Lowfat Chicken Almond Pasta

This turned out better then I had thought it
might!!! It was really good, and the best part..
THE KIDS LOVED IT!!

Recipe:
2 boneless skinless chicken breast-cubed
1 lb whole wheat pasta(rotini or penne work great)
1 cup blanched almonds
1 glove garlic
1/2 -3/4 cup of skim milk
1 cup reduced fat parmesean cheese
1/2 teaspoon italian seasoning
1/2 italian parsley
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2-1 teaspoon salt
1 cup reserved pasta cooking water

Prepare pasta according to package directions.
In the blender or food processor: add almonds,1/2 cup milk,
all the seasonings,garlic clove and 1/4 cup of the parmesan cheese.
Blend until smooth and creamy, transfer to a large pan.
Bring sauce to a boil, adding more milk if to thick, at this point
taste to check the need for salt. Add pasta and chicken to
the sauce, mix well and then stir in remaining cheese
. If sauce is to thin add in some of
the reserved pasta water a little at a time until
desired consistency
Want to make it extra healthy? Add chopped and steamed
carrots,broccoli and/or cauliflower.

Stuffed Shells

Yummy!!!!

Recipe:

24 Large pasta shells(whole wheat if you can find)

1 lb ground turkey

1/2 lb ground beef

1 recipe Amanda's Pasta sauce or 1 jar store bought

2 cups fat free cottage cheese

1 small onion diced

2 garlic cloves minced

2 teaspoons oregano

2 teaspoons parsley

2 teaspoons black pepper

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2 teaspoon olive or canola oil

Cook pasta shells according to package directions.

Heat oil in a large skillet, add onions and garlic saute until tender, add

ground meat. Cook well and drain. In the meantime in a large bowl

mix together,cottage cheese,oregano,parsley,and black pepper, add in ground

meat mixture. Mix well. Stuff each shell and place in a 9x13 pan. Top with

pasta sauce and shredded cheese. Bake in a 350 degree oven covered

for 45 minutes.

This is also a great make ahead and freeze meal. My

sister in law loved them!

Whole Wheat Garlic, Herb, and Chicken Penne

I am horrible with pictures these days!!!!!!!!!
So sorry!!!!

And so here is a new recipe that is loaded with healthy pasta

and chicken and sure to please.

Recipe:

2-4 Boneless/skinless chicken breast cut into bite size pieces

1 lb of whole wheat penne

1 small onion diced

2 gloves garlic minced

3 cups of spinach diced

2 teaspoons oregano

1 teaspoon parsley

1 teaspoon olive or canola oil

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese or Italian blend cheese

In a large skillet or pan, heat oil and add in onion and

garlic, until tender and frequent.In the meantime cook pasta according to

package directions. Add chicken and all other spices (except lemon zest) and cook until

cooked through and tender. Stir in lemon juice and cook until mostly absorbed.

Once pasta is done reserve 2 cups of cooking water and drain pasta.

Add pasta and spinach to pan with chicken and cheese's, and lemon zest. 

Add enough of the reserved pasta water

to make a smooth and creamy sauce.

To add some extra health benefits to this you could add in

bite size veggies, broccoli or carrots.

Chicken Carbanara

This was so much better then I had thought it 

would be and the whole gang loved it.
Even my picky Max!!

So here is goes
Recipe:

2-4 boneless/skinless chicken breast-cut in bite size pieces

1 lb of whole wheat pasta(i used linguine)

4 slices of turkey bacon cut in bite size pieces

1 garlic clove

2 whole eggs beaten @ room temp or to lighten it up more use 3 egg whites

1/2 grated parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoons black pepper

1 teaspoon  oregano

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and cook pasta according to 

package directions. In the meantime add your olive oil

and garlic to a large skillet, and cook chicken and bacon.

Reserve about 3 cups of the pasta water and drain pasta, deglaze the

pan with 1/2 cups of pasta water. Mix together in a small

bowl, eggs or egg whites, parmesan cheese, black pepper,

and oregano. Now add the pasta to the skillet

with the meats stir well, now  while the pan is on medium heat

poor egg mixture over pasta and continually mix. Mixture will look 

odd, now slowly add in the reserved pasta water to help make

the sauce have a better consistency. (i used 1 1/2 cups) 

once desired consistency is reached remove from heat and serve with

grated parmesan cheese!!
 

Enjoy!!

Italian Meat and Mac

This is a great one, make ahead and freeze!
3 cups of whole wheat pasta
1 lb of ground turkey
20 turkey pepperonie cut into 4's
1 garlic clove-minced
1 teaspoon oregano
1 jar/can of your favorite tomatoe pasta sauce
1/2 cup of shredded motzerella cheese
Pre heat oven to 350.
cook pasta according to package directions, place in a caserole dish.
In a medium skillet brown garlic,oregano and ground turkey until done-add to the pasta, mix in
the pepperonie. Stir in the sauce and then top with the cheese.
Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and ooy-gooy looking!!!
Enjoy!!