Once upon a time there was... Lemon Pasta with Chicken and Pine Nuts

When Cal and I want a quick, weeknight meal, pasta is a good choice. Unfortunately a good recipe is hard to find. Most easy pasta recipes have one of the following problems:

1) they are boring (i.e. spaghetti with sauce from a jar)
2) they are fattening (i.e alfredo, amaretto cream sauce )
3) they require fresh ingredients on hand (i.e penne with fresh pesto, ricotta, and tomatoes)

This recipe is like a magic solution to all of those problems. Just try it. You'll see what we're talking about.



Source: Epicurious, scaled to serve 2
ingredients
6 oz lemon fettuccini
1 Tbsp + 1/3 c + another little bit of extra virgin olive oil
8 oz chicken breast
poultry seasoning, to taste
garlic powder, to taste
1/3 c pine nuts, toasted
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
salt and pepper, to taste
1 Tbsp dried parsley

instructions


1. Heat 1 Tbsp oil over medium heat. Season chicken with poultry seasoning, lemon pepper, and garlic powder. Saute until cooked through. Cool slightly, and cut into strips.

2. Cook pasta according to package instructions, al dente.

3. Drain pasta and put in a large bowl. Toss in a little bit of oil just to keep it from sticking together.

4. Add chicken, pine nuts, and parsley.

Toss!

5. Whisk together lemon juice and mustard. Add 1/3 c oil in a thin stream and whisk it in. Season with salt and pepper.

6. Pour dressing into pasta. You don't have to use all the dressing, add as much or as little as you want. Toss!

This meal is ready in 20 minutes, including prep!

Like we said, it's magic - much more interesting than red sauce, uses good-for-you-fats, and easy ingredients to keep on hand.

I am also excited to tell you that something very special is happening at the Castle Farm Cookbook next week! Here's a hint: Sat, Oct 2 is our blog's first birthday, and we are planning to celebrate!

pig, out!