Pesto Pasta with Chicken

I made this a few weeks back for my dad and husband and we all loved it. I love pesto, and sometimes like a little something extra added into the sauce. The best pesto I had was in Italy, of course, but this is delicious and easy for at home.
(Next time I make it, I'll come back and add a picture.)

Ingredients
1 (16 ounce) package rotini or penne pasta
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts - cut into thin strips
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup pesto
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese


Directions
1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
2. Heat butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute chicken and garlic until chicken is almost cooked.
3. Reduce heat and stir in salt, pepper, cream, pesto and Parmesan cheese. Cook until chicken is no longer pink inside.
4. Stir in cooked pasta and serve.

I serve it with a green salad and garlic bread.

Enjoy!

Green Beans with Pepper & Onion

I'm often looking for a new way to spice up vegetables, although we like them all just steamed too. I made these green beans last night, they were delicious!



Ingredients:
1 lb fresh Green Beans
1 Tablespoon Butter And 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
2 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
1 cup Chopped Onion
1/2 - 3/4 cup Chopped Red Bell Pepper
1 cup Chicken Broth
1/2 - 3/4 tsp Kosher Salt (or 1/4 - 1/2 tsp Regular Table Salt)
Ground Black Pepper To Taste

Directions:
1. Snap or cut the stem ends of the green beans.
2. Add oil and melt butter in a skillet over medium low heat. Add garlic and onions and cook for a minute. Then add green beans and cook for a minute until beans turn bright green.
3. Add the chicken broth, chopped red pepper, salt and black pepper. Turn heat to low and cover with a lid, leaving lid cracked to allow steam to escape. Cook for 20 to 30 minutes or until liquid evaporates and beans are fairly so3, yet still a bit crisp. (You can add more chicken broth during the cooking process, but letting it all cook away will help the onions and peppers caramelize.)

YUM!

Cooking...

We had steak and roasted baby potatoes too. (Also salad, not pictured.)


(I can't take credit, this recipe is from the amazing PW.)

Crockpot Mexican Chicken

I'm almost ashamed to post this for my first post on this blog because it's so easy, but it's really that good. When I was telling Katie about this, I told her that it's so easy that Audrey could pretty much make it - aside from the can opener... I really don't know what this is called, but I got it from a friend and it's amazing! We'll call it Crockpot Mexican Chicken for now...

Ingredients:
Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts (4-6)
1 Can of Black Beans
1 Can of Corn
1 Jar of Salsa (I used Pace Picante in Medium, but for kids you may want to use Mild)
(see, it's that easy!)

Directions
Throw all the ingredients in the Crockpot.
Turn on High for 3 hours.
When done, chicken is easy to shred or cut with a fork.

I usually serve it as a soft taco, so I get cheese, tortillas, tomatoes, sour cream, guacamole, etc.

We also had Spanish Rice on the side and chips and guacamole.

Indulge!