Southwest Pasta

When I was in college I got a job at a local restaurant as a waitress. It was probably one of the best decisions I ever made. HAHA I know, I Know… Being a waitress? That was one of the best decisions you ever made? Well Yes, it was.

I met some my best friends with this job. I met my husband there for the first time. This restaurant and my co-workers turned into family. I couldn’t have asked for a better place to work during college. It was THE restaurant. The hang out. Everyone loved it. It was one of those places where you had the exact same people at the bar every night, you knew a lot of the customers by name.

Have you ever seen that movie “Waiting”, about the waiters and waitresses… well if you haven’t you need to see it. If you are or have ever been a waiter or waitress you will totally understand this movie. Haha. I remember a group of us from the restaurant going to see it when it came out and we could all relate to it, and loved it.

But anyways, the point is that this dish was one of my favorites and a favorite of most of the other servers that worked there. Southwest Pasta…mmm yum. When we lived at Camp Lejeune and would come home to visit, it was the first place I wanted to go, and the first meal I wanted. It was amazing.

But that restaurant is closed now. A new one has taken its place.

No more Southwest Pasta.

Actually, hardly any restaurants around here have a pasta dish that can even touch it.

Bummer.

So what to do when you can’t get it at the restaurant anymore? Make it at home.

I had asked the cooks enough question while I worked there to know what was in the dish (mainly what the sauce was haha), so all I had to do was make it right…at home.

What is Southwest Pasta?

Barbeque Chicken with melted shredded cheese , served over a bed of corkscrew shaped pasta with a creamy Cajun Sauce.

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(Printable Recipe Here)

Southwest Pasta

by Angie Barrett October-17-2010

Ingredients

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 large chicken breasts
1/2 cup BBQ Sauce
4 cups cooked pasta ( I used fusilli pasta)
1 cup shredded cheese
Cajun Sauce (recipes below)

For Cajun Sauce:

1 1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup grated Romano cheese
7 egg yolks
Pinch of Salt and Pepper
1 tablespoon to 2 tablespoon of Cajun Seasoning (recipe below)

For Cajun Seasoning:

(This makes a little jar of seasoning; I poured it all into a clean baby food jar and shook it up, storing it in a little jar and adding what I needed from the jar for recipes)

2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1/2 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon paprika

Instructions

Boil a large pot of water for the pasta. Add a little salt to the water. Boil Pasta for about 12 minutes or until tender. Drain and set aside.
Slice uncooked chicken breast into strips. (Remember to always wash your hands after touching raw chicken)
Heat 1-2 tablespoon of vegetable oil a large pan on medium heat. Add chicken strips to the pan and cook until done.
Once chicken is cooked, add the BBQ sauce and toss to coat. Set aside.
This is how I plate this dish: Place 1 cup of cooked pasta in a bowl. Pour on ½ cup of the Cajun sauce onto the noodles. Sprinkle a little of the shredded cheese on top of the sauce. Top with a few strips of BBQ chicken.
Cajun Sauce:Heat the milk and cream in a saucepan on medium heat until it begins to simmer. Turn off heat. Slowly stir in cheese.
Once the cheese is stirred in and melted most of the way, remove the pan from the heat. Separate the egg white and egg yolks into 2 bowls. Whisk the egg yolks in their bowl.
Now slowly whisk about ¼ cup of the hot milk and cream mixture into the egg yolks.
Once it is mixed well, slowly add egg yolk mixture back into remaining cream mixture. Place the pan back on to very low heat and continually stir until simmering. Once it reaches a simmer, remove from the heat.
Let the sauce rest for 5-10 minutes to thicken. When the sauce has thickened to your liking, add in 1 tablespoon of the Cajun seasoning and Stir.
***Add one tablespoon of Cajun seasoning at a time, stir and taste, You can always add more but you can’t take out the Cajun seasoning after you’re added it!***
Cajun Seasoning:
Combine all of the spices into a bowl and mix.

Details

Yield: 4

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