This is a weeknight classic for so long when my kids were little. They were bigger fans of the penne than the chicken, so cut back of the amount of pasta to favor the protein:carb ratio.
YOU WILL NEED:
Food mill (a Cuisinart can substitute in a pinch, but I’m really not an advocate)
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about ½ to 1 breast per person)
One can (28 oz) of whole peeled tomatoes (I like Muir Glen)
Fresh basil
Garlic
White wine
Serves four
Morning Prep:
Marinate a few boneless, skinless chicken breasts in olive oil, garlic, lemon or whatever else you like in there.
Evening Prep:
Preheat grill.
Boil water for pasta, adding a generous amount of kosher salt to the water.
Run tomatoes through food mill, set on a medium size extractor. Mine comes with three discs. I use the middle one for all tomatoes
Trim basil. Here’s how: stack about 4-5 leaves on top of each other. Roll the whole thing up. Take your thinnest, sharpest blade and make thin cuts, crosswise. This is essentially a chiffonade, but not quite as thin.
Grill chicken breasts. When cooked through, transfer to a cutting board and let sit for about 10-15 minutes.
For the sauce:
In a saucepan, heat 2 T olive oil over medium heat. After a minute add:
Pinch chili flakes
Sliced garlic
Sauté the garlic until fragrant. Then add the pureed tomatoes. Cook for about 5 minutes until the color darkens. Then add:
½ cup dry white wine
Cook, uncovered for about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta (12-16 oz).
When the pasta has about 5 minutes left of cooking time:
Slice chicken and add to saucepan
Add basil to saucepan
Taste sauce for seasoning, adding kosher salt and pepper as needed
Drain pasta and pour into a serving bowl. Pour sauce over and stir to combine.