A Pasta Aria
An easy, satisfying, meal-in-one pasta dish for family or company!
Bowties, alfredo sauce, bacon, spinach, sun-dried or fresh tomatoes, artichoke hearts - what a pleasure that they joined together to play this song! And we have Magleby's, a restaurant in Provo, Utah to thank for conducting the original version of this symphony of flavors.
When vacationing from the Middle East we always topped our list of "Places we have to eat" with this little-known Utah Valley jewel. Lured in by their fresh, hot cheesy biscuits and soups, not much appetite was left when the entrees arrived. But this one's aroma insisted that we sit up and take notice! This Pasta Aria is a creamy, nutty, soul-soothing, dish for a cold winter's night accompanied by clarion notes of sophistication.
BOWTIE PASTA ARIA
1/4 cup butter
3 tab. flour
2 cloves garlic, mashed
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup chicken stock
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg
6 strips bacon, fried crisp and crumbled
2 tab. butter
3/4 pound chicken breast tenders, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 large tomato, seeded and peeled, cut into julienne strips
1/2 pound fresh mushroom slices
1 pound bowtie pasta
2 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
additional grated parmesan to sprinkle on top.
-In a medium saucepan, melt butter. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute. Stir in flour and combine well.
- Let roux cook for about one minute stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add milk: Blend with wire whip until smooth. Add chicken broth and then cream and combine. Return to medium/high heat and stir with a whisk until mixture thickens and bubbles. Add nutmeg and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Remove from heat and stir in parmesan cheese until melted.
-Melt 2 tab. butter, in medium, sauté pan and add chicken pieces. Cook over medium-high heat just until chicken becomes opaque, stirring frequently. Remove chicken from the pan.
-Add tomato strips, red pepper flakes and fresh mushrooms to the same pan and continue cooking until the mushrooms are soft. Stir in spinach, cover with a lid and simmer over low heat until spinach is wilted - about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
-Cook pasta according to package directions to desired doneness in large pot. Drain and return to pot and mix pasta with warm Alfredo Sauce. Stir in the chicken, bacon and tomato-mushroom-spinach mixture. Mix all together and heat over low heat until hot. Check for seasoning, adding more salt and pepper if needed.
-Place in a serving bowl or large serving platter. Garnish with toasted pine nuts and freshly grated parmesan cheese.
-Serves 6 - 8
Follow directions to prepare chicken, bacon and vegetables.
Saute veggies and prepare Alfredo sauce.
Tender veggies and pasta nestle among the cheese and velvety sauce.
PERSNICKETY NOTES:
**To easily peel tomatoes, bring a medium pot of water to a boil (deep enough to submerge the tomatoes.) Place as many of the tomatoes as will fit in the boiling water and boil over high heat for 2 - 3 minutes. Remove from heat and run cold water over the tomatoes in the pot for a minute or more. Remove tomatoes from the pot and easily peel and pull off the skins with a paring knife.
**This Alfredo sauce is excellent for Alfredo Fettucine or other recipes that call for Alfredo. You’ll love having it in your recipe collection! Fast and easy but always delicious.
**The addition of Nutmeg to bechamel-based sauces is a bit of a secret, but one that elevates any pasta dish it goes with beautifully - that is if you are careful not to add too much. Easy does it! And freshly grated nutmeg is always tastier and it’s so fun to grate the aromatic nut on a microplane - wonderful fragrance!
