Cavanagh's Crappy Weather Pasta Recipe

Got home from work last night and actually had to turn on the heat in the house. Feeling somewhat depressed by this cold rainy weather I went to the Serious Eats community looking for a crappy weather recipe that would raise my spirits. dmcavanah of the community posted this recipe for a true comfort meal. The end result was great. I do think I would up the heat a little with medium hot sausage and maybe some red pepper flakes. Served this with some good red wine and bread.

Here is DMC's recipe:

Cavanagh’s Crappy Weather Pasta Recipe


Here’s one I did the other night, and I wound up sharing it with some friends at work. Saute 3 cut up peppers (I like reds) in a little oil oil. Set those aside and then saute some sweet Italian sausage which I remove from the casing and break into small chunks. Remove the cooked sausage from the pan and lightly saute 2-3 chopped garlic cloves. Add a 28 oz. can of good quality crushed tomatoes, a teaspoon of oregano and salt and pepper to taste. Heat for just a couple of minutes to make a nice sauce. Now, add the cooked sausage and peppers back to the sauce along with some baby spinach and some already cooked cavatelli ( or any cut of pasta you like. penne works well) and heat through until the spinach is cooked down. You can also add some fresh basil leaves if you like. Serve with a generous finish of parmesan.

Chicken Stir Fry

I came across this stir fry recipe at http://alittleyum.com/2011/01/20/stir-fry-of-chicken-vegetables/ I made some modifications since I like more veggies in my stir fry. This is an excellent recipe. Since I am watching my carbs, I did not add any rice or noodle.

Ingredients


1/3 cup chicken stock

3 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp sugar

1 tsp cornstarch or more to thicken

2-3 tbsp vegetable oil

½ tsp red chilli flakes (optional)

2 cloves garlic, minced

vegetables I used 2 carrots chopped, 8oz mushrooms sliced, broccoli about 2 cups, snow peas, 3 green onions chopped, one green pepper sliced, one red pepper sliced.

1 1/4 lb skinless, boneless chicken thighs or breast cut into ½ inch cubes (have the butcher at the store do this)

salt and pepper

Method

1. Whisk together water/stock, soy sauce, sugar and cornstarch till cornstarch and sugar are dissolved

2. In a large frying pan or wok heat the oil. Add the chilli flakes, is using and garlic and fry for 30 seconds. Add chicken and cook for 4-5 minutes

3. Remove chicken and fry the vegetables for 2-4 minutes (depends on vegetable you are using and how much crunch you like - I would add the carrots, mushrooms, green and red peppers first then the broccoli and green onions right at the end.

4. Add chicken and basil to wok and stir-fry for 30 seconds

5. Pour over the whisked mixture and bring to a boil and simmer for a couple to minutes. Ready to eat!