A Few Summer Pastas

Every now and then this summer I went back inside to make a pasta dish figuring that if the only thing on the range was a pot of water I might survive the heat. In these cases I tried to stick to "no-cook" sauces or at least sauces requiring little additional cooking. Here are a few examples:
From the Gourmet cookbook I tried Pasta with Arugula Puree and Cherry Tomato Sauce. Arugula goes nicely with pasta and this sauce had a distinct flavor. I like the way the cherry tomatoes look on top. A good dish with a nice visual flair.
An old stand-by from when I was a new husband is the "365 Ways to Cook Pasta" cookbook. The collection of no-cook pasta sauces are nice and quick and perfect for the summer. This pasta with artichoke's, Kalamata olives, and roasted red peppers relies on canned products but if comes together nicely and really pops with flavor.
July's Bon Appetit magazine had a Pasta with Shrimp and Cilantro Lime Pesto that was a wonderful summer dish. It calls for tequila, and since the bottle was out... I did serve this with BA's Chilled Watercress-Spinach Soup and this was quite a special dinner on the patio.
I veered off for a few nights into roast chicken and pasta combinations that included Chicken Orzo Salad with Goat Cheese, and Roasted Chicken and Bow-Tie Pasta Salad, both from myrecipes.com. The trick to keeping these simple is in the roasted chicken. If your supermarket has a salad bar, get the cooked chicken from there. If they have prepared roasted breasts (cooked on premises) get the chicken there. As a last result I suggest Perdue roasted chicken sold in 9 oz. packs. A bit process-flavored but it will do in a pinch. Look, you could always roast your own if you have an air-conditioned kitchen.
So there you have it, a handful of summer pasta ideas that all taste great, are easy to prepare, and if you serve them out of a nice large serving platter, look summery and impressive.

Grilled Chicken Paillards with Nectarine Chutney

If you want to grill something fast give chicken paillards a try. You remeber them, chicken breasts pounded to 1/4 inch thickness. Well, just like on the range, these items grill up in one-two minutes each side and they mark up nicely. You could do the quarter turn and try for diamond grill marks if you're inclined.
So the chicken cooks fast,stays tender and this recipe has a sweet chutney to serve with it. You can imagine the combination of grilled flavor and chutney go well. This recipe came from the Gourmet Today cookbook that I've been tearing through since December.

GRILLED CHICKEN PAILLARDS WITH NECTARINE CHUTNEY
Servings: 4
CHUTNEY:
1 lb. firm-ripe nectarines, cut in 1 inch pieces
1 large tomato, coarsely chopped
1 small garlic clove, chopped
1/4 cup cider vinegar
3 Tbsp packed light brown sugar
1 tsp. curry powder (preferably Madras)
1/4 tsp. salt
CHICKEN:
4 skinless boneless chicken breast halves (1 1/2 pounds total)
1 Tbsp vegetable oil

Prepare grill for cooking

PREPARE THE CHUTNEY:
Simmer nectarines, tomato, garlic, vinegar, brown sugar, curry powder, and salt, uncovered, in a 2 quart heavy saucepan, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened but still saucy, about 20 minutes.

PREPARE THE CHICKEN:
While chutney is cooking, sandwich chicken between pieces of plastic wrap and pound with the flat side of a meat pounder or a rolling pin until 1/4 inch thick. Pat chicken dry and brush tops with oil, then season with salt and pepper.

When the fire is hot (you can hold your hand 5 inches above rack for 1 to 2 seconds), place chicken, oiled sides down, on lightly oiled grill rack and grill 1 minute. Brush tops with oil and season with salt and pepper, then turn chicken over and grill until just cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes more.

I served this with a Romaine, Radish and Cucumber Salad with Tahini Dressing from the same cookbook. A nice combination for a dinner on a hot night out on the patio.

Baby It's Hot Outside...

Hot! July was merciless, even cooking outside was tough so more often than usual we took refuge in air-conditioned restaurants. When it's 97 degrees and I'm going out for dinner my only criteria is, "how strong is the AC?"
Anyway, I did a few items on the grill that I can share. Here's one from Mark Bittman's Skewered Chicken Thighs with Peanut Sauce from The Best Recipes in the World. These were a tasty and fun item, being on skewers and all... Anyway you're just making a marinade and then skewering the thighs. This version calls for the thighs to be chopped up but I spread them out and cut them in half long-ways. You could also skewer the thighs, cut the points off the skewers, put them, chicken end down, in a plastic bag, pour in the marinade, mush them all together and stand them up in a tall bar glass in the refrigerator...that's what I did. On the grill the peanut sauce can burn so pay attention. Also, grilled skewered thighs have a real Asian street food look to them...like grilled seahorses. I served this with Herbed Jasmine Rice...from my wife's collection of potted herbs.