One-Pot Pasta with Spinach, Artichoke Hearts, and Chicken

I've been in a bit of a cooking rut lately and have been just relying on my old recipes to get me through the year.  So while I've still been cooking, I didn't have anything new to post here since my move last fall.

Actually, that's kind of a lie.  I've had a couple new recipes that I wanted to tweak a bit more before posting.  But, for the most part, I've been using my old recipes.  Dealing with a longer commute home and house-related stuff, it's nice to have good standby dishes that I can make with my eyes closed.

Once the oppressive heat and humidity of summer started to fade, I began craving some warm and hearty pasta dishes.  Then I came across this one-pot pasta dish that was too good to not try.  And try I did and it's awesome.  So easy, yet satisfying and yummy!  And at the end of it I have minimal dishes to clean up.  Perfect for my lazy self.

Servings: 3-6 (original recipe says 6, but I typically eat 2 "normal" servings for dinner making this 3)

Ingredients:
12 ounces pasta (I used whole wheat penne)
28 ounces canned diced tomatoes
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 small yellow onion, chopped
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
6-8 ounces baby spinach
14 ounce can of artichoke hearts, sliced
1-2 cups chopped or shredded cooked chicken
1 tablespoon of olive oil (or cooking spray)
1/4 cup feta
Grated or shaved Parmesan cheese (topping)
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

• Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a Dutch oven (or coat it with a cooking spray) over medium heat.
• Add 1 chopped onion and cook for 5 minutes.
• Add 2 tsp minced garlic and stir together for 1 minute.
• Add 28 oz diced tomatoes, 2 cups chicken broth, 12 oz pasta, 14 oz sliced artichoke hearts, 1-2 cups cooked chicken, 1 tsp oregano, 1 tsp rosemary, and 1/4 tsp red pepper.  
• Stir everything together and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  
• Reduce heat to medium-low and cover.  Cook for 10-12 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until pasta is slightly al dente.
• Remove from heat and stir in 6-8 oz baby spinach and 1/4 cup feta.  
• Salt and pepper to taste and let stand for 10 minutes so sauce can thicken.  
• Before serving, stir again and top with grated or shaved Parmesan (and some extra feta if you want).

See, so easy!  I confess that I may have been a little bit more generous with the cheese at times.

Can you see the sad pug face in the corner?

Focus on the pasta.

Focus on the pugs.

And can we get a close-up of those lil begging faces?

I had them at cheese.

Adapted from My Recipes.

Gnocchi with Tomatoes, Vegetables, Mushrooms, Chicken Sausage, and Basil

I really don't cook with gnocchi enough and I don't know why.  They're made with one of my favorite foods (potatoes) and they're like lil pillows of heavenly goodness.  Well problem now solved because I found my perfect gnocchi recipe!

This dish is super flavorful, adaptable, and quick to make.  I did most of my prep work on Sunday, as usual, and then on Thursday of that week I just had to cook up the gnocchi and throw everything else in the pan.  Makes for a great weeknight meal when you want something easy and yummy to make after a long day at work (and boy have I been having some long and terrible days at work lately).  And while I added my current favorite vegetables and mushrooms here you can add almost whatever vegetable you have handy.  If you'd like a drier dish you can leave out the can of diced tomatoes, but I like the extra sauciness it adds.

This is definitely getting added to my regular meal rotation because it's yummy and easy.  While I love all the recipes I post here, I definitely favor the easy and fast ones in my day-to-day cooking because that leaves more time for lounging with my pugs, and believe me I need a lot of that with the past few weeks I've been having at work.

Servings: 2-4

Ingredients:
1 pound gnocchi
12 ounces chicken sausage (I like a spicy kind with jalapenos), sliced
12-16 ounces grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
1 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes
1 small/medium zucchini, chopped into half or quarter moons
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
10 ounces of baby bella mushrooms, chopped
1/2 cup fresh basil, julienned
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
Shaved or grated parmesan for topping (optional)

Instructions:

• Boil salted water and cook 1 lb gnocchi for 2-3 minutes until the gnocchi just start floating to the top.  Drain well and toss with drizzle (or spray) of olive oil (this will prevent them from sticking together).  Set aside.
• Heat a large skillet over medium heat and spray the pan or drizzle some olive oil.  Add 12 oz chopped chicken sausage and cook for 3-4 minutes or until the sausage starts to brown.
• Push the sausage to the side of the skillet and add 12-16 oz halved grape/cherry tomatoes and cook on high heat for 1-3 minutes.
• Stir the tomatoes and sausage together and add 10 oz chopped mushrooms, 1 chopped bell pepper, and 1 chopped zucchini to the skillet.  Stir together and cook for 2-4 minutes.
• Add the gnocchi, the can of diced tomatoes, and 1/2 tsp of crushed red pepper (optional) to the skillet and stir together.  Cook for a couple more minutes.
• Remove skillet from heat and stir in 1/2 cup of basil.  
• Salt and pepper to taste and top each bowl with some grated or shaved parmesan and enjoy!

And now time for the pictures!

I'm never without my two sous chefs, Sunny and Rosy.  Though it looks like one's sleeping on the job!

This dish was so yummy and flavorful but I also loved how bright and colorful it was.  I would've added more basil but most of my basil had already gone bad by the time I made this late in the week. Darn you perishables!  I really wish I had a nice garden with some fresh basil.

Basil is a nice topping and all but nothing really compares to cheese.  CHEESE.

And a nice sprinkling of coarse salt and black pepper and some crushed red pepper!  Rosy's tail was doing its happy helicopter twirl as soon as I got out the cheese.

Rosy put your licker away!

As soon as Rosy smelled the pepper the bowl lost all temptation.

Instead Rosy and Sunny patiently waited for me to finish taking pictures so that they could get their own lil pepper-free parmesan slivers as treats.

"Take that away human and place some fresh and clean parmesan stamps on our tongues!"

Adapted from The Kitchn.

Summer Bean Salad with Chicken Sausage

Sigh.  We're at that time of the year when I forget the horrid winter and start looking forward to fall.  Oh DC, why must I live here and why must your summers be so brutal and disgusting?

With a generous seasoning of salt and pepper, a crazy amount of Tabasco sauce splashed on it, and a nice ice cold drink, this is one of my regular standby summer dishes that I make repeatedly throughout summer.  While you do need to use the stove for this, it's just to heat up some sausage.  The rest is so simple and easy, you can throw this together at the end of a workday as you try to ignore the sweat dripping down your back from the lovely commute in an un-air conditioned packed metro car and walk home in an atmosphere that can best be described as hot jello.  Better yet, make this the day before and refrigerate it so that you can dig into a nice and cool dish as soon as you get home.

Servings:  Original recipe says 10 servings and I laugh and laugh at that.  No, this is more like 3-5.  But it can be more servings if you use this as a filling for a sandwich or wrap.

Ingredients:
1 15-oz can corn, drained and rinsed
1 15-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-oz can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 orange bell pepper, diced
4 scallions, chopped
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 lemon, juiced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
12 oz chicken/turkey sausage, quartered lengthwise and chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Cooking spray or extra olive oil
Tabasco or hot sauce (optional)

Instructions:

• In a large bowl combine a can of corn, a can of black beans, a can of kidney beans, a chopped orange bell pepper, and 4 chopped scallions.
• In a small bowl, whisk together 3 tbsps olive oil, 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 1 tbsp Dijon mustard, and the juice from one lemon (if you want this extra flavorful, be very generous with the balsamic vinegar and Dijon mustard (adding maybe up to an extra 1/2 tbsp)).
• Heat a large pan or skillet over medium heat and coat with cooking spray or a tbsp of oil.  
• In the pan/skillet, cook 12 oz chopped chicken/turkey sausage for 5-9 minutes, or according to package instructions (choose a spicy sausage for some extra heat and flavor - I like Trader Joe's jalapeno chicken sausage).
• Add the sausage and the oil/vinegar dressing to the corn and bean mixture and combine all ingredients until everything is well coated with the dressing. 
• Season with salt and pepper to taste and add some splashes of Tabasco sauce or other hot sauce if you'd like more spice, which I always do!  Adds an extra vinegary punch too!

Now time for the pictures featuring my sad begging pugs!  Look at those sad twinkling lil eyes. 

Sorry girls, but this is not dog-safe.  Please don't cry Sunny!

A good sprinkling of fresh cracked pepper makes such a difference on so many dishes!  I also add Tabasco sauce to so so many of my dishes.  I am seriously addicted.

Put away those lil tongues girls!

You may sniff, but don't touch.  Or lick.  Or eat.

Ok ok I'll get a dog treat for you girls before I dig into this deliciousness!

Adapted from SOS! The Six O'Clock Scramble to the Rescue.

Lemony Couscous with Chicken and Spring Vegetables

Now that the warmer weather is here I've been at a bit of a loss as to what to make for dinner lately.  I don't want anything that will take too long, but it's not quite summer so I'm not really wanting any salads or cold dishes.  I find spring to be the hardest time to come up with interesting and satisfying dishes. Winter dishes are my favorite, but as the temperature and humidity goes up and my holiday weight gain is still reluctant to completely go away (argh!), I try to embrace some lighter meals around April-May.  This is right around the time when I start making a lot of grain-based or couscous-based dishes. 

The spring vegetables and lemon juice here turn a regular chicken and couscous recipe into a springtime meal and this is so quick and easy it's great for weekday dinners.

Servings: 2-4

Ingredients:
4 scallions, chopped (you can separate the white and green parts, but I don't)
1 lemon (a few wide strips of zest and juice from the entire lemon)
12-16 oz asparagus, green beans, or haricot verts, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup frozen peas
1-2 tsp minced garlic
1 cup couscous
1-2 cups chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1 1/4 cup water
Butter or olive oil for greasing pan
Parsley, chopped (optional, for topping)
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

• Spray a large saucepan or heat 1 tbsp of butter or olive oil over medium-high heat.
• Add chopped scallions, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes until the scallions are softened.
• If you don't like wilted green scallion parts, then  you can separate out the white and green parts and just cook the white parts at this stage and add the green parts later. I'm lazy and don't care so I just dump them all in at this point.
• Add 1-2 tsp minced garlic and 1/4 tsp thyme and cook for 30 seconds until garlic is fragrant.
• Add a few strips of lemon zest and 1 1/4 cups of water.  Season with salt and pepper and bring the mixture to a boil.
• Add 12-16 oz chopped asparagus/green beans/haricot verts and 1/2 cup peas and bring back to a boil.  
• Stir in 1 cup couscous and add in 1-2 cups of chopped/shredded chicken. Cover pan, remove from heat, and let sit for 7 minutes.
• Remove lid and add lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve with a sprinkling of parsley on top.

Now for some pictures!  Anytime I cook anything with chicken, Sunny and Rosy promptly make their presence known in the kitchen. It's really hard to ignore their begging faces and sad uncurled tails.

Could they get any closer to the stove?  Sometimes I have to nudge them away with my feet because there's nowhere for me to stand while I'm cooking!

 

Scooch! Scooch!

Yeah...I usually add a lot more salt and pepper after I take photos. But I don't think you want to see a pile of salt and pepper so I focus on the actual food for the blog. But with this recipe, a good seasoning of salt and pepper and lots of lemon juice really makes this dish!

Sniff sniff. None for the pugs of course but I always put aside some plain chicken when I'm cooking for a treat after taking photos! Pugs are very very food oriented in case you didn't know.

Pose for me! Smile! Look happy!

And there goes Rosy's tail.

I am always torn between focusing on the food or my pugs, which is silly because we all know what's most important on this food blog...PUGS.

But here's one focused on the food just for giggles.

Adapted from Martha Stewart.

Salsa Verde Chicken Soup

There are so many fantastic recipes I come across on the internet but I find that the ones I actually make and repeat are the ones that are user friendly and quick and easy to make. I usually try to do as much prepping for my recipes over the weekend and so having something that doesn't take too long to make after I come home from a long day of work is a definite plus! These dishes may not have the beautiful nuanced layers of flavors that longer and more complicated dishes may have, but they pack a tasty punch for the amount of time and effort I put into them. This is one of those dishes! A great weeknight soup that you can eat with some extra tortilla chips. There's something wonderful about a dinner where you just throw everything into one pot. Especially if you're as bad at cleaning up all your dishes afterwards as I am.

Servings: 4 (so that means 2 for me)

Ingredients:
12-oz jar salsa verde
15-oz can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
15-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
3 cups cooked chicken, shredded
4-5 cups chicken broth
1 cup corn
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon jalapeno, chopped (optional)
Shredded cheese (optional for topping)
Lime wedges (optional for topping)
Sour cream (optional for topping)
Green onions, chopped (optional for topping)
Tortilla chips, crumbled (optional for topping)
Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions:

• Heat 12 oz salsa verde in a pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat for 2 minutes.
• Add 3 cups shredded chicken, 1 can of cannellini beans, 1 can of black beans, 4-5 cups of chicken broth, 1 tsp cumin, 1 cup corn, 1 tbsp chopped jalapeno (optional). Bring to a boil, and then lower heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• For serving, top each bowl with salt and pepper to taste, shredded cheese, squirt of lime juice, dollop of sour cream, a sprinkling of green onions, and/or crumbled tortilla chips. I added all of the above and it was delicious!

And now pictures!

Oops excuse the stray flip flops in the corner. Didn't see those before! I don't even know why they're out since it's crazy freezing here lately. Clearly, I'm as good at cleaning my stuff as I am at washing dishes right after eating. 

It was a race to take enough photos before the sour cream dollop melted!

Ack the lighting in today's photos wasn't the best.

Lip smacking good! Don't feel too bad for Sunny and Rosy. They didn't get any soup but they may have gotten a little bit of extra shredded cheese!

Adapted from My Recipes.

Dijon Chicken Stew with Potatoes and Kale

Snow day, snow day! Yippee!

I'm always torn between wanting a lot of pretty snow with a day off from work and having to battle dog walks with two stubborn pugs. Well for now I'm happy to have spent an extra day with my lazy girls lazing on the couch, catching up on household chores, and making this yummy Dijon chicken stew! A cold, snowy day always calls for a hot and hearty dish for dinner to eat as you watch the snow blowing by your window.

Servings: 6 servings (for me this is 2-3 meals)

Ingredients:
2 cups sweet onions (or leeks), sliced
4 garlic cloves, minced
12-16 oz chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
5 ounces chopped kale, swiss chard or collard greens (stems removed)
10 oz baby bella mushrooms, sliced
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided
1 cup dry white wine
4 cups chicken broth, divided
1/3 cup and 1 tablespoon flour, divided
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 medium/large potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
Olive oil or cooking spray
Extra salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper to taste

Instructions:

• Pour 1 tsp of olive oil in a Dutch oven or use a cooking spray/oil diffuser and heat over medium-high heat. 
• Add 2 cups chopped sweet onions and 10 oz sliced mushrooms and cook for 6 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Add 4 minced garlic cloves and cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently. Spoon the mixture into a large bowl and set aside.
• Place 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp black pepper into a shallow bowl. Dunk the 12-16 oz chopped chicken pieces (I used chicken breasts, but you can use dark meat if that's your preference) in the flour and shake off any excess.
• Heat another tsp of olive oil in the Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cook chicken for about 6 minutes, browning it on all sides. To help the browning, it's best to cook this in two batches. Set aside the cooked chicken with the onions and mushrooms.
• Add 1 cup white wine to the Dutch oven and scrape up the browned bits. Continue until the wine has reduced by about half.
• In a small bowl, whisk together 1 cup chicken broth with 1 tablespoon flour until smooth. Add this to the Dutch oven, along with 3 cups of chicken broth, and 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard. Bring to a boil.
• Add back in the chicken, mushrooms, and onions, and add 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp black pepper, 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper, and 1 tsp thyme. Stir everything together and then cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes.
• Add 2 chopped potatoes and 5 oz kale. Cover and cook for an additional 30 minutes.
• Season to taste your bowl with additional salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper (I like mine spicy!).

Ok enough with all the words. Now the pictures!

My messy stew. I kinda ruined my Dutch oven with this recipe as I wasn't paying close attention to the onions at first and then I compounded that with the browning of the chicken. That's ok, I'm letting it soak now in some hot water and baking soda.

The girls were relaxing on the couch but as soon as I started spooning the stew into my bowl they jumped down and ran to the kitchen. They know they get a little treat if they pose nicely for photos!

As you can tell I like to add lots of black pepper and crushed red pepper to my bowls! My brother-in-law thinks me and my sisters have completely warped our taste buds because we're all heavy pepper users.

Sniff test!

Rosy knows by know that she never gets what's in the bowl so she doesn't even try to eat what's inside (unless it's something she really loves, like cheese) and just waits for me to give her the doggy-safe treat.

Spot the pug below?

Adapted from My Recipes.

Dakbokkeumtang - Korean Spicy Chicken Stew

Lately I've been on a Korean food kick. I see my parents fairly often and usually my mom cooks dinner if I stay long enough but we usually eat the same dishes because my mom knows they're my favorite and I always prefer them first. But this means that lately I've been missing some of the other dishes that my mom no longer makes when I visit. There are a few dishes that I want to try out in the near future but funny enough the first Korean dinner I made all by myself is actually one my mom never made for me (or at least I can't remember if she ever did).

This dish is called dakbokkeumtang (formerly called dakdoritang) and it's a very spicy chicken stew that is best served with rice (or in my case, brown rice). You can get gochujang and gochugaru at any Korean/Asian market and don't worry about having a huge tub with no use - you can mix the gochujang with a bit of rice vinegar and dip veggies in it like broccoli or Asian cucumbers. You can also substitute other red pepper powders for gochugaru but it may make the dish taste a little different.  Dakbokkeumtang is meant to be very spicy but if you have a lower spice tolerance you can certainly cut down on the red pepper paste and powder, but you may want to increase the amount of soy sauce or salt to adjust the flavor. Also, if you're not used to eating spicy foods and you try making this super spicy, beware that may cause your tummy to get upset.  Dakbokkeumtang is also traditionally made with either dark meat or a mixture of white and dark meat, but since I favor white meat I used chicken breasts for this.  I've left some of the ingredient amounts flexible and made some modifications as I find that a lot of Korean cooking is about personal taste and variations.

Servings: 3-5

Ingredients:
2 pounds chicken, cut into 1/2-1 inch pieces (or if dark meat, you can leave on the bone)
3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks (approximately 1-inch pieces)
2 medium onions, cut into large chunks (approximately 1-inch pieces)
2-4 tablespoons chopped green onions
2-4 tablespoons garlic, minced
1 tablespoon ginger, peeled and minced
1/4-3/4 cup soy sauce (depends on if you use low sodium and how salty you want it)
1 1/2-2 cups water (depends on how brothy you want it)
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup gochujang (Korean red chili paste)
1-2 tablespoons gochugaru (Korean red chili powder)
1 6-ounce bag baby spinach
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, lightly toasted
6 dried shiitake mushrooms (optional)
1 green chili pepper, chopped (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

• Add in a large pot or Dutch oven 1/4-3/4 cup soy sauce, 2-4 tbsps garlic, 1 tbsp ginger, 4 tbsp gochujang, 1-2 tbsps gochugaru, and 1 tbsp sugar until sauce is well mixed.
• Add in 2 lbs chicken, 2 chopped onions, and 1 1/2-2 cups water.
• Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and then cover and cook for 20 minutes.

• Optional: Place 6 dried shiitake mushrooms in a large bowl of warm water to soften. When softened enough, cut into strips. I like shiitake mushrooms so I added them to the dish, but they have a unique flavor and texture so if they're not your thing omit them.
• After 20 minutes, add in 3 chopped potatoes, 6 sliced shiitake mushrooms, and 1 chopped green chili pepper. 

• Stir together all the ingredients and then cover and cook for another 20 minutes. The potatoes will help thicken the stew.

• After the second 20-minute period is up, remove lid and let cook uncovered for 3-5 minutes to let the sauce thicken.

• Stir in 1 6-ounce bag of baby spinach and 2-4 tablespoons green onions until spinach is wilted and coated with the sauce.

• Remove from heat and sprinkle lightly toasted sesame seeds on top of the chicken. Serve with some rice.

Of course no tasting for the girls since this had a ton of spicy things and onions. But I cooked a teensy bit of chicken for them separately as a birthday treat for them (Sunny turns 9 and Rosy turns 3 today!).

Adapted from My Recipes and Maangchi.