Long time no post - Chicken & Veggies Pasta Bake
Man, I miss my lj baking communities :)
I've been in a cooking mood lately and last night I really wanted to use up some of the leftover leeks and carrots I had from making beef barley soup earlier. After looking around my fridge and pantry, I found some chicken breasts and wheat pasta that needed to be used up too. Basically, this recipe comes from needing to get rid of food before it went to waste, so I've got a lot of little things I'd tweak the next time. :)
Ingredients:
3 ck breasts (2 large ones would have been plenty)
2 slices of leek stem, separating the individual, inner rings (1/3 onion could be substituted)
1 carrot, chopped
1 roma tomato, sliced into rings (I hate the juice and seeds so I cut those out)
1.5 cups dry pasta (I used organic wheat penne)
3 tbsp butter, melted
1.5 cups milk
up to 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (Romano would work too)
2 cloves garlic, very thinly sliced
spices (bay leaves, marjoram, salt, black pepper)
olive oil
Cut the breasts into thin slices and then very briefly saute in some olive oil and the spice list. Cook over medium-low heat just long enough so that the outside is white, about 2-3 minutes. Set aside.
In a baking pan of your choice (mine was a 9 X 1.5 inch round pan), pour the pasta into the bottom and do your best to smooth it out. Mix together the melted butter, milk, 1/2 cup of the cheese, and half the garlic, then pour it over the pasta. Stir the pasta and liquid mixture and make sure that the pasta is almost entirely covered.
Take those 2 slices of leek and push out the inner rings, cutting them into whatever size you like - mine were in fourths. Layer those on top of the pasta. Chop up the carrot and slice the tomatoes, then layer them on as well. Sprinkle the rest of the garlic over the top. Drizzle a very little olive oil over the veggies just so they don't burn too much, and add on another bout of those spices. Finally, layer on the chicken from before (pour over any juice left over in sauce pan) and dust the whole thing with the rest of the cheese.
Pop this in the oven at 400 degrees F for 20-25 minutes, or until the liquid stops boiling and the top of the tomatoes have a nice, brown crunchy texture.
This gives your whole kitchen a fantastic, hearty smell while it's baking! The taste is light but savory, and it's definitely filling. One pan serves about 4, and it went really well with a simple salad of mixed greens, green bell pepper, and avoocado.
x-posted to bakebakebake
I've been in a cooking mood lately and last night I really wanted to use up some of the leftover leeks and carrots I had from making beef barley soup earlier. After looking around my fridge and pantry, I found some chicken breasts and wheat pasta that needed to be used up too. Basically, this recipe comes from needing to get rid of food before it went to waste, so I've got a lot of little things I'd tweak the next time. :)
Ingredients:
3 ck breasts (2 large ones would have been plenty)
2 slices of leek stem, separating the individual, inner rings (1/3 onion could be substituted)
1 carrot, chopped
1 roma tomato, sliced into rings (I hate the juice and seeds so I cut those out)
1.5 cups dry pasta (I used organic wheat penne)
3 tbsp butter, melted
1.5 cups milk
up to 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (Romano would work too)
2 cloves garlic, very thinly sliced
spices (bay leaves, marjoram, salt, black pepper)
olive oil
Cut the breasts into thin slices and then very briefly saute in some olive oil and the spice list. Cook over medium-low heat just long enough so that the outside is white, about 2-3 minutes. Set aside.
In a baking pan of your choice (mine was a 9 X 1.5 inch round pan), pour the pasta into the bottom and do your best to smooth it out. Mix together the melted butter, milk, 1/2 cup of the cheese, and half the garlic, then pour it over the pasta. Stir the pasta and liquid mixture and make sure that the pasta is almost entirely covered.
Take those 2 slices of leek and push out the inner rings, cutting them into whatever size you like - mine were in fourths. Layer those on top of the pasta. Chop up the carrot and slice the tomatoes, then layer them on as well. Sprinkle the rest of the garlic over the top. Drizzle a very little olive oil over the veggies just so they don't burn too much, and add on another bout of those spices. Finally, layer on the chicken from before (pour over any juice left over in sauce pan) and dust the whole thing with the rest of the cheese.
Pop this in the oven at 400 degrees F for 20-25 minutes, or until the liquid stops boiling and the top of the tomatoes have a nice, brown crunchy texture.
This gives your whole kitchen a fantastic, hearty smell while it's baking! The taste is light but savory, and it's definitely filling. One pan serves about 4, and it went really well with a simple salad of mixed greens, green bell pepper, and avoocado.
x-posted to bakebakebake