BBQ Chicken and Roasted Veggie Pasta Salad

Chopped up roasted veggies - so good!

I made this last fall for a party and got the craving again last week. Also my partner's parents were coming to town so I thought it would be good to have some extra food in the fridge. This pasta salad is so yummy I have to stop myself from eating it until I get sick and it tasted even better this time around because I added in some cubed extra sharp cheddar cheese. The balsamic vinegar and bbq sauce contrasted perfectly with the sharpness of the cheese. 

Since I was going to be bbqing chicken anyway I made a few extra breasts so that I could use it as pizza topping later on for my super awesome bbq chicken and spinach pizza. (I just made that for the in-laws the day before yesterday so that recipe will be going up soon.)

Shredded BBQ Chicken

Also, I added the zucchini in because I had some extra lying around and it tasted just fine in the pasta salad, so I am guessing you could try any number of different vegetables roasted in this salad. Be creative and use what you have on hand!

BBQ Chicken and Roasted Veggie Pasta Salad

1 (1 lb.) box whole wheat Barilla Pasta

3 colored Bell Peppers quartered

2 Vidalia onions cut in large slices

2-3 Tomatoes quartered

1 Zucchini quartered

3-4 Chicken Breasts

BBQ Sauce (I prefer Famous Dave’s “Devil’s Spit” or “Rich and Sassy”)

1/4-1/2 cup Balsamic vinegar

Salt

Pepper

Olive Oil

Put chicken breasts in a 13X9 pan and salt and pepper to taste, then coat with bqq sauce and bake at 350 until juices run clear (about 30-45 minutes). Meanwhile clean tomatoes out so that only the flesh remains. Coat onions, peppers, zucchini, and tomatoes lightly with olive oil, pepper, and salt. Put veggies on a paper towel to drain off some of the oil if there is excess. Put all of the veggies onto a large baking sheet and roast at 425 for about 25 minutes or until desired doneness (vegetable skins should be browned in most places). While veggies are cooling, cook pasta according to package directions. Chop up veggies and chicken into bite sized pieces and toss with pasta. Add balsamic vinegar to taste. Serve warm or chilled. Serves about 6. 

Sweet and Savory Butternut Squash Linguine

I had never had butternut squash in pasta before, but I was browsing the great internet after I bought some butternut squash that was on sale and found a recipe on the New York Times website for a butternut squash pasta that inspired me to create my own.  

I love to pair spicy with sweet, as you may have noticed, and this pasta is no exception. I baked the squash with cayenne, cinnamon, and brown sugar for a little bit of a flavor twist and I have to say the results were outstanding. Also the tangy asiago cheese offsets the sweetness of the butternut squash just right. 

On a practical note if you roast the squash in advance this could be a pretty simple and quick meal to throw together. 

Enjoy!

Sweet and Savory Butternut Squash Linguine

1 Butternut Squash

½ lb. Whole Wheat Linguine (Ronzoni’s brand is the best I have tried so far)

2-3 tablespoons Brown Sugar divided

3/4 teas. Cayenne divided

1 teas. Cinnamon divided

½ teas. Nutmeg

1-2 tablespoons Butter

1 cup (approx) Chicken Broth (could easily use vegetable broth or white wine)

Asiago Cheese grated

Slice butternut squash in half and scoop out seeds. Brush is melted butter and sprinkle 1 tablespoon brown sugar, ¼ teaspoon cayenne, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, and nutmeg onto the butternut squash and bake at 350 for about an hour or until the squash is soft enough to mash up. Once the squash is done cooking scoop it out and mash it into a paste (this should be easily done with a spoon since it is already so soft) in a bowl then heat a 12 inch skillet on medium and add a tablespoon or so of butter to the skillet. Put the squash into the pan with the rest of the spices and sugar and add in chicken broth slowly to make a very thick sauce for the pasta (it should not be soupy at all, just loose enough to coat the pasta easily). Meanwhile cook pasta according to package directions and toss into the skillet with the butternut squash mixture. Grate asiago cheese over it and serve. 

Sautéed Vegetable Pasta Sauce with Ground Turkey

Some of the fresh veggies I used 

I started messing around with creating a pasta sauce that was more veggie intensive a few months ago and came up with this. It is now one of my most favorite dishes. It is super healthy, delicious, and makes a large batch ideal for freezing. You could easily make this completely vegetarian by omitting the ground turkey and using more veggies. Also, if you don't have one of the vegetables listed you can substitute another that you think would go well in a pasta sauce. The last time I made this I had some extra portabella mushrooms lying around so I added them in along with everything else. 

Happy cooking!

Sautéed Vegetable Turkey Pasta Sauce

1 Zucchini sliced

1 Summer Squash sliced

1 Eggplant sliced and quartered and peeled*

1 Onion diced

2 Tomatoes diced (optional)

2 Red Bell Peppers diced

16 oz Ground Turkey

1 ½ - 2 Jars pre-made Tomato based pasta sauce (preferably low salt and sugar)**

3-4 Generous Squirts Sriracha Chili Sauce

1 ½ tbl. Tarragon

1 ½ tbl. Basil

2 teas. Oregano

Olive Oil

Salt to taste

Fresh Ground Pepper to taste

Whole Wheat Pasta cooked according to package directions

Put spices and pre-made pasta sauce into a large pot and begin to heat on low. Then brown onions and ground turkey and put it in the sauce. Roast eggplant at 450 for 20 minutes and add to sauce. Saute the zucchinin, squash, and red bell peppers together until they start to soften and brown/caramelize and then add them to the pot. Add diced tomatoes to the pot and put in Siriachi chili sauce until food reaches desired spiciness. Cook until tomatoes have softened or the sauces flavors has melded (about 30-60 minutes) and serve over whole wheat pasta.

** May substitute plain tomato sauce but if you do I recommend adding extra spices 

* You may substitute more zucchini or squash instead of using eggplant if you wish