The beginning of the school year and a layered pasta salad

Yesterday marked the first day that I haven't been either in school or teaching since my brief stint of teacherly unemployment in 2007. That's right, since I've been in kindergarten, I can count three Tuesdays after Labour Day when I haven't been part of the education system (2003 - working at Louise's Belgian Chocolates; 2008 - waiting on the supply teaching list to get hired; 2012 - mat leave). Honestly, it leaves me feeling kind of at a loss.

I know there are lots of people who would kill to have a year off, but I'm a little sad not to be in the classroom. Interacting with more than a hundred people a day makes me happy. It keeps me entertained and I laugh a lot.

When I started teaching junior high school, I thought: there's a reason no one wants to teach this age group.

And then I realized that 12-15 year olds, especially when in their own school, are pretty much the perfect combination of children and adults. They're learning sarcasm, but they still believe in magic in the world. It's all kinds of lovely.

So, being at home with a baby... well... this is out of my comfort zone. Teenagers, I get. Babies... not so much.

Of course, when they're adorable as Audrey is, it's hard not to spend time laughing and smiling at her. Especially when she makes faces like this:

The many stretches (or fist pumps or YMCA renditions) of Ms. Audrey

So, the plan is to take some time to focus, not only on the wee one who just passed out in her swing, but also to refocus on healthy eating and exercise. So, on that note, I present a clean eating pasta salad:

  

Not the best picture in the world, but the container isn't perfectly clear, and frankly I don't have time to style my food. =P

The colours are very pretty though:

 

 Balsamic Tuna Pasta Salad

(from Clean Eating, Aug/Sept 2012)

serves 4 - 2 dinners & 2 lunches

Ingredients

1 cup brown rice pasta fusilli/rotini
4 tbsp white wine vinegar
4 tbsp balsamic vinegar
¼ tsp dried basil
¼ tsp dried oregano
¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
2 tbsp water
¼ cup finely chopped sun dried tomatoes
¼-½ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp olive oil
2 6oz cans water packed tuna, drained
½ pint cherry tomatoes, halved
a handful cremini mushrooms, sliced
mixed salad greens
2 oz grated light mozzarella cheese

Directions

1. In a large pot of boiling water, cook pasta according to package directions.

2. Meanwhile, in another small pot, heat vinegars with basil, oregano, red pepper flakes and water. Bring to a boil, then remove from heat. Stir in sun dried tomatoes, salt and pepper and set aside. Once slightly cooled, whisk in olive oil.

3. To assemble in layers, put a quarter of the dressing in the bottom of a 2 cup container. Layer in a half can of tuna, followed by pasta, mushrooms, tomatoes. Fill the rest of the container with salad greens and top with cheese. It's important that the salad greens don't touch the dressing; if they do, they'll get soggy. You can make this up to a day in advance.

Clean Eating's Eggplant & Sausage Pasta - Less Clean for Your Porky Goodness

Big, gloriously coloured eggplant have arrived in our local market. I'm always a bit leery of Italian eggplant (as opposed to the Japanese eggplant I usually buy). Too often, I seem to end up with a vegetable that has a thick, bitter skin. I'm not usually a huge fan.

But, when the vegetable is fresh from the farm, I can't pass up the opportunity to try out a new recipe. I got this one from Clean Eating magazine.

I cannot rave about this dish enough. It has all sorts of delicious balances - sweet (raisins), salty (sausage), savoury (tomatoes and eggplant) and sour (vinegar).

Eggplant and Sausage Pasta

(adapted slightly from Clean Eating Magazine)

Ingredients

1½ tbsp olive oil, divided
1 large eggplant, cut into ½" cubes
freshly ground black pepper
8 oz pasta (I used Kamut & Spelt pasta)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large, fresh sausage (I used a herb and garlic pork sausage), casing removed and meat crumbled
½ tsp dried oregano
¼ tsp red pepper flakes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1½ cups chopped tomatoes
¼ cup raisins
1 tbsp capers, rinsed and drained
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
¼ cup chopped parsley
kosher salt, to taste
½ cup low fat ricotta cheese


Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400º. Spread ½ tbsp olive oil on a large baking sheet. Toss eggplant with ½ tbsp olive oil and spread over baking sheet in a single layer. Sprinkle with pepper. Bake in oven for 25-30 minutes, stirring once or twice, until golden brown and tender. Remove from heat and set aside.

2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and cook pasta according to manufacturer's directions. Drain and set aside.

3. Heat remaining ½ tbsp oil in a dutch oven. Sauté onion and sausage until onion is browned and sausage in cooked through. Stir in oregano, red pepper flakes and garlic. Sauté for an additional minute. Add in tomatoes, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer. Stir in eggplant, raisins, capers and simmer until sauce is thickened, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vinegar and 3 tbsp parsley. Add pasta into pot, tossing to coat.

4. Serve with a dollop of ricotta cheese and a sprinkle of parsley.

Chicken Simmer with Spinach, Capers and Onions

Cleaning out the fridge is almost always an exercise in experimentation. This recipe was born out of the need to do something with some bone-in chicken thighs and some leftover pizza sauce (really just whole tomatoes and garlic simmered together).

A sort through the fridge revealed half a bag of spinach, half a sweet onion, a little leftover pesto and some capers. I opted to save the pesto for another day and came up with this little number.

Chicken Simmered with Spinach, Capers and Onions

Ingredients

Rub for Chicken

1 tsp ground fennel seeds
1 tsp dried basil
½ tsp ground coriander
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp freshly ground pepper

1 lb bone-in, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of excess fat
1 tbsp olive oil
½ large onion, chopped
1 cup pasta/pizza sauce
½ cup full bodied red wine
2 tbsp capers, drained and rinsed
4 cups fresh spinach, washed and torn into bite size pieces
3 oz spaghetti
¼ cup fresh basil
freshly grated Parmesan for serving

Directions

1. Combine all rub ingredients together in a small bowl. Rub all over chicken thighs.

2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Brown chicken thighs, 2-3 minutes on each side. Don't worry about cooking all the way through, you just want to get a good colour going. Remove chicken from pan. Add in onion and sauté until translucent.

3. Pour in wine and deglaze the pan for about 30 seconds. You don't want it to all evaporate though. Stir in pasta sauce and capers. Return chicken to pan. Bring sauce to a simmer, reduce heat, cover and cook, turning chicken once, for about 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked and tender.

4. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a full boil and cook pasta, about 12 minutes. Drain and set aside.

5. Remove chicken from pan and pull meat from bones, discarding fat and bones. Add spinach to skillet, cover and let cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Return chicken meat to pan. Toss to incorporate. Add in pasta and toss again.

Serve with basil and Parmesan and the rest of the bottle of wine. Makes enough for 2 for a rainy weekend dinner.

Chicken and Broccoli Pasta Bake with Pesto

Once the choice pieces of a roast are used up in salads or sandwiches, what's left often doesn't amount to much. The casserole has long been the go-to for the budget cook who has limited key ingredients and needs to stretch them as far as possible.

Heck, it's the go to for many who aren't budget cooks because they're easy and comforting. Really, it's a win-win situation for all parties concerned.

What I struggle with when I look for casserole recipes is the number that call for processed ingredients. I'll be honest, we don't keep cans of soup in our cupboards. So, I'm often left not having those ingredients that are deemed staples.

Thankfully, I remembered this recipe from Cooking Light from about a decade ago that had a homemade cheese sauce base! With the exception of the pesto I threw in, there's no processed ingredients here!

Chicken and Broccoli Pasta Bake with Pesto

(inspired by an old recipe from Cooking Light)

Ingredients

1 head broccoli florets, cut into bite size pieces
3 cups (give or take) cubed roasted chicken
4 cups cooked pasta (about 8 oz uncooked)
½ yellow or red pepper, chopped
¼ cup fresh basil, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 shallot, minced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
¼ cup flour
2 cups milk
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
¼ cup pesto, plus additional for serving
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350º. Spray an 8"x8" casserole dish with cooking spray.

2. Steam broccoli florets briefly (4 minutes or so), or until vibrant green. Toss with chicken, pasta, pepper and basil.

3. Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Sauté shallots and garlic for 3-4 minutes, or until softened. Sprinkle flour over top and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Grab a whisk, and begin to pour the milk in slooooowly, whisking constantly. Doing this will prevent lumps. Once all milk is incorporated, cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove pan from heat and stir in cheese and pesto. Let melt and then pour mixture over pasta-broccoli-chicken mixture. Toss to coat and place in casserole dish.

4. Bake, uncovered, for about 20 minutes or until bubbly. Serve with an additional dollop of pesto.

Pasta with Kale, Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Bacon

Until about a month ago, I'd never had kale before. Now it seems that I eat it 2-3 times a week! I cannot get enough of this stuff.

This recipe from Cooking Light turned out to be a total winner, in spite of my husband and I agreeing that we wanted more. We ate this meal then did our Christmas cards (while sipping our Chestnut Liqueur). It was the perfect weeknight meal.

I will say, even though I used the 5 cups of chopped kale called for, I felt the recipe could have used more.

Orecchiette with Kale, Bacon and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Ingredients

8  ounces  uncooked orecchiette pasta
5  cups  bagged prewashed kale
2  slices center-cut bacon
1/4  cup  oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and roughly chopped
1/2  teaspoon  crushed red pepper
3  large garlic cloves, chopped
1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
3/8  teaspoon  salt
1  ounce  Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, shaved
2  tablespoons  fresh lemon juice
Preparation

1. Cook pasta in boiling water 8 minutes or until almost tender. Add kale, and cook 2 minutes. Drain in a colander over a bowl, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid.

2. While pasta cooks, cook bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat 4 minutes or until crisp. Remove bacon from pan with a slotted spoon; crumble and set aside. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add sun-dried tomatoes, crushed red pepper, and garlic to drippings in pan; cook 1 minute, stirring frequently. Add pasta mixture, reserved 1/2 cup cooking liquid, black pepper, and salt to pan; toss to combine. Top pasta mixture evenly with bacon and cheese; drizzle evenly with lemon juice.

Guest starring my husband

Phil is an amazing baker. A master baker, if you will. But he doesn't do main dishes very often.

Excuse the harvest gold appliance. We're in a rental.

I love it when he gets in the kitchen.

Last year, at Word on the Street, we picked up a cookbook from our favourite fun restaurant in Toronto, The Beer Bistro. Since then, we've made one dish out of it: coq au biere.

But, after Phil's triumph tonight, we've made two dishes, and now he's going to have to cook for me all the time.

Check this out:

Drunken Spaghetti with Clams and Stout

Yum!

So, here's what I say: get yourself the Beer Bistro cookbook. If you have a man in your life who loves beer, but doesn't cook, give it to him. Make him cook for you.

Everyone's a winner!

Especially you. You're the real winner of the whole shebang.

If you don't have anyone to cook for you, that's okay too. Buy yourself the cookbook and be prepared to be a domestic deity.