This recipe is one of our favourites in our home. It is quick, healthy, tasty and a good way to impress guests if you haven't got a lot of time to prepare a meal.
The recipe is originally based around a Weight Watchers recipe; which I have adapted over time. Don't worry it doesn't taste like a healthy meal - it is a truly tasty explosion of flavours!
6 nests of tagliatelle
200g of tenderstem broccoli
100g of asparagus tips
1 teaspoon of olive oil
3 diced garlic cloves
1 diced red chilli, de-seeded
250g of cherry tomatoes
200ml of chicken stock
210g of cooked chicken slices
1 lemon
15g of freshly grated parmesan cheese
Preparation:
1. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and place in a bowl
2. Dice the garlic and red chilli
3. Tear up the cooked chicken into small pieces
4. Make up 150ml of chicken stock using 2 chicken stock cubes
5. Use a peeler to peel off some of the lemon zest and dice it
Creating the masterpiece:
1. Boil a full kettle of water
2. Add the pasta, asparagus and broccoli to a saucepan. Fill with water and bring back to the boil
3. Add the olive oil to a second saucepan and add the diced garlic and red chilli. Heat for about a minute until the garlic starts to brown
4. Add the tomatoes and the chicken stock and simmer for about 3-4 minutes
5. Add the lemon zest and parmesan cheese to the sauce and squeeze in the juice of half a lemon
6. Drain the pasta, broccoli and asparagus and tip into the saucepan of sauce and toss together
7. Serve in two pasta bowls immediately
Alternatives
This dish can be made without the chicken and with vegetable stock for vegetarians. I did this once by accident and no-one even noticed!
Hints and tips
1. The moment you have served to pasta; put the saucepan in the sink and fill with hot water unless you want to spend half an hour scrubbing as the parmesan creates a glue like consistency that is impossible to clean once dried on! The same for the pasta bowls and forks - throw in the sink and fill with hot water if you want to entertain rather than wash up straight away!
2. Get yourself a Lakeland slice and dice if you want to save time on the dicing and get really good diced garlic and red chilli
3. Don't put your hands near your eyes! After cooking scrub your hands with a scrubbing brush and wash with a lemon-based washing up liquid - trust me - it is the only way to not wake up in the middle of the night in pain where you have wiped your eyes in your sleep and there is still chilli and garlic under your nails!
Recipe by Naomi
