Nacho Pasta

It has been a looooong time since I posted. I know. I should be tied to a post in the middle of town and let everyone throw rotten tomatoes at my head. They should then be allowed to slowly burn my entire shoe collection and burn every cherished pan I own, all the while tickling me into a pool of crying, begging desperation... Alas, this will not happen for I live in a wonderland called New York. The worst that could happen to me is to get shot while pumping gas (hence my husband does 99% of all gas pumping- among other reasons).

So as penance, I pledge to post every day for one week. Believe it or not, I actually have been cooking, experimenting, and taking pictures when I can. See, I haven't forgotten about you. :)

Today's recipe might well be my proudest invention yet. That's not to say that I haven't been even prouder of other meals, but this one was truly on the fly and an idea completely from the brain of yours truly. I call it Nacho Pasta. Now, it sounds pretty gross and looks that way, too. But let. me. tell. you. It tastes sooo good! So where, do you ask, did I come up with this idea? For the past week or so, I have been fiending for nachos. And believe me, I've tried to satisfy my cravings almost every day! The first day, I even licked my plate. What an ignoble thing to do, but they tasted so good that if the plate had been made of paper, I probably would have eaten it, too!

Needless to say, I have yet to quench my thirst for that mix of salty, crunchy chips, slathered in cheese, sour cream, salsa, and jalapenos. When I received a phone call that my sacred laptop was ready to get picked up from the Geek Squad, I knew dinner needed to be fast. Nothing as silly as a meal would stand between my sweet, sweet laptop and me.



Who am I kidding? Nothing will stop me from eating! However, I did want to make something super quick and easy tonight. I started racking my brains for ideas. Of course, nachos are on the brain. Then I remembered that I had some leftover chicken from last night and half a box of wheat noodles and all of a sudden I had an epiphany. Why use nacho chips when I can throw everything onto some healthy whole wheat noodles. Let me tell you, it was FANTASTIC! My Nacho Pasta has all of the flavors of nacho chips with half the fat. It tastes so good you won't even miss the chips. And fast?! Under 10 minutes. Who can beat that?!

I'm totally taking leftovers for lunch tomorrow.



Nacho Pasta

1/2 lb Whole Wheat Pasta (I used Barilla Plus which l-o-v-e)
1/4 lb Chicken, precooked and shredded or diced
1 can Fat Free Refried Beans
Shredded Cheese, Mexican Blend (I buy Weight Watchers because it is cheap and low fat)
Salsa
Sour Cream
Other Nacho Fixings that You Like: Jalapenos, Olives, Diced Onions, etc.

Cook the pasta in salted water. Reheat the chicken and refried beans. Layer all of the fixings you want onto the pasta and serve. Delish!

Serves 3-4