Roasted Shimp and Orzo

I am feeling extremely grateful right now because my husband cooked dinner several times this week.  I left out the recipes, went to work and came home to a prepared meal.  It was so great!

Roasted Shrimp and Orzo
adapted from Food Network
Ingredients


Kosher salt

Good olive oil

3/4 pound orzo pasta (rice-shaped pasta)

1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (3 lemons)

Freshly ground black pepper

2 pounds (16 to 18 count) shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 cup minced scallions, white and green parts

1 cup chopped fresh dill

1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and medium-diced

1/2 cup small-diced red onion

3/4 pound good feta cheese, large diced

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Fill a large pot with water, add 1 tablespoon of salt and a splash of oil, and bring the water to a boil. Add the orzo and simmer for 9 to 11 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it's cooked al dente. Drain and pour into a large bowl. Whisk together the lemon juice, 1/2 cup olive oil, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Pour over the hot pasta and stir well.


Meanwhile, place the shrimp on a sheet pan, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to combine and spread out in a single layer. Roast for 5 to 6 minutes, until the shrimp are cooked through. Be very careful not to overcook the shrimp.


Add the shrimp to the orzo and then add the scallions, dill, parsley, cucumber, onion, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Toss well. Add the feta and stir carefully. Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour to allow the flavors to blend, or refrigerate overnight. If refrigerated, taste again for seasonings and bring back to room temperature before serving.

* We did not have Orzo so we used a very small pasta which worked just as well in my opinion.
I really enjoyed this dish.  Love, love the lemon, dill and shrimp combination.    

Firebird Chicken Pasta

I have seen this recipe posted online by a few different people. 
Each time I looked at the ingredients I thought it sounded interesting
but I hesitated making it a week night recipe because of the number
of steps involved in the recipe. 

Since the weekend allows for a little more time to cook dinner I finally
gave this recipe a try.  I have to admit that this pasta dish is" packed full of flavor. 
It is not a hot dish but it is a little spicy.


Firebird Chicken Pasta

* I did not have a Chili Rub so I just mixed the ingredients the recipe has listed  to make
my own adding more of the chili powder, paprika and cajun spices and just a pinch of
the cayenne pepper, salt and sugar.

* This recipe is for 2lbs of pasta so if you are making less you may want to make less of the cream sauce.

Cream Sauce
2 tbsp olive oil


1/3 cup chile rub (ancho chile powder, paprika, cayenne pepper, sugar and salt)

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 shallot, minced

1/4 cup white wine

1 cup chicken stock

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup milk

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp ground black pepper

Roux (Whisk 2 Tbsp flour with 1/2 cup of chicken stock to make a paste)

1 1/2 cups asiago cheese, grated

3 tbsp basil, roughly chopped

Firebird’s Chicken Pasta

2 lbs penne pasta

4 chicken breasts, grilled

4 slices apple wood-smoked bacon, cooked

3 cups chile asiago cream sauce (see recipe)

3 tbsp green onions, chopped

1 large fresh tomato, diced

Parsley

Sauce:
Heat the oil in a sauce pan on medium heat, add the shallots and garlic and cook
about 5-7 minutes.  Add the chili rub.  Mix well. 
Add the wine and cook on medium / high until reduced by half.  Add the chicken stock
(the half cup that is left after you made the roux) and bring to a simmer. 
Add the heavy cream, milk, salt, pepper and cook for 3 minutes.
Add the roux ,  asiago cheese and basil. 
 
Season the chicken with salt and pepper. ( I seasoned my chicken with a little bit of the chili rub).
Cook on medium high. Set aside .  Cook the bacon, set aside.
 
Cook the pasta.
 
While the pasta is cooking dice the green onion and tomato, chop the cooked bacon, and slice the chicken.
 
Drain the pasta.  Place it back in a big pot.  Add the cream sauce over the pasta and stir well.  Add in the green onions, bacon, tomato and stir.   Serve with a little parsley or basil on top.
 
 

 
 
                                            Yummy pasta dish ~ packed full of flavor.   

A Day Cooking with Mamma Agata in Ravello, Italy

Spending the day with Mamma Agata and her family.

When we started planning our trip to Italy my
husband and I began to research all the
different places we could go, restaurants we
could eat at and things we could do.
The possibilities were endless.

During my research I came across this website
that described a cooking class with Mamma Agata.
On the website they claimed that you
would spend the day cooking in Mamma Agata's private home,
which is situated 1,000 feet above sea level, overlooking
the Amalfi Coast. Her property includes a garden
full of lemon trees, fruit trees, vegetables, spices
and flowers. She would teach you to cook traditional
dishes like antipasti, pastas, seasonal vegetable dishes
as well as meat dishes.

This sounded too good to be true but sign me up is exactly
what I thought.

A few days into our trip we took the famous, scenic
drive along the Amalfi Coast. Now, those of you that
know me well are thinking I can't believe Sharon was
able to make the winding, narrow, challenging drive
to Ravello. I was only able to endure the drive because
my husband drove very carefully ( so I didn't have to
ride in a bus)and because I took a little dramamine. :)

The drive along the Amalfi Coast is AMAZING!!
We stopped several times to take a pictures because it
was just so beautiful. I have included some of the
photos we took along the way.







After about two and half hours of driving and praying
the whole way that this "cooking class" was going to
be worth it we finally arrived.

And I knew from the moment Chiara opened the door
to her home that this was going to be the
opportunity of a life time!



Chiara welcomed us with open arms. She brought
us to the terrace where we looked out over the
Amalfi Coast. Just like the website described but
so much better in person - breathtaking!!
We were served coffe and Mamma's famous lemon cake.






Once the rest of the guests arrived ( one of the guest
being a famous movie star - Sela Ward and her family)
we began our day of cooking with Mamma Agata and her family.
Chiara ( Mamma's daughter) and her husband Gennaro showed
us how limoncello is made. This would be served later in
the day.




Then we moved into the kitchen where the magic began.
Tips and secrets were shared as Mamma and Chiara
demonstrated how several different southern Italian dishes
are made. During the class we learned how to make Mamma
Agata's Coccoli, Eggplant Rolls, Eggplant Parmigina,
Pasta with Sausage and Peppers, Pasta of the Farmer
and Lemon Chicken.










Of course the food and wine were amazing but the
personal stories Chaira shared and passion for what
they do makes this experience so unique.
From the moment you arrive at Mamma Agata's the
family makes you feel like you are special
and that they are so excited
you came to spend the day with them.

I have attached the link to Mamma Agata's
Cooking School because if you are ever
it Italy you should definately visit
Mamma Agata.
The experience is everything
they claim on their website and so much more!!http://www.mammaagata.com/cooking-class.aspx