Guess what? I’ve been babysitting again!
Tricksy hobbitses.
This one was on a wilding–
This one had me in a headlock and thumbscrews while extracting an iron clad agreement that I would buy at least one of everything from his school’s fundraiser brochure–
And this one…oh, this one…that face says it all–
There was a definite need for refreshment on the way home. French fries and a hamburger. I was going to have an ice cream cone, but opted for a burger instead. You know, decompression food. High fat, high carb, full-on tension relievers.
Besides, I had et a healthy dinner. Yes, I said et. My grandmother used to say et and since I was informed by the hobbitses that I am OLD, I am saying et.
They actually said OLD.
It went something like this: I told the two oldest hobbitses to get ready for bed and as we headed downstairs towards their bedroom, they decided to turn it into a race. They ran quickly ahead of me and as I was coming down the hall I heard the four year old say to the seven year old, “hurry up, MomMom’s coming!” to which the seven year old replied calmly, “Kade don’t worry about it. She’s old; we’ve got plenty of time.”
Yep, it’s a good thing I et that healthy dinner because who knows how long it would have taken me to catch up with the boys otherwise. Us old people don’t get ta movin’ around as well as we used to. (A coworker made the suggestion that I start packing a water gun. Oh yeah, baby. This old woman has herself a plan for the next round with them boys, nyuk, nyuk, nyuk. [Insert wicked, anticipatory grin here].)
I had given myself a challenge for making dinner before I headed over to Hobbiton, “don’t plan dinner, just go into the kitchen and grab stuff to cook…you’ve got 45 minutes to come up with a new recipe and cook it and another 15 minutes to take photos of the finished product. Times awasting, girl, get going!” Amazingly, I met my goal. Here’s three outstanding points about this dish:
- Dang! It’s good!
- It can work as a warm main dish, or a cool salad.
- It’s healthy!
Mediterranean Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 pound whole wheat spiral pasta, cooked al dente, drained, reserving about 1/2-3/4 cup pasta cooking water
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 jar (12-14.75 ounces) marinated artichoke hearts, reserve liquid
- 1 cup roasted peppers, diced (I used red and yellow)
- 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, rough chopped
- 1/2 cup kalamata olives, rough chopped
- 2 tablespoons capers
- 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2-3 cups diced cooked chicken, leftover chicken or a deli rotisserie chicken work well
- 1 cup torn fresh basil leaves
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish
- salt, to taste
Instructions
- Add enough water to a 4-6 quart pot for cooking the pasta, per package directions. Set over heat to bring water to a boil.
- In the meantime while water is coming to a boil, to a deep skillet over medium heat, saute onions and garlic in hot olive oil until onions are just turning translucent.
- For the marinated artichoke hearts, remove any tough portions and cut artichokes into chunky pieces. Add artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes, roasted peppers, kalamata olives, capers, and red pepper flakes to the onions and garlic. Stir to combine. Add the diced chicken and stir to combine. Heat gently over medium low or low heat until hot, stirring often.
- While vegetables and chicken are heating, cook pasta to the al dente stage. Reserve approximately 1/2-3/4 cups pasta cooking liquid. Set aside. Drain pasta in a colander. Return pasta to the pot in which it was cooked. Add the torn basil leaves to the pasta. Toss gently. Gently stir in the Parmesan until well combined.
- To the reserved artichoke marinade, add enough pasta water to make 1 cup. Pour over pasta and stir gently. Add the hot chicken and vegetable mixture to the hot pasta mixture. Stir gently until well combined. Add a little more pasta water if needed for moisture. Taste and add salt as needed.
- Serve immediately, topped with additional grated Parmesan.
Ander, look at MomMom…Ander…Ander! Ander, no, not the camera…Aaaaaaanderrrrrr….lalalalalalala…blowing raspberries and making other ridiculous noises…Ander! Oh man, quit wiggling…Oh my gosh…Okay, okay…heh…Shoot, I’m gonna drop you…dang it…never mind, let’s go get some clothes on you…
Whew! Jiminy Cricket!
You may also like:
Mediterranean Langostino Pasta
Red Pepper Pesto with Angel Hair Pasta
Spaghettit and Meatballs
Cute pictures, Terri. I really see the resemblance. Thanks for the nice pasta salad. Take a break and relax.
Thanks, Liz. It is a fair trade between how much those little dudes take out of me compared to how much joy they give me. I am so thankful for those boys. And I am so going to get even with them when the weather warms up!
I love everything about this post. Those hobbitses especially.
They are my very, very favorite hobbitses. Thanks for sharing them with me. 🙂
LOL!! I always enjoy reading your posts on your little “wild-bunch” of love, they are really growing up fast! And the baby….what a cutie-patootie! You’re one blessed “old-lady”. 😀
This recipe is workable for me, I really like the two options of either cold or warm.
Thanks Terri for another good idea with food.
Pinned!
Thanks, Dalila! When I was raising my children I loved them and worried over them and prayed for them and played with them and adored them. Even with all of those motherly feelings and actions on board, nothing prepared me for the amazing experience of being a grandmother. Now I know how my grandmother felt about me and understand the look in her eyes when she looked at me and the tone in her voice when she spoke to me.
As for my “little wild-bunch”…definitely put the emphasis on wild. My own children were wild, and from what I understand, my son in-law and his brothers were pretty wild, too. So, it only stands to reason that these guys are genetically wired to be “lively”. Then again, maybe they are just absolutely average. Maybe everyone’s children or grandchildren are pretty much just like these guys. If so, then the world is definitely an exhaustingly fun place!
Yes, that IS scary! Actually, I really did panic when I read that you make it exactly the same. I was terrified that I had somehow inadvertently infringed on your copyright. I looked through your blog and couldn’t find that you have posted your recipe, so I am breathing slightly easier. Sometimes I think that I read so many recipes that I may not ever have an original idea. Sometimes, especially on dinner types of recipes where they are made up of some of this and some of that, I fear that nothing I think I have”invented” is ever really my own.
I love how your grand kids keep you on your toes. 🙂 Yes… I need to eat more healthy pasta options like this beautiful Mediterranean chicken pasta instead of all the cheesy ones I have been eating lately amidst this cold, cold winter. I love the colors you have here… reminds me of summer. 🙂
This looks so good! I’m going to make your pea soup tomorrow, and the next day I’ll make this salad. I think I’ll add a bit of balsamic vinegar to this recipe.
Yep, balsamic works very well.
I made this today and it was fantastic! The only things I did different was halving the recipe since I’m only cooking for myself, roasted my own bell peppers, adding a little balsamic vinegar and stirred a little Cavender’s Greek seasoning in. I had a bit of an issue with my shredded Parmesan clumping up but I probably should have stirred more before it melted. Thanks for the cool recipe!
Eric, I’m so glad that this recipe worked well for you–except for the Parmesan. Be sure to rinse the pasta under cool water, drain well, and then stir in the Parmesan & egg. This should prevent the Parmesan from clumping. The balsamic and Greek seasoning sound great! ~Terri
Yes, I didn’t cool down the pasta properly…and I also didn’t stir gently. I will next time for sure.