Chicken and Asparagus Pasta Bake

This recipe came about because of another recipe I had concocted many years ago. I was at the grocery store last night and had decided to pick up the ingredients for that recipe when I got the idea to do something a little bit different, which I have since discovered is equally delicious. They're not exactly the same thing, but the ideas are exactly the same. One of the things that I've said over and over is that recipes are merely guidelines, nothing is written in stone, and you can make a dish into anything you want it to be! When I next make the recipe which was the base for this, I will post it and let you compare it. But, really, there is not much difference between what that is and what this is...
This idea came about because I was in the soup isle at the grocery store, and I happened to pass the cream of asparagus soup before I got to the one I had been initially looking for. Knowing that I had some fresh asparagus in the refrigerator at home, my mind immediately switched gears and came up with this variation. Since I also had chicken breasts in my freezer, that sounded like a great choice to go with the asparagus and pasta. So, throw a few things together, and... Voila!


Printable Recipe

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 Tbsp. butter
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. cavatappi pasta
1 - 2 bunches fresh asparagus asparagus
3 (10.75 oz.) cans Cream of Asparagus soup
2 c. chicken broth
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 c. freshly shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Fill a large stockpot with water and bring it to a boil; add the pasta and cook for approximately 8 minutes. (If you decide to use a different pasta, simply cook it for one minute less than the instructions call for for al dente pasta.)
Place the chicken breasts in a medium sauce pot and cover with water. Bring them to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer, cooking the chicken until it's no longer pink on the inside. When the chicken is cooked through, remove it from the water and cut into cubes; place in a large mixing bowl.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small saucepan and then combine the olive oil into it; add the onion and sauté until transparent. During the last minute of cooking, add the garlic to the pan and sauté with the onion until the raw bite of the garlic has been cooked off. Add this mixture to the bowl with the chicken.
Clean and trim the asparagus, cutting it into 1-inch pieces. Add the asparagus pieces to the mixing bowl.
Empty the contents of the three cans of soup into a small mixing bowl and combine it with the chicken stock until the soup is thinned out and the mixture is fairly smooth. Add this to the bowl with the chicken, onion and garlic mixture, and asparagus. Stir the mixture to combine everything and salt and pepper to taste; fold in the cooked pasta. Pour the entire mixture into a greased 9x13-inch baking pan, cover with foil, and bake in a preheated oven for 30 - 35 minutes. Uncover the mixture, sprinkle with cheese, and bake for another 8 - 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and bubbly.

Chicken Taco Soup

Taco soup is not my original idea, however I think it was a great one! I've heard of tortilla soups and things like that, but when I saw taco soup on the menu at a local eatery I was more than a little intrigued and excited. However, my excitement dissipated nearly as soon as the bowl of soup was set in front of me, then completely dissipated after the first bite... Basically, what this place was calling taco soup was nothing more than chili with corn added to it, then served with crackers. I don't know about any of you, but I don't usually eat corn on my tacos and I've never had bread or crackers with them either!
After coming home that night, I looked around on the internet for what I had pictured in my head for taco soup and only came up with dozens of recipes similar to what I had eaten earlier. There weren't even typical taco seasonings in any of the recipes, so I don't really understand what made them worthy of being called taco soup... So, I went about constructing my own version of it, going on the ideas I had conjured up in my head! I wanted to incorporate the taco shells idea but didn't want them mixed in the soup while they cooked, since they would just get soggy. And I love all of the taco fixin's, so I wanted those in there as well, but not necessarily cooked. So, I went about making the meat "base" and incorporating plenty of taco flavor in there that would carry through even with all of the toppings. Basically, I took my basic recipe for chili and changed it up a bit, taking out what I didn't want for this soup and adding what I did want. Then, I just added the typical taco fixin's on top of the soup after I divided it into bowls. The results were amazingly delicious! And you can make this for a party or potluck very easily by just making the soup part and putting it in a crock pot, like chili, and then setting the rest of the ingredients up as if for a taco bar. Who doesn't love a taco bar?!
Don't let the long list of ingredients scare you... Most of them are either the ingredients for the taco seasoning mix, which you can eliminate and use the packaged variety for if you really want (I prefer the homemade mix myself), using one package of mix per ⅓ portion of the homemade version, so three packages. Another large majority of ingredients are for the taco fixin's, which you don't have to use if you don't want to or don't like them. These just happen to be the ones I like... It's all about what YOU like, so make it your own!


Printable Recipe

1½ lb. chicken breast
6 Tbsp. chili powder
3 Tbsp. ground cumin
1½ tsp. garlic powder
1½ tsp. onion powder
½ tsp. sea salt
4½ tsp. smoked paprika
3 tsp. ground coriander
1½ tsp. cayenne pepper
32 oz. low-sodium chicken broth or stock
1 (2.87 oz.) container chili powder
2 qt. tomato juice
1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
2 (14.5 oz.) cans diced tomatoes
2 (15 oz.) cans black beans, drained
Fresh tomatoes, diced
Green onion, sliced
Lettuce, shredded
Black olives, sliced
Shredded cheddar cheese
Guacamole or diced avocado
Sour cream
Tortilla chips or thin tortilla strips

Combine the 6 tablespoons of chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, paprika, coriander, and cayenne pepper in a bowl; divide the mixture into a ⅓ portion and a ⅔ portion, set aside.
Place the chicken breast pieces in a large stockpot. Mix the ⅓ portion of seasoning mix with a small amount of the chicken broth, stirring well, and pour over the chicken. Pour the remaining chicken broth over the chicken, cover the stockpot with a lid, and simmer until chicken is cooked through. When the chicken is completely cooked, remove from the stockpot and cool until you can handle it easily; shred the chicken with your hands into small bite-size pieces and return to the stockpot.
Mix the remaining ⅔ portion of spice mixture and the chili powder with some tomato juice and whisk until well incorporated, and then add it to the stockpot. Add the remaining tomato juice, tomato sauce, canned diced tomatoes, and black beans. Simmer the soup for at least an hour to allow all of the flavors to marry and enhance.
When soup is ready, serve it in bowls (make sure to leave some room at the top of your bowl) and top with fresh tomatoes, green onions, lettuce, black olives, shredded cheddar cheese, avocado, and sour cream. Sprinkle with thin-cut tortilla strips or serve with tortilla chips.

Tarragon Chicken Salad

So, this is the chicken salad recipe I had been referring to... The one that one of my residents begged her daughter for so that she could give it to me! Admittedly, I did change a couple of things in the original recipe to suit my own tastes better, but the original comes from Kathy! :-)

I remember when I was first given the recipe... One of the ingredients - East Shore brand Key Lime mustard - is not a very conventional ingredient at all, and I spent a long time searching in local grocery stores for the dumb stuff. Only to find that Kathy usually gets it when she vacations in Door County! So, we called Kathy up and she told us exactly where I could find this mustard, which happens to be a little store called Main Street Market in Egg Harbor, Wisconsin. Needless to say, I called them up and gave them my credit card information to send me some of this mustard... Now, normally, I would have just forgone the special mustard and opted for a good Dijon instead (which is what I did when making it prior to ordering this special mustard), but I was intrigued by what the flavor might taste like. It's really quite interesting!
I don't know if anyone else does this, but I do it all the time... Any time I'm working with a new ingredient that I'm not sure of, I taste it. Just the ingredient, whatever it may be. There are a few exceptions, of course, but I generally taste everything separately before adding it to anything else. Spices... Herbs... Fruits... Vegetables... Sauces... Mustards... Whatever! It really is easier to know/figure out what I would like best with an ingredient if I know what said ingredient tastes like on its own. And this Key Lime mustard was no exception. In fact, I still remember the day it came in the mail... I opened my mailbox and was initially confused by what it could be in this big manila envelope, until I saw the return address and realized that it was my mustard arriving already!! (I'm easily excitable at times...) I ran back to my apartment and immediately ripped the envelope open and took the jar of mustard out, followed by breaking the seal and taking a small sample about a minute later! It's different... But really tasty!

Now, like I said, if you can't find the Key Lime mustard and/or don't want to order it, don't even worry about it; feel free to use a good Dijon mustard instead. And feel free to mix up some of the ingredients if you prefer something else, make it your own! That's what recipes are for. Recipes are not set in stone, they're a guide you can change all you want until they are exactly what you do want!



2 (13 oz.) cans Chicken Breast (like Tyson)
4 Tbsp. coarsely chopped walnuts
4 tsp. dried minced onions
4 tsp. dried tarragon leaves
8-12 twists fresh ground pepper
1/2 - 3/4 c. craisins
1 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. Key Lime (East Shore brand) or Dijon mustard
1 c. Hellman's mayonnaise


Drain the chicken and remove from cans to a double layer of paper towels; pat dry and then flake the chicken into a medium bowl. Add the next five ingredients and stir to combine. Mix together the mustard and mayonnaise in a small bowl and add to the chicken mixture. Cover and chill; allow to sit for at least an hour to marry the flavors. Serve on croissants.