Rigatoni with Goat Cheese

Life has been very exciting for our family this month! At the end of the month (just a few days) we are moving into our new house! For the past few months husband has been working very hard to find the perfect home for our family. So many weekends have been filled with driving all over the Minneapolis suburbs checking out neighborhoods and exploring houses. It has been an exhausting and emotional journey for our whole family.

Last month we found the right house for us. So in preparation for moving I have been spending the month organizing, packing and getting into the moving mindset. I guess the good thing about moving in the middle of winter is that I’m not distracted by outside activities. It’s been too cold to go sledding but little one and I have made it to the park a few times. It’s always interesting getting him bundled up in snow pants, snow boots, mittens, hats, coats and scarves just to go to the same park that only a few months before he was able to wear flip flops and shorts to.

I have a backlog of fun recipes to share. I’ve been hitting my recipe binder pretty hard and trying recipes that have been hanging around for a while. Sadly I have had to throw many recipes away. Thankfully many meals that I have been making have been delicious. This recipe is a great mac and cheese recipe for goat cheese lovers. It’s just as easy as a box but tastes very grown up. Little one even gobbled it up, so if you have little ones don’t be afraid to give this a shot. I paired this dish with some flavored chicken sausage and veggies. Delicious!

Enjoy!

1 pound rigatoni

Salt and pepper

1 ½ cups crumbled goat cheese

½ cup finely grated Parmesan

¼ cup slivered sun-dried tomatoes, toasted pine nuts, chopped or torn herbs, and/or pitted, sliced black olives

Cook rigatoni in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente, according to package directions. Drain, reserving ½ cup cooking water.

Return pasta to pot, and toss with goat cheese and Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper, and add some of the reserved pasta water as desired. Sprinkle with preferred topping, and serve.

Adapted from www.marthastewart.com/355489/rigatoni-goat-cheese

or

Everyday Food: Great Food Fast by MarthaStewart Living Magazine

Sweet and Sour Chicken

I made this for dinner about a month ago and I am so excited to make it for dinner again tonight! I made our “fun” meal for little one last night because I really want to have an at-home date night with husband tonight. He’s been working longer days than usual this week and he’s exhausted when he comes home each night. Bedtime has been close to 9pm for husband this week and even though I have been able to get in some extra mommy time in the evenings I miss cuddling up on the couch and relaxing with him.

Most in-home date nights require take-out food, a good movie and an adult beverage or two. Instead of ordering take out I’ll be making this very yummy meal! It’s not much healthier than restaurant sweet and sour chicken (at least not based on myfitnesspal) but neither of us is super thirsty all night long after eating this. We have a few shows on our Hulu queue that I’m anxious to watch with husband tonight. And considering that I’m not convinced it will get above zero degrees outside today (yes, you read that right) I think tonight is the perfect night to not go anywhere!

I was impressed with this recipe because it’s actually a pantry meal. I’ve tried lots of different batters over the years but never one that was only eggs and cornstarch. The crust on the chicken comes out nice and light. I was very happy to use a whole cup of cornstarch because I’m not 100% sure of the shelf life of cornstarch and this recipe helped me use a box that had been in the pantry for quite some time. Even though husband and I aren’t fans of ketchup, this recipe is one of the examples of why I keep a bottle in the fridge. Other than picking up some chicken, I always have everything needed for restaurant quality Chinese take-out any night of the week! Serve this with cooked brown rice and a green veggie for a nice balanced meal.

Enjoy!

1 lb. skinless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper
1 cup cornstarch
2 large eggs
¼ cup canola oil

¾ cup granulated sugar
4 tablespoons ketchup
½ cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon garlic salt

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Cut the chicken breasts into one inch pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Place the cornstarch in a gallon size Ziploc bag. Put the chicken into the bag with the cornstarch and toss to coat the chicken.

Heat the oil in a large skillet. Whisk the eggs in a shallow pie plate. Dip the cornstarch coated chicken pieces in the egg and place them carefully in a single layer in the hot skillet. Cook for 1-2 minutes and then flip each piece over to cook on the other side until nicely golden but not all the way cooked through. Place in a single layer in a baking dish and repeat with the remaining chicken pieces.

Mix the sugar, ketchup, apple cider vinegar, soy sauce and garlic salt together in a medium bowl and pour over the chicken in the baking dish. Bake for one hour, turning the chicken once or twice while cooking to coat evenly with sauce. Serve over hot, steamed rice.

Adapted from www.melskitchencafe.com/2008/07/sweet-and-sour-chicken-updated.html