It’s been hot here in Oregon. Hot enough that I want to cook things quickly (or not at all) and make enough to eat for several meals. Last night’s dinner fit both of those criteria.

I tend to mostly make things up as I cook, throwing in some of this and a lot of that and tiny bit of something else and a liberal dose of garlic. But, I had a request for a recipe so you can find my description behind the cut.

Farfelle with Chicken and Asparagus

8 ounces cooked chicken (I used store bought rotisserie chicken)
12 ounces farfalle pasta
1.5 pound asparagus cut into bite sized pieces
1 cup pesto (approximately)
3 tablespoons lemon juice
black pepper
shredded Parmesan cheese

I was lazy and cooked the asparagus in a steamer basket over the water I was heating in order to boil the noodles. I cooked them for about two minutes, just until bright green but with lots of bite left in them. Then I set them aside to cool while I boiled the farfalle according to the package directions [in three quarts of water for 15 minutes, stirring frequently.] While the noodles were cooking I removed the chicken from the bone and chopped it into bite sized pieces (discarding the skin). I mixed the chicken with the cooled asparagus and about 1/4 cup of the pesto. Then, once the noodles were done, I mixed the noodles with the rest of the pesto and then combined everything together in a 2.5 quart casserole dish. I splashed on lemon juice and set to chill. Once cooled to room temperature (or cold, it’s great either way) I served it in my new bowls with black pepper and a sprinkle of shredded Parmesan.

I also think this would be great with peas, blanched broccoli or zucchini as the vegetable either in place of or in addition to the vegetables. The chicken could be substituted out for pork or tofu if that’s your leaning. And the noodles could easily be replaced with any other non-spaghetti style noodle although I also think it would be great with asian style egg noodles, the long skinny ones that you use to make chow mein.