Arugulamania Dish #1

So with a good amount of incredibly tasty arugula walnut pesto in my fridge I decided to give it a work out and planned a couple of meals using it. It actually could have been three, but I kept snacking on it too much.

The night I made the pesto I dreamed up this little pasta dish. A majority of the ingredients I had on hand, so it made for a quick and very delicious tasting supper. You could also make this meal with regular pesto, or omit the chicken and double up on the mushrooms for a vegetarian option.

Before I get started, let me point out that in this recipe I used a store bought marinade for the chicken AND a store bought alfredo sauce. I’m not opposed to short cuts in my cooking from time to time. You can certainly use your favorites in replace of mine, but I have noted what brands I used.

Grilled Chicken and Portobello Pasta

with Arugula Walnut Pesto Cream Sauce

*Serves 2

(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

- 1 marinated chicken breast, pounded to even thickness*

- 2 medium Portobello mushrooms

- 1 ¼ cup prepared alfredo sauce**

- 2 tablespoons Arugula walnut pesto

- ½ pound of fettuccini pasta, cooked al dente

- 1 roma tomato, diced (optional)

- EVOO

- S&P

* We used Lawry’s Herb and Garlic 30 minute marinade. Use whatever kind you prefer.

** If you’re feeling extra ambitious, you can make your own. We used Buitoni’s brand from the refrigerator section.

Directions:

1. Marinate chicken 30 minutes prior to cooking – at least. Clean mushrooms, remove stems and toss in a light coating of EVOO and salt and pepper.

2. Start your grill and bring to temp. Once well heated, grill chicken for roughly 4-6 minutes on each side. Start before you put the portabellas on – they will only take 3-5 minutes on each side. Remove portabellas from heat when have developed a deep brown color and softened up. Chicken should be no longer pink in the inside and juices will run clear. (I can’t give you an exact time because heat temps vary and thickness varies.)

3. While chicken is cooling, heat alfredo over medium heat in a sauce pan. Once alfredo is heated through add the pesto and stir to combine.

4. Once alfredo/pesto is heated through, remove from heat and toss with hot cooked pasta until sauce coats all the fettuccini.

5. Slice chicken and portabellas and place on top of pasta to serve. Add tomatoes as garnish if you choose.

Thoughts: This was a lovely pasta dish. The arugula didn’t overwhelm the dish because the alfredo mellowed out its intensity. They combined beautifully to make a flavorful and delicious cream sauce. The grilled chicken and portabellas were perfect on top of the pasta. You can add them in – BD likes to do this – but I don’t like to when using a long cut of pasta.

I noted that the tomatoes are optional. Personally, I love fresh tomatoes on top of a pasta dish. To me it adds a light and fresh element to a pasta dish that I really love. I’ve got one more recipe to share using the pesto and I should have it up sometime this weekend.

Rae ^..^

Arugula Overabundunce

Before I get started – is overabundance an actual word??? Why does it seem like its not?

I had a bunch of arugula left over from my Roast Beef panini endeavor the other day and I just couldn’t let it go to waste. I try very, very hard that whenever I purchase food (especially fresh produce) to use it all up before it becomes a science experiment in my veggie drawer. Most of the time they end up in an omelet, frittata or a veggie pasta, but arugula is bit different. I would say that it’s a bit of an acquired taste because of its peppery and slightly bitter flavor.

So anyway, what to do with all this arugula? I knew we couldn’t eat it in salads over the next two or three days so I decided to make a pesto because it would keep in my fridge/freezer for a good amount of time.

Arugula Walnut Pesto

*Makes approx 1 cup of pesto

(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

- 3 cups Arugula, packed

- 2 cloves of garlic

- 1/3 cup parmesan cheese

- ½ cup walnuts, unsalted

- 2/3 cups EVOO (roughly)
- juice of one lemon

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Create an ice bath in a large mixing bowl with water and ice.

2. Place walnuts in a dry (no oil) sauté pan over medium heat for roughly 5 minutes. Be sure to stir them a few times so not to burn. Remove from heat when done and set aside.

Giving Roast Beef Some Love

A couple of girlfriends and I were talking food earlier today and one of them mentioned Boursin cheese. I am a HUGE fan of Boursin, its one of my favorite things and I use it quite a bit in my cooking. Like here and here. My other friend “J” mentioned that she likes to mix a little of it with Horseradish and enjoy it on roast beef sandwiches. This got my mind going and I could stop thinking about it until I made a sandwich to devour for dinner. My food cravings always dictate what I have for dinner and since BD was working late I didn’t have anyone argue with me. I used an old George Forman grill to press these but you can use a panini press or even a sauté pan like a grilled cheese. You could probably even skip the “cooking” part if you want altogether, but I didn’t.

Roast Beef, Red Onion, Arugula and Horseradish Spread Panini

*Serves 2

(printable version)

Ingredients:

- 4 slices bread – any kind, I used an Italian loaf

- 1/3 pound good quality sliced deli roast beef

- 1.5 cups loosely packed aruluga

- 3 tablespoons spreadable garlic and herb cheese – such as Boursin

- 1 teaspoon prepared horseradish (more or less if you like!)

- 3 tablespoons butter

- ¼ of a red onion, sliced