Pasta | Mommie Cooks!

Shrimp Pasta with Strawberry Champagne Vinaigrette

April 26, 2012 By Julie 14 Comments

I was perusing through the pages of Cooking Light online the other day when I came across this column discussing the art of creating a radically simple vinaigrette. Vinaigrette, in my most humble of opinions, is a seriously powerful tool to have in your kitchen arsenal. Simply grab some oil, add in a bit of acid and you’ve done it. Want an Asian salad dressing? Use sesame oil and rice vinegar. Add in a little soy sauce and lime juice and you’re ready to dress. Looking for a more classical Italian? Change the sesame oil to olive, the rice vinegar to white wine vinegar and throw in a basil leaf or two and some mustard. Presto chango, you’re ready to dress. It kind of makes you wonder why you’d ever buy a bottle at the grocery store when it’s so easy to put one together in your own kitchen.

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Asian Veggie Pasta

June 7, 2011 By Julie 27 Comments

Asian veggie pasta is one of those rare dishes that I consider to have “the trifecta effecta” going for it. And just what do I mean by the trifecta effecta? Allow me to explain. It covers the three big aspirations for any fare you put together.
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Awards to share and a Delicious Summer Salad to Boot!

July 13, 2010 By Julie 22 Comments

It’s that time again; time to share some love with my fellow blogger friends! I’ve recently received six different awards honoring my blog. Six, people!! That’s a whole lotta love! What an amazing feeling to know that people are appreciating and enjoying what I’m sharing with them all. Blogging has been such an amazing journey for me. I had no idea I’d enjoy it as much as I have and best of all, I had no idea that I’d meet such wonderful people along the way. I have a bunch of blogs I want to shout out at today, so let’s get started!
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Alfredo with a side of Dinner

April 22, 2010 By Julie 8 Comments

I don’t know about you, but I love alfredo. Something about cheese meets cream meets noodle that I just can’t resist. I try to save it for special meals because, well, it’s cream meets cheese meets noodle. While my taste buds revel in the culinary delight, but thighs don’t carry the same love for the delightful delicacy.

So in order to provide myself a sufficient enough reason to indulge in a helping of the noodley goodness, I decided to go all out for Sunday dinner this past weekend. I made a tarragon lemon roast chicken (recipe to come in the near future), homemade whole wheat rolls (recipe to also come in the near future), fresh asparagus, and some homemade spinach noodles to accompany my alfredo sauce. And holy moly, my dogs were barking, my back was squawking, and my children were under appreciated, but my dinner was amazing and I relished every. single. bite.

So I’m guessing that you’re interested to know how you can achieve the same bliss in your house. Believe it or not, it’s not that difficult at all. My version of alfredo is pretty quick and painless (so long as you leave the chicken, homemade noodles, and from scratch rolls out of the mix). Here’s what you’ll need to create noodle magic:

1/2 Pkg of Fettuccine Noodles

1/2 Cup of Heavy Cream

2 Tbsp of Butter

1/2 tsp of Chicken Base (Vegetable Base to go meatless)

1/2 Cup of Parmesan Cheese

Salt and Pepper to taste

First off, I have to pat myself on the back and say “Look, self, at those beautiful spinach noodles!” They seem as though they can sense they’re about to be made into the best darn side dish since sliced bread. And second, I do sometimes add an egg to make it more of an official alfredo, but this is my quickie “I can’t be bothered with the work but I still want all the flavor” alfredo so the egg is inextricably absent from the picture.

One final thing I want to note about this dish, is that, if you desire a cheese twist, you should try substituting 1/3 cup of crumbled blue cheese for the Parmesan sometime. You won’t regret it!

On with the show. First grab a pan, fill it with water and a couple good shakes of salt, get it boiling and add in your noodles to cook until al dente. When your noodles are cooked up, throw them in a strainer and set aside.

Now, turn your heat to medium low and melt your butter in the pan. When the butter is melted, add in your cream and chicken base. Finally stir in your parmesan. Taste your sauce to see if it’s to your liking. Add salt and pepper to taste.