Ria's Collection: GRILLED CHICKEN & PESTO FARFALLE

Have I ever told you how fond I am about Basil Pesto?I really,really love it! Infact,I've been craving so much for a Grilled Chicken & Pesto Cheese Sandwich lately and I made that along with this pasta dish and we both, Ian & myself enjoyed every morsel of it. I find sandwiches make a great finger food for toddlers that they can munch on it doand do whatever they want at the same time. I hardly have a liking for wholewheat /multigrain bread as is but once they are grilled or toasted with some butter, I am more than happy to eat them up! So that's the bread we have at home most of the time, so that Ian gets used to everything other than just white bread.

So much talk about sandwiches when this post is all about a humble pasta dish!

I enjoy making pasta at home because it is fuss free yet super delicious.Have you seen my award winning Mini Cheese Pasta Rolls & Parmesan and Macaroni Chicken Salad with Roasted Peppers? Pasta is very adjusting. It just absorbs the flavour of whatever sauce you toss them with. I rarely use bottled pasta sauces because its calorie laden and all I can think of while eating it would be about the aforementioned thing.The only one that I would use is a Marinara sauce because I don't know if I can make a good one at home.Maybe,someday I will!

This time, I used a bottled Pesto because my Basil plant is dead due to the extreme cold weather.This dish is super quick and can be packed and taken along with you for a picnic (I am already thinking of Summer!),sent as a lunchbox item of your kids or even for yourself at work! I used Farfalle / Bow tie pasta for this recipe because the sauce coats very well on pasta with ridges. You can also use Penne if that's what you prefer.

I am so glad that I am finally able to find sometime to cook, photograph and blog about it. I don't know how often I'll get to do it but I am keeping my fingers crossed because it is such a pleasure to cook,photograph and then talk about what made me cook it. Life of a food blogger! Or maybe I should rephrase it...Life of an accidental food blogger.I never knew what I was getting into 5 years ago. These days,every food blogger knows what they are getting into. They are well planned...unlike me!

GRILLED CHICKEN & PESTO FARFALLE

My own recipe

Ingredients:

16 oz Farfalle

1 cup pesto

1/3 cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon red chili flakes

1/2 cup pasta water,from cooking pasta

3 boneless skinless chicken thighs

Salt & Pepper

3 tablespoon sundried tomatoes,in oil

a small handful of parsley,chopped

Method: Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and salt it generously. Add the pasta into it and cook according to the package directions. I always do an extra minute because I like a little more softer pasta.

Meanwhile, salt and pepper the chicken on both sides and grill it on an indoor pan until done, about 3 minutes per side.Cut them up and keep aside.

In a large sautepan, heat the pesto,red chili flakes and cream until hot but not boiling. Add the pasta and toss well. Add the 1/2 cup of reserved pasta water and mix well to form a nice thick sauce. Add chopped sundried tomatoes,chopped grilled chicken, parsley and serve hot!Adjust seasonings if needed.

This is one good pasta dish! It's very flavourful and refeshing.This is like a piece of summer in the dark cold winter.You can easily cut back on the chicken and serve it as a veggie side dish. Better yet, keep aside some vegetarian pasta and then top the remaining with chicken and serve it to both vegetarians and non vegetarians!! See, I'm always thinking as to how to find shortcuts in the kitchen! :) Ian enjoyed munching on these and he could help himself since it wasn't too saucy or sticky enough to make a mess.Jobin gave me a 5 star rating for it and that seals the deal!
Here's some more that might be to your liking:

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