Flipping through my May/June (or was it June/July?) copies of Cooking Club (formerly known as Cooking Pleasures) magazine, I came across this recipe. Since it was for two, I doubled the recipe since I wanted enough for Rodney and me for dinner and another serving for me to have at lunch tomorrow. The pantry was scarce of fusilli, but half-boxes of penne and shells were available. I decided to use the remainder of each, a total of one pound of pasta.
Fusilli with Grilled Chicken and Vegetables
8 tbsp chopped fresh basil, divided
4 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
2 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise
1 lb. fusilli or any spiral or tube-shaped pasta
1 c cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
Heat grill or grill pan.
Whisk lemon juice, oil, 2 tablespoons of the basil, garlic, salt and pepper in small bowl or measuring glass.
Brush chicken and zucchini with 2 tablespoons of the lemon mixture. Grill, covered (or not), over medium heat or coals 8 to 10 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in center and zucchini is crisp-tender, turning once.
Remove chicken and zucchini. Cover loosely with foil; let stand 5 minutes before chopping into bite-size pieces.
Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain; return to pot. Toss with remaining lemon mixture, chicken, zucchini, tomatoes and remaining basil.
Serve warm or at room temperature.
Pretty simple and straightforward. If you have a grill, as in a real grill, the dish will no doubt have more of a yummy charcoaly-grilly flavor. As it is for me, it looks grilled but isn't quite the same. Regardless, I like cooking on this cast iron.
Looking at how much oil mixture there was and how simple the seasonings were, I thought the dish would be too oily and the flavors too mild. Fortunately, I used four times the pasta required and it worked out perfectly. And really, if you don't have four breasts, two or three would probably work as there was some chicken for each bite. Reserve some of the pasta cooking water if you're worried about it being too dry. If zing is a requirement, consider some crushed red pepper or Tabasco. A nice cheese would compliment this well too.
Overall, it was a nice summery sort of dish, not too heavy which is preferable when it's blazing hot outside. I'll remember this recipe when it gets to be blazing hot here.
Cost:
Fusilli with Grilled Chicken and Vegetables
1/2 c lemon juice
1/2 c olive oil8 tbsp chopped fresh basil, divided
4 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
2 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise
1 lb. fusilli or any spiral or tube-shaped pasta
1 c cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
Heat grill or grill pan.
Whisk lemon juice, oil, 2 tablespoons of the basil, garlic, salt and pepper in small bowl or measuring glass.
Brush chicken and zucchini with 2 tablespoons of the lemon mixture. Grill, covered (or not), over medium heat or coals 8 to 10 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in center and zucchini is crisp-tender, turning once.
Remove chicken and zucchini. Cover loosely with foil; let stand 5 minutes before chopping into bite-size pieces.
Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain; return to pot. Toss with remaining lemon mixture, chicken, zucchini, tomatoes and remaining basil.
Serve warm or at room temperature.
Pretty simple and straightforward. If you have a grill, as in a real grill, the dish will no doubt have more of a yummy charcoaly-grilly flavor. As it is for me, it looks grilled but isn't quite the same. Regardless, I like cooking on this cast iron.
Looking at how much oil mixture there was and how simple the seasonings were, I thought the dish would be too oily and the flavors too mild. Fortunately, I used four times the pasta required and it worked out perfectly. And really, if you don't have four breasts, two or three would probably work as there was some chicken for each bite. Reserve some of the pasta cooking water if you're worried about it being too dry. If zing is a requirement, consider some crushed red pepper or Tabasco. A nice cheese would compliment this well too.
Overall, it was a nice summery sort of dish, not too heavy which is preferable when it's blazing hot outside. I'll remember this recipe when it gets to be blazing hot here.
Cost:
- basil: $1.52/bunch
- chicken breasts: $2.07, assuming 3 lbs at $0.69/lb
- zucchini: $1.17
- pasta: $0.99/lb
- grape tomatoes: $1.49/pint
0 comments:
Post a Comment