I have always enjoyed Italian meals. For that matter, Italian culture in it's entirety has always been interesting to me. I love that Italians all seem like they have these huge, close-knit families that eat home-cooked meals together every night. I also love that they seem to have the whole, "Mess with my family and I will hurt you" mentality. Too often in life we forget about family and how important it is to keep strong family bonds.
As a school teacher I ask my students each year the following question: How many times a week do you sit at the dinner table and eat a meal with all the members of your immediate family? In my three years of teaching very few students have said that they eat at home with their family every night of the week. Or, even 5 nights a week for that matter. 4 nights? Again, barely anyone takes claim there either. Most of my students claim that they eat at home with their family 3 or less times a week. A couple of them even chuckle at me and ask, "You mean like besides, Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving?"
What is the world coming to when we can't take a few nights a week to spend time as a family sharing a meal at home together? Have we forgotten how important it is to keep communication lines open with the ones that we love?
It's IMPORTANT and family time is extremely valuable. Did you know that over 50% of kids engage in less than 34 minutes of meaningful conversation with their parents each week?
Call me old fashioned, but I just don't get it. Come hell or high water my mom cooked dinner at home for us every night while my sister and I were growing up. I appreciate that and truly value the many, many evenings I spent sitting around the table with my family! Love you, mom. Job well done!
Anyhow, back to the cooking...the reason why you are probably reading this blog. I found this recipe on Pinterest a couple months ago. It was a little bland to start with, but I saw some true potential in this dish. I have prepared it about four times now; each time making slight adjustments to the original recipe. It is now what I would refer to as a little bite of heaven and is perfect served up family style, just like the Italians!
The marinade for the chicken is absolutely fabulous. If you take nothing else away from this recipe use this marinade the next time you are baking or grilling chicken. It is SO yummy!
The original recipe called specifically for using Lowery's Garlic and Herb marinade. As you can tell from all of my ingredient pictures, I am not one that is really picky about using name brand products. I don't see the point of wasting the extra couple bucks to buy a very similar product with a name brand glued to the front of the bottle. No offense to you "name brand" shoppers. Don't get me wrong. I am a name brand shopper when it comes to my trash bags and toilet paper, but I love to save a few bucks where I can.
Anyhow, the point of that little rant (man, I am just full of those this blog) is that you can get the off brand garlic and herb marinade for $1 a bottle. The Lowery's costs almost $3 a bottle. They taste EXACTLY the same. Save yourself the couple bucks and buy off brand.
The marinade is very easy to mix up. It is 1/2 a bottle of garlic and herb marinade and two heaping tablespoons of pesto. You can make your own pesto if you like, but basil is so expensive these days that it is almost always cheaper to buy a prepared jar of pesto. A very sad, but true fact.
I let the chicken marinade overnight in the fridge.
The marinade is very easy to mix up. It is 1/2 a bottle of garlic and herb marinade and two heaping tablespoons of pesto. You can make your own pesto if you like, but basil is so expensive these days that it is almost always cheaper to buy a prepared jar of pesto. A very sad, but true fact.
I let the chicken marinade overnight in the fridge.
When the chicken has soaked in the wonderful marinade for about 24 hours I slice the breasts into two inch pieces. I then add the chicken pieces and the marinade to a skillet over medium heat.
When the chicken is finished cooking I remove it from the pan and set aside in a bowl.
While the chicken is cooking, I bring a sauce pan half full of water to a boil and then cook the pasta. Make sure you do not overcook the pasta. Pasta is meant to be served al dente. What in the world does that Italian term mean, you ask? Al dente means to the tooth. Still have no clue what I am talking about? It basically just means that the pasta should NOT be mushy.
I always use whole grain pasta in my recipes. Some people don't like whole grain, but I love it. I think it adds a fabulous level of flavor and it is much healthier!
Now it is time to start the sauce. I use the same pan that I just finished cooking the chicken in for my sauce. DO NOT wipe down the pan or rinse it out. Your pan at this point will be covered with chicken bits and coated with the marinade. This is a huge layer of flavor that most people would wash right down the drain. Don't make that mistake. Instead, pour about 1/4 a cup of chicken stock into the pan and use a wooden or plastic spoon to deglaze the bottom of your pan. What's with all the cooking terms?
Deglaze means that you are removing and dissolving all of the browned bits that were stuck to the pan and turning them into a pan sauce. When you pour the chicken stock into the hot pan the small amount of liquid will quickly come to a boil. You have to act quickly when this occurs. Use the spoon and scrape all the browned bits off of the bottom of the pan. Keep working the spoon back and forth until all the bits are incorporated into the chicken stock.
The sauce will be a deep reddish-brown color once the pan is deglazed.
I mince three cloves of garlic and add it to the sauce.
When I add the garlic I also add 1 heaping teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes. If you don't like much heat don't completely omit the red pepper. Just add a little less. You will miss an entire flavor element if you leave the pepper flakes out of the sauce. It won't set you on fire or anything, just a subtle flavor pop!
I cook the garlic and red pepper with the sauce for about two minutes.
Then I add two heaping tablespoons of prepared pesto and give the sauce a good stir.
Next, I add one can of tomato sauce and once again give the sauce a stir.
Getting the hang of this yet? I add 1/2 a cup of chicken stock and allow the sauce to reduce by half. Basically, just let the sauce simmer for about 5 minutes.
Finally, I add 3/4 cup half and half to the pan. I give the sauce one last stir and simmer for an additional 2 minutes.
A couple minutes later the sauce will be a beautiful deep Burgundy color and will taste so delicious you will want to kiss me! Totally kidding, but it will be pretty dang delicious.
I add the pasta directly into the sauce and give it a quick toss. I want to make sure all the pasta is covered with the sauce, so it is important to add the pasta to the pan and toss it around.
I add the cooked chicken to the pan and wedge the pieces down into the pasta. I want to make sure everything gets a good coating of the wonderful sauce.
I serve the pasta up with slices of toasted french bread and a fresh green salad.
My pasta dish is complete! Voila!
Ingredients
2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 bottle garlic and herb marinade
4 heaping tablespoons prepared pesto
8 oz. whole grain penne pasta, cooked
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
8 oz. can tomato sauce
3/4 cup chicken stock
3/4 cup half and half
1. Marinate the chicken breasts in the garlic and herb marinade and two heaping tablespoons pesto overnight.
2. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Meanwhile, Remove chicken from the marinade and slice the chicken breasts into two inch pieces. Do not discard the marinade.
3. Add the chicken pieces and the leftover marinade to the searing hot pan and cook the chicken through. The marinade will cook down while the chicken is cooking. When the chicken is fully cooked, remove from pan and set aside.
4. Add 1/4 chicken stock to the same pan and deglaze to incorporate all the browned bits that are stuck to the pan.
5. Add the minced garlic and red pepper flakes to the sauce and simmer for 2 minutes.
6. Add the pesto and tomato sauce and stir to incorporate.
7. Add the remaining 1/2 cup chicken stock and simmer until the sauce has reduced by half.
8. Add the half and half, stir to incorporate and simmer sauce for an additional 2 minutes.
9. Add the cooked pasta and coat with the sauce.
10. Add the chicken pieces to the pasta and sauce. Mix well.
11. Serve with crusty bread and a fresh green salad.
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