Foodie Friday

Okay, so I originally thought I would deem Fridays "Photo Fridays" and upload some random picture...but I don't want to do that anymore. So instead I am calling Fridays "Foodie Friday."

See, I LOVE to cook. Being in the kitchen is one of those things that makes me VERY happy. I so enjoy just going into my kitchen and rockin' out some sort of yumminess. For me, cooking is so many things...a stress reliever, it brings me joy, it's fun, sometimes challenging and it always makes me smile...except for the occasional cooking miss hap...those usually necessitate a trip to the grocery store at some ridiculous hour and cause me to say naughty words.

So, for Foodie Friday, I will post a recipe of mine every Friday (or most every Friday, or whenever I feel like it). My disclaimer...I rarely use recipes or measurements, most of the stuff I make comes from my head. If I do consult a recipe, I don't usually follow it. So most of the measurements I will post are APPROXIMATIONS.

So then, for the recipe...this is what we had for dinner tonight. It has no name, so if you'd like to name it let me know...it's a chicken/pasta/veggie dish...all I know is that is was really TASTY!

What you need:
2 cooked chicken breasts diced (cook it however you want, I like to grill extra chicken and use it for recipes throughout the week)
1/2 box bow tie pasta (or whatever shape you like)
1 eggplant, sliced
1 zucchini, sliced
1 large tomato, or 2 Romas, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
1/2-1 pint mushrooms, sliced
1 red onion, sliced
1 wedge parmesan cheese, grated
olive oil
butter
lemon juice from 1/2 lemon
balsamic vinegar
salt/pepper

Directions:
1. Place eggplant, zucchini, red pepper and green pepper on baking sheets. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss them to coat them evenly and roast them at 375 for 30 minutes.
2. While veggies are roasting, cook pasta according to directions. Add 2-3 Tbsp of olive oil and 2-3 Tbsp of butter to a large pan and caramelize the onion and garlic.
3. After the veggies are done roasting, add them to the onions and garlic. Also add the tomatoes, the chicken, the mushrooms, a few splashes of balsamic, the lemon juice and salt/peeper to taste...cook for about 10 minutes or until all of the flavors combine and the veggies are done.
4. Combine the veggies and pasta in a 9x13 baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil and cover with the shredded parmesan. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.