Italian Chicken and Pastry Stacks

I bought some puff pastry dough not too long ago for something, but I didn't use it all. So as I was making up my meal plan, going through what I had in my kitchen, I came across the leftover dough. I decided to figure out something to make for dinner with it, and this is what I came up with. My husband has already asked that I make it again. I guess that means it was good. Haha.

This does take a little time, but not because it's complicated. I used cooked and shredded chicken, so that took a little time before assembling the end product. Frozen pastry dough also takes about an hour to thaw, but you can also put it in the fridge in the morning and it'll be pretty much ready to go at dinner time. If you do the chicken in advance and put the dough in the fridge in the morning, this would only take about 10 minutes to assemble and 15-20 to cook in the evening. Super simple and easy. One pastry sheet made 3 stacks, so adjust accordingly.

Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:
-1 frozen puff pastry sheet
-2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
-approximately 1 cup seasoned tomato sauce (jarred pasta sauce works)
-6 sandwich-sized slices mozzarella cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a bowl, mix together the shredded chicken and the tomato sauce.

Lay the pastry sheet out flat. Cut into thirds, then cut each third in half, creating six equally sized rectangles of pastry dough.

Lay three of the pieces out on a baking sheet.

Place one slice of the mozzarella on each piece of dough.

Scoop equal portions of the coated chicken on each piece of cheese covered dough.

Top the chicken with another slice of the mozzarella.

Finally, place each of the other three pieces of dough on top of a stack.

Bake the stacks for 15-20 minutes, until the pastry is flaky and golden, and the chicken and cheese bubbly.

Serve immediately and enjoy!

Rolled Chicken Florentine

I've been out of the habit of cooking lately. Hence my lack of posts. So when I started back up, I wanted something pretty easy, but different than our everyday fare. This was what I came up with.

I think anything "Florentine" is pretty tasty. It is usually some combination of tomatoes, spinach, and mozzarella. Red, green, and white, after the colors of the Italian flag. I just like the culinary combination. Haha. I used thin chicken breasts so I could roll them around the filling, but if you just have regular ones, just butterfly them and cut them at the seam to make two thin breasts from the one regular one.

This worked out really well. My husband and I both enjoyed it. I served it with some seasoned potatoes and crusty bread. Carb overload, I know, but it was awesome.

Ingredients:
-thin chicken breasts, enough to feed everyone
-Roma/plum tomatoes (each tomato makes about 5 slices, and you'll need about two slices per chicken breast)
-frozen chopped spinach (I probably used a tablespoon for each chicken breast)
-mozzarella cheese, shredded (a used about 2 tablespoons for each filling, and a little more to sprinkle on top)
-garlic powder (about 1 teaspoon per chicken breast)
-Italian seasoning (about 1/2 teaspoon per chicken breast)
-cooking spray
-toothpicks

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Line a baking sheet with foil. Spray with cooking spray.

Lay out each chicken breast.

Top with tomatoes,

then the frozen spinach.

No need to thaw the spinach. Sprinkle with some garlic powder. Top that with a generous pinch of mozzarella.

Carefully roll the chicken around the filling, securing with a toothpick.

Repeat for each chicken breast. Place on the baking sheet.

Spray the chicken with a bit more cooking spray.

Bake for about 15 minutes. Remove the chicken from the oven. The chicken should be just about cooked through, although maybe not completely. Sprinkle on a little garlic powder and Italian seasoning.

Top with a little bit more mozzarella, and return to the oven. Bake 5 more minutes until cheese is melted or until chicken is cooked through.

Serve hot and enjoy!

Italian Chicken

We had someone bring us dinner recently, and it was amazing. It was some sort of breaded chicken with tomatoes on top of it, with some sort of Italian-type dressing type thing. I know, incredibly descriptive. Haha. Anyway, it was amazing, so I decided to see if I might be able to replicate it. This isn't exactly the same as what our friend made but it was pretty good anyway.

I made some flavored rice to go with it, as well as some ciabatta rolls. You could add to that fare if you want, that's just what I did. Away we go!

Ingredients:
-chicken breasts, enough to feed everyone
-flour, for dredging (probably about 1/2 cup for2 or 3 chicken breasts)
-egg wash for dredging (1 or 2 eggs with a little water or milk, scrambled together)
-breadcrumbs for dredging (I used plain breadcrumbs since there was a lot of flavor elsewhere)
-Roma/plum tomatoes (I used one and a half, because it gave me enough slices for 3 chicken breasts-each tomato will give you about 5 slices or so...)
-Italian dressing (I used probably about 3/4 cup, maybe up to a full cup)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pour in a couple tablespoons of Italian dressing into a glass baking dish, just enough to coat the bottom so the chicken won't stick.

In three separate shallow dishes, place the flour, egg wash, and breadcrumbs.

Dredge each chicken breast in the flour, shaking off any excess. Then dredge in the egg wash, and finally in the breadcrumbs. Place the chicken in the baking dish.

When all the chicken is coated in breading, place two to four slices of the tomato on top of each chicken breast, depending on how big it is and your own preference.

Pour the Italian dressing over the chicken and tomatoes.

Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.

Serve hot with yummy sides ans enjoy!

Pasta with Herbed Bechamel

I don't know why, but cold weather makes me want comfort food. What better comfort food is there than pasta? And pasta with a creamy yummy sauce? Mmm.

For those who don't know, bechamel is a white sauce that is extremely basic. It's basically butter, flour, and cream. It's a great foundation for a million other sauces, including alfredo, and almost any cream sauce...ever. Haha. But you can also make it basic, and keep it simple. I made an herbed bechamel for this pasta, and it was pretty tasty. I got the hubby approval, so that's always good. Haha. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:
-pasta (any kind will do...I used rotini), enough to feed everyone
-3 tablespoons butter
-2 tablespoons flour
-1/2 cup heavy cream
-1 cup milk (I used 2%)
-1 tablespoon garlic powder
-1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta until al dente (tender but still firm...no mushy noodles!). Drain and set aside.

While pasta is cooking, heat a saucepan over medium low heat. Add the butter and let it melt. Add the flour and whisk to combine.

This is the roux. Let the roux cook for another couple minutes, whisking frequently. Add the cream and whisk to incorporate. The roux will thicken the sauce after a couple minutes. Keep whisking to keep it smooth.

Once the sauce has thickened a good bit, add in the milk. Whisk to incorporate. Let the sauce thicken slightly again, stirring frequently. Add the garlic powder and Italian seasoning. Stir to incorporate.

Reduce the heat to low and continue stirring frequently for another couple minutes. When the sauce is thick but still pourable, it's done. If it gets too thick, just add a smidge more milk, no more than a couple tablespoons at a time, until it reaches desired consistency.

Pour the sauce over the cooked pasta and enjoy!

Yum!

Lemon Pepper Chicken with Garlic Parmesan Orzo and Broccoli

I've never cooked orzo before, and I wasn't really sure how it would turn out, but this was pretty good. For those of you who don't know, orzo is actually a pasta, but it's shaped a lot like rice. It really looks a lot like long-grain rice, actually. I was intrigued.

I knew I wanted to try orzo, but I knew that, unlike a lot of my pasta dishes, this would probably need to be a side dish. So I determined that making grilled chicken to accompany it would work out just fine. :) I used a Lemon Pepper spice blend I already had in my pantry to make it yummy without being overpowering. I think the two dishes made a good meal together. I also added broccoli to the orzo to get my veggie in there. Go me. Haha.

I hope you enjoy! This made plenty orzo for the two of us, with at least one serving left over, so you could probably feed four people with this recipe. Have fun!

Ingredients:
Chicken-
-chicken breasts (enough to feed everyone)
-olive oil, for coating chicken
-about 1 teaspoon of a lemon pepper spice blend per chicken breast

Orzo-
-approximately 1 cup uncooked orzo
-2 tablespoons butter
-approximately 1 cup heavy cream
-about 2 tablespoons garlic powder
-about 1/2 cup to 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
-two small heads of broccoli, cut into florets (about 2 cups), steamed

Directions:
In a plastic bag, pour in enough olive oil to coat the chicken breasts. Add in the spice mix and the chicken and seal the bag. Massage the oil and spices into the chicken and let rest to marinate for a few minutes.

Grill the chicken until no longer pink in the center.

I used my countertop grill.

In a large pot, cook the orzo in boiling water until al dente. Drain and return to the pot, reducing heat to medium. Add the butter and garlic powder and stir until it's melted. Add the cream and parmesan and stir until incorporated. Add the broccoli and continue stirring until everything is hot and yummy.

Serve immediately with the chicken and enjoy!

Alfredo Pasta Shell Bake

I think pasta shells are fun, don't you? I mean, pasta comes in lots of fun shapes, but shells make me smile for some reason. Haha. I know, I'm a little nutty, but hey. They are fun. :)

This recipe is super simple and super yummy, if you like alfredo sauce. Which I do. You can add some other goodies like chicken, spinach, etc, to make it even better if you want. I just kept it simple this time. :)

This will probably feed 3-4 people depending on appetite, so adjust accordingly.

Ingredients:
-8 oz pasta shells (the medium sized ones)
-1.5 cups alfredo sauce (I made mine from scratch- find my recipe here, just don't add the spinach...unless you want to)
-1 cup shredded mozzarella or Italian Cheese Blend

Directions:
In a large pot, cook pasta until just al dente; slightly underdone is better than slightly overdone. Drain it and return it to the pot. Pour in the alfredo sauce and stir to coat the pasta.

Next, pour into a 1.5 quart baking dish

and top with the shredded cheese.

Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 10-15 minutes, until the cheese on top is melted and everything is hot and yummy.

Serve immediately and enjoy!

Three Cheese Tortellini in Garlic and Herb Butter Sauce

This was the first "real food" I cooked in my new kitchen. I made a frozen pizza and some spaghetti with jarred pasta sauce, but those don't "count." Haha. This was actually really yummy, and I was very happy that it turned out well. It's always a little iffy in a new kitchen. Appliances can be finicky, so you never quite know how things will work right away. This, however, was a success. I used a smaller package of tortellini because it's just my hubby and me, but you can easily double this for a family. I hope you enjoy. :)

Ingredients:
-1 small package three cheese tortellini (use fresh or dry, doesn't matter)
-1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) butter
-3 garlic cloves
-2 or 3 tablespoons flour
-1/2 heavy cream
-1/2 to 3/4 cup milk (I used 2%)
-1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
-1/4 cup parmesan cheese (optional), plus a sprinkle for garnish

Directions:
Boil a large pot of water. Add in the tortellini and cook until al dente. Drain and set aside.

While the pasta is cooking, heat the butter in a skillet over medium low heat (a 4 on a scale of 10).

Smash the peeled garlic cloves and add them to the melted butter.

Saute the garlic to infuse the butter with the flavor. DON'T let the garlic burn. When the garlic starts to get translucent, but before it starts to get brown, remove the cloves from the butter.

Whisk the flour into the remaining garlic-infused butter, making a roux.

Add the cream to the party and continue whisking to incorporate. When the cream and roux are well incorporated, and the sauce has started to thicken, add in the milk to thin it back out a bit.

Continue stirring as you add the Italian seasoning, letting it flavor the whole sauce.

When the sauce has thickened slightly again, and everything is hot and yummy, you can add the parmesan if desired, and let it melt into the sauce for a couple minutes before serving. If you're leaving it out, then the sauce is done! Toss the tortellini in the sauce until well coated, then serve. Yum!

I served mine with yummy garlic and parmesan Italian bread.

So delicious. (To make this bread: Slice a fresh Italian loaf into thick slices. Spread butter on each slice and sprinkle with garlic powder. Sprinkle on a little parmesan, then broil for a couple minutes in the oven until the butter is melted, the garlic has seeped into the bread, and the parmesan is melted an yummy on top. Voila!) This made the meal so much better. Anyway, have fun and enjoy!

Rotini Pasta Bake

I almost always have pasta in the house, so it's no surprise that when I'm looking in my pantry for before-moving leftovers to make dinner, there was some pasta involved. This meal originated from some pasta, some leftover diced tomatoes, and some leftover cheeses I had in the fridge. Super easy, tasty, and wonderful. I will say it's pretty darn cheesy, so if you don't like cheese as much as I do, then reduce the amount slightly. I hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:
-half box of pasta (about 8 oz, I used rotini)
-half can of diced tomatoes
-2 tablespoons garlic powder
-1 tablespoon onion powder
-1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
-1/2 cup water
-3 cups cheese, shredded-I used three types: asiago, mozzarella, and parmesan, about 1 cup each.

Directions:
In a large pot, boil some water. Add the pasta and cook until just al dente. Drain and set aside.

While the pasta is cooking, in a medium sauce pan over medium/medium high heat, add in the tomatoes, water, garlic powder, onion powder, and Italian seasoning.

Stir to combine. Let it come to a boil, then reduce heat to medium low. Simmer until the sauce has reduced down a bit, stirring occasionally.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

When the sauce has reduced down, add to the pasta and stir to coat.

Add in about half of each cheese and stir to combine.

Pour into a baking dish.

Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top of the pasta.

Bake in the 350 degree oven for about 15-20 minutes, until the cheese is melted and yummy.

Remove from oven and serve.

Yum!