April 14, 2006
Penne with Chicken, White Asparagus and Sundried Tomatoes
Wednesday night for dinner: Penne, chicken, white asparagus, sun-dried tomatoes and a little bacon in a light cream sauce. We both really liked this. It was also a rip-off of something on the menu at Davios, although not something I had during our most recent visit. It turned out exactly as I hoped, which doesn't happen often. And I gave myself bonus points for using the leftover chicken breast from Sunday's dinner and bacon from Sunday's breakfast. This was good enough I want to try and document the recipe for next time.
Penne with Chicken, Asparagus and Sundried Tomatoes
1/2 lb penne pasta
4 strips bacon, cut into small pieces
1/3 lb skinless boneless chicken breast, cut into 1/2" chunks
1 bunch asparagus (I used white, green is probably better)
4 or 5 sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, roughly chopped
1 shallot, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 c dry vermouth
1/4 c pasta water (reserved)
2 tsp thyme, chopped
1 tsp rosemary, chopped
1/4 c heavy cream
2 Tbsp grated parmesan cheese
Put pasta water on to boil. Salt generously. Snap tough ends off asparagus (if you are using white asparagus, you'll also need to peel it). When water comes to boil, blanch it in boiling water a few minutes. Remove asparagus with tongs and cool in ice water. Drain and dry on some paper towel.
Add penne to boiling water.
Crisp bacon in sautee pan over med heat. Remove to paper towel. Pour off most of the bacon fat, add a little EVOO, raise heat to med-high, and add chicken (seasoned with salt and pepper). Sautee until lightly browned, remove from pan.
Let pan cool to med-low. Add a little butter. Gently sautee shallots and garlic until softened. Add sun-dried tomatoes. Dry asparagus and cut into small pieces. Add to sautee pan. Raise heat to med-high. Add vermouth and reduce until almost gone. Add a couple ladles of pasta water (about 1/4 c) to sautee pan.
When pasta is ready, drain, and then add penne to sautee pan. Add cream, herbs and cheese. Toss to combine and cook a couple more minutes to thicken sauce to desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper.