Delish creamy chicken pasta

And we continue with the chicken. Not on purpose because I was supposed to make pizza.

Creamy chicken pasta is my boyfriend's absolute favourite. How do I know that? Well, if he goes to the store to buy spinach just so I can make him a bowl of pasta, there's enough dedication to prove it (..and he also asks once a week if I can make THAT pasta for him).

I have to admit, I love this dish also. It's really simple to make and full of flavour. Actually there's two ways to do it. My original version includes blue cheese. Those of you who absolutely hate that smelly and ugly cheese: I agree. But never say never, right. With this dish it actually works.

You need:

big bunch of spaghetti

450g honey marinated chicken

2 small cloves of garlic

0,4l of double cream

50g blue cheese OR zest of one lemon

70g spinach (you can use more but that's the amount I usually have)

parmesan cheese

season with salt and dried basil

Cook the spaghetti. Before draining, save half a cup of cooking liquid for further use. Fry the chicken and add the garlic. Make sure that the chicken is golden brown. Before adding the cream, toss blue cheese into the mixture. Stir it for a while so the cheese is completely melted. Season with salt and basil. (At this point you can add the lemon zest instead of cheese.)

Let it simmer until the cream has thickened, 5–10 minutes or so. Throw the spinach in and quickly stir. Finally, complete the sauce with spaghetti and starchy cooking liquid. You don't have to pour the whole amount if the pasta looks moist enough.

Sprinkle grated parmesan cheese and few drops of lemon juice on top. Yum.

Leftover lunch

I heard that my mother and grandmother were coming for a visit. In one hour notice. If I reveal that we didn't have milk in our fridge, you can guess how well I was prepared when I started to create something for lunch.

So this is what I came up with. Chicken in pesto sauce. I garnished the dishes with feta crumble. I widely interpreted puttanesca-style way of thinking. Leftover cooking is rewarding. At least the older gals were really happy. I should do this more often.

You need:
1 red onion
3 cloves of garlic
2 tomatoes
300g chicken fillets
one small yellow pepper
150g green pesto sauce
200g crème fraîche
1 lemon zest
feta cheese

season with s&p, dried herbs (thyme, oregano), cayenne pepper and sumac (you can find it from oriental shops, adds a wonderful lemony tang to the food)

Fry the onions and garlic and add chopped tomatoes. Brown the chicken and season the mixture. Toss cubed peppers into the pan with pesto. After few minutes, pour a drop of water with crème fraîche. Grate lemon zest and let the sauce simmer for 15 minutes or so.

NB! You can add few tablespoons of turkish yoghourt into the sauce if it's too thick. After warming the sauce take it off the heat to avoid curdling.

Serve with feta crumbs and jasmine rice.