Broccoli and Garbanzo Pasta Bake

Hello there! I'm still trying to get back on the food blog train after several weeks of little inspiration (yes, it does happen). I feel like I'm getting back into the swing of things and hope to have some new and exciting things posted up here soon! And today, you get to learn all about baked pasta.

There aren't many things that I love more than a hot baked pasta dish. Perfect for the cool nights we've been having, and even more perfect for lunch leftovers the next day. 

I started by chopping the broccoli into small florets, then running hot water over them from the tap for 30-45 seconds. I did this instead of blanching (cooking in boiling water very quickly) to save a little time. 

Next, I cooked the pasta. Shells were the pasta of choice for this dish, but any pasta varietie would do.

Tomatoes, garbanzos, broccoli, ricotta, pesto, and crush red pepper flakes go into the bowl!

Kitchen scene from afar (with kale in a pan on the stove getting ready to be cooked as a side dish).

Hot pasta gets placed on top of all the other ingredients so that the steam and loosen everything up.

Mix, and divide into one (9'' x 13'') or two (smaller) casserole dishes. Top with grated parmesan.

Bake until heated through and cheese is golden and crispy!

Serve along side something green, or all by itself.

Broccoli and Garbanzo Pasta Bake Recipe:

- 12 ounces (3/4 lb) dry pasta (I used shells for this particular recipe)

- 2 large heads broccoli, cut into small florets

- Two cups (one 14 oz can) garbanzo beans

- 28 ounce can (or two 14 oz cans) petite diced tomatoes

- 1 and 1/2 cups ricotta cheese

- 2 tbsp pesto

- 1 tsp red pepper flakes

- Salt to taste

- Olive oil

- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

- Cook pasta according to package directions (make sure you salt the water for flavor!).

- Place broccoli florets in a strainer and run very hot water from the faucet over the florets for 30-45 seconds or until the florets turn bright green.

- Drain and rinse garbanzo beans and add to a large bowl along with ricotta, tomatoes, pesto, broccoli, and red pepper flakes.

- Once pasta is cooked and drained, pour it on top of all the other ingredients in the large bowl.

- Stir everything together and taste. Add salt as necessary.

- Place into one 9'' x 13'' oiled baking dish, or a couple of smaller dishes.

- Sprinkle grated parmesan on top.

- Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until cooked through and cheese is golden and crispy.

Creamy Gluten Free Pasta with Broccoli, Mushrooms, Artichoke Hearts, and Garbanzos

Wow, that's a long title. I apologize, but I couldn't find a way to shorten it without leaving crucial things out!

If you were to ask me what my favorite comfort food was, I would more than likely say pasta. I love any kind of pasta, especially pasta with lots of vegetables and a rich, creamy sauce. I do not, however, feel that this is a great dietary choice for consumption on a regular basis. You see, I have a hard time eating just a small amount of said dishes, and I end up feeling over stuffed after a heavy meal like that.

So, I decided to compromise and create a dish that was a little more health conscious but still had all the same qualities as those rich pasta dishes named earlier. And so I present to you - the lower fat, gluten free version of a rich, creamy pasta dish!

My friend Hollie (Yeah, Hollie!) told me about this yummy gluten free rice pasta, so I decided to pick up a box and try it out. I chose penne since Jacob hates all things that are spaghetti shaped (weird, I know). I searched the cabinets to see what kinds of beans we had on hand, and while searching around I found a can of artichokes as well - score!

Broccoli and mushrooms were the fresh veggies that I had on hand, so they were washed, trimmed, and chopped up before being tossed in a pan with a little olive oil and salt.

When the veggies were mostly cooked and the pasta was boiling away, I pulled out the items to make my super creamy (but heavy cream and butter - free) sauce. I know, I know - corn starch is kind of a cheaters way of making a creamy sauce, but I went for it anyways.

Once the pasta was done, the veggies were tender, and the sauce was thickened, I tossed them all together in one pan.

Jacob insisted we use up the few leftover pieces of bacon that were sitting in the fridge from a weekend breakfast, so I agreed. We just cooked it up until it was nice and crispy and gave it a rough chop. The bacon was not by any means crucial to this dish, but it did add a nice flavor.

Freshly grated parmesan on top for the win!

Creamy Gluten Free Pasta with Broccoli, Mushrooms, Artichoke Hearts, and Garbanzos Recipe:
Serves 4
- 1 box gluten free pasta (they usually come in 8 or 10 ounce boxes)
- 1 large head of broccoli, cut into small crowns
- 5-6 white button mushrooms, sliced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 4-5 canned artichoke hearts, cut into quarters (find these near the olives in your grocery store)
- 1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed
- 1 tbsp corn starch
- 1/2 cup half and half
- 1/4 cup milk
- Salt/pepper to taste
- Parmesan, for garnish (optional)
- 2-3 slices of bacon, friend until crispy (optional)

Directions:
- Cook pasta according to directions on the box.
- While pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil on medium/high heat and saute the broccoli, garlic, and mushrooms in a large skillet.
- When the broccoli and mushrooms are tender, add the garbanzo beans and artichoke heart quarters. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Whisk together the corn starch, half and half, and milk in a small bowl.
- Slowly pour the milk mixture into the vegetable mixture and stir constantly to incorporate.
- Reduce heat to medium/low and let the sauce thicken for 3-5 minutes.
- Once the sauce has thickened, add the pasta into the vegetable mixture and make sure all the pasta is evenly coated.
- Add salt/pepper to taste and garnish with parmesan and bacon (if you're into that kind of thing).

Homemade Broccoli Mac and Cheese

Homemade mac and cheese is one of those go-to meals for Jacob and I. It's cheap, quick, and oh-so-good. My Mom used to make big batches of mac and cheese when we were growing up.  It filled all of us kids up and didn't take much time or effort to put together.

A close friend of mine had a family crisis last week, so I threw together a big pan of this goodness and dropped it off. I made a small dish for Jacob and I to share that night.

I had some broccoli in the fridge that needed to be used up, so I decided to add some green to this cheesy dish. While doing so, I came up with a handy trick! Rather than steaming the broccoli in a separate pan, in addition to boiling the pasta and making the cheese sauce, I just left the broccoli in the strainer after I chopped and washed it, then poured the hot pasta that had just finished cooking over top of the broccoli. Voila! Perfectly cooked broccoli and drained pasta!

The cheese sauce was the same basic cheese sauce that I used for baked potatoes with cheesy black bean sauce, minus the black beans. Butter + flour + milk + cheese + salt + pepper.

Mix the sauce up with the cooked macaroni and broccoli, and top with bread crumbs. This could easily be gluten free with some rice or corn pasta.

Toasty, cheesy, creamy perfection.

A nice big salad on the side - mixed greens, tomato, cuke, red onion, almonds, and homemade lemon herb dressing.

A little cabernet sauvignon to round out the meal. More on my wine selection strategy in an upcoming post...

Homemade Broccoli Mac and Cheese Recipe:

Serves 2-4 people (2 as a main dish, 4 as a side)

- 1/2 box pasta (your pasta selection is completely up to you... Any kind will work just fine!)

- 1 large head of broccoli, trimmed into small crowns

- 3 tbsp butter

- 2 tbsp flour

- 1 and 1/4 cups milk (I typically use whole or 2% for this recipe, but skim would be fine too)

- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

- 1/4 cup bread crumbs

- Salt/pepper to taste

Directions:

- Boil pasta in salted water until al dente (just a little bit "chewy").

- Wash broccoli crowns in a large strainer.

- When the pasta is done, pour it over the broccoli to drain.

- Melt butter in a medium skillet.

- Once butter is melted, sprinkle the flour over top of it and use a whisk to mix it in. Cook on medium for one minute.

- Add the milk, whisking rapidly to avoid lumps from forming.

- Let the milk mixture cook on low/medium for 5 minutes or until it coats the back of a spoon.

- Add the cheese + salt/pepper to taste.

- Pour the pasta and broccoli into a greased oven safe dish.

- Pour the cheese mixture over the pasta and stir to incorporate.

- If the pasta seems too dry, add a splash of milk.

- Top with breadcrumbs.

- Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until heated through and golden brown on top.

Crock Pot Jerk Chicken with Mango Salsa

I am literally eating the leftovers from this meal while I type this post, and I am reminded of how delicious this dish turned out! This was a true first time try dish and it turned out great! It will be making it onto the regular dinner rotation for sure. It all started with Harris Teeter having a sale on split chicken breast. I picked up a package and figured I would do something with it over the weekend. Turns out our friend Rob was snowed in with us for a night so I figured it'd be a good chance to fire up the crock pot. I started by gathering all the ingredients.

I cut each breast in half so they would cook a little quicker and serve as better portions for serving. Then, I took a whole slew of spices, mixed them up, added a little olive oil, and rubbed the chicken with said mixture. I put the chicken in the crock pot and topped it with a copped onion, 3 cloves of garlic, and a bay leaf. A little water was added so the chicken wouldn't stick.

Then, I set the crock pot on high for 3 hours. Meanwhile, I made the mango salsa. Mango, lime, onion, honey, vinegar, and salt were mixed together.

The finished salsa product was sweet, tart, and just the right flavor balance to give the chicken a little extra something.

While the chicken was finishing up, I prepped some broccoli for roasting.

Then, almonds were toasted and added to a nice batch of quinoa that had been seasoned with a drizzle of olive oil and a hefty pinch of kosher salt.

Once the chicken was tender and falling off the bone, I took it out of the crock pot and garnished it with a little fresh lime.

Dinner is served!

 Rob enjoyed playing with Lily the cat and is also probably convinced that Jacob and I are weirdos after being snowed in with us for 24 hours.

Crock Pot Jerk Chicken Recipe

3-4 large bone in chicken breasts

 1 small yellow onion

 3 cloves of garlic

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp tumeric

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp pepper

1 bay leaf

1 cup water

Lime slices for garnish

Directions:

- Take the skin off the chicken breasts and cut each breast in half (you'll need a hefty knife for this)

- Mix together the spices and olive oil into a paste

- Massage the spice mixture onto the chicken breasts and place the chicken in a crock pot that has been greased with a little olive oil or cooking spray to prevent sticking

- Slice the onion and chop the garlic cloves, drop on top of the chicken in the crock pot

- Add the water to the crock pot, cover, cook on high for 3 hours or low for 6-8 hours

- Once the chicken is falling off the bone, take out of the crock pot and garnish with lime

Mango Salsa Recipe

1 ripe mango

1/2 yellow onion, chopped

1 lime

2 tsp white vinegar

1 tsp honey

3/4 tsp salt

Directions:

- Peel the mango and onion and chop into small pieces

- Zest and juice the lime into the mango and onion mixture

- Add the vinegar, honey, and salt to the mango mixture

- Cover and chill for 1-2 hours before serving (not a crucial step, but helps the flavors to develop)