Print This Recipe


Print Friendly and PDF

Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Chicken and Pasta with Roasted Tomato, Onion and Garlic

I was looking for a casserole recipe using chicken and pasta. After looking through dozens of recipes and searching my freezer and pantry, this is what I came up with last week. It is very simple and the roasted vegetables add the perfect smokey flavor.




1/2 to 1 pound pasta, spaghetti or linguine
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved lengthwise
4 cloves garlic, left whole
1 yellow onion, sliced thick
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
4 cups Colby Jack cheese, shredded
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne*
Salt and black pepper, to taste
4 cups shredded cooked chicken


Lightly grease a casserole dish, and line a baking sheet with foil.

Cook the spaghetti in a large pot of salted water. Drain and transfer to casserole.

Place the tomatoes, skin side up on the baking sheet, along with the whole garlic cloves and onion. Broil, for about 10 to 15 minutes, until the tomatoes, garlic, and onion are softened and have begun to blacken. Remove from the oven, cool and, dice. Turn the oven to 350 degrees.

In a saucepan, melt the butter and whisk in the flour until well combined and slightly browned. Slowly pour in the milk and cook, stirring, until the sauce thickens just a bit. Once the sauce thickens, turn off the heat and slowly stir in 2 cups of cheese, a little at a time, until melted. Stir in the chicken broth until the sauce is the consistency of gravy. Stir in the diced vegetables, along with the cumin, and cayenne. Taste and adjust the seasonings to your liking. Add salt and black pepper to taste, and stir in the shredded cooked chicken. Pour the sauce into the cooked spaghetti. Cover with the remaining cheeses.

Bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Serve with Garlic Bread and a side salad for a nice complete meal.


*For an added kick add a couple of jalapeno peppers halved and added to the roasting vegetables.




Thursday, September 15, 2016

Taco Seasoning Mix


My son loves Tacos... soft tacos. I planned to make him some tonight and did not realize that I was out of seasoning mix. I figured it couldn't be that hard to make some. I researched it and found the ingredients. I adjusted it to my families taste and this is what I came up with tonight. My son was satisfied so I guess it's a keeper! LOL

2 teaspoons Chili Powder
1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
1/2 teaspoon Paprika
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1/4 teaspoon Onion Powder
1/4 teaspoon Dried Oregano

Mix seasoning together in a small bowl. Add to 1 1/2 - 2 pounds of cooked, drained hamburger meat and add 1/3 to 1/2 cup water and simmer for 10-15 minutes.

My hubby liked it too for his salad!