Comfort food comes in all forms from hamburgers, to fried chicken, to warm pasta dishes. I happen to think that comfort food usually involves noodles of some sort, whether it’s spaghetti, udon, soba or old-school egg noodles. The flavors that a noodle captures in a dish seizes the essence of what your craving and keeps you coming back for more.
Chicken and noodles are one of those things I have been eating for a very long time. My Nanny used to make her own noodles from scratch and I remember rows and rows of tea towels lined with handcrafted pasta all over her kitchen. Her most popular sauce to serve with her noodles was shredded beef in broth, but I also enjoyed her creamy chicken too. There was always something so enjoyable about chicken with seasonal vegetables and noodles, the flavors were simple, yet delicious.
Today, there are so many options of dried pasta, that if you don’t want to spend that extra time in the kitchen making noodles from scratch, you don’t need to. Dried curly egg noodles are the perfect fit for a simple chicken dish with fresh asparagus. The sauce is made with cream cheese, instead of heavy cream offering the right consistency and a joyful tanginess with less calories. I think it brings it all together with the taste of a little pre-spring vegetable like grassy asparagus. If you can’t find asparagus yet in your area, you can always substitute green beans or peas.
Ingredients
12 ounces dried egg noodles
4 skin-on bone-in chicken thighs
1/2 red or white onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 bunch asparagus cut into quarters
1/2 cup white wine or chicken broth
4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
salt & pepper
olive oil for cooking
fresh chives for garnish, optional
(Serves 4 )
To Prepare:
- Boil noodles in salted water for 9 minutes, drain reserving 1 cup pasta water. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- In a large skillet, add 2 teaspoons olive oil and place over medium high heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper on both sides and place skin side down in skillet. After 4 minutes flip over and cook for 2 minutes. Place in oven to roast for 25 minutes.
- Remove skillet and chicken from pan, set aside. In same skillet, add onions, garlic and asparagus. Sauté for 4 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, stir. Make a well in center and add wine and cream cheese, whisk to combine into a sauce.
- Cook vegetables in sauce for 3 minutes, add chicken back into pan, turning to coat in sauce. Thin sauce with pasta water for desired thickness.
- Spoon noodles into bowls and top with chicken thigh, sauce and asparagus. Sprinkle with chives, if desired. Enjoy!
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