Lemon Pasta with Blackened Chicken

It was pasta night again and this recipe was a hit. Blackened seasoning is a tasty spin on a boring salt and pepper chicken. Lemon pasta compliments already delicious tasting chicken.

Ingredients:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 teaspoons blackened seasoning
1 pound whole grain pasta of any type (penne, curly)
salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
2 tablespoons +  2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
2 lemons, juiced
1/2 cup grated Parmesan Reggiano
1/4 cup peas (optional)
1 large roasted red bell pepper, skinned and cut into strips (optional)

Method:

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, until al dente and drain the water.

Meanwhile, season chicken with salt and apply blackened spice both sides to the chicken. Heat a pan over medium high and add 2 tablespoons of oil to it. Add chicken and cook until the chicken is cooked through and browned on both sides. Remove to a plate and cover with a aluminum foil for 10 minutes. Then slice the chicken.

In a separate pan, add the garlic and red pepper flakes to a saute pan with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and saute until fragrant, around 2 minutes. Add lemon zest, lemon juice, butter, stir well and season with salt and pepper. Add the cooked pasta, peas, roasted red bell pepper, combine all together and turn the heat off. Sprinkle in parmesan cheese and mix all together. Add fresh parsley at the end. Plate the pasta and top the pasta with chicken pieces.

Tips and More:

• Make sure to rest the chicken before slicing in order to sear in the juices.
• Plan for tomorrow's lunch. Make 4 blackened chicken breasts instead of 2. 2 for pasta and save 2 for tomorrow. Thinly slice the chicken breast, add these pieces to a mayo or mustard spread whole grain bread. Add fresh tomato, lettuce, red onion and enjoy deli style sandwich.
• Lemon Pasta tastes great by itself. The other version instead of chicken would be Lemon Pasta Shrimp. Saute 1/4 cup finely minced shallots for couple of minutes, or until translucent. Add garlic, red pepper flakes to the pan, add 1/2 a pound of peeled and deveined shrimp and cook until shrimp turns pink. The rest of the procedure is the same.
• If you don't want to buy blackened chicken just for this one recipe, you can make it yourself. It a combination of spices and herbs that you find in your own pantry. 1 1/2 tablespoons paprika, 1 tablespoon garlic powder, 1 tablespoon onion powder, 1 tablespoon ground dried thyme, 1 teaspoon ground black pepper, 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1 teaspoon dried basil, 1 teaspoon dried oregano. You can store this in a air tight container.

Pasta with Roasted Red Bell Pepper Sauce

We love pasta! Pasta is always a winner dinner, whether you are feeding a crowd or just have it for dinner on a weekday. The following recipe serves 6 people.

Ingredients:
5 - 6 walnuts (optional)
3 large red bell peppers
up to 1 pound penne pasta (I used eating right whole grain pasta - 13.25 oz)
1/2 cup half and half or heavy cream or whole milk
1/2 cup crushed tomatoes
3 cloves garlic finely minced
1 small onion finely chopped
couple of pinches of red pepper flakes (optional)
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup spinach (optional)
1/2 cup peas (optional)
8 asparagus - woody ends trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces (optional)
1/2 - 1 cup grated parmesan reggiano (depending on how much cheesy you want the dish)
shaved parmesan for garnish (optional)
salt

Method:
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place the peppers on the baking sheet and char them under the broiler for 20 minutes turning 3 times in between, or until all the skin of pepper is charred. Place the peppers in a ziploc or place them in a bowl and cover them with plastic wrap and allow the peppers to steam for 5 to 10 minutes. This will loose the skin and it will be very easy to peel the skin. Skin the peppers, remove seeds, inner membrane (ribs), stem and keep the peppers aside.

Heat a small pan on medium and toast the walnuts. Puree the peppers, walnuts and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in a blender or a mixer and keep the sauce aside. Bring a pot of water to boil to cook the pasta. When the water is boiling, add handful of salt (it is your only chance to season the pasta) and cook for about 8 - 10 minutes or until the pasta is al dante. Drain the water, mix in grated parmesam cheese and keep the pasta aside.

Meanwhile, heat another pot or skillet on medium, add olive oil, chopped onions and saute for 5 minutes or until the onion just begins to soften. Throw in the minced garlic and stir. Add the red bell pepper puree, crushed tomatoes. Cook the sauce for about 5 minutes and add cream, pepper, red pepper flakes, asparagus, peas, spinach and stir well on medium heat for another 2 - 3 minutes. Taste the sauce and add more salt if necessary. Finally add the pasta and stir well so that all the pasta is coated well with the sauce. Take the pasta into a serving bowl and shave parmesan on the top. Yum yum yum !!

Tips and More:

• You can use regular pasta if you want. But remember, by replacing regular pasta with whole grain pasta will give you more fiber, protien and you will get your serving of whole grains as well. Whole grain pasta taste nuttier than a regular pasta but tastes equally delicious.
• I used walnuts instead of pine nuts in this recipe. But if you have pine nuts at hand, use them and they would be perfect for this recipe. 2 tablespoons of pine nuts is what all you need.
• Kids would love this recipe. Its a great way to make them eat their vegetable. Add more vegetable like broccoli, carrots etc. for more veggies.
• I used broiler to char the red bell peppers. Although fired up grill or the open flame on your cook top are equally effective. What you are looking for is this

 

• Lining a baking sheet with aluminum foil will avoid cleaning process. However, charring the peppers on a grill or on a cook top will leave them a little messier.
• I used penne pasta because they will hold the sauce inside them along with coating the sauce. If you don't have penne in your pantry, then any kind of short pasta should do.

Whole Wheat Banana Walnut Bread

Who doesn't like banana bread, and if we can make a healthier version of that, its ever better ! Check out for a low cholesterol, low sugar, whole wheat, anti oxidant and omega 3 rich "banana walnut bread" and enjoy it anytime, guilt free. Believe me, this recipe is so delicious, I made this 3 times in a month :)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 overripe bananas
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup walnuts, dry roasted and roughly chopped
2/3 cup fresh blueberries (or frozen blueberries that are thawed)

Method:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Lightly grease a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan and dust it with all-purpose flour. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt, sift it twice and set aside.
Mash 2 bananas. With an electric mixer fitted with a wire whisk, whip the bananas and sugar together for a good 3 minutes, you want a light and fluffy banana cream. Add the melted butter, oil, eggs, and vanilla, beat well and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix in the dry ingredients (flour mixture) just until incorporated, no need to overly blend. Mash the remaining 2 bananas with a fork in a small bowl so that they still have a bit of texture. Fold in the nuts, blueberries and the mashed bananas with a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Give the pan a good tap on the counter to get any air bubbles out.
Bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, until golden brown. Good way to check if its done is to insert a toothpick into the center of the loaf and it should come out clean. Don't get nervous if the banana bread develops a crack down the center of the loaf; that's no mistake, it's typical. Rotate the pan periodically to ensure even browning.
Cool the bread in the pan for 10 minutes or so, and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.

Tips and More:

• If you don't have vanilla extract, vanilla essence is fine. 
• You can substitute walnuts with pecans. 
• The sugar we put in the bread is very less and thats fine too, the bananas give the sweetness needed.
• We are sifting the flour twice in order to incorporate air into it. Since the whole wheat flour is denser than the all-purpose flour, this step is very important. 
• Butter is high in cholesterol, vegetable oil is not. Hence, I replaced most of the oil content with vegetable oil. I added some butter for much richer taste.