Are you up to you “Elbow noodles” in pasta?
Pasta is one of the easiest and first food things most couponers can get free!
A lot of people dont know there are 100′s of ways to make that pasta – here are some of my personal favorites!
* Penne with Asparagus and Chicken Sausage*
Active Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Serves: 6
Recipe Ingredients
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 bunch asparagus (about 1 1/4 lb), cut diagonally in 2-in. pieces
12 oz fully cooked chicken sausage, sliced
3/4 tsp salt
1 lb penne pasta
1 cup frozen green peas
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 cup shredded carrots
1 can (141/2 oz) diced tomatoes in thick juice
1 1/2 tsp salt-free seasoning blend
3/4 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Recipe Preparation
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil.
Meanwhile heat 2 Tbsp oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add asparagus, sausage and 1/4 tsp salt. Cook, stirring often, 5 to 6 minutes until asparagus are crisp-tender. Remove to a plate.
Stir pasta into boiling water; cook as package directs, stirring in peas for last 4 minutes of cooking time.
Meanwhile add remaining 1 Tbsp oil, the onion and carrots to skillet. Sauté over medium heat 3 minutes or until onion softens. Add tomatoes, seasoning blend and remaining 1/2 tsp salt. Add 1/2 cup cooking water from pasta pot to skillet. Cover and simmer 8 minutes.
Drain pasta. Add asparagus mixture and half-an
*Lemony broccoli pasta with chicken*
Hands-On Time: 10 minutes
Ready In: 30 minutes
Ingredients
12 ounces dried pasta shapes (fusilli, wagon wheels, rotini, etc.)
1 pound (4 small or 2 large) skinless, boneless chicken breasts, preferably naturally raised
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons butter (divided use)
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, pressed through a garlic press
1 large bunch broccoli, stems peeled, and stems and florets cut into small pieces
1 cup chicken broth
juice and finely grated zest of 1 large lemon
1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped and toasted at 350ºF for 5 minutes
1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving
Directions
Bring a large pot of pasta-cooking water to a boil and salt it heavily: it should taste as salty as seawater. Cook the pasta (if you add it when the chicken is about half cooked, the sauce and pasta will be done at the same time), drain it, and return it to the pot with 3 tablespoons of the butter.
Pat the chicken dry and season on both sides with salt and pepper. In a very large skillet, heat the olive oil and remaining 1 tablespoon of butter over medium-high heat until foamy and very hot, then add the chicken and sauté until well browned and cooked through, around 4 minutes per side (thicker breasts may take longer; turn the heat down as needed to keep the chicken from burning). Remove the chicken to a cutting board.
Turn the heat to low and add the garlic to the pan, stirring for a few seconds until it is fragrant but not browned, then add the broccoli, the broth, and 1 teaspoon of salt, stirring to dissolve the browned bits on the bottom of the pan.
Cover the pan, turn the heat up to medium, and cook/steam until the broccoli is just tender: 3-4 minutes.
Add the chicken, which you’ve sliced thinly, back to the pan, along with the lemon juice and zest, the walnuts, and the buttered pasta, and stir to combine well (if the skillet isn’t large enough, combine in the pasta pot).
*Simple Chicken Parmesan*
Ingredients
2 medium garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes (quality varies dramatically; I prefer Redpack, Progresso and Muir Glen brands)
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon sugar
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (6 to 8 ounces each), halved crosswise
1 large egg
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
8 ounces spaghetti or linguine
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup grated part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for passing at the table
Directions
In a large saucepan, heat garlic and 2 Tbs. oil over medium-high heat until garlic starts to sizzle. Stir in tomatoes, basil, oregano, sugar, a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Bring to a simmer; simmer until sauce thickens a bit and flavors meld, 10 to 12 minutes. Cover and keep warm. (Remember, this makes twice the amount of sauce you need, so put aside half for another meal.)
Put chicken pieces between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound, using your fists or a heavy pan, until the cutlets are about 1/4-inch thick.
Bring 2 quarts of salted water to a boil in a large soup kettle.
In a pie pan, beat egg until well-blended. In another pie pan, mix bread crumbs and more black pepper. Preheat broiler.
Working one cutlet at a time, dip both sides of each in beaten egg, then in bread crumbs. Put cutlets on a wire rack set over a cookie sheet (this step helps breading stay put).
Heat remaining 1/4 cup oil over medium-high heat in a 12-inch skillet. When oil starts to shimmer, add cutlets and saute until golden brown on each side, about 5 minutes total. Wash and dry the wire rack and return to cookie sheet. As the cutlets saute, cook pasta in boiling water according to package directions.
Transfer cutlets to clean wire rack over cookie sheet. Top each with a portion of the cheeses. Broil cutlets, 4 to 5 inches from heat source, until cheese melts and is spotty brown.
Drain pasta. Put a cutlet and a portion of pasta on each of 4 plates. Spoon 2 or 3 tablespoons of sauce over part of each cutlet, then sauce the pasta as desired. Serve with extra Parmesan
Do you have a personal favorite?
