Garlic Basil Pasta & Chicken

(There's chicken in there, I swear!!)

Do all of the dinner recipes I post involve pasta? Seems like it, huh?! I guess I have a type haha. I don't think I could ever do a low- or no-carb diet because I seriously need it ;) Jeff even bought me a pasta drying rack for my birthday so we can up our pasta-making game. Or rather so that next time we make pasta, I don't make him take his shirts off of the hangers so I can use them for hanging pasta ;) 

I came across this recipe on Pinterest from Pinch of Yum and had to give it a try because, well, pasta, and loved it. It tastes so fresh and brings back dreams of summer, so of course it's a winner in my book. We do a lot of sausage in this house which is not the healthiest, so I love that this recipe uses chicken instead. 

I made a couple of modifications to the recipe, so here's my version:

Garlic Basil Pasta & Chicken

Serves 4

16oz spaghetti noodles

3 TB olive oil, divided

4 boneless skinless chicken thighs 

Salt & pepper

1 28oz can diced tomatoes 

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 handful fresh basil, cut into strips

1/4 cup salted butter

Parmesan cheese for topping

Bring a large, salted pot of water to boil. Cook noodles according to package and drain. Toss with 1 TB olive oil and set aside.

While cooking the pasta, rinse chicken and pat dry. Place between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound (or use rolling pin) to flatten to an even thickness, about 1 inch. Season both sides with salt and pepper to taste. Heat 2 TB olive oil over medium-high heat in a large, heavy bottomed pan. Add the chicken and cook 3-5 minutes per side, until chicken is cooked through. Set aside.

Reduce heat to medium, let the oil cool for a few minutes, and then add tomatoes. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes start to thicken into a sauce-like consistency. Stir in garlic and butter until butter is fully melted. Add chicken back to sauce and cook for an additional two minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the basil. 

To serve, top spaghetti with chicken and sauce, and add some parmesan. Enjoy!

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Easy Summer Veggie Pasta

Between my carbohydrate obsession, frequent overpurchasing of produce during the summer months, and a desire to make all of my meals quick and easy while the weather is hot, this easy summer vegetable pasta recipe is my new best friend.  What's nice about it is that you can customize it based on what veggies are your favorite or what's hanging out in your fridge.  Oh, and that there's wine involved, which means you can enjoy a healthy glass of chef's juice while you're putting it together.  Sounds like the perfect summer meal to me!

Summer Veggie Pasta
Serves 4

You'll Need:
12 oz uncooked pasta
1/2 red onion, sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 colored bell pepper (red, orange, or yellow), sliced in small chunks
1 yellow squash, sliced
1 zucchini, sliced
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup fresh basil, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
Grated parmesan

Boil a large pot of salted water.  Add pasta and cook as directed.  Reserve 1/2 cup of starchy water before draining.

In a large pan, heat olive oil over medium high heat.  Add onion and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Add bell pepper, squash, and zucchini and cook for 2-3 minutes, until vegetables start to soften but are not cooked through.

Add wine to the pan, scraping up the bits from the bottom, and cook until the wine reduces by at least half.

Remove the pan from the heat.  Add your cooked pasta to the pan, as well as some of the starchy cooking water.  Toss everything well to combine.   Stir in the fresh basil.  Taste and add salt and pepper as necessary.  Top with some parmesan cheese and you're good to go!

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Shrimp Caprese Pasta

A caprese salad is one of my favorite things in warmer weather, something about it just tastes like summer to me.  After seeing a caprese pasta salad at a barbecue last month, I thought it would be yummy to turn into a main dish with some shrimp and buccatini.  I think Jeff would basically be excited for pasta in any form, but he loved this.  Pretty sure he ate a half pound of buccatini in one sitting.  

Shrimp Caprese Pasta 
Makes 6 Servings

You'll Need:
1 lb pasta (I used buccatini, but you could sub in whatever your favorite is)
4 medium tomatoes, chopped with juices
8 oz mozzarella cheese, cut into cubes
Handful of fresh basil, roughly chopped
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 lb uncooked large frozen shrimp, thawed with shells removed
Salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese

Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil.  Cook pasta as directed.  When the pasta has 2 minutes left of cooking, add shrimp to the water.  Drain.

While the pasta is cooking, mix together tomatoes, mozzarella, basil, olive oil, salt and pepper together in a large bowl.  Add the cooked pasta and shrimp to the bowl.  Stir to combine.



Serve with warm crusty bread and top with shredded parmesan if you're so inclined, and pray there are some leftovers (but sorry, there won't be).

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