MAIN DISH / CHICKEN
Pasta alle Opzioni
(pasta al pesto e pomodoro ~ pollo e verdura opzionali)
Contributed by Mary Catanese
Postdoctoral Fellow
Jacob Hooker's group
Servings 8-12
This dish is so simple to prepare and is delicious both hot or cold. Great for gatherings and easily adjusted for your "audience"! You can make
everything from scratch but if you pick up the ingredients at the store and toss it all together, it will feel like a small wonder for such little effort and
time!
Ingredients
1 pound of your favorite pasta
2-3 cups of your favorite tomato sauce (from a jar or your favorite
recipe)
1 container of your favorite pesto (a favorite brand or your favorite
recipe)
Opzioni: your favorite type of chicken (for example, roasted, seared or
milanese) and/or la verdura (e.g., mushrooms, peppers and/or onions
sautéed in garlic), parmesan or mozzarella cheese
Pasta alle opzioni allows you to create your own favorite
version – you can also try vegan or with eggplant or zucchini
... and you can always skip the carbs!
Method
1. Prepare pasta, drain, add a touch of butter or extra virgin olive oil.
2. Heat tomato sauce and pesto together ... serve over pasta.
3. For opzioni, toss in pollo e la verdura: I suggest to prepare chicken
first (for example, chicken tenders or roasted chicken), if you add
la verdura, I suggest sautéed peppers and onions and/or
mushrooms (could simply use a jar of roasted red peppers), then
add chicken and stir, then add the tomato sauce and pesto and
serve over pasta. You can also toss it all together and heat on low
for a little while and serve.
4. Serve topped with freshly grated parmesan ... and maybe prepare
some garlic bread!
5. You can also toss everything together and bake with mozzarella
until melted (at ~350)...
Buon appetito!
Dreamt up one day for a gathering and to my
surprise just about everyone loved it... doubling the
recipe is more than enough for parties and
gatherings of over ten people! Very nice to share!
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