Now that I'm back, I thought I'd come out swinging, and head into the weekend with a great summer garden recipe that I've been making for a few summers.
If you can say that title three times fast, I'll personally make this for you.
(you know that was a total joke right????)
I found the original recipe years ago in an old magazine (of which I don't remember the name) we were hacking apart in an art therapy group I used to lead. I had it for years before I finally decided to tackle it.
Like many magazine recipes the photo was gorgeous but it called for a ridiculous pasta that could only be found in a specialty catalog and, of course, not gluten free, plus a few other ingredients that I seriously questioned, such as a jalapeno chile pepper.
Forget that!
I added the chicken to add some protein and adjusted quantities of many of the ingredients, in addition the original recipe called for scallions, I decided a little shallot was much better suited.
When sweet corn starts showing up at our local farm stands, I can't wait to make this. Seriously! I crave it!
Sneaky kiddo trick: Serve it up with just the yellow squash cut into pieces the size of the corn… top with parm and they won't know they are eating squash!
If you are local to York, definitely try some of
Flinchbaugh's sweet corn for this recipe.
Personally… it's the sweetest corn I've ever had.
If you grown your own, even better!
The taste is a nice mild blending of flavor that doesn't overpower the vegetables. The corn and summer squashes go great together. I love that it has that comfort meal feel without the heaviness.
Time-wise, you can make this pretty quick if you get your ingredients together prior to starting.
I would not recommend putting this one together on the fly. Cut down your corn and prep all the other ingredients beforehand and this will go smooth.
Although… my kitchen always looks like a corn volcano exploded
by the time this is ready to serve.
Don't be dismayed by the ingredient list for this recipe, it's not as bad as it looks, it goes together quite quickly.
If you easily get overwhelmed, pass the chicken duties to your significant other or prepare the chicken first, then cover and set aside.
NOTE: I used a 12" cast iron skillet and cast iron grill pan for this recipe, if you do not, you may need to adjust cooking temperatures, you do not want to brown or burn your veggies.
Gluten Free Garlic-Lemon Chicken with Corn & Summer Squash Penne
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- 3 cups Gluten Free Penne Pasta ( I use Tinkyada's brown rice pasta)
- 1 heaping Tbsp Coconut Oil (or Grapeseed or EVOO)
- 1 7-8" Zucchini, halved & sliced 1/4" thick
- 1 7-8" Yellow Squash, halved & sliced 1/4" thick
- 5-6 ears Sweet Corn, cut corn from cobs, no more than 4 cups
- 1 small Shallot (or 1/2 large), finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 cup Chicken broth/stock
- 4 Tbsp Butter, divided
- Fresh Grated Parmesan Cheese for topping
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- 3-4 Boneless Chicken Breasts
- 1/2 fresh lemon, juiced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- Salt
- Fresh Ground Pepper
Begin by marinating your chicken in a glass or stainless steel bowl: juice of 1/2 lemon, 3 minced cloves garlic, pinch or two of salt and a few grinds of fresh pepper.
Mix well and set aside. Preheat your grill or cast iron grill pan (this is what I used)
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Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add pasta and cook just until done, do not overcook.
Drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta cooking liquid.
Rinse one time quickly… do not rinse off all of the starch, set aside
[ I do this while prepping my other ingredients and grilling my chicken, then wait until it's done to continue ]
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Begin grilling chicken. Grill both sides until cooked through.
Either complete this first, or if you are a good multi-tasker, go ahead and begin the rest of the recipe, just don't forget to keep an eye on your chicken!!
Set cast iron skillet on stove, set heat to medium, add coconut oil.
When it starts to melt, add shallots. Continue to sauté shallots until almost translucent.
[If your pan begins to get too hot remove it from the heat and keep sautéing, return to the heat when temperature decreases. I do this a few times to keep the shallots from scorching versus trying to play with the burner temp.]
Add squashes and increase temperature to medium high, stirring very frequently so they do not brown, and until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes, undercooking is better at this point.
Do not cook through as there is more cooking to go. You want your squash to be tender but not soggy when completed.
Add garlic, 2 Tbsp butter, a few pinches of salt and a few grinds of pepper, the chicken stock, and the corn.
Stir frequently and continue cooking until the corn is tender. This will vary by pan/stovetop, mine took about 6 minutes.
Add your cooked pasta, remaining two Tbsp butter and 1/4 cup of the reserved pasta cooking liquid. Stir well and cook until heated through.
If your pasta absorbs all of the liquid, then add the remaining 1/4 cup. Sometimes mine does, sometimes it doesn't. You don't want it dry. It will take on a light sauce-like feeling but not be dripping wet.
Serve topped with Fresh Grated Parmesan cheese and topped with the Lemon-Garlic Grilled Chicken.
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NOTES:
- Don't let this sit in your cast iron pan, it will continue to cook! Transfer to a large bowl and cover until serving.
- If you cannot locate pastured organic boneless chicken breasts, then use leg portions or bone in breasts. Our local store does offer an organic line of poultry, although I still prefer to order from local farms.
- This can easily be turned into a vegan dish, by replacing the butter and cheese with vegan substitutes, and obviously the chicken too!
- I've considered adding several herbs to this dish, but really it's the mild flavors that draw me to it each summer, the herbs would completely change it.
- This dish refrigerates and reheats well!
- Enjoy, and if you make this, definitely drop me a comment!
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This post is linked to
Real Food Wednesdays over at
Kelly the Kitchen Kop… Go check out some of the other great real food recipes…
FYI… did you know that
this blog is available for the Kindle? No need to print out a recipe when you can easily view it from your Kindle!
