Chicken with Pasta... Mediterranean Style!

This blog is not just about baking - I love to cook as well. Spending time in the kitchen is always a joy and a tremendous passion, so creating different meals and snacks while experimenting with various flavors can be fun and really develop your confidence with food. This pasta dish has a Mediterranean spin on it, thanks to all the components used. This bursts with taste and flavor and is very simple. Enjoy!


Total time : 30 mins (45-50 mins if defrosting chicken, or add on 1-2 hours if you wish to marinate the chicken with my mix - a splash of red wine, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, finely chopped garlic cloves x3, finely chopped herbs: x2 sprigs rosemary and x2 sprigs of thyme, salt and black pepper).

Ingredients

- x2 chicken breasts
- x3 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
- x4 sprigs rosemary, finely chopped x2 and for decoration x2
- good pinch salt & pepper
- splash of red wine (Asda's Puglian red wine works a treat)
- x2 celery sticks, chopped
- x1 pepper, chopped and colour optional
- several cherry tomatoes, chopped
- 100g green or black pitted olives
- half a fresh orange
- x1 jar pasta sauce (flavour optional, however tomato and chilli works well)
- x2 tablespoons creme fresh
- fusilli pasta

Method

1. Start by boiling water in a large pan for the pasta. Add a good dash of salt and pepper. Only when the water is boiling, add the pasta. Allow to cook for 20-25 mins. Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and a splash of Puglian red wine in a frying pan. Add the rosemary and garlic cloves in stages - think of yourself as an artist, and you're building up the layers of paint to get the perfect finish - so add these bit by bit throughout the process. Once the oil and wine is bubbling, add the chicken and cook for 5-10 mins until brown. Squeeze the orange zest over it as it cooks - this will add the Mediterranean vibe that the olives will also add later.

2. Add the celery and cook for a further 2-3 mins, moving everything in the pan constantly. Keep it moving. Then add the pepper, and after another 2-3 mins, add the tomatoes.

3. Now add the pasta sauce with the last of the chopped rosemary and garlic with x2 tablespoons of creme fresh. Add a last little pinch of salt and pepper. Stir it all until completely combined and reduce the heat so it simmers for around 10 mins.

4. Once the pasta is ready, drain with cold then hot water, and either add to the simmering chicken sauce or add to the plate separately. Once all on your plate, grate some parmesan cheese (as much as you like, I do plenty!) and the remaining two sprigs of rosemary for decoration.

5. Of course, your red wine will have been breathing for the duration of this, so pour yourself a large glass to accompany your meal, and tuck in!

J x