Creamy Chicken and Sundried Tomato Pasta

I have been seeing this tasty looking creamy chicken and sundried tomato pasta on pinterest for a while now and it was time that I made my own version of it! You really can't go wrong with a creamy sauce packed with the flavour of sundried tomatoes but this pasta takes things a step further with the addition on plenty of melted cheese including both fresh mozzarella, which only adds to the creaminess, and parmesan! This recipe is super easy and it only takes as much time to make as it takes to bring the water to a boil and cook the pasta! You start off by cooking the chicken, deglazing the pan with some white wine, adding some broth and cream along with the sundried tomatoes and cheese and you're done! Other than tweaking the recipe I made one important addition and that was to add some roasted grape or cherry tomatoes for their juiciness and acidity which complements and contrasts the creaminess of the pasta perfectly! As simple as this dish is it's so wonderfully tasty that words just cannot describe how good it is, you really just have to try it!

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Chicken and Mushroom Skillet in a Creamy Asiago and Mustard Sauce

Up next we have another super quick and easy chicken dish and this time it's a one skillet chicken and mushroom dish in a creamy asiago and dijon mustard sauce and it's just packed with flavour! This recipe starts out by butterflying or pounding the chicken thin so that it cooks quickly and then cooking it at a high temperature to caramelize it on both sides before setting aside. The mushrooms along with the onion, garlic and thyme are then cooked before deglazing the pan with some white wine, adding the chicken broth, cream and mustards, simmering to reduce and thicken the sauce and adding the asiago cheese! All said and done this recipe takes about 30 minutes to make so it is perfect for dinner on a busy week night and it's sure to impress everyone that tries it!

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Shrimp Scampi with Zucchini Noodles

Zucchini noodles, aka zoodles, have been making their way around the food sphere for a while now and I finally jumped on the band wagon and tried them out and I was pleasantly surprised that they make an excellent substitute for noodles, rice, etc. Not only are zucchini noodles lighter and healthier but but they hold up like real noodles and they are a great way to sneak in some extra vegetables into your meals! One of the first dishes that I thought to use zoodles in was one of my favourite pasta dishes, shrimp scampi, a dish where shrimp is served on pasta in a lemony, garlicky and buttery sauce. If you are into the lemon, butter and garlic combo (and who isn't???) then this dish is for you and it's so quick and easy to make, taking less than 20 minutes in total! The zucchini version of shrimp scampi is so much lighter and fresher than the pasta version and I think that I may just like it even more than the original!

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30 Minute Meals

Very often we are extremely busy and it seems like we don't have the time to cook a proper meal but there are plenty of quick, easy and tasty recipes that can be made in 30 minutes or less and I like to keep a list of them on hand for those busy nights. Below you will find some of my favourite meals that can be made in 30 minutes or less and none of them sacrifice anything in the way of flavour! These quick and easy meals range from the staple chicken and pasta dishes, to soups, salads, burgers, pizzas, fish, Chinese takeout fakeout and even a few kid friendly meals. Many of these recipes use ingredients that are already in your pantry or freezer so you really just need to throw in some fresh ingredients like veggies or a salad for a side dish and you are good to go. The next time you are in a rush to get something ready for dinner on a busy night, don't reach for the phone to order takeout, reach for your list of your favourite 30 minute meals.

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Crispy Honey Lemon Cauliflower on Chili and Garlic Stir Fried Zoodles

After recently making the crispy parmesan cauliflower bites I could not help but think that crispy cauliflower could be used in other recipes and the thing the that stuck out in my mind was using it to replace the meat in a Chinese style dish like honey lemon chicken. Normally when I am making a Chinese style dish where the meat is coated and fried until crispy I take a lighter approach and use simple sauteed meat but since the meat in this case is actually cauliflower I thought that it would be alright to indulge a bit and go with the crispy coating. The honey lemon sauce is super quick and easy to make starring, you guessed it, honey and lemon along with some other Chinese style sauce staples including soy sauce, garlic and ginger. You will definitely never miss the meat in this dish as the crispy cauliflower is absolutely amazing in the tasty honey lemon sauce!

I served the crispy honey lemon cauliflower over a bed of zucchini noodles stir fried with some garlic and a touch of chili heat to keep things nice and light.

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Chinese Recipes for the New Year

The lunar new year, aka the Chinese new year, is this Thursday and it's the perfect excuse to to pull out some of my favourite Chinese recipes in addition to trying some new ones! I am a big fan of Chinese cuisine, both traditional style Chinese and American style Chinese, ie. Chinese takeout, and luckily they are both easy to make at home! Below you will find a mix of both traditional and takeout Chinese recipes that are really easy make and most of them can be made with ingredients that are already in your pantry! I always find that it's fun to try to recreate recipes that I have had at restaurants and this is especially true for Chinese takeout where I can make the dishes much lighter and healthier than the takeout version and what's more, the homemade version tastes even better! Whether you are celebrating the Chinese New Year or not, you really cannot go wrong with making any of these tasty recipes at home!

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Shrimp Creole

Mardi Gras is tomorrow and I have one more New Orleans dish to share with you before it starts, this tasty shrimp Creole! Shrimp creole is a dish where the meat, often shrimp, is served in a tomato based sauce with onions, celery and bell peppers along with some spicy hot sauce and it is simmered until it gets nice and thick. This dish is so easy to make, you just need to cook the veggies until tender, throw everything but the shrimp into the pot, simmer until nice and thick, add the shrimp, cook and you're done! Although this recipe takes a bit of time to make, it's worth it because all of that simmering really brings out all of the flavours! So if you are still looking for an idea of what to make for dinner tomorrow for Mardi Gras (and lets be honest, this is good any day of the year), you cannot go wrong with this shrimp Creole! I't like bringing NOLA to your home!

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Recipes for Mardi Gras

This Tuesday is Mardi Gras and even though I will not be in New Orleans to celebrate, I take it as an excuse to whip up some NOLA inspired dishes since I am a huge fan on NOLA cuisine. I was really into New Orleans cuisine before I had even had a chance to go there and after finally getting the chance to visit a few years ago I came back with a long list of new recipe ideas to try recreating at home! Below you will find a list of some of my favourite New Orleans style recipes many of which are staples and pretty authentic (well as authentic as someone that did not grow up in New Orleans can make them) along with a few of my creative outtakes using the flavours of New Orleans cuisine. If you are looking for a way to celebrate Mardi Gras from home this Tuesday you cannot go wrong with one of these recipes!

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Quick and Easy Chinese Hot and Sour Soup

The Lunar New Year, often called the Chinese New Year, is next week and I take that as the perfect excuse to pull out some of my favourite Chinese recipes and to try some new ones. One of my favourite Chinese take out dishes is the hot and sour soup and a few years ago I shared a traditional Chinese hot and sour soup recipe but it required a few ingredients that you could only get on a trip down to Chinatown or a well stocked local Asian grocery store so I decided to come up with a more accessible or pantry friendly version. This version of Chinese hot and sour soup does not require any rare ingredients, it takes less 20 minutes to make and what's more is that it's still better than most take out versions! You really couldn't find a much simpler soup recipe than this one, you pretty much just throw everything into the pot, heat it, pour in the egg drop along with a few seasoning and you are done! If you are looking for a quick, easy and tasty Chinese hot and sour soup, this is it and it was perfect for me right now since it is far too cold out for me to head down to Chinatown to pick up some of those wood ear mushrooms and lily buds that are required for the more traditional version of the recipe!

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New Orleans BBQ Shrimp

Next week is Mardi Gras and even though I will not be in New Orleans to celebrate, I take it as an excuse to whip up some NOLA inspired dishes since I am a big fan on NOLA cuisine. Another one of my favourite dishes that I had when I visited New Orleans was the BBQ shrimp and I just had to try making it at home. Normally the BBQ shrimp is served whole with the shell and the head on but if you have any squeamish eaters feel free to serve the shrimp completely peeled. Other than the shrimp the the most important thing is the BBQ sauce which is a mixture of hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, garlic and plenty of butter. The recipe itself is really easy, you just cook the garlic a bit in some butter, add the rest of the ingredients and simmer until the shrimp is cooked. Despite being so simple this New Orleans stye BBQ shrimp is so addictively good that you'll want to serve it with some crusty bread to mop up absolutely all of the BBQ sauce. If you are looking for a way to celebrate Mardi Gras from home next week this BBQ shrimp is a great way to do it. (To be completely honest with you, I didn't wait for Mardi Gras to enjoy this BBQ shrimp since it's great any day of the year, including say, today!)

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Miso Glazed Black Cod

This miso glazed black cod has to be one of my favourite dishes and since black cod is a little on the expensive side here I typically only use in on special occasions like Valentine's Day and it is alway an absolute please to do so! Black cod (aka sablefish) is a white fish that has a buttery texture due to the fatty layers that contain as much omega 3 fatty acids as wild salmon. My favourite way to enjoy black cod is in a super quick and easy miso marinade or glaze that takes 10 minutes to make the marinade and 10 minutes to cook with a marinate time of anywhere from 30 minutes to 3 days. That means that you can make the marinade a day or more ahead of time and you can have an amazing dinner ready in under 10 minutes! Although the recipe for this misoyaki black cod is nice and simple it's so good that it's sure to impress that special someone on Valentines Day!

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Chargrilled Oyster Pasta

When I made the chargrilled oysters I could not help but think about turning them from an appetizer/starter into a meal and the perfect way to do so was to use all of the flavours of chargrilled oysters in a pasta! Really the flavours of chargrilled oysters are very similar to those of shrimp scampi except with oysters in place of shrimp along with a few Cajun/Creole flavours. The sauce is pretty simple with a butter base followed by garlic, some wine or seafood stock, lemon juice and then some Worcestershire sauce, plenty of cheese and a hit of cayenne for some heat; it literally takes less time to make than it takes to cook the pasta. Since chargrilled oysters are grilled, I topped the pasta off with some more cheese and threw it under the broiler for a few minutes to melt the cheese and get it all nice and golden brown. I served the chargrilled oyster pasta along with some actual chargrilled oysters and some bread to mop up any remaining sauce from the plate. This is definitely one tasty pasta dish and it's perfect for a special dinner for two like Valentine's Day!

Mardi Gras is next week and this chargrilled oyster pasta is a great way to bring a little bit of New Orleans into your home to celebrate!

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Chargrilled Oysters

Valentine's Day is this weekend and I have been testing out some new recipes for that special day and since oysters are a common food for Valentine's Day I started with some chargrilled oysters. I first had chargrilled oysters when I visited New Orleans a few years ago and they were one of the dishes that I ate while there that really stuck out in my mind so it seemed only natural to try to make them at home. Chargrilled oysters are basically oysters on the half shell that are filled with a lemony, garlicky, butter sauce, topped with cheese and chargrilled until the cheese has melted and turned golden brown. You really cannot go wrong with a sauce like that and they are usually served with bread so that you can soak up all of that buttery sauces goodness! If you don't have a grill, or you just don't feel like firing it up or if it's buried under 2 feet of snow you can charbroil them instead; they won't be quite the same but they will still be amazing and you can always add a touch of liquid smoke to the butter sauce to get that smoky/charred flavour. Although a bit decadent these chargrilled oysters are perfect for a special occasion like Valentine's Day and they make an amazing appetizer before the main event!

Mardi Gras is next week and these chargrilled oysters are a great way to bring a little bit of New Orleans into your home to celebrate!

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50 Valentine's Day Recipes

Valentine's Day is right around the corner and that means that it's time to start thinking about what recipes you want to make for that special person in your life. Homemade food is a great way to show that you care so I thought that I would take the opportunity to roundup some of my favourite recipes for Valentine's Day. This list includes tasty recipes for everything from breakfast in bed, to appetizers, dinners for two and of course plenty of decadent chocolate treats! Most of these Valentine's Day recipes are super quick and easy to make for all levels of cooking skills. No matter what you make, a homemade Valentin's Day recipe is bound to bring a smile to that special person in your life!

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Caramelized Pear and Blue Cheese Soup

It's time for another warm comforting bowl of soup for these cold winter days! At first this pear and blue cheese soup might sound a little strange but the combination of pears and blue cheese can be a magical one; the trick is that you need to be careful not to overpower the delicate flavour of the pears with the strong flavour of the blue cheese. This soup starts off by caramelizing the pears in butter and brown sugar to add a little to their sweetness and to bring out more of the pears flavours. From there the recipe is pretty much a simple soup recipe where you cook some onions, garlic and thyme before adding the broth along with some potatoes to thicken the soup a bit, simmer until tender, puree and add the blue cheese along with some cream. I have to say that the sweet pear and savoury blue cheese combo is an absolutely fabulous one and it works amazingly well in this soup! As good as the soup is just like that it benefits from the saltiness from a garnish of some crispy fried pancetta or bacon; a must in my books! No matter how you make it, this soup is pure comfort food that will warm your soul through the dead of winter!

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Closet Cooking is on Instagram

Closet Cooking is on Instagram! I first created an Instagram account years ago and I never really used it but recently I have been getting into it. I am mostly posting preview shots of upcoming recipes and some of my food adventures outside of my closet sized kitchen. If you are interested in seeing previews of my upcoming recipes you can Follow Closet Cooking on Instagram!

If you are on Instagram and have a mostly food related feed please feel free to leave your Instagram link in the comments below so that I can check them out!

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Cauliflower Chowder

It's time for another soup and this time it's a cauliflower chowder that is so quick, easy, light, healthy and so tasty that you'll be coming back for seconds every time! My favourite cauliflower soup is my roasted cauliflower and aged white cheddar soup where the cauliflower is pureed to make a smooth soup but it's also nice to get the texture of the cauliflower and this chowder does just that. This recipe could not be simpler, you just saute the standard three veggies, onions, carrots and celery in oil, add some flour as a thickener, add the broth and cauliflower, simmer until the cauliflower is tender, add the cream and season to taste. The recipe as written is really good but I like to kick things up a bit by adding some umami in the form of melting parmesan cheese into the chowder, adding miso paste and finally by giving into my inner bacon addiction and topping things off with some crispy bacon! This is definitely one of my new favourite soups with it being both hearty and tasty while also being light and healthy and it's also a bowl of pure comfort food that is perfect for these cold winter days!

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Roasted Cauliflower and Chickpea Quinoa and Arugula Salad with Almonds, Pomegranate and Feta in a Lemony Tahini Dressing

After all of the football snacking in January it was time for some healthier dishes starting with this roasted cauliflower and chickpea quinoa and arugula salad/grain bowl. I start this salad out with a base of quinoa and arugula and I build it up with some meaty roasted cauliflower and chickpeas. From there I add some toasted almond slivers for crunch, pomegranate for both the colour and the juicy bursts of sweetness and some salty feta before finishing it off with plenty of fresh herbs like parsley and mint. Continuing with the Mediterranean theme I went with a simple lemony tahini based dressing and despite it simply consisting of tahini, lemon juice and salt it is so amazingly good! One of the things that I like most about this salad, other than the fact that it tastes amazing, is all of the vibrant colours from the black quinoa to the green arugula to the white cauliflower and finally the red pomegranate and I also thoroughly enjoy all of the contrasting textures. If you are looking for a healthy light meal (or a side dish) you just cannot go wrong with this tasty roasted cauliflower and chickpea quinoa and arugula salad/grain bowl!

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Creamy Parmesan Mushroom and Spinach Tortellini Soup

With all of the cold and the snow I have been in full on soup mode and my latest soup is this creamy mushroom and spinach soup with cheese tortellini. Mushrooms and spinach are a fabulous combination that I enjoy using in many different dishes so it was inevitable that I eventually used them in a soup like this one and it's a good thing that I did because this is one of my new favourite soups! This recipe is pretty easy, you simply slice the mushrooms, dice the onions, cook them in a saucepan, add the broth and tortellini, cook until the tortellini is done and add the spinach before seasoning and enjoying a bowl of pure comfort! If you know me then you know that I could not resist adding a bit of extra flavour, aka umami, in the form of using white wine to deglaze the pan, adding parmesan and I even add a tablespoon of white miso paste to the soup. No matter how you cut it, this creamy mushroom and spinach soup with cheese tortellini is one hearty and tasty bowl of soup that is perfect for these cold winter days!

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50 Soups to Warm the Soul

With the colder weather here it's definitely time for a nice, hot, comforting bowl of soup! Soups can be pretty amazing; they are pure comfort food and they are able to pick you up when you are down, warm you up when you are cold and of course help you feel better when you are sick. There are so many different kinds of soups that you will never get bored whether you like to stick with your favourites or if you like to try new ones all the time. I am always looking for a tasty new bowl of soup and these are a few of my favourites; I hope that you will enjoy them as much as I do and that they will help you get through these cold winter days!

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