Penne ala Pesto

My husband took me out to eat at a favorite local Italian restaurant the other day.  (Wasn't that sweet of him?) Their special of the day was Penne ala Pesto (Penne noodles in a creamy pesto sauce with chicken).  I love pesto, so I thought I'd give it a try. :)  This dish was really good, but I thought it didn't have quite enough pesto, since I really like to taste the basil flavor.

Imagine my delight, when upon going out to my garden, I found that my basil plants had put out new leaves after the heat of the summer!  I had given them up for gone long ago.  Last spring I had planted a bunch of basil plants so that I could make pesto.  I made several batches and froze them in the spring before the weather got too hot.  After the plants went to seed, I figured that was the end of them.  So I was surprised and pleased when I found my plants had put on new tender growth!

So I set off to make pesto and to recreate the restaurant recipe to my liking.  I use a very basic pesto recipe.

Basil Pesto

1 cup firmly packed basil leaves

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup pine nuts

1 large clove garlic, quartered

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup olive oil

Put all ingredients except oil into a blender or food processor.  Blend using the pulse setting, stirring often and scraping down sides until coarsely chopped.  Turn blender on a low setting and gradually add olive oil until everything is chopped and is the consistency of soft butter.  Use or put into a sealed container right away.

After I made the pesto, I put water on for the noodles and started making the cream sauce, which is basically like an alfredo sauce with pesto added.

Creamy Pesto Sauce

2 tablespoons butter

2 medium cloves garlic, minced

1 cup milk

3 tablespoons flour

1 cup cream

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup prepared pesto

1/2 teaspoon salt

grilled chicken slices, optional

Melt the butter in a large saucepan.  Add minced garlic to the butter and saute for about a minute.  Pour milk into a measuring cup and add flour.  Blend well.  Add milk mixture to the butter and garlic in the pan.  Add cream.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened.  Add cheese and stir until melted.  Add pesto and salt.  If desired, add chicken and continue to cook until everything is heated through.

By the time the sauce and chicken were done, the noodles were done, and we had a great supper!  I confess, it may not be the healthiest, but I have a weakness for cream. :)

Note: You can also buy pesto in a jar or in the refrigerated section of your grocery store.  Buying basil at the store can be expensive!  If you find you really like pesto, it is not hard to grow a basil plant!

Butter Chicken

Butter Chicken, an East Indian recipe, is one of my all time favorite meals! My sister-in-law introduced me to it at an Indian Buffet a few years ago, and since then I have created this shortcut recipe for it. I made this the other day, and posted a picture on Facebook, and I have received many recipe requests! I am the kind of cook that just adds what seems right, so I don't have exact measurements for everything, but I will try to get as close as I can! :) This dish can be somewhat spicy, depending on the restaurant or cook, but I tend to make it pretty mild. I made this in a crock pot, so it required very little effort, but it can be made on the stovetop, also! Serve this over Basmati rice with hot buttered Naan bread (an Indian flatbread).

2 cups tomato juice
1 cup cream
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup butter
1 tablespoon minced onion
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8-1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper (cayenne)
5-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup flour

In a crock pot, combine tomato juice, yogurt, cream and butter. Add all of the spices and stir to mix. I let this sit and simmer for a while to let all the flavors blend. Rinse the chicken breasts and trim off the fat, then cut into bite size pieces. In a large skillet, cook the chicken over medium-high heat, until no longer pink, stirring occasionally. Add chicken to sauce in crock pot. Again, I let it simmer for a while to fully flavor the chicken. Shortly before serving, add milk and flour together until smooth and pour into crock pot...stir well to incorporate evenly. Cook another 10 to 15 minutes or until sauce has thickened. Serve over hot Basmati rice. Enjoy!