I Love Using Just One Pot!

 

I love pasta. It's quick and easy. However, it usually takes a lot of pots and pans. I mean, you have the pot to cook the pasta in, the pot or pan to make the sauce in, the strainer, any pots or pans used for side dishes, etc. That's a lot of dishes to do at the end of the night. However, with one-pot meals, you literally only have one pot! Yay for fewer dishes!

One-Pot Parmesan Chicken Ziti with Artichokes and Spinach

Ingredients:

4 cups water
2 cans (12 oz each) evaporated milk
1 teaspoon salt
2 cloves garliv, finely chopped
1 lb. uncooked ziti pasta (I used mostaccioli)
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 cups shredded deli rotisserie chicken
1 can (14 oz) artichoke hearts, drained, coarsely chopped
6 oz. shredded Parmesan cheese (about 1 1/2 cups)
Juice of 2 medium lemons (about 2/3 cups)
2 tablespoons butter
4 cups baby spinach (5-oz package)
1/2 teaspoon pepper, if desired

Directions:

In Dutch oven, heat water, 1 can of the evaporated milk, the salt, garlic, and pasta to simmering over medium heat. Simmer 12 to 14 minutes, stirring frequently, until pasta is tender.

In medium bowl, beat remaining can of evaporated milk and the cornstarch; stir in chicken and artichoke hearts. Add to mixture in Dutch oven; return to simmering, and continue to simmer 1 to 3 minutes, or until thickened and mixture coats back of spoon.

Remove from heat; stir in half of the cheese and the lemon juice. Stir until cheese melts, then add remaining cheese (rewerving 1/4 cup for serving, if desired) and butter; stir again.

Add spinach, and stir until wilted. Serve with reserved cheese and pepper.

Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, if desired.

Source: Betty Crocker. You can find it here.

Notes: Watch this carefully because it boils over easily and quickly!

This was a delicious dinner that hit the spot. It was also really quick to throw together.

I Love Using Just One Pot!

 

I love that there are so many recipes floating around these days that require only one pot. It makes things so much easier. Plus, these dinners are usually so fast! I'm a big fan. Here's another great one that I found.

One-Pot Pasta

Ingredients:

1 (16 oz.) pkg. penne pasta
2 stalks broccoli, cut into florets
2-3 minced garlic cloves, or 1-2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
1-3 lemons
Salt and pepper, to taste
Shredded Parmesan cheese, to taste

Directions:

Boil penne 6 minutes less than al dente; add broccoli florets, and cook until penne is al dente.

In measuring cup with spout, combine garlic cloves, olive oil, zest from one lemon, and juice from 1-3 lemons (depending on how lemony you want the flavor to be), and salt and pepper to taste.

When pasta is done, drain and return to the pot. Toss with the olive oil/lemon juice mixture until well-coated. Stir in some Parmesan and sprinkle additional Parmesan on top of the pasta to serve.

Source: Everyday Food, October 2008. You can find it here.

Notes: I like one-pot dinners so much, we actually have a tag for them so you can look at all of them at once. This was so good. I like things on the lemony side, so I used the zest of one lemon and the juice of three. This tasted so fresh and it really hit the spot. Besides that, it was so quick and easy! (We have another tag for quick and easy recipes too!).

One-Pot: Part 4

Here is the final one-pot recipe I tried. I was in the mood for something a little lighter this time, so I substituted black beans for the ground beef. So, you can make it with the beef, or turn it into a vegetarian meal and use black beans instead. Also, to reduce the heat and make it creamier, I added in about 1 cup of sour cream. It turned out really well.

One-Pot Enchilada Rigatoni

Ingredients:

1 lb lean (at least 80 percent) ground beef (I substituted 1 can of black beans)
1 can (19 oz) mild enchilada sauce
1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk
1 lb uncooked rigatoni pasta
1 can (11 oz) Mexicorn (whole kernel corn with red and green bell peppers, Green Giant brand)
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend (8 oz)
1 cup sour cream (my addition)
Salt, to taste (my addition)
Favorite toppings (such as crushed tortilla chips, chopped cilantro, sliced green onions, sliced olives, additional sour cream, shredded cheese, diced avocado, etc.)

Directions:

In nonstick 5-quart Dutch oven, cook beef with salt to taste over high heat, stirring frequently, until brown. Do not drain.

Add enchilada sauce, evaporated milk, 4 cups hot water, and the corn. Bring to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions. Reduce heat and continue to cook, if necessary, until the pasta is al dente (not hard, but not too soft).

Remove from heat; stir in cheese and sour cream. Serve topped with favorite toppings (such as crushed tortilla chips, chopped cilantro, sliced green onions, sliced olives, additional sour cream, shredded cheese, diced avocado, etc.).

Source: Pillsbury website. You can find it here.

Notes: Because of the enchilada sauce, this one-pot meal was very flavorful. No need to tweak the flavor on this one. It was very good. Have fun with the toppings. It adds a lot to the meal. I actually wasn't a fan of the crushed tortilla chips on top, but to each his/her own!

Above: We tried this with cilantro on top as well as sliced green onions. However, the more toppings the better. Next time, I am going to make sure I have a lot more topping choices on hand. Diced avocado, olives, shredded cheese, etc. would all be so awesome.

One-Pot: Part 3

This one was a good recipe, but required a bit of tweaking before it really hit the spot for me. Be sure to be generous with your salt and pepper and add garlic salt or powder to taste to get the flavor just right.

One-Pot Creamy Beef Stroganoff

Ingredients:

1 lb. lean (at least 80 percent) ground beef
2 packages (8 oz each) sliced button mushrooms
1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk
1 lb uncooked medium egg noodles
1 container (12 oz) chive and onion sour cream
Salt and pepper, to taste (my addition)
Garlic salt or garlic powder, to taste (my addition)

Directions:

In nonstick 5-quart Dutch oven, cook beef over high heat, stirring frequently, until brown. Do not drain. Season with salt and pepper and garlic salt or powder.

Add mushrooms. Cook about 5 minutes or until browned.

Add evaporated milk, 4 1/2 cups hot water. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the noodles. Noodles will not be completely covered at first. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered 7 to 8 minutes, stirring frequently, just until noodles are tender. Remove from heat; stir in sour cream.

Source: Pillsbury website. You can find it here.

Notes: On its own, following the recipe exactly, it was just a little lacking in flavor. However, adding the garlic, to taste, as well as the salt and pepper helped. Some of the reviewers on the Pillsbury website suggested some other additions. One reviewer suggested cooking some chopped onion with the beef while it was browning. One reviewer substituted beef broth for the water. Other reviewers suggested added a can of cream of mushroom soup or cream of onion soup.

I topped mine with some fresh chopped flat leaf Italian parsley.

This made a lot, and we had a lot of leftovers. It reheated very well.

 

Above: Mushroom money shot.

One-Pot: Part 2

Here's another one-pot wonder. I really liked this one. This one is also very kid friendly and super easy to throw together. The leftovers were really good too.

One-Pot Chicken Alfredo Penne

Ingredients:

1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk
1 lb. uncooked penne pasta
1 box (9 oz) frozen sweet peas
2 cups shredded or pulled deli rotisserie chicen
1 jar (15 oz) Alfredo pasta sauce
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

In nonstick 5-quart Dutch oven, heat evaporated milk, 4 cups hot water. Bring to a boil over high heat and add the pasta. Cook pasta according to package directions (mine called for 11 minutes), stirring frequently.

Reduce heat to medium. Stir in chicken, peas and Alfredo sauce. Cook 3 minutes longer, stirring frequently.

Remove from heat; stir in cheese. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Source: Pillsbury website. You can find it here.

Notes: You can also add a little salt and pepper, to taste, if you desire. I really liked this one. I felt that this one required the least tweaking. It was just good on its own. I did poach my own chicken breasts rather than using a deli rotisserie chicken. This was really good.

One-Pot: Part 1

Earlier this year, I happened upon this super easy, tasty, and amazing recipe. Apparently, a lot of people must have been a big fan of it (like I was), because a bunch of other one-pot meals were created as a result of it. While the original recipe is still my favorite (and still the best of the bunch), the others were also amazingly easy and quite tasty. Let me share my findings!

Three-Ingredient One-Pot Mac and Cheese

Ingredients:

1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk
1 lb. uncooked elbow macaroni
2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (8 oz)
Salt, to taste
(Garlic powder or garlic salt, to taste--my addition)

Directions:

In 5-quart nonstick Dutch oven, heat evaporated milk, 4 cups hot water, macaroni and salt, to taste, to boiling over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-high; cook 6 minutes, stirring frequently.

Reduce heat; simmer uncovered 8 minutes, stirring frequently.

Remove from heat; stir in cheese until melted.

Source: Pillsbury website. You can find it here.

Notes: When this was all done, I tasted it and I felt it was just missing something...so I added a little garlic salt and voila! Problem solved. This is the perfect macaroni and cheese option when you need something a little more than Kraft Macaroni and Cheese (which still has its place, of course) and something a little less than these macaroni and cheese recipes. I really liked this. It is really easy and very kid friendly.

Just One Pot!

I am a big fan of easy. I am a big fan of using fewer pots/dishes as well. This is a great recipe that is easy and only uses one pot! You don't even need to strain the pasta! This was one of those recipes that I just had to try out of curiosity. I changed a few things, so I am going to post the original recipe as well as the recipe that includes my changes.

One-Pot Creamy Spaghetti (original recipe)

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground Italian sausage
3/4 lb. uncooked spaghetti
1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes with basil, undrained
1 box (32 oz) chicken broth or 1 box (32 oz) vegetable broth
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, if desired
Shredded Parmesan cheese and fresh basil leaves, if desired.

Directions:

In an 8-quart stockpot, cook sausage until no longer pink; drain.

Add spaghetti, tomatoes, broth, cream, and pepper flakes; heat to boiling. Boil 15 to 20 minutes, turning pasta frequently with tongs or fork, until pasta is cooked and sauce is thick and creamy. Serve with remaining ingredients.

Serves 6

Source: Pillsbury website. You can find it here.

One-Pot Creamy (Or Not) Spaghetti (with my changes)

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground Italian sausage (mild or hot depending on your preference)
1 lb. uncooked spaghetti
1 can crushed tomatoes, undrained
1 teaspoon dried basil
2 cans (14.5 oz each) chicken broth
1/2 cup whipping cream, optional
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Shredded Parmesan cheese and fresh basil leaves, if desired

Directions:

In 8-quart stockpot, cook sausage until no longer pink; drain.

Add crushed tomatoes, basil, broth, whipping cream (if using), and red pepper flakes. Heat to boiling. Add spaghetti. Once spaghetti is submerged, boil for 9-10 minutes, or until pasta is al dente, turning pasta frequently with tongs or fork, until pasta is cooked and sauce is thick and creamy. Serve topped with remaining ingredients, if desired.

Notes: I used mild Italian sausage so that this wouldn't be too spicy for my boys. It was just right for them this way, and they loved it.

I used 1 lb. of spaghetti rather than 3/4 pound because, who are we kidding? I am not going to take out 1/4 of the spaghetti noodles and either save them for later or throw them out. It just makes more servings with a whole pound of pasta! That's all! It doesn't mean more calories per serving, it just means more servings!

I couldn't find crushed tomatoes with basil at my store, so I got a can of plain crushed tomatoes and added 1 teaspoon of basil.

The first time I made this, I added the cream. I liked it, but I felt it would still be just as good without the cream. So, I decided to make it again. A few weeks later, I made this recipe again and omitted the cream. I was right. It was just as good without the cream. In my opinion, I actually liked it better without the cream.

I decided that the way to ensure al dente pasta (rather than mushy, overcooked pasta) would be to allow the liquid to boil, and then add the pasta...and then, of course, decrease the cooking time so that it wouldn't be overdone. Just watch the spaghetti and test it. You don't want the noodles underdone (crunchy) or overdone (mushy).

I really liked this. I love how flavorful it is, how few ingredients it uses, and that it is easy clean-up since there is only one pot.

The "It" Recipe

Sometimes there is a new "it" ingredient...like chipotle, or quinoa. Sometimes there is a new "it" recipe. This is a new recipe that just came out and I swear everyone and their dog has been trying this recipe. So, I had to try it too.

I really liked it. It was really very easy. You should give it a try (but be sure to read my notes on the recipe because it took longer for me than stated in the original recipe).

One-Pan Pasta

Ingredients:

12 ounces spaghetti
12 ounces cherry or grape tomatoes halved or quartered if large
1 onion, thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 sprigs basil, plus torn leaves for garnish
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
4 1/2 cups water
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese for serving

Directions:

Combine pasta, tomatoes, onion, garlic, red-pepper flakes, basil, oil, 2 teaspoons salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and water in a large straight-sided skillet. Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil mixture, stirring and turning pasta frequently with tongs, until pasta is al dente and water has nearly evaporated, about 9 minutes. (see notes below)

Season to taste with salt and pepper, divide among 4 bowls, and garnish with basil. Serve with oil and Parmesan.

Source: Martha Stewart Living, June 2013. You can find the recipe online here.

Notes: This was really good. A great, easy recipe to have in your repertoire.

I have some suggestions though. I was a little worried about cooking it for only 9 minutes. I was dubious that the pasta would be done in that amount of time. I mean, it usually takes my pasta water at least 10 minutes just to start boiling. My gut was right. It took 8 or 9 minutes for the water to start boiling. At that point, my pasta was pretty much still uncooked and the water was not evaporated. So, then I reset the timer for another 9 minutes to cook the pasta.

I mean, it still worked. It tasted awesome, and the pasta ended up al dente. However, I had to check the pasta to make sure it was done all the way and I ended up cooking the pasta for about 20 minutes total instead of the 9 minutes stated in the recipe.

Next time, I think I will try boiling the water first. While the water is boiling, I will prep all the ingredients. Once the water is boiling, I will then put the ingredients into the water and set the timer for 9 minutes (the amount of time needed to cook the spaghetti and for the water to evaporate.)

So, you can either put all the ingredients in the pot, and then add water...but be sure to watch the pasta carefully and test it so that it isn't underdone or overdone, because it won't take 9 minutes on the dot. Or, you can boil the water first and then add all the ingredients.

Maybe the stove tops in the Martha Stewart test kitchens burn hotter and boil water faster than mine does. :)

I used a whole pound (16 ounces) of pasta instead of 12 ounces. I also used 2 pints of grape tomatoes. I would also suggest being very generous with the salt and pepper (prior to boiling). When you serve the pasta, top it with additional salt and pepper, shredded Parmesan, and torn basil. Yum!