lemony chicken and peppadew pasta

despite the rapidly cooling weather i’m still, more often than not, in the mood for food with a bit of zip and zing to it. less warming soups and stews and more food flavoured with the freshness of green herbs and lemon plus the obligatory garlic and chilli.

this pasta dish is full of all those moreish flavours but is also hugely comforting on a cold grey day. i usually make it with fennel added to the mix but had forgotten to stock up this week. no matter, it tasted just as good but i now have the excuse to do a fennel version very soon.

this dish is my contribution to presto pasta nights, as hosted by ruth at once upon a feast. sorry for my lack of contributions over the past month ruth, i hope this makes up for it!

lemony chicken and peppadew pasta (serves 2)

2 skinless chicken breasts

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 lemon

olive oil

conchiglioni rigati for two

½ a jar of peppadew peppers* (i use the hot ones)

1 courgette, thinly sliced into coins

a handful of shredded basil leaves

parmesan shavings

slice the chicken breasts into bite-size pieces and place in a bowl with the garlic. slice half the lemon very finely and cut each piece in half, removing any pips. add this to the chicken and garlic. squeeze over lemon juice the remaining half and add a glug of olive oil. mix well and leave to marinade (10 minutes is fine as is overnight). if you are using fennel, slice one bulb and add it to the marinade mix.

cook the pasta. meanwhile, heat a frying pan and add the chicken mix (you can add extra oil if you like). stir-fry over quite a high heat so that the chicken cooks and browns a little around the edges. once the meat has started to colour add the peppadew peppers and courgette. when the pasta is ready add it to the chicken, with the basil, and mix well. serve topped with parmesan shavings.

* if you can’t get peppadew peppers you can use strips of roasted red peppers. add a chopped chilli if you want some heat.