Creamy Tomato Orzo

On Sunday, I wanted to try something new, and I've been craving pasta in different shapes and sizes everyday for a while, so I came up with my own recipe after browsing through pasta books.  I had no set ingredients or herbs/spices to make this dish, so put this and that going with the flow.  =)  I guess you can say it's similar to Jambalaya, but made with a different sauce.  I hope you like it.

(I really should stop the habit of taking pictures with my iphone. Sorry guys~.)

Makes: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients:

300 grams       orzo pasta, uncooked

2 tbsps                grapeseed oil (or olive oil)

2 links                italian sausage, removed from casing and crumbled

1                            chicken breast, chopped into small cubes

100 grams       shrimps, peeled and deveined

1 tbsp                  garlic, minced

1/4 cup              onions, chopped

1/4 cup              red pepper, chopped

1/4 cup              green pepper, chopped

1 jar                  Victoria marinara sauce

4 tbsps              cajun seasoning

2 tbsps              oregano

1 tbsp                 basil

1/2 cup             heavy cream

to taste             salt & pepper

Directions:

1.  Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.  Add the pasta and cook until tender but firm to the bite, about 8 to 10 minutes.

2.  Meanwhile, in a large heavy skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add the italian sausage and cook until no longer pink, 4-5 minutes.  Set aside on a small bowl.

3.  Add the chicken breast until no longer pink and cooked through, 5-6 minutes.  Set aside on a small bowl.

4.  Add the vegetables, garlic, and salt & pepper, and cook until tender.

5.  Stir in the reserved sausage and chicken.

6.  Add the marinara sauce and cook stirring until thickened, about 2 minutes.

7.  Add the shrimps and cook until turns pink, 3-4 minutes.

8.  Add cajun seasoning and oregano, and cook for another minute.

9.  Stir in the heavy cream and cook until thickened, about 2 minutes.

10.  Stir in the basil and remove from heat.

11.  Toss the sauce with the pasta to coat evenly, and transfer to a pasta bowl for serving.

12.  Serve immediately.

Spaghetti with Champagne & Shrimps

Okay, today is Valentine's Day and with several days of agonizing what to make for Valentine's dinner, I finally came to the decision to make a pasta dish from "Giada de Laurentis' Everyday Pasta" book; although, I did tweak it a bit.  In the recipe, it asks for two pounds of littleneck clams, little bit of shallot, arugula, and Pinot Grigio, but I didn't have any on hand and didn't want to go to the store, so I changed the recipe a bit.  I added more shrimps, used onions instead of shallots, spinach instead of arugula and Moet Chandon Champagne for Pinot Grigio.  Okay, okay~ it's not a bit.  I guess I changed it a lot!  While in the rush to make this dinner after picking up my kids to school and before sending my husband to night-school, I COULDN'T FIND THE CHAMPAGNE!!  You won't believe what happened!!  I assumed the champagne was in the box still left on the shelf, my husband hid it in our beer/wine cooler!  I had no choice, but to wake him up from his nap to finish our Valentines dinner and overall, it was a very yummy dinner. =)  I served it with mixed vegetables salad tossed with Dijon Vinaigrette(of course my version) and garlic bread.

I gotta note though about pasta dishes.  I've been making several pasta dishes for a while with alcohol and learned that heavy dishes with such as italian sausage goes well with strong alcohol like Tequila or Vodka; if you add in red wine, then you could make bolognese sauce.  As for light dishes with such as seafood goes well with white wine.  I guess that's a note that I should not forget and keep in mind to discover new great pasta dishes.  =)


Here is the original recipe: (My version is below)

Spaghetti with Pinot Grigio and Seafood

Make:  4 - 6 servings

Ingredients:

1 pound          spaghetti
1/4 cup           olive oil
3                      shallots, chopped
3                      garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup          oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
1 1/2 cups     Pinot Grigio (or other dry white wine)
1 pound         large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 pounds      littleneck clams, scrubbed
1 tsp                salt
1 tsp                freshly ground black pepper
2 cups           arugula, tough stems removed

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.  Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes.  Drain
2.  Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat.  Add the shallots and garlic, cook for 3 minutes, until tender but not brown.
3.  Add the sun-dried tomatoes and cook for another minute.
4.  Add the wine, shrimp, and clams and bring the liquid to a boil.
5.  Reduce heat, cover the pan, and simmer until the shrimps are pink and the clams have opened, about 7 minutes. (Discard any clams that have not opened.)
6.  Add the spaghetti  to the skillet with the seafood mixture.
7.  Add the salt & pepper and stir to combine, then gently fold in the arugula.
8.  Mound the pasta on a serving platter and serve immediately.


Spaghetti with Champagne and Shrimps

Makes:  4 - 6 servings

Ingredients:

1 pound            spaghetti
1/4 cup             grapeseed oil
1/4                    onion, chopped
3                       garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup           oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
1 1/2 cups       Moet Chandon Champagne
1 1/2 pound    large shrimps, peeled and deveined
1 tsp                  salt
1 tsp                  freshly ground black pepper
2 cups             spinach, tough stems removed

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.  Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes.  Drain.
2.  Meanwhile, heat the grapseed oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat.  Add the onions and garlic, cook for 3 minutes, until tender but not brown.
3.  Add the sun-dried tomatoes and cook for another minute.
4.  Add the champagne and shrimps, bring the liquid to a boil.
5.  Reduce the heat cover the pan, and simmer until the shrimps are pink.
6.  Add the spaghetti to the skillet with the shrimp mixture.
7.  Add the salt & pepper and stir to combine, then gently fold in the spinach.
8.  Mound the pasta on a serving platter and serve immediately.



Dijon Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

1/4 cup     red wine vinegar
1 tsp          dijon mustard
1 tsp          garlic, minced
1/2 tsp      salt
1/2 tsp      freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup    grapeseed oil

Directions:

1.  Combine all ingredients in a small container, cover with a lid and shake.

Sun-dried Tomatoes Pastrami Pasta

I came up with this dish without looking at recipes and made it out of the blue.  I used leftover pastrami and sun-dried tomatoes, and was a little skeptical if it will go well together, but it actually did!  This dish can be made with different types of pasta such as spaghetti, penne, fettuccine, linguine, rotini... your choice.  I made this with fettuccine and its easy to make.  Hope you like it.  =)

Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 pound               your choice pasta
1 tbsp                   sun-dried tomato oil
100grams        pastrami, sliced into strips
5 tbsps               sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup               onions, minced
1 tbsp                  garlic
1 tsp                    red pepper flakes
1/2 cup              white wine
to taste              salt & pepper

Directions:

1.  Prepare pasta according to the package instructions.
2.  In a heavy skillet, heat oil at medium heat.  Add in garlic, onions and red pepper flakes until fragrant, about 1 minute.
3.  Add the sun-dried tomatoes and cook for 1-2 minutes.
4.  Add the pastrami and cook for another minute.
5.  Add the white wine and bring to a boil.
6.  Add the prepared pasta to the skillet.
7.  Add the salt & pepper and stir to combine.
8.  You can have this as is or top with freshly grated parmesan cheese and parsley.
9.  Enjoy!

Penne Pasta with Tequila Sauce

This recipe was adapted from Foodnetwork.com by Chef Emeril Lagasse.  The original recipe is Pasta with Vodka Sauce and Sausage, but I had no vodka on hand, so I used tequila; used penne instead of spaghetti; used marinara sauce instead of crushed tomatoes.  I guess I'm really good at tweaking most of the recipes I post. lol  =P  If you try with marinara sauce, it tastes soooooo~~~ much better!  Trust me!  I made this at my sister's house for lunch and my husband was saying how come this tastes much better than other times I've made it.  That is because I used marinara sauce instead of crushed tomatoes.  =)  I prefer Victoria's Marinara Sauce and Costco's italian sausage(because other brands might have smaller or larger size and may change the taste to this recipe).

(sorry, this was the only picture I had and I know it's not the best quality.)

Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 pound                  penne pasta or spaghetti

2 tbsps                    olive oil

3 links                   italian sausage, removed from the casing and crumbled or chopped

1 cup                       yellow onions, chopped

1 tsp                        salt

pinch                     red pepper flakes

1 1/2 jar                Victoria's marinara sauce

3/4 cup                 tequila

1/2 cup                  heavy cream

1 - 2 tbsps             dried basil

fresh                      parmigiano-reggiano, grated, for garnish  

sprig                      fresh basil for garnish

Directions:

1. Bring a medium saucepan of salted water to a boil.  Add the pasta and cook until just al dente, 5 to 6 minutes.  Drain in a colander and return to the saucepan.

2.  Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the sausage and cook, stirring, until browned and all pink has disappeared, 3 to 4 minutes.

3.  Add the onions, salt and red pepper flakes, and cook, stirring, until the onions are soft and golden, about 5 minutes.

4.  Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

5.  Add the marinara sauce and cook, stirring until thick, about 2 minutes.

6.  Add the tequila sauce and cook until the sauce reduced by half, 3 to 4 minutes.

7.  Stir in the cream and cook until the sauce thickens, about 2 minutes.

8.  Stir in the basil and remove from heat.

9.  Toss the sauce with the pasta to coat evenly and transfer to a pasta bowl for serving.

10.  Top with cheese and sprig of basil.

11.  Serve immediately.

Asian Stir Fry Noodles with Pork Roast Leftovers

I had leftover Herbes de Provence Pork Roast from the night before, so I decided to make lunch for my kids and I with some veggies, fresh asian udon noodles, and hoisin sauce.  This is a very simple dish and doesn't have to be made exactly how I made it.  It can be made with chicken as well or even shrimps.  =)

My instagram photo:

Makes: 2 servings

Ingredients:

1/2 pound            fresh udon noodles

2 tbsps                 sesame oil

1 tsp                      garlic, minced

100 grams         pork or chicken, cut into strips

1/4 cup                zucchini, cut into strips

1/4 cup                onions, cut into strips

1/4 cup                red pepper, cut into strips

5 tbsps                hoisin sauce

garnish              sesame seeds, toasted

Directions:

1.  Prepare noodles according to package.

2.  Heat sesame oil in a medium skillet.

3.  Add the pork or chicken and cook until no longer pink.

4.  Add the cut vegetables and cook for 3 minutes.

5.  Add the hoisin sauce and stir to combine.

6.  Garnish with sesame seeds.

7.  Enjoy.

Herb de Provence Pork Roast

After our two weeks trip to my sister's place and driving back home, we did our usual stopping by Costco for grocery shopping.  While we were shopping, I found this pork roast on sale, so I ended up buying it cuz it was so cheap, but when I brought it home, I really had no ideal recipes in mind for this chuck of meat.  The first thing that came to mind was, "let's try out my new favorite herb!"  So I poked some holes in the roast with a knife, rubbed garlic, brown sugar, salt, pepper, and herbes de provence; drizzled with olive oil and white wine, and left it in the fridge for a few hours.  I baked it with some vegetables, served it with salad and toast.  My husband liked it a lot and ate until no longer could go in. lol.  Enjoy! =)

  

My first recipe using Herbes de Provence; Pork Roast.

Bake @ : 350 degrees Fahrenheit

Bake Time:  1 1/2 - 2 hours

Makes: 4-6 servings

Ingredients:

1 kg                   pork loin roast

2 tbsps             herbes de provence

1 tbsp                garlic

1 tbsp                brown sugar

to taste            salt & pepper

drizzle            olive oil

drizzle            white wine

1 cup               potatoes, cut into 2 inch cubes

1 cup               carrots, cut into 2 inch cubes

1 cup               onions, quartered

Directions:

1.  In a small bowl, combine herbes de provence, garlic, brown sugar, and salt & pepper to taste.

2.  Rub the mixture on the pork roast.

3.  Place in a roast pan.

4.  Drizzle with olive oil and white wine.

5.  Cover with aluminum foil.

6.  Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 1/2 hours - 2 hours.

7.  During the last 30 minutes, remove the aluminum foil, add the vegetables and baste every 7 - 10 minutes until you get a crust on the top.

8.  Take out of the oven and let it stand for 15 minutes.

9.  Serve it with your choice of sides.  =)

Herbes de Provence

I saw this herb in Giada de Laurentis' Pasta book and ever since I wanted to try it out, but didn't even think of buying it until I visited my sister over the Christmas holiday's and as soon as I saw this in her hamper, I drove right away to Target and bought this.  I was so excited to try this a go and my first recipe was Pork Roast.  How does Herbes de Provence smell and what is it?  Here is a site of what it is:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbes_de_Provence.  Herbes de Provence is a mixture of dried herbs typically containing savory, fennel, basil, thyme, and lavender leaves and other herbs.