15 minute pasta

This dish was the fastest and the easiest to make of all the dishes that I've made so far. I've added some sun dried tomatoes that I got at the farmer's market last week. I soaked them in hot water for 5 minutes just to plump them up a little and then added them to the sauce. The pasta was very tasty, however it was missing something. Nelson said that bacon or pancetta would be a great addition to this dish and also it would make it a little hardier. I didn't have any tarragon so I used oregano that I have growing in my garden.


Pasta with goat cheese lemon and asparragus
Adapted from Bon Appetit
Serves 6

1 pound of multigrain rotini or pene pasta
1 pound of lender asparagus spears, trimmed, cut into 1-1 1/2 inch pieces
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 tablespoon of grated lemon peel
1 teaspoons of chopped fresh oregano
1 5 to 5 1/2-oz log of fresh goat cheese
1/2 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes

Cook pasta in a large pot of salted water, until almonst tender, stirring occationally , about 7 minutes. Add asparagus and cook until pasta is tender but still firm to the bite, about 3 minutes longer.
Meanwhile combine oil, lemon peel, chopped oregano, and chopped sun dried tomatoes in a large bowl. Coarsely crumble in goat cheese. Drain pasta and asparagus, reserving 1 cup of cooking liquid. Add hot pasta, asparagus and 1/4 cup of reserved cooking liquid to bowl with cheese mixture. Toss to coat, adding more reserved liquid if dry. Season pasta to taste with salt and pepper.

Speedy Dinners

I've made three of the 15 meals that you can make in 15 min. I'm really not following any specific order. It really depends on what we feel like eating that day and what ingredients I have in my pantry and my refrigerator. So far we've made Burgers with pesto and provolone, spicy orange chicken stir fry and pasta with goat cheese, lemon and asparagus.

The recipe was a portobello burger but since my sister is visiting and she is not a huge fan of mushrooms, I used 90/10 ground beef instead. I seasoned with salt and pepper and since it was so lean I grated a whole onion into the meat. The recipe called for purchased pesto but I had some frozen that I'd made with spinach and basil and I added some mayo and made some quick aioli. We topped the burger with arugula and provolone cheese. The burger was good but it probably be better with a portobello mushroom.

I never make Chinese food at home. That's why I like the recipes that are featured in Bon Appetit, they challenge me to make food out of my comfort zone. This recipe for spicy orange chicken stir fry called for sugar snap peas but I had frozen string beans so I used that instead. The chicken had good flavor but the the orange taste was a little overpowering. Maybe next time I'll make it I would use a mixture of orange juice and chicken stock.

Burger with Pesto and Provolone

Adapted from Bon Appetit

Serves 3

1/2 cup of purchased pesto (I made my own with spinach and basil)

1/4 cup of mayonnaise

3 ciabatta rolls, split horizontally

3/4 lbs of ground sirloin

1 1/2 cups of baby arugula

3 slices of provolone

1 small onion grated

1 tomato sliced

Stir pesto and mayonnaise in a small bowl to blend. Season with salt and pepper. Prepare indoor grill to medium high heat. Season the beef with salt and pepper to taste and add the grated onion. Grill the rolls, cut side down, until slighly toasted. Transfer to plate. Spread grill side of rolls with pesto. Set aside. Cook the burger about 4 min on each side for medium. Place one burger on each bottom roll. Top each with cheese, 2 slices of tomato and enough arugula to cover. Press roll tops over and serve.

Spicy Orange Chicken Stir fry

Adapted from Bon Appetit

Serves 6

11/2 cups of long grain white rice
3/4 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons of soy sauce
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1 small red onion, halved, thinly sliced
Large pinch of dried crushed red pepper
11/2 pounds of chicken cut into cubes
1 grated garlic clove
1 8oz package of string beans

Cook rice according to package directions. Set aside.
Meanwhile, whisk juice, soy sauce, and cornstarch in bowl until cornstarch dissolved.
Heat oil in large wok or nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and crushed red pepper. Stir fry for 30 seconds. Season ckicken with salt and pepper and grated garlic clove. Add to wok and stir fry until onion are crisp-tender and chicken is just cooked through, about 4 minutes. Add the string beans and juice mixture. Toss until sauce thickens and beans are crips-tender about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

15 dishes in 15 min

I'm always trying to find new recipes for dinner. In the june issue of Bon Appetit they have a section that has 15 dishes that you can make in 15 min. I will try to make all of them in the next few weeks. The dishes include everything from chicken stir fry, portobello burgers to pasta with asparagus.

Stay tuned!! This is going to be fun.