Recipe Reinvention: "Leftover" Pasta, Carbonara Style

This past week we had some leftovers, and when I say some, I mean VERY LITTLE, but I was determined to make lunch for my husband and me out of it on Friday. I realized we had eggs, grated cheese, and bacon grease, and I could make a carbonara-like meal!

Here's what we had:

Leftover Ingredients:

• 1 chicken thigh, cooked and diced
• about 10 cubes of roasted potatoes
• 1 serving of rotini pasta, cooked

New Ingredients:

• Olive oil
• 1 Tbs Bacon grease (technically I guess it's a leftover....)
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 carrot, cut up (I julienned it)
• 1 rib of celery, diced
• 1/2 cup wine
• 2 eggs, beaten
• A bit of parsley, chopped
• A few leaves of basil, chopped
• Salt to taste
• Grated cheese to taste

Directions:

1. In a saute pan, heat up the olive oil and bacon grease. Add onions, carrots and celery and a bit of salt. Once softened a bit, add the garlic and stir for 1-2 minutes to cook the garlic without burning.
2. Add in the wine and let it sizzle. Once the wine is warm, push the veggies to one side and whisk the egg into the liquid. Pour slowly. Whisk quickly!
3. Add in the pasta, chicken and potato cubes and stir till warmed through. Throw in the basil and parsley.
4. Take off the stove and add the cheese.

Voila!!! "Leftover" Pasta Carbonara.

Recipe: Roasted Bell Peppers

Roasted peppers are delicious, but the one's from the jar are nothing compared to homemade!! I was in Giant a few days ago and they have a cart of ripe produce that's discounted. Usually it's still in great condition if you plan to use it that day or the next. They had bell peppers, a pack of about 6 of them, for $3 total!! I wasn't planning on it, but in that instant, I decided to roast my own peppers. It could not have been easier!

Ingredients:

• Red, Yellow, Orange, and/or Green Bell Peppers (make at least 6 peppers worth or you'll wish you'd made more)
• Olive Oil
• Salt
• Garlic or Garlic Powder

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cut the peppers in half and take out the stem and seeds.
3. Place the peppers on a cookie sheet, cut side down. If you're using real garlic, roast it with the peppers (place in aluminum foil with oil and wrap tightly).
4. Bake in the oven for about 20-25 minutes until the skin blisters (the garlic may take longer).
5. Once they look blistered, take them out, put the peppers into a glass bowl covered with plastic wrap for about 5-10 minutes to help the skins come off.
6. Take off the skins
7. Place into a container with some oil and salt. If you use real garlic, squish the roasted garlic into the oil too. If you use garlic powder, add a bit now instead of the real garlic.
8. Let sit in the fridge for an hour or two at least before eating for it to taste particularly yummy.

Why They're Better Than Jarred: They are much sweeter and a bit more firm than the jarred version.

We had them on crackers (Triscuits to be specific) and also on chicken salad sandwiches. They'd even be good by themselves!