Alfredo Love

Okay, so today is Thursday. I have decided that my second post, will contain a recipe of mine. This also means that I have decided that Thursdays will now be "Tasty Thursdays" on my blog. What this means is that I will post a new recipe every Thursday for everybody's cooking pleasure. These recipes I post are geared towards anyone who loves tasty food. More importantly, I have written them with hopes that even the least skilled chef can achieve a visually appealing, and completely satisfying meal. Generally these recipes will also be meant for a certain serving size, but we must realize that I have portioned these according to my eating abilities and those of my roommates and friends. For example, a portion for me may be a portion for two smaller ladies. I would also like to place a disclaimer here: If you try to cook my food, and you get burned in the kitchen, try again! It will be worth it!

So today, I will write down one of my favorite recipes of all time. I actually cooked this recipe last night, and still have leftovers in my fridge. It was amazing! Here goes:

Chicken Broccoli and Penne Alfredo a.k.a "Alfredo Love"

This dish is a very simple dish to make, with the exception of timing. The four major components of the dish are: 1) pasta, 2) broccoli, 3) chicken breast, and 4) Alfredo Sauce.


Ingredients:

1) 2 pound penne wheat pasta (I enjoy wheat, but normal pasta can be used, and I love Barilla)

1 tsp salt

2) 3 medium broccoli florets

3) 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast (approximately 1 whole breast, can vary with broccoli, more broccoli less chicken and vice-versa)

2 tbsp. Montreal Steak Seasoning©

4) 2 tbsp. salted butter

2 medium cloves garlic, minced (optional, but suggested)

1 pint heavy cream

8 oz of grated Parmesan (my favorite type is Price Chopper brand parm, and I think this makes my Alfredo the best, so use a parm that will taste good!)

Pepper

To being this dish, the first need is to prepare your cook station and ingredients. For this dish, you will need a medium sized pot (broccoli), a large pot (pasta), a saute pan (Alfredo), and a grill (I use a George Foreman grill, chicken).

Start with the broccoli. Wash the broccoli and cut about 1.5 inch pieces out of it. Once this is done, place in a pot with a quarter inch of water on the bottom. Set that on the stove, cover it, and wait to start steaming it.

Next, take the chicken breast and cut off any remaining fat or skin. Butterfly the chicken if it is necessary. The best thickness for the chicken is about half an inch (tenderize if you want).
Wash the chicken with cold water to clean it. Season the chicken with the Steak seasoning, and put it in the fridge until you are ready to cook it.

Next, mince your garlic and put it in your saute pan with the butter. Set this on the stove and wait until you need to make your sauce before turning on the heat.

Next, start boiling 4 quarts of water in a 6 quart pot on high. As the water starts to boil, you will need to start cooking your other ingredients. I usually start cooking the broccoli about 5 minutes after the water is put on the heat. The broccoli will steam for about 5 minutes, and once it is fork tender, it is complete. Drain any remaining water and set it aside.

The Alfredo Sauce can be made anytime while the water for the pasta comes to a boil. Take the saute pan with the butter and garlic in it and turn it on medium heat. Once the butter has melted, let the garlic cook for about 1 minute. Once the garlic is finished, add the heavy cream and pepper. Let the sauce cook stirring continuously (I use a whisk for my Alfredo Sauce). After about 4 minutes on medium heat, add the Parmesan cheese and stir. This is now a matter of preference, but if the sauce is not tasty enough, add more cheese. The more cheese, and the higher quality cheese, the better this will taste. This whole process takes about 10 minutes. Set aside when complete.

Once the water starts boiling, add salt to the water to taste. After this, place your pasta into the water. As you place the pasta, start cooking the chicken. Cooking time for the chicken on a George Foreman grill is about 5 minutes (when the grill is preheated), other grills may take longer. Use your discretion. Once the chicken is complete (no longer pink inside), cut it into 1/4 inch thick pieces and set aside.


Make sure to cook the pasta till desired tenderness, or simply till “Al Dente.” Once the pasta is complete, drain it with some sort of pasta strainer. This will take about 15 minutes to complete.

Now to put it all together. Put the pasta back in the pot that it was cooked in. Place the chicken and broccoli into this pot and put the Alfredo sauce on top. Stir this until all the ingredients are saturated in Alfredo Sauce, then serve with fresh grated Parmesan cheese (if you want...). Serving size: 4-6 people. Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: Approx 25 mins NOTE: For vegetarians, this dish can be made without the chicken, instead with carrots and peppers, or any type of vegetable, all cut to the same thickness. About three vegetables will be sufficient. Just steam the other vegetables with the broccoli. For vegans, you are out of luck, sorry!

Serve and enjoy!

So I hope everyone enjoys this wonderful meal. Again, the hardest part is timing. You can get away with letting the chicken and broccoli go cold while waiting for the Alfredo Sauce and pasta. As long as these ingredients are made last, you are in good shape.

Well, that is my recipe for today!


I would also like to post a useful tool for any business owners out there. If you are designing or building a website, with social networking components, AllForLocal has used a tool called PINAX, an open source project developed to help website developers along their path to creation. The guys making this tool have been very helpful, and I just wanted to give a shout out, because we wouldn't be where we are without their software, so Thanks!

Buon Appetito!
-Joe