Roasted Garlic Alfredo Sauce

Mmmm...this tastes a lot like Olive Garden's Alfredo Sauce. It is very tasty!

I made it again today and I forgot to add the butter. It tasted just as good, so if you want to cut out some of the fat, then leave out the butter.

If you don't have any roasted garlic, then just mince up a few cloves and add it instead.

The side dish is a mixture of vegetables (onion, zucchini, yellow peppers, broccoli, and mushrooms) sauteed in olive oil and a splash of balsalmic vinegar.


Roasted Garlic Alfredo Sauce

1 bulb of Roasted Garlic
2 cups milk (or 1 1/2 cups milk and 1/2 cup cream)
1/3 of an 8oz pkg of cream cheese
3 tablespoons butter (optional)
1/2 to 3/4 cups grated parmesan (I just used the cheap-o kind)
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon dried mustard powder (optional)
1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch (you decide how thick you want it)

In a small saucepan, combine the cream cheese, 1 1/2 cups milk and butter together, stirring frequently until smooth and heated through.

In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch, dry mustard, and reserved 1/2 cup milk. Stir slowly into the sauce and heat until thickened. Remove from heat.

Mash as much roasted garlic as you want and stir it into the sauce. Stir in the parmesan.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

I used a thickener because I used milk. If I had used all cream (holy calories, batman!), I don't think I would have needed to thicken the sauce.

Serve hot, over noodles, and garnish with chopped parsley.

Soba Noodles

I've never eaten Soba Noodles before. Nope, not once. So, when I was wandering through the aisles of an Asian food market, I spotted some and thought I'd give it a try. When I returned home, I looked on the internet for a suitable recipe.

I found one by Emeril that seemed interesting. So I gave it a try.

It had good flavors but it wasn't really a big hit. I think it had to do with the texture created by combining the peanut butter sauce and cold soba noodles. It was a little wierd. I also think that the sesame oil flavor was a bit strong. I use sesame oil, but I use it rather sparingly. I guess I like a hint of it, not getting hit over the head with it.

I probably won't make it again.

This is the dried noodles, before being cooked. Aren't they pretty?






Emerils.com

COLD PEANUT, CHICKEN, AND SOBA NOODLE SALAD
Ingredients needed:

* 12 ounces dried soba noodles, or other buckwheat noodles
* 3 tablespoons sesame oil
* 1/4 cup chopped green onions (green tops only)
* 1 jalapeno, seeded, stem removed, and minced
* 1 teaspoon minced garlic
* 1 teaspoon minced gingerroot
* 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
* 1/4 cup soy sauce
* 1/4 cup chicken stock
* 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
* 2 tablespoons fish sauce
* 1 tablespoon Sherry
* 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
* 1 teaspoons sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
* 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
* 1 whole skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into strips and lightly poached, and chilled
* 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
* 2 tablespoons chopped roasted unsalted peanuts


Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook until tender, about 7 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse under cold running water. Drain and transfer to a large bowl. Toss with 1 tablespoon of the sesame oil, cover and refrigerate.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine 2 tablespoons of the green onions, the jalapenos, garlic, and ginger, and process on high speed. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of sesame oil, the peanut butter, soy sauce, chicken stock, cilantro, fish sauce, sherry, lime juice, sugar, and pepper flakes. Toss the sauce to taste with the noodles.

To serve, toss the noodles with the chicken strips, bell pepper, cucumber, peanuts, and remaining 2 tablespoons of green onions, and serve.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Greek Pasta

Ok, I just called it Greek because it has feta and olives. Sounds like Greek to me, lol! Anyway, its just one of those quick throw together meals that wasn't measured.

Hmmm...I guess I didn't put any garlic in it. I'm sure it would benefit from it. Also, if I had any fresh parsley, I would have thrown it in too. Fancy shmancy olives such as kalamata would be nice here too. I don't keep them on hand (special occasion food here), so I just used green olives.



Greek Pasta

Noodles
cooked chicken diced or shredded
roasted red peppers
marinated artichoke hearts
green olives
green onions
Caesar Dressing (or homemade)
feta cheese, crumbled