Light Fettuccine Alfredo with Shrimp or Chicken

This little dandy came from a magazine I picked up a few months ago (Family Circle - April 2007, page 131). This was an easy and quick dish that the family enjoyed and it was surprisingly filling. It may not be my favorite on this site, but it was definitely worth making again. Feel free to tweak the recipe up some to fit your tastes. It claims to be "REDUCED FAT", so that second helping might not be so bad after all.

Ingredients
1 pound egg fettuccine or combination egg and spinach
2 cups fat-free half-and-half (sorry, but we opted for the high-calorie stuff)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (this is where they caught me... I love nutmeg)
1/2 cup shredded Asiago cheese (we used Muenster)
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 3/4 lb jumbo shrimp, shelled and divined (we used cubed, pan-fried chicken in butter, pepper and garlic salt instead)
Additional Asiago cheese (we used Parmesan) and fresh basil for garnish if desired

Instructions
1. Bring pot to boil, salt and boil over high heat. Prepare pasta according to package. Stir frequently, drain.

2. Meanwhile, mix 1/4 cup of the half-and-half with cornstarch; stir well and set aside. In medium sized sauce-pan, add remaining half-and-half and place over medium high heat. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon of garlic salt and nutmeg. Bring to simmer and stir in cornstarch mixture; cook for 30 seconds or until slightly thickened.

3. Take sauce off heat and whisk until smooth. Stir in peas. Keep warm.

4. Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp (or chicken) and cook with 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt for 3 minutes per side or until cooked through (if you use chicken, also use dash of pepper on both sides of chicken as you cook). Stir cream mixture into skillet when meat is done. Add pasta and toss to coat.

5. Serve immediately with additional cheese. Garnish with basil if desired. Goes great with iced tea, salad and a nutty whole-wheat crusty bread with butter.


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Perfect Paella

I have to tell you about my newest favorite dish. I was graciously invited over for dinner the other night at a friend's house, and she introduced me to Rachel Ray's Paella recipe. Let me tell you that I've had withdrawal ever since. I actually made a mock version of this tonight for dinner for just me and my two children... and despite the fact that we had quite a few ingredients missing; it was still good enough to be eaten by an 8 and 6 year old! I'm going to cook it again Saturday night! I leave out the mussels and add cilantro instead of parsley... and my friend also used cilantro, and left off the mussels for us! The shrimp don't give this a fishy taste, and were excellent - even though we aren't big shrimp people. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did!

Recipe Summary
Difficulty: Medium
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes !!!
Yield: 8 servings

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 cups enriched white rice
• 1/4 teaspoon saffron threads
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 quart chicken broth or stock
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders, cut into thirds
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3/4 pound chorizo, casing removed and sliced on an angle
• 1 pound peeled and deveined large shrimp, 24 shrimp
• 18 green lipped mussels, cleaned
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2 lemons zested

Garnish:

• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 4 scallions, chopped
• Lemon wedges
• Crusty, bread for passing

In a very wide pan or paella pan, preheated over medium high heat, add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan, crushed garlic, red pepper flakes, add rice and saute 2 or 3 minutes. Add saffron threads, bay leaf, broth, and thyme and bring liquids to a boil over high heat. Cover the pan with lid or foil and reduce heat to simmer.

In a separate nonstick skillet, over medium high heat brown chicken on both sides in 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Add peppers and onions to the pan and cook 3 minutes longer. Add chorizo to the pan and cook 2 minutes more. Remove pan from heat.

After about 13 minutes, add shellfish to the rice pan, nesting them in cooking rice. Pour in peas, scatter lemon zest over the rice and seafood, then cover the pan again. After 5 minutes, remove cover or foil from the paella and discard any unopened mussel shells. Stir rice and seafood mixture and lift out bay and thyme stems, now bare of their leaves. Arrange cooked chicken and peppers, onions and chorizo around the pan. Top with parsley and scallions. Serve with wedges of lemon and warm bread.

Also, on her 30 min. cooking show, she suggests serving this with Spanish cheeses (cheese spreads work fine) and nutty bread crackers/sticks and Greek olives. She also suggests serving Sangria as a drink. My friend made a non-alcoholic Sangria that was excellent.

PLEASE READ THIS POST FOR UPDATES ON THIS RECIPE:

http://gatheringmanna.blogspot.com/2005/08/i-made-that-paella-again.html


Episode#: TM1B74
Courtesy of Rachel Ray
Copyright © 2003 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights Reserved