Asparagus

And lemon...And chicken...And pasta...Amen.

This combination is HEAVENLY. Permanently going into my rotation. On SkinnyTaste the other day, Gia posted a recipe of Pasta with Asparagus. Sounds good, right? Well, as much as I like the idea of being vegetarian, I really don't think I could do it. So I needed to add some protein. I thought of shrimp or chicken (either of which would have been delicious, I'm sure) and decided on chicken. I had extra lemons from the French-style Yogurt Cake with Lemon that I made last week, and then decided further on lemon chicken. Oh, yum. I'm still thinking about good this was!



Lemon Chicken with Asparagus and Pasta
Recipe adapted from SkinnyTaste


For the chicken:

• 7-8 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lemon
• 1 teaspoon ground thyme
• salt and pepper
• 4 boneless chicken breasts
• about 1/4 cup olive oil

For the pasta and asparagus:

• 1 lb asparagus, cut into 2" pieces (tough ends trimmed)
• 6 oz uncooked pasta
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• salt and pepper
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Directions:

1. In a large pot boil 4 cups water with salt. When boiling, add asparagus and cook 3-5 minutes, until tender crisp. Drain asparagus in colander reserving 1 cup liquid before draining.
2. Meanwhile, season chicken breasts with thyme, salt and pepper.
3. In a saute pan, heat the 1/4 olive oil for the chicken on medium heat. Add the 7-8 cloves of minced garlic, and saute for just a minute. Add chicken breasts to pan.
4. While chicken is cooking, squeeze half a lemon over chicken breasts. When you flip to brown the other side, squeeze the other half of the lemon over this side. Remove chicken from pan when done.
5. Fill empty asparagus pot with salted water, cover and boil for pasta. When water boils cook pasta according to package directions for al dente.
6. In the saute pan heat olive oil for asparagus. Add remaining garlic and cook until golden, add asparagus, salt and pepper and saute about 1-2 minutes, tossing with oil and garlic.
7. In a small bowl combine egg yolk, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, 1/4 cup reserved asparagus liquid, salt and pepper. Mix well. After pasta is drained return to pot and mix with egg mixture. Cook on medium-low about 2 minutes, until sauce thickens and sticks to pasta. Toss in asparagus and mix well. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. If pasta seems too dry add more reserved liquid a tablespoon at a time.
Serve with sliced chicken breast on top and additional grated cheese.


I can't believe how cold its been this week, I hope it warms up soon. This recipe is definitely a springtime meal :)