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Sunday, April 24, 2011

Chicken Pastas With Zing

 By Ruby Waters

Photo: farm3.static.flickr.com

Many families use chicken pastas regularly. They are relatively inexpensive, usually quick and easy to prepare and offer a flavorful meal for many occasions These chicken pasta meals can however, become the innocent victims of our own lack of time and creativity.

Chicken pastas are a good meal for your family, so I hope to offer some new and interesting ways to serve this valuable staple. Hopefully, we will retain the convenience of these meals, but vary the presentations.

These meals mix together two classic ingredients, chicken and your choice of pasta. They are usually simple to put together and you end up with a healthy combination of carbohydrates and protein that gives you balance and taste. There are many ways to combine chicken and pasta.

Whether it is a convenient salad, a tasty family dish or a special ethnic dish, chicken pastas can do it all. So what are the choices? There are no limits...let's take a look at a few:

1) Chicken pastas based around a salad are handy to have for lunch and also good to have after exercising to help your body recuperate.

Use salt and pepper to season your chicken that has been cut into cubes. While this is happening cook your pasta in boiling salted water. Cook the chicken in a small amount of olive oil and garlic. Set this aside to cool. Drain and cool the pasta when it is done. Now combine the chicken and pasta, and finish off with light mayonnaise and chives.

2) Chicken pastas can be enhanced with the use a tasty sauce which can compliment both ingredients.

A sauce based around tomatoes that have been crushed and sieved brings richness and flavor. Parsley, chopped onions and basil would be great flavorings. Mix these in a saucepan, add to your chicken pastas and serve with grated Parmesan cheese.

3) Pesto is made by combining pine nuts, basil and olive oil. It is quite low in fat.

Although the taste might take some getting use to, it is an excellent addition to your meal. You can buy pesto in a jar at the market or make it fresh. When you serve the pesto with your pasta combo, it gives you a pleasant smelling dish that is light on the tummy and can be served for lunch or dinner.

4) For less healthful, but great tasting pastas dish...

Grate a bunch of your favorite hard cheese. Dress your chicken and pasta in oil, then combine with the cheese. The grated cheese needs to be added to both and then stirred.

To enhance the flavor even more, combine all these ingredients then put them in the oven briefly until the cheese melts. Meals like this might prove too rich for some as they have some very strong flavor, but will be favored by those who enjoy tastes that are both simple and strong.

5) For the health conscious among us...

Adding broccoli to your chicken pastas will work very well. This combines pasta with garlic, grilled chicken and Parmesan cheese. After cooking the spaghetti, put it aside to drain and dry slightly. Toss your spaghetti in oil and garlic, toss in some steamed broccoli and top with your grated hard cheese.

You can eat chicken and pasta in any number of ways. All these dishes can be varied by the use of any other herbs you may like. You should by all means experiment with your own favorite herbs and seasonings.

Hopefully, these few simple suggestions have been helpful and will keep your chicken pastas a reliable and welcomed part of your family meals and your entertaining food arsenal.

Get the exclusive low down on ideas for better chicken pastas now in our guide to all you need to know about exquisite pasta with chicken recipes.

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