Chicken, Tomato and Onion Pasta

"It’s hard to believe that just a little while ago this was nothing but ingredients." - Phoebe (Friends - The One with the 'Cuffs)

One of my favorite things about cooking is that it's an opportunity to be creative. I've discovered that some of the best dishes I've ever cooked were created using the random items left in the kitchen. This recipe is a perfect example of creating a meal with whatever you've got lying around. It started with two hungry med students, a pound of chicken, and no motivation to study for block 4 exams. We added to the mixture some tomatoes, onions, a LOT of basil, a little more procrastination and ended up with an very tasty, yet very easy, pasta recipe.

What you need (this makes about 6 servings):
4 cloves of garlic (diced)
1/4 cup olive oil
crushed red pepper flakes (to taste)
3 tbs chopped basil (or more if you like) - you can use dry or fresh
1 1/2 tbs sugar
2 1/2 tsp salt
3 medium to large tomatoes (diced)
2 medium vidalia onions (diced)
1 cup cooking wine (white)
1 1/2 lb of chicken (cut into small pieces)
1 1/2 lb bowtie pasta
grated parmesan cheese


What you need to do:
1. Heat the olive oil in a large (very large) frying pan with high sides, and saute the garlic and crushed red pepper flakes.
2. Add the onions and tomatoes to the oil. Cook down for about 4-5 minutes.
3. Add the chicken and cooking wine to the pan. If it doesn't seem like there's enough fluid in the pan (you want the ingredients to be at least half covered), you can add more wine and/or olive oil.
4. Add the basil, salt and sugar to the pan.
5. Cook until the chicken is no longer pink in the middle. Set the "sauce" aside.
6. Boil a pot of water (with salt) and cook the bowtie pasta according to the instructions on the box.
7. Strain pasta, return to pot and add the sauce.
8. Let it sit for a few minutes so the pasta can soak up the extra fluid in the sauce.
9. Serve with grated parmesan.
10. Enjoy!

Photos by Gayan DeSilva (http://thebrownbearrr.shutterfly.com/)