Dinner time when you're in the grind

Sometimes the daily grind gets to be too much. When you get home from a long day at work you just want to put up your feet and ask the waiter for the dinner dejour.

And if you don't happen to have an in-home waiter, your second best option is this...


Asparagus and Smoked Salmon Pasta

You'll need....
1 bunch asparagus
4-6oz. smoked salmon (you can find this in the refrigerated section within the seafood aisle!)
1/2 cup half and half
3oz. cream cheese
1/2 cup parmesan
1 egg
1 tbsp. butter
Pepper to taste

This is an easy dish that also doubles as a vegetarian friendly meal too! If you're Catholic, this makes meatless Friday's a breeze during Lent. 

One more Friday to go!

If anyone's counting.

Just a few key ingredients needed! When you buy packaged smoked salmon, make sure it's pink all around with no brown spots. Smoked salmon - for all my salmon newbies - is hardwood smoked and cured with salt. Most of the time, you'll see it on top of bagels with cream cheese. 

My Jewish friends call it Lox. 

I call it love at first bite.

We carry on.

Your egg should be out on the counter from the beginning of prep time. Let it sit out so it can naturally come up to room temp. This is important later.

Get a large pot of water on the stove, high heat to get the water boiling. 

Meanwhile, rinse the asparagus and break the asparagus using your hands. The asparagus will naturally break in 1 1/2 to 2 inch pieces. 

Did you know you can cook pasta and asparagus in the same pot of water? Cuts down your use of cookware and cooking time! 

While the pasta and asparagus are cooking, mingling, swimming, take a saucepan and combine cream cheese, butter and half and half. Set burner to medium-low, continuously whisking until combined. 

I've used this same sauce combo for a lot of different pasta dishes - use in chicken/broccoli, shrimp alfredo, whatever sounds good to you!

Gradually add the parmesan cheese, whisking until smooth. Like dis. Take it off the burner and now...

The egg!

Add the egg into the sauce. This is what makes the sauce sooo flippin' delicious. It's important to whisk your whiskers off so that the egg does not scramble in the sauce. If it does, we'll feel sorry for you and we'll all be sad. 

See why you left the egg out on the counter? It helps in the transition to a hot pan. Voila.

Drain the pasta and asparagus and grab a large bowl. Pour the sauce over the pasta and toss to coat.

I add the salmon right before I plate. In this case, since I was cooking just for me, I added the salmon to my individual bowl. Cut into small slivers, about a quarter to half inch.

Do not add the salmon into the entire bowl of pasta, unless you know it will all be served that night with no leftovers. You don't want the salmon to cook - it'll lose it's texture and saltiness.

Perfect blend of salty, creamy perfection. Less than 30 minutes to the table and sure to impress your guests. 

Dad's Chicken Scallipini

My dad is one of those manly men.

Likes to hunt.

Likes to ride his Harley Davidson Road King Classic.

Likes to belch loudly.

And he likes to grill.

So it's not surprising that while his smoke n' fire skills on the Komodo Joe are top notch, the 20-year-old oven can be a bit daunting.

On nights where we had to fend for ourselves without my mother's kitchen expertise, Dad grew tiresome of the frozen and canned variety. It was time to venture into unknown stove territory.

Chicken scallipini happened a few years ago and has become a household favorite. Still to this day, my mom can't master it quite like my dad can, but maybe his daughter can! I've tried this recipe a few times and finally got it down to something the Italian gods would accept.

By the way, did I mention my dad took a genealogy test recently? We found out we're not only Puerto Rican, we're part Italian! And part Australian. Pretty neat, huh?

No matter your ancestral history - this recipe is sure to delight.

Dad's Chicken Scallipini

You'll need...
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Flour
Olive oil
1 lemon
4 cloves garlic
Butter
1 cup chicken broth
3 tbsp. capers
Thin spaghetti or angel hair pasta
Salt and pepper to taste

Make sure you get a lemon that feels soft to the touch. A trick I learned from Ina Garten, if the lemon smells like lemon when you pick it up at the grocery store, it's ripe!

Start by getting your pasta going - I used thin spaghetti but angel hair pasta is also amazing!

Butterfly the chicken breasts into 4 equal pieces. Place into a large plastic bag and grab a meat pounder.

Oh yes, there is a bit of violence in this recipe. Don't worry though, that chicken's already dead!

Beat the H-E double hockey sticks out of it until it's nice and flat. I'd say about 1/2 inch in thickness. The thinner the chicken, the quicker these will cook up in the pan.

Once it's been flattened, generously salt and pepper both sides of the chicken and dredge in flour and shake off the excess.

Get a large pan (preferably a little deep since we'll be creating the sauce in this pan) and heat medium/high. Add about 3-4 tbsp. of olive oil and get to fryin' the chicken. You'll want it slightly golden brown in color. Once the chicken is cooked, place on a paper towel and keep warm.

Do NOT clean out the pan. Leave it dirty. Because we like dirty.

Ahem.

 It the same dirty, filthy, hot mess of a pan, turn the heat down to low/medium, add a bit more olive oil (about 2 tbsp.) and add 4 cloves of minced garlic.

Add one cup of chicken broth and a half stick of butter, stirring with medium heat. Let the chicken broth reduce and thicken.

Add the chicken into the pan, the sauce will thicken some more by adding in the chicken. Add the zest of one lemon and then cut the lemon in half, squeezing about 2 tbsp. of the lemon juice into the pan.

Careful, you're starting to drool.

Add in about 2 tbsp. of capers, or whatever amount your heart desires. There's no wrong in these pea-sized pickled goodness.

Drain your pasta and getting ready to plate...

It's all about presentation, right?

Pile the chicken on top of the pasta, grab some capers...

Take all the sauce from the pan and pour directly on top so you have one big bowl of lemony chicken.

Oh, and make a bowl for yourself!

Dad's, be sure to make this one for the family - it's the go-to stove recipe when all grills fail (or you're just wanting a dinner that doesn't require 8 hours smoke time).

Enjoy!

From the mind of a 20-something gal

Do you ever feel like your life is in a state of constant competition?

Be the first to get your degree.

Be the first to get a kick ass job.

Be the first to get engaged.

It is exhausting.

I've never been one to compete with others, but find myself often times comparing my accomplishments against those around me. And who's to say that being first satisfies your happiness? Whatever happened to "slow and steady wins the race"?

I recently read a very enlightening book. One that changed the way I see things. One that taught me that being smart correlates with how much you worry and I am a puppy dog, canary and sometimes a goldfish. Confused? Go read The Noticer by Andy Andrews. It will change your life.

Only you, and you alone, will be able to define your happiness. You cannot analyze each of your coworker's and friend's lives trying to live up to their standards. You will never find happiness this way.

That is why I choose to continue my pursuit of meaning in my life. What is my purpose?

I know the big guy upstairs has a plan that I cannot possibly imagine.

So I do my best to listen and respond when He calls.

He told me to take a job at Kansas State University. He told me there is an opportunity there that I need to explore. And He told me I need to take a shot at love.

I refuse to play the game and let competition consume me. Because it is not me. I will find my why in the best way that I know how and never give up on pushing my comfort zone to help me become a citizen of the world.

I wish everyone peace and blessings as we wrap up a very strange and tiring 2012. Here's to a new year and a new beginning in what may be the best to come! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!