Creamy Chipotle Chicken Pasta

Check out my new toy.

Pasta Press Attachment for the Mixer.

Better than Play-doh.

Oh my goodness I'm so excited it's not even funny.  Only because I made Rigatoni, though.  If I'd made Fusilli it would be pretty hilarious.

Homemade Rigatoni

Creamy Chipotle Chicken Pasta

So this recipe made use of some leftover deeeelicious Chipotle chicken that Mark had grilled for us.

I just sautéed some onion, garlic, and sweet peppers, made a quick béchamel sauce, mixed it all together with the shredded chicken and pasta, and added a few bleu cheese crumbles on top.

Chipotle Marinade for the Chicken: (from "The Barbecue Bible"):
[This is great on chicken - Mark marinated and grilled tenders, which we most recently ate with rice, and it makes for amazing tacos as well.]

• 6 Canned chipotle chiles in Adobo sauce with 2T of their juices
• 5 Cloves Garlic
• 1 strip orange zest (2")
• 1 cup fresh sour orange juice (or 3/4 cup orange juice, 1/4 cup lime juice)
• 1 T tomato paste
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 2 T red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

1. Combine in a saucepan and bring to a boil
2. Allow to reduce by half (5-8 minutes)
3. Blend in a food processor to a smooth paste

Béchamel/White sauce:

• Butter
• Flour
• Milk
• Salt and Pepper

1. Melt a few tablespoons of Butter in a saucepan over medium heat
2. Add in a spoonful of flour, and whisk until it's a golden-brown, smooth paste
3. Add milk (or cream) and whisk till smooth
4. Let thicken if needed, or add more liquid if it gets too thick
5. Salt and Pepper to taste

Chicken Meatball Sandwiches.

Chipotle Chicken Meatball Sandwiches
with Apple Lime Chutney and Brie Cheese

Mark is the greatest husband for many, many, reasons, but one of them is that he is always game to eat whatever I make.  And while he is very easy to please, it is still extremely nice when he proclaims something as a "Top Ten" meal.  Tonight's Chipotle Chicken Meatball Sandwiches were honored with an exuberant Top Ten label,  so I am a happy girl on this Fat Tuesday!

I know, I know...Chipotle Flavoring again.  But we had Chipotle flavored chicken sausage that we needed to cook, so I went with it anyway.

Chipotle Chicken Meatballs
Brie Cheese
Apple Lime Chutney (I guess it's Chutney.  What makes something chutney?  Chutney is a weird word.)
Toast
And a good ol' Toothpick

Meatballs
[So, since I made my meatballs from Chipotle-flavored chicken sausage, I didn't have to add too much.  But I did look around and found some lovely-looking recipes for making Chicken Meatballs (Here's one) using plain ground chicken and the wonderful Chipotles in Adobo Sauce of which we are so fond.]

• 1lb Chipotle Chicken Sausage
• 3/4 cup Plain Breadcrumbs
• 1 Egg
• 1/4 cup Chopped Fresh Parsley
• 3 Tbsps Shredded Romano Cheese
• Salt and Pepper

1. Mix all the ingredients well
2. Roll up your meatballs - I used about 2 Tablespoons of mixture per meatball
3. Cook at 400 for approximately 20 minutes or until they reach an internal temp of 165-170

Apple Lime Chutney

• 2 Apples, peeled, cored and diced
• 1/2 Lime, Juice and Zest
• 1/4 medium-sized Red Onion, diced
• 1 teaspoon Brown Sugar (this depends on how sweet/tart your apple is...just taste!)
• Salt - just a pinch or two
• 1-2 Tablespoons Butter

1. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium-high heat
2. Add the Onions and Apples
3. Add Brown Sugar, Lime Juice and Zest
4. Sauté until tender

Tomato Soup.

Tomato Soup

• Onion (I used about 1/4 of a medium sized red onion)
• Garlic (I was always taught at least 1 clove per person)
• Grape Tomatoes (About 1/2 pint)
• Salt and Pepper
• Chicken or Vegetable Broth (1 cup)
• Milk (3/4 cup)
• Butter (a couple of Tablespoons)
• Sugar (a pinch, only if needed)

1. Saute the onion and garlic until in butter or olive oil until the onions begin to get translucent 
2. Add the Grape tomatoes whole
3. Continue to heat until the tomatoes burst and wither (if you get impatient you can help them along with a little smashing)
4. Add salt and pepper
5. Add the chicken stock, and then blend with an immersion blender
6. Taste it - adjust the salt and pepper; if needed add a pinch of sugar
7. Stir in the milk (or cream!)
8. If it tastes a little flat, add a teeny bit of butter...it works wonders

Grilled Chipotle Cheddar Sandwiches

I served it with Grilled Cheese, but to spice things up, I spread on a thin layer of Chipotle yumminess.
I just blended the contents of a can of Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce and added it inside with thick chunks of local cheddar.

Twice Baked.

Twice-Baked Chipotle Sweet Potatoes

Because of some Jerky and Chili Making we have done lately, Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce has become a pantry staple for us.  This is a good thing, because when we got our produce from naturalfarms this past week, one of the recipes that came with it was for Twice-Baked Chipotle Sweet Potatoes.

I thought this would make a great addition to our Valentine's Day Brie Burgers.  Oh yeah...it was.

I even forgot to add the chopped onion to the potato/pepper mixture.  But it didn't matter.  They were SO good.  I highly recommend.

Twice-Baked Chipotle Sweet Potatoes

Burning.

Burn a Hole in your Esophagus Chili

Mark had made jerky several weeks ago, and using his "Barbecue Bible," found a recipe for a Chipotle Adobo marinade for the meat.  It was really good, so when we had some stew meat from naturalfarms, we decided to make a steaky chili with some of the same chipotle adobo flavors.

Jalapeño, Red Onion, Garlic

We started pretty simply, with chopping a pepper, an onion, and a few cloves of garlic.  Then browned the meat, added our spices and veggies, and once the meat was cooked through and the vegetables were getting tender, we added the beans and sauces.  One of the sauces was blended chipotle peppers in adobo sauce.  It's a delicious, smoky flavor...but it's made out of smoked jalapeños.  I don't think we considered just how hot it might make our chili.  Holy Moly, the flavor was great, but let me just say, the fresh jalapeño might not have been needed.

• Beef Stew Meat, or cut-up Steak (about 1 lb)
• Oregano
• Cumin
• Salt and Pepper
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 3-4 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 jalapeño, chopped, ribs and seeds removed
• Orange Zest (about 1/2 an orange)
• Orange Juice (1/2 an orange)
• 1 can black beans
• 1 can kidney beans
• Red Wine Vinegar (just a splash or two)
• 1/2 can of Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce, blended (or you could chop the peppers)
• 1/2 cup of Tomato Sauce
• Lots of milk (to drink to ease the burning)

1. Brown the steak in your chili pot, and add salt, pepper, oregano, and cumin
2. Add jalapeño (really, this jalapeño is probably overkill), onion, and garlic
3. Once vegetables are beginning to get tender, add the zest and juice, stir around for another minute
4. Lower the heat a bit, and add the beans and liquids
5. Let it simmer for as long as you're willing....then eat!  

Say goodbye to all feeling on your tongue.