Marinated Zucchini with Bow Ties

Ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 pounds zucchini, cut in half lengthwise then into 1/4-inch slices

2 1/2 teaspoons salt

3/4 pound plum tomatoes, seeded and diced

1/2 cup chopped fresh basil

5 tablespoons wine vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons fresh-ground black pepper

1 pound bow ties

1/3 cup olive oil

Cooking Directions

In a large frying pan, heat 3 tablespoons of the oil over moderate heat. Add the garlic, zucchini, and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 minutes. 

Transfer the zucchini to a large stainless-steel, glass, or ceramic bowl and stir in the tomatoes, basil, vinegar, the remaining 2 teaspoons salt, and the pepper.

In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the bow ties until just done, about 15 minutes. Drain the pasta and toss it with the marinated zucchini and the remaining 1/3 cup oil.

Yield: 4 servings

Still Hungry?

Garden-fresh zucchini and tomatoes make a beautiful pasta, perfect for a warm summer night's dinner. It can be served hot or at room temperature, either for four as a main course or for eight as a side dish--with grilled chicken, for instance.

Notes:

Variation: Balsamic-Marinated Zucchini with Bow Ties For a sweeter dish, you can substitute an equal amount of balsamic vinegar in place of the wine vinegar called for in the recipe.

Chicken Salad

This is a quick pasta salad but leave out the pasta and it is a great chicken salad sandwich recipe

Prep time: 10 min
Cook Time: 10 min if you use chicken that needs to be cooked we used canned chicken or precooked

All of these ingredients are to be combined to fit your taste so there is no specific measurement giving. Have fun and play with it until you get a taste you like. Just remember to add a little at a time so you don't over do it cause it's easy to add hard to take out.

Mayonnaise or Miracle Whip
Salad Supreme (this is a seasoning you can find at most grocery stores I usually find it by the make you own salad dressing)
Pasta
Onions chopped
celery chopped
pepper
Chicken chopped (we have also used crab and shrimp)

Sausage with Peppers and Pasta

I got this one from Kraft Recipes

Prep Time: 10 min

Cook Time: 20 Min

Servings: 6 1 1/2 cups

3 cups rigatoni pasta, uncooked

1 lb.  Italian sausage, sliced

1 each: red, green and yellow pepper, coarsely chopped

1 can (14-1/2 oz.) Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained

1-1/2 cups KRAFT Shredded Italian* Mozzarella-Parmesan Cheese Blend

1/4 cup KRAFT Shredded Parmesan Cheese

Cook pasta as directed on package. Meanwhile, cook sausage in large skillet on medium heat 10 min. Stir in peppers; cook 7 min. or until sausage is cooked through and peppers are crisp-tender. Stir in tomatoes; cook 2 min. or until heated through.

Drain pasta. Add to sausage mixture with shredded cheese; mix well.

Top with Parmesan.

Bacon and Tomato Pesto Pasta

Quick and easy pasta salad

Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
about 8 servings

8 slices of Bacon chopped
1/2 cup Cherry tomatoes
1 small tub chive and onion cream cheese spread or dip
1 cup Milk
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese
6 cups cooked penne pasta

Cook the bacon in a skillet for 5 min or until crisp, drain off fat. stir in cherry tomatoes and tub of chive and onion dip, milk and parmesan. mix well and cook until bubbly stirring frequently. Stir in penne pasta.

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

You might think how could making Chicken Noodle Soup from scratch be faster than opening a can and heating it.... Well it's not, But it's so much better for you since you know all of the ingredients and something about homemade always makes it taste better.

Prep Time 10 min
Cook time 15 min

1 can canned Chicken
1 cup copped carrots
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 med onion chopped
1-2 cans chicken broth
2 cups noodles uncooked

or for homemade noodles
1 egg
4-8 tbs flour

In a large pot combine 1 can of chicken broth, all vegetables and cook until the vegetables are tender crisp. Add the canned chicken, break it up if it needs to be. Add another can of chicken broth if it need the flavor or the liquid you can also add in water as needed. Add the noodles and salt and pepper to taste.

For Homemade noodles (your hands will get messy with this one since it is hard to really mix it with a utensil)

In a small bowl combine the egg and 4 tbs of flour. mix in the rest of the flour a little at a time until the dough has a light stickiness feel to it.  spread some flour out on the counter and roll out the dough cut in to 1" X 1/2" strips and add to the hot soup. when they rise to the top of the liquid they are cooked.


We also substitute potatoes for the celery since we rarely have celery in the house.

Chicken Pasta Salad

So simple that you may try to make it difficult.

Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 5 min

2 cups pasta uncooked
1 lb chicken breasts or you can buy precooked strips
1/2 cup green peas
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup red pepper
1/4 cup Italian dressing
1/2 cup miracle whip or mayonnaise

Prepare the pasta drain and cool.

In a skillet cook the chicken throughly then set aside to cool once cooled chop or slice into strips.

Prepare all of the other vegetables and combine in a bowl with the miracle whip, add the pasta and chicken mix well and refrigerate until chilled about an hour.

You can eat this one warm if you would like, just heat up all the vegetable a little so everything is warm.

Speedy Chicken Stir-fry

Quick and yummy could you ask for better!

Prep Time 10 min
Cook Time 15 min

8 oz angel hair pasta, uncooked
2 cups broccoli florets
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast cut into thin strips
1/2 cup sesame dressing
2 tbs soy sauce
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1/3 cup peanuts (optional)

Cook pasta, add broccoli the last 3 min

In a large skillet or wok cook chicken on medium heat for 6-8 min, stir in dressing, soy sauce, ginger, garlic powder and crushed red pepper. Cook 1 min more.

Combine with noodles and broccoli.