20 things to do with tomatoes: #6

Let's just call this one "fresh tomatoes and pasta," although the Martha Stewart recipe that spawned the varient pictured above has the more formal name "Penne with Tomatoes and Olives."

The first time I was every really impressed with someone's cooking was in high school.  It wasn't because it was fancy, complex or time-consuming to prepare.  It was because it was simple, fast, used what was on hand, and was utterly delicious.  The cook who whipped up this meal was the girlfriend of a very close friend of mine.  Pedro and I and another of our crew arrived at her house one summer afternoon and announced that we were hungry.  Probably pretty presumptuous of us, but she grudgingly agreed to feed us.  We perched on barstools and chatted while she started chopping tomatoes and heating a pot of water.  I think I was expecting she'd heat soup in a pan, or make cheese quesadillas or something.  That was fast food in my house, and about the limit of my own cooking skills at the time.  But from those tomatoes and that hot water, she produced this pasta dish that was better than anything I'd ever eaten in a restaurant.  I don't think she even heated the tomatoes.  My memory of the details of the dish are hazy, but I think she basically tossed the cooked spaghetti with some oil, tossed in the fresh chopped tomatoes, and maybe sprinkled some salt and pepper over the whole thing.  She was a goddess to me after that, up until she broke Pedro's heart the summer after we all graduated.

The version we make around here is slightly more involved, but still only takes a few minutes to make.  Slicing the cherry tomatoes and boiling the pasta take the most time, and can be done in parallel.  Modified from Martha Stewart's version by the addition of chicken and of course, doubling the garlic.  I'm using Marthas's spice measurements below, but I always just eyeball the amounts, and adjust to taste.

Penn with chicken, tomatoes and kalamatas
serves 4 (modified from Martha Stewart)

1/2 t salt + more for pasta water
1 pound dried penne
1/4 c olive oil
2-4 garlic cloves, sliced thin (I prefer 4)
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cooked breast of chicken, cubed
1 t dried oregano
1/4 t crushed red pepper
1/4 t black pepper
1/3 c. kalamata olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
1/4 c fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 c grated parmesean or other dry cheese

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.  Add pasta and cook until al dente.  While the pasta is cooking, slice the garlic and tomatos.

In a large skillet, warm oil over medium heat.  Add garlic and cook, stirring, until golden (2 min).  Add tomatoes, chicken, oregano, red pepper, salt and black pepper.  Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring (3 min).

Drain the pasta and add it to the skillet.  Remove from heat.  Stir in olives and parsley.  Transfer to a serving bowl and sprinkle with cheese. Serve with more cheese if desired.

I'm starting to notice a trend of one-pot meals coming out of our kitchen...