Orecchiette with Creamy Chipotle and Corn

Orecchiette with Creamy Chipotle and Corn (slightly adapted from Woman’s Day, Servings: 6, Total Time: 25 minutes)

Ingredients

·         1 pound orecchiette pasta

·         1 Tbsp. olive oil

·         1 medium onion, finely chopped

·         Kosher salt and pepper

·         1 clove garlic, finely chopped

·         ¾ cup skim milk

·         4 ounces lowfat cream cheese, cut into pieces

·         ¼ cup grated Parmesan

·         1  tsp. chopped chipotles in adobo, plus 1 tsp. adobo sauce

·         Pinch ground nutmeg

·         1 ½ cups frozen corn, thawed

Directions

1.)    Cook the pasta according to package directions. Reserve ¼ - ½ cup of the cooking liquid, drain the pasta and return it to the pot.

2.)    Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onion and ¼ tsp. each salt and pepper and sauté, stirring occasionally, until very tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute.

3.)    Whisk in the milk and bring to a simmer. Whisk in the cream cheese, Parmesan, chipotles and adobo sauce, and nutmeg. Stir in the corn and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the corn is heated through and the mixture has slightly thickened, about 3 minutes.

4.)    Toss the pasta with the sauce, adding some of the reserved cooking liquid if the pasta seems dry.

My husband and I both really enjoyed this dish.  It was not too spicy, so I added some additional adobo sauce to my servings (I didn’t want to add too much heat).  It wasn’t very creamy, so when I make it again I will likely add 6 oz. cream cheese or some additional milk.  I ended up adding about ½ cup water to help the creaminess, I didn’t want to add any more than that as it would affect the taste.  The corn adds a slightly crispy texture to the otherwise soft and chewy dish (even though I cooked the pasta al dente, when I tossed it with the sauce, it lost its crispness). 

Overall, an easy dish to whip up when you are short on time. I do plan on making this again!

Chipotle Smashed Sweet Potatoes

Chipotle Smashed Sweet Potatoes (slightly adapted from Food Network, Servings: 4, Total Time: 30 minutes)

Ingredients

·         2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

·         2 Tbsp. unsalted butter

·         ½ tsp. kosher salt

·         1 chipotle chile pepper in adobo sauce, chopped

·         1 teaspoon adobo sauce, from the pepper can

Directions

1.)    Put the sweet potatoes in a large pot and cover with water.  Bring the water to a boil and cook for 20 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are fork-tender.

2.)    Drain the water from the pot.  Add the butter and salt and mash with a potato masher. Add the chile and sauce and continue mashing to combine. Serve immediately

I served these with Mexican meatloaf.  They were sweet and spicy, a great combination.  The potatoes were creamy and went down easily, even with the hint of spice from the adobo pepper and sauce.  I added a bit of extra sauce to mine, but it still wasn’t overly hot.  My husband liked the dish, but it was slightly too hot for him.  Easy and tasty!