In-House Cook: Lemon Marinated Chicken with Pesto Farfalle

Saturday, October 17, 2020

Lemon Marinated Chicken with Pesto Farfalle

This is not a unique dish. I'd love to say it is, but nope. It IS, however, a favorite of my friends and family, is super easy to make and can be prepped and cooked within 45 minutes, tops. It feeds four easily. It will feed six if you add one more chicken breast and one more cup of bowtie, or, farfalle pasta. Because of this, during these difficult financial and stressful quaran-mess times, I wanted to share this recipe with you all. We all want things to be easier, meals to be prepared quicker and less expensive but no less flavorful. Let's get to this, then, shall we?

Ingredients

4-5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, scored

several fresh rosemary leaves, greens of 4 scallions, 6 basil leaves, 4 sage leaves, all finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, grated

several sprigs, fresh thyme

the zest of half a lemon and all of its juice

3 tablespoons evoo + 4 tablespoons

6 ounces basil pesto

salt and pepper

Grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Romano cheese, about 1/4 cup

Score the chicken breasts on the top and bottom.

In a bowl, add the juice and zest of the lemon, add coarse sea salt, about 1 teaspoon, the grated garlic, the fresh finely chopped herbs and the four tablespoons evoo. Make sure the scored chicken breasts are fully coated with the marinade. Allow it to marinate about thirty minutes. Longer, up to an hour, if possible.

In a large skillet, add the remaining evoo. When the oil ripples, add the chicken and all of the marinate. Turn after four minutes each side. There should be a beautiful golden color to both sides.

This is the color you want on both sides. Now, remove the chicken from the skillet and allow it to rest.

Meanwhile, add one entire box (about one pound) of Farfalle (also known as Bowtie) Pasta to a pot of four quarts of liberally salted boiling water. Stir occasionally over the twelve minute cook time to prevent the pasta from sticking to the bottom of the pot.

Slice the chicken now along the score lines.

Now, once the pasta is done, save a 1/4 cup of the starchy pasta water and strain the pasta and water through a colander. In the same pot, add the pasta 1/4 cup pasta water, half of the pesto and stir, and a good pinch of the cheese. Add the pasta back into the pot and stir vigorously. Add more cheese. More pesto and cheese and incorporate thoroughly.