Lemon Chicken Pasta

Another great meal has transpired in my kitchen!  Lemon Chicken Pasta…. It may sound a tad bland to you, but it was anything but bland.  What you need:  3 chicken breasts, 4 lemons, fettuccini pasta,  1 cup milk,  1 can black sliced olives, 1 can mushrooms, 1 can tomato sauce, 1 can zesty diced tomatoes, 1 can oregano and garlic diced tomatoes, garlic powder, dried basil, flour, 1 diced small white onion, olive oil, and minced garlic.  Don’t forget parmesan cheese too!

Start the pasta first! Cut the three chicken breasts into chunks.  Marinate the chicken in 2 tablespoons minced garlic and two juiced lemons.  Brown the onions and mushrooms in a dash of olive oil.  Add the chicken chunks and continue to cook.  In a cup, mix one cup of milk and two large tablespoons of flour.  When the chicken is done, add the milk mixture.  Then stir in the can of tomato sauce, both diced tomatoes, and black olives.  Add more flour if needed to make it thicker.  Add the juice from two more lemons.  Season to taste with garlic powder and basil.  Cook on high until boiling and then cook on low for another five minutes.   Pour entire mixture over the cooked pasta and stir.  Serve with a dash of parmesan cheese on top.  Happy Cooking!!

The best dish ever!

Do you think you hate seafood?  If the answer is yes or no… just keep reading!!! My dinner was amazing!!!!!   For dinner tonight, I made Blackened Ahi Tuna Steaks .  It turned out to be one of the best dishes I have ever made! My husband even said that the dish could easily be served at some of the fancy seafood places we have been to before.  I have to be honest and let you know that I found this recipe on allrecipes.com, but I tweaked it to my liking!  I made the dish in three parts: marinade, mango salsa, and the seasonings. 

For the marinade, use two Ahi Tuna steaks and rub a little olive oil on both sides of each steak.  Then add two minced garlic cloves and rub on both sides.  Squeeze a lime on each of them and then pour about ¼ cup of orange juice over the tuna. Leave it in the refrigerator for about three hours to marinate.

Next, comes the mango salsa.  Chop up one small white onion and put in a small bowl.  Next, add about ¼ of a chopped mango. Chop up a few pieces of jalapeno.  Then add the juice out of three limes and stir it up.  Put in about ¼ cup of chopped cilantro.  Finally, add a dash of salt.  Stir it all up.  Chill it for about one hour. 

The last thing is the seasoning mix.  The mix includes:  2 T paprika, 1 T cayenne pepper, 1 T garlic powder, 1 t salt, 1 t pepper, 1 t dried thyme, 1 t dried basil, and  1 t dried oregano.  Stir the seasonings all together.  Dredge the tuna through the seasoning and make sure all sides are covered. 

Pour about two tablespoons of  olive oil into a pan on med high heat.  Wait to add the tuna until the olive oil starts smoke.  Cook for about 4 or 5 minutes until it is blackened. Then take and put on a plate.  Add two more tablespoons of olive oil.  Wait until the olive oil starts to smoke again and  then put the tuna back in to blacken on the other side.  Cook for about 4 or 5 minutes.  Take out and serve with ½ of the mango salsa on each of the tuna steaks.  You now have a meal that would make a top chef jealous!!! 

Happy cooking!!!

Italian Sausage and Pasta

It has been a long time since writing a new recipe- life has been insane!  I traveled to see family and ended up being gone longer than planned. Then, I started a new job!  I have tried a few new recipes, but only one has been “blog worthy”.  My husband has already requested this recipe again and I made it for the first time last week!  It was Italian sausage and Pasta.  This was a very quick meal I threw together after work one night, and it turned out great! 

What do you need:  Italian Sausage Links, Rigatoni pasta, 1 can zesty diced tomatoes, 1 can garlic oregano diced tomatoes, 1 can tomato sauce, small can mushrooms, ½ white onion, mozzarella cheese, and seasonings.

First, put the water on to boil for the pasta- that is something I forget to do and it takes longer then to make the meal!!  Then, cook the sausage links as directions state.   While the sausage is cooking, dice about ½ of a white onion and them to the sausage.  Next add the mushrooms and minced garlic.  Take out the sausage when done and finish browning the mushrooms and onions.  Slice the sausage into pieces.  When the pasta is done, add the sausage and mushroom/ onion mixture to the pasta.  Then, add one can of tomato sauce, zesty diced tomatoes, garlic and oregano diced tomatoes (juices included).  Mix it all together and heat on high.  Season with garlic, Italian seasonings, and basil.  I also added crushed red peppers and a dash of Pete’s hot sauce.  It can be omitted if you do not like spicy foods.  This meal was quick and easy!  Great and easy meal to prepare on a busy night. 

Happy cooking!