Sweet & Savory ~~ Creamy Chicken Penne Pasta

Here's another full guest table entree pleaser for your holiday meal planning which will serve a dozen people, if need be.

INGREDIENTS & INSTRUCTIONS FOR STEP 1:

• 4 large chicken breasts
• 2 Tbsp. diced garlic
• Olive oil
• Garlic Pepper
• Parmesan cheese

• ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
• Saute garlic in olive oil until tender. 
• Lightly brown chicken breasts on both sides, sprinkling with Garlic Pepper during process.  
• Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on both sides.
•  Let chicken rest and cool for 10 minutes.
• Cut into bite size pieces.

INGREDIENTS & INSTRUCTIONS FOR STEP 2:

• 2 cans Cream of Celery Soup
• Milk or water
• 1 Tbsp. diced garlic
• 1 small jar diced Pimentos
• 2 Tbsp. hot sauce (I used Cajun Sunsine)
• 2  small cans sliced water chestnuts
• Garlic Herb bread crumbs or flavor of your choice
• 2 cups shredded Sharp Cheddar cheese
• 2 cups dried Penne pasta noodles, cooked according to package directions, and thoroughly drained

• ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
• In a mixing bowl, thoroughly mix the soup with 2 soup cans of milk or water, whatever you choose to use.
• Add the garlic, hot sauce, pimentos, and water chestnuts.
• Stir until combined.

ASSEMBLY & COOKING INSTRUCTIONS:

• Place one-half of cooked chicken into bottom of greased 9 x 13 baking pan.  (I prefer to use a glass pan for this recipe).
• Add one half of cooked Penne pasta noodles
• Pour one half of soup mixture over top.
• Sprinkle one cup of Cheddar cheese on top.
• Sprinkle bread crumbs over mixture.
• Repeat above steps.
• Place sheet of aluminum foil lightly over entree, but do not fold foil down onto the sides of the baking pan. This will prevent noodles from drying out during the initial baking stage.
• Bake for 35-35 minutes in 350 degree oven.
• Remove foil for the last 10-15 minutes.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS:

• Serve with bread, rolls, or crackers.
• A garden salad is a nice accompaniment.
• Consider pairing this recipe with a little cup of soup.  My Broccoli Cheddar Soup would be a great suggestion. Stay tuned as I plan on floating out this recipe later in the month.

Bravo to all of my fellow cooks and chefs out there in Holiday Land.  Cook on! Your friends, family, and comrades will love you all the more.  

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Sweet & Savory Tuesday ~~ Pomegranate Pasta Sauce

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 - 15 oz. can tomato sauce or use fresh tomatoes from your garden
• 1 - 6 oz. can tomato paste or use fresh tomatoes from your garden
• 1 cup pomegranate juice
• 4 cloves diced garlic
• 2 medium sized onions 
• 1 - Tbsp. dried Italian seasoning or use fresh basil, oregano, and rosemary
• 1 - Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 - tsp. salt, optional
• 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Puree onions in food processor
• If you are using dried herbs for Italian seasoning, grind them in your mortar and pestle

• Combine all ingredients in a medium sized sauce pan
• Stir until smooth
• Bring to a gentle boil and simmer for at least 45 minutes. The longer you allow the sauce to simmer, the better the flavor will be.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS:

• Serve with spaghetti noodles or pasta of your choice
• Pair with tossed green salad and garlic french bread

Pomegranates are loaded with nutrients and antioxidants. For additional information, here is a link:

https://authoritynutrition.com/12-proven-benefits-of-pomegranate/

I have such fond childhood memories of my maternal grandmother, Lenna Grace, sending a box of yummy pomegranates to our family each year for Thanksgiving.  The area in which she lived was very conducive to growing ones with exceptional color and flavor.

If you happen to give this pasta sauce with a new twist a try, I would love to hear from you.  So would my blog readers!

Happy eating in Pomegranate's Presence.

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Sweet & Savory Tuesday - Presto with the Pesto!

                                                        


INGREDIENTS:

• 3 cups fresh basil leaves
• 3 cloves fresh garlic, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 3/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
• Dash of kosher salt, optional

DIRECTIONS:

• When selecting fresh basil, make sure to remove any seed pods which have formed in the very top of the plant

• Place basil leaves inside food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped
• Add the garlic, olive oil, and Parmesan Cheese
• Process until smooth

SERVING SUGGESTIONS:

• Prepare noodles (I used spelt noodles, but spinach noodles would be delicious as well), and serve with Pesto

• Pesto is great on pizza crusts, slices of baguette bread or fresh tomatoes, crackers, mixed with sour cream to be used as a veggie dip, and on rolls the herbal river.
• Pesto can be frozen and eaten at a later date.

If you have other serving suggestions, I would like to hear from you!  Please leave a comment.  We enjoy hearing from our blog readers.

Happy Dining & Enjoy the herbs of summer!

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