In keeping with my enduring love for fast and easy recipes, I offer up this recipe for a fairly healthy chicken pasta dish. The recipe is very loosely adapted from a recipe for roasted chicken that I found on the Epicurious site. The cooking method is completely different, but the combination of ingredients is more or less true to the original recipe.

What we found when we dined on this dish last evening, was that we really loved the combination of flavors. The tiny bit of heat from the crushed red pepper flakes worked very well with the fresh thyme and rosemary. And of course garlic and Kalamata olives have always been meant for each other. The chewy crispness from the pancetta provided just the right amount of texture and flavor. While the al dente pasta tied all the flavors together. As for the chicken, well basically it was just along for the ride and to provide us with some low fat protein. But after all was said and done, we decided this dish rocked.

So if you too want a simple pasta dish that takes very little time to prep and cook, give this recipe a try. I promise you won’t find it boring. But do yourself a big favor. Have all of your ingredients ready before you even think of setting your fry pan on the stove. You can even go so far as to have a pan with boiling water ready to accept your dry pasta into its warm and salty embrace. Just sayin’. I have always found that the best way to make sure I enjoy my time in the kitchen, is to always read a recipe through and prep as much ahead as possible. Then I can relax and let the natural flow of the ingredients gradually lead me to the final product.

I can remember talking with a young friend just after he started cooking for himself. He envisioned himself a budding gourmet cook. As he was happily following a new recipe, the next ingredient listed was a quarter cup of Béarnaise sauce. Béarnaise sauce! Really? At which point he gave up and went to McDonalds. He learned a valuable lesson that day, as did I. When all else fails, there’s always McDonalds. But of course, the more valuable lesson. Reading a recipe through before you start is not a waste of time. After all, think of the time it takes to drive to McDonalds!

• 2 T. extra-virgin olive oil
• ¼ – ⅓ c. finely chopped pancetta
• 2 lg. or 3 small boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
• 1 tsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary
• ½ tsp. kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes, or more to taste
• 2 lg. garlic cloves, finely chopped
• ¾ c. dry white wine
• 14-16 Kalamata olives, halved
• 5-6 oz. al dente pasta (I used spaghetti broken in thirds before cooking)

Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add the pancetta and cook until crispy. Remove pancetta to a small bowl using a slotted spoon. Add the chicken to the pan and sprinkle with the thyme, rosemary, salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes. Turn the chicken pieces when first side starts to brown. Cook the chicken only until cooked through. Remove to the same bowl with the fried pancetta.

Add the garlic to the pan and cook for 1 minute. Pour in the wine and add the halved Kalamata olives. Simmer until about half of the wine has evaporated. Remove from heat if necessary to allow pasta to finish cooking. (You never want your pasta to have to wait for your sauce. If anything waits around, it should be the sauce.)

When the pasta is al dente, carefully lift it into the sauce using a pair of tongs. Add the cooked chicken and pancetta; stir until all the pasta is well coated. (If you had to take the sauce off heat to wait for the pasta, place the pan over heat at this point.) When all the ingredients are warm and happily co-existing, serve immediately.

(And no. I didn’t forget the Parmesan cheese! Really not needed in or on this dish.) But what is nice with this pasta dish is Caesar Salad. And since I just happen to have a really good recipe, I decided to share it with you today.

(Is that a drum roll I hear in the distance signifying this momentous event? Nah, it’s just the men next door working on the foundation of our good friends Mark and Vicki’s new home. But I’ll consider it a drum roll just the same. Enjoy)

CAESAR SALAD

Caesar Salad Dressing:

• 1 lg. garlic clove, finely minced
• 6 anchovy fillets or 1-2 tsp. anchovy paste
• 2 T. fresh lemon juice
• ¼ tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
• 3 T. sour cream
• ¼ tsp. seasoned salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ c. extra virgin olive oil

Combine garlic and anchovy fillets or paste in a small bowl. Mush them together with a fork. Add remaining ingredients and whisk to blend thoroughly. Use immediately or refrigerate. Bring to room temperature before mixing salad.

Oven Baked Garlic Croutons:

• 1 T. unsalted butter
• 1 T. extra virgin olive oil   
• 1 med. garlic clove, finely minced
• ½ tsp dried parsley
• pinch kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 2 c. bread cubes (I use cubes cut from a crusty Italian baguette)

Heat the butter, olive oil, garlic, parsley, salt, and pepper in a medium sized frying pan. When starting to burble, remove from heat and stir in the bread cubes. Transfer to a small low sided baking pan and bake in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for 15 minutes, or until the bread cubes are crisp and starting to brown. Turn the cubes once during the baking time. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before using or storing in an airtight container.

Caesar Salad:

Romaine Lettuce (as much as you need) – cut, washed and spun dry (you really want to start with dry lettuce so that the dressing adheres to each leaf)

Caesar Salad Dressing (just enough to coat the leaves, but not so much that the salad appears and tastes “wet”)

Grated Parmesan Cheese (I have found that using less than you think you need is probably just about right. Too much Parmesan overpowers the other flavors and makes the salad too rich.)

Oven Baked Garlic Croutons (as few or as many as you like)

1 Lemon, cut in wedges, opt. (but nice)

Place the prepared romaine lettuce in a salad bowl. Add the dressing and toss thoroughly. Add the Parmesan and croutons and gently mix in with the dressed romaine. Serve immediately. Pass lemon wedges.