Fettuccine with Pesto and Brick chicken

Fettuccine with Pesto and Brick chicken

This is the perfect date night food for someone who is learning how to cook! I have included how to make homemade pasta in a different post, but a high-quality store-bought pasta works just as well! This feeds 2.

Ingredients:

2 Boneless skin-on chicken thighs

1 cup fresh Basil

2 tbsp thyme

2 tbsp fresh oregano

1 tsp tarragon (optional)

1 lemon juiced

1 clove of garlic minced (optional)

1/4 cup olive oil

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

2 tbsp sherry vinegar

Salt and pepper

3/4 lbs pasta (fresh or a high quality dried pasta)

Special Equipment:

A bacon press. If you don’t have a bacon press, you can use a heavy-bottomed pot smaller than the pan you are frying in with a piece of tin, foil covering the bottom.

Method:

Begin by placing a large pot of water to boil with 1/4 cup of salt. Yes, that sounds like a lot of salt, but you need it for your pasta to taste like something. Also, you are leaving 99.99% of that salt in the pot. Place a heavy-bottomed skillet on a burner on medium-high heat. Add 1 tsp of high-temperature oil such as canola, sunflower, or grapeseed. Once the oil begins to shimmer, salt your chicken on both sides and place the chicken into the pan with the skin side down. Place your weight on the chicken and let it cook. You are going to let it cook 90% the way through on one side, lift the wight and flip and allow to cook the rest of the way. You want the internal temperature of the chicken to reach 165 F (measure the thickest part of the chicken).

For the Pesto, simply add the: basil, thyme, oregano, lemon, parmesan, olive oil, and vinegar to the bowl of a small blender or food processor. If you like tarragon or garlic, you should add this here. Blend until a smooth paste has been formed. Taste the pesto and add salt and pepper to taste.

Cook the pasta andante and reserve 1 cup of pasta water. Drain the pasta and add the pesto to the bowl. Add your pasta and toss to combine. If your pesto is too thick, add a little bit of the pasta water to slacken it and help the sauce adhere to the pasta.

To serve twirl the pasta and place onto the center of the pate. Place your brick chicken on the side and leaning on the pasta. Crack a little fresh black pepper over the top and shave a little parmesan cheese on top. Now enjoy!