Egg-topped Soba Noodles with Asparagus and Prosciutto

I've been really making a conscious effort to cut back on going out to eat, as well as spending so much money on food. In turn, this has really helped me in my mission to eat healthier.

Last night, I made an absolutely delicious, savory, and easy dinner for two. It took under 30 minutes for sure, including the minimal prep time! I got the recipe here, but tweaked the amount of ingredients.

Egg-Topped Soba Noodles with Asparagus and Prosciutto

Ingredients:
-1/2 package soba noodles (Thin, buckwheat noodles - a great alternative to whole-wheat pasta, if you're not a fan.)
-1/2 lb of asparagus, ends trimmed, cut on sharp diagonal into 1/8 inch-thick slices (Adjust this to your preference - we liked it with lots of asparagus! Adds a great crunch to the dish.)
-2 large eggs
-1 package of Prosciutto, chopped (We bought pre-chopped Prosciutto - it came in little chunks & really cut down on prep time.)
-4 garlic cloves, minced
-4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
-1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus additional for serving

Directions:
1) Heat 2 tbsp of extra-virgin olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add garlic; stir for 30 seconds. Add prosciutto strips, and cook until slightly crisp. Remove from heat and set aside in a bowl.

2) Cook soba noodles in a pot of salted boiling water for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add sliced asparagus to the pot; cook until noodles are cooked through and asparagus is just tender (still a little crunchy is best!), about 2 to 3 minutes. Drain noodles and asparagus, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid.

3) Add drained noodles and asparagus to prosciutto mixture in the pan. Cook over medium heat until heated through, tossing and adding reserved cooking liquid by 1/4 cupfuls to moisten. Add noodle mixture to a large bowl for serving, and set aside.

4) Heat 1 tsp olive oil in the same pan over medium heat. Crack egg into pan. Cook on one side until egg begins to set, about 1.5 minutes. Repeat for second egg.

5) Remove pan from heat. Add grated Parmesan cheese and 1 tbsp olive oil to noodle mixture, toss to coat. Divide among individual bowls. Top each serving with 1 egg and grated cheese. Serve immediately.


 I couldn't believe how effortless and tasty this recipe was. I hope you find so too. I'd love if you could share some great and healthy dinner recipes with me as well!

Happy cooking!

A Healthy Dinner Made Easy

The other day I went grocery shopping with the intention of buying solely healthy foods, and I did just that. In fact, I even went home and rummaged through every drawer, cupboard and pantry, and threw out all the junk food that populated every nook and cranny of my kitchen.

One of the healthy items that I bought was an organic head of cauliflower - something that I've never bought, let alone cooked before.  I scoured the internet for an easy-to-make, healthy, yet still yummy recipe, and came across this one on Epicurious - my go-to website/app for recipes.

Whole-Wheat Linguine with Cauliflower, Pancetta & Parmesan
(This recipe yields four servings, according to Epicurious, but I'd say there's even more than that in a bowl this big! Especially if you're watching your weight - or trying to, anyway. I also tweaked the recipe to suit my dietary likes/dislikes.)

Ingredients:
-1/2 cup bread crumbs
-1/4 cup (+ 1 tbsp) extra virgin olive oil
-1 large head of cauliflower, cut into 1 inch wide florets
-1/4 lb sliced pancetta, chopped
-4 garlic cloves, minced
-1/2 tsp dried hot red pepper flakes (you can adjust this based on how much spice you can handle)
-1 cup (1 can) reduced-sodium chicken broth
-3/4 lb whole-wheat linguine
-1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan, plus additional for serving
-1/3 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Directions:
1) Stir together bread crumbs and 1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil in a small bowl until combined well. Transfer to a 12-inch heavy skillet (aka a deep/wide pan) and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until crisp and golden. This should take about 5 minutes. Return to bowl.

2) Heat remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil in the pan over moderately high heat until hot (but not smoking), then sauté cauliflower, stirring occasionally, until browned well, about 8-10 minutes.

3) Add pancetta and sauté, stirring frequently, until it begins to crisp, for about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and red pepper flakes and sauté, stirring, for about 1 minute. Add broth, then reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, stirring occasionally, until cauliflower is tender and sauce is slightly reduced. (Epicurious indicates to allow the sauce to simmer for about 7 minutes, but I allowed it to simmer until I was finished making my pasta.)

4) While the sauce is simmering, cook the linguine in a pot of boiling salted water, uncovered, until al dente, then drain in a colander.

5) Stir your desired amount of Parmesan cheese into sauce and simmer 1 minute. (I loooove cheese, so I used quite a bit.)

6) Toss pasta with the cauliflower mixture and parsley in a large bowl, then sprinkle with the bread crumbs set aside from earlier. Serve with additional cheese.

Although it tasted pretty phenomenal, I didn't snap a photo of it to share with you, because I found that a photo wouldn't do it justice. It may not be the prettiest dish you could make, but it's easy, healthy, filling, and delicious!

Happy cooking!