sauce as thick or thin as you like. So start adding water until you get it where you like it. Heat the sauce through and give it a taste. You may want to add a bit of salt and pepper, but it is up to you :)
4. Alright, lets get this meal together! Drain your pasta and return to pan. Add the sauce to you pasta and toss to coat. Divide your lemon pasta among your plates and then top with chicken and fresh parsley.

Lemon Shrimp Linguine

I have been so bad at updating this blog :( Lack of motivation and energy I guess... But here's a SUPER SUPER easy and delicious recipe if you like shrimp, which we do. I have no real recipe because it's so easy. Here's my simple instructions.

Melt butter and a little bit of olive oil in a saute pan (non-stick preferably). Add some garlic, about 2-3 cloves depending on the size of clove and your like for garlic. Saute for just a minute, but be careful because it burns super easy and burned garlic has a nasty taste. Add a bunch of shrimp. (I always buy those rings that come with the cocktail sauce, but only when on sale otherwise they're SUPER expensive. Soak in cold water for 5 minutes and they'll be thawed.) Add shrimp to the pan and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add as much fresh lemon juice as you like, I usually do a full lemon. Stir all together and make sure the shrimp is well coated.

Add to the pan whatever pasta you like after you cook it. We usually do just angel hair cuz it cooks the fastest. Stir all together and there you have it! SERIOUSLY like 6-7 minutes. Try it. It's so so good. Serve it with some steamed veggies and buttered toast and you have a super yummy super fast meal!

Taos Chicken and Pasta

Found at My Favorite Recipes

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 large bell pepper, cubed

1/2 cup chicken broth
1 Tbsp. dried basil leaves

1/2 tsp. ginger

1 Tbsp. cornstarch

1 lb. chicken breasts, raw

1 lb. pasta of choice (bow tie is our favorite)

"--Combine soy sauce, broth, oil, basil, ginger and garlic powder. Marinate with chicken (cubed) for 2-3 hours, refrigerated. Stir occasionally. Pour off marinade and save. In large skillet, coated with non-stick spray, cook chicken until lightly browned and no longer pink in center. Add bell pepper and saute 5 minutes. Remove from skillet and add marinade to skillet. Stir in cornstarch and cook until thickened. Add back chicken and peppers. Cook pasta according to package directions. Serve over cooked pasta. Serves 8.

I tend to alter the way I make it from the original recipe--mainly for ease and to make it quicker. Often I make it without even marinating the chicken (no longer than just mixing it together). Usually I just mix all the ingredients together and then "stir-fry" all of it together (except the cornstarch) in the pan until the chicken is no longer pink, then I add the corn starch. I feel like it skips a ton of steps, and still tastes great...but if you're a purist, then you'd better stick to the recipe! (:

One more thing: I've tried playing with the amounts of pasta. When I mix everything together I sometimes feel like the pasta dulls the flavor a bit. Sometimes I put in just slightly less than 1 lb. pasta (maybe about 3/4 of a pound?)...but if you're pouring the sauce over the top of individual servings of noodles, you can easily decide to add more or less to taste."

Baked Wagon Wheel Pasta

From Eat it up

Ingredients:

2 1/3 cups dried wagon wheel pasta

1 lb. ground turkey or turkey Italian sausage

( I used a little of each, what I had in the freezer)

3/4 cup chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 26-ounce jar pasta sauce

3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

fresh basil and oregano

1. Cook pasta according to directions. Drain and set aside.
2. In a large skillet cook meat, onion, and garlic until meat is brown, remove from skillet.
3. In a large bowl stir together pasta sauce, 1/2 cup cheese, and the pepper. Add the cooked pasta and meat mixture. Gently stir to combine. Spoon mixture into a 2 quart casserole dish.
4. Bake, covered, in a 375 degree oven for 25 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with 1/4 cup cheese and cook for 5 more minutes until cheese is melted. Sprinkle with fresh cut basil and oregano.
5. Serve with garlic bread and broccoli and you have a healthy meal!

* You could also bake this in little single serving ramekins for fun! Cook for 15-20 minutes and then add cheese.
* Add mushrooms and sliced zucchini for a little more flavor too!