Chicken Caesar Pasta: Guest Post by Generation Y Foodie

Hi folks!

Did you miss me?

I took a little hiatus while we were on vacation. I thought since we had not been away for 8 years, and it was quite likely our last trip together with just the four of us, that focusing on us having fun was the right thing to do. I am so glad I did. I think I only went online for about 2 minutes per day the entire time we were away. Some days I did not go online at all. It was a nice break.

I shall share my trip with you tomorrow I promise. Today there is a special treat for you, a treat you will all love and adore. The remarkably talented Dara of Generation Y Foodie is guest posting today.

UPDATE: I believe Dara is no longer blogging so I've removed all the links to her blog but she still receives full credit for the recipe. This one is hers, not mine. Hope you love it.

Dara was inspired to start her blog after reading an article about how young adults could not cook and were considered the "takeout generation". She wanted to show how easy and cheap it is to do healthy at home. She is an amazing young lady, not only does she blog but she is a lawyer during the day. So she's got that whole superhero vibe going if you ask me. Lawyer by day, foodie by night, I think that deserves a cape for sure. Dara is also sweet, supportive, and kind. I am very lucky to know her and am so pleased to share her with you today.

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Hello! I am so excited to be coming to you live from the Asylum today! I love Kim and am honored to be guest posting on her super fabulous blog. I discovered Kim not long after I began blogging myself and look forward to her wacky hijinks and yummy recipes. I started blogging because I am a psycho who hates having free time. I stuck with blogging because I met amazing, talented and supportive people, like Kim, who became my Internet food family.

I was quite stressed to come up with the perfect recipe for this post. I wanted to find something that was Lunatic-worthy while still sticking to my cooking philosophy of healthy, simple recipes. After much deliberation, I came up with this idea. I absolutely love Caesar salad and am always trying to shoehorn random ingredients into Caesar inspired dishes. So I decided to give pasta a whirl. I’ve seen some cold pasta salads that use lettuce, but I wanted a warm and comfy dinner that would take less than 20 minutes to cook. Instead of lettuce, I used my favorite veggie – kale.

Let me get on my soapbox for a minute. If you don’t generally eat kale or are wary of it, I urge you to give it a try. This versatile veggie stands up well both raw and cooked and lowers the risk of FIVE different types of cancer. It’s also packed with vitamin K, omega-3’s, antioxidants and flavonoids. I have no clue what flavonoids are, but they are good for you!

Ok, off the soapbox. I used kale because it cooks really well and will hold its texture and flavor far better than spinach or chard. Either of those would work in this recipe if you prefer, but Tuscan (aka Dinosaur) kale is a great addition. So, to recap, we’ve got chicken breast, whole wheat pasta and kale, a trifecta of healthy and filling awesomeness. How to improve this combination? Yummy Caesar salad dressing!

Now. I had originally contemplated making my own “dressing” for this dish but then I decided not to make life harder for myself, especially since it was a weeknight and my puppy really wanted to go for a walk. So instead, I used 365 Organic Light Caesar Dressing. I pick it up at Whole Foods and it’s seriously my favorite salad dressing right now. It is really flavorful and has only 70 calories per serving! Which makes me very happy. Anyway, any low calorie or light Caesar will work with this recipe. Just make sure it’s olive oil based, not creamy, which would not taste good warm. A little bit of dressing and some lemon juice and you are in business.

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5 from 3 votes

Author Generation Y Foodie

Ingredients

• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1” chunks
• 2 cloves of garlic minced
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 4 cup Tuscan kale washed, ribs removed and cut into 1” slices
• Juice of ½ lemon
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 8 oz whole-wheat penne
• ¼ cup low calorie olive oil based Caesar dressing
• 4 tbsp Parmesan cheese

Instructions

• Cook pasta according to package directions
• In a large skillet or pot, brown chicken and garlic in olive oil on medium heat for 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently
• Add kale, lemon juice, salt, pepper and red pepper
• Reduce heat to med-low and sauté 5-7 minutes, until kale is wilted
• Add pasta and salad dressing, toss to coat
• Serve sprinkled with Parmesan and black pepper

Thanks Kim for the wonderful guest posting opportunity! And have an awesome and delicious day everyone!

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That looks so tasty and I am now craving this dish for lunch. Dara has a way of making even the likes of me crave healthy food, and you all know that is not easy to do. I'd gobble this up and make yummy noises to boot if I had this in front of me right now. Might I just add how great the photos are. I can just picture myself sitting out on the back patio having this served by some pool boy or something. Okay wait, that is not appropriate at all. He'd be eating it with me, not serving me. Yup, much better. Totally appropriate now.

I would love to have everyone stop by Dara's blog, Generation Y Foodie to say hello. Make sure you follow her blog. She's also on twitter, and facebook. Did I mention she also has cookbooks? I know right. You're going to want to order those, and you can find them on Amazon. You can order them directly through Amazon or you can actually link through my store to order them since I am an Amazon Associate. Here is the direct Amazon links: "Gen Y Foodie Holidays: New and Traditional Holidays to make your Holidays Healthy and Memorable" and "Gen Y Foodie Parties: Healthy and Simple Ways to Wow a Crowd". To order through me you would go to the shop tab up at the top of the blog or look to the right for the Amazon widget. I sure hope you enjoyed seeing Dara here at the asylum, I know I feel honoured and touched she did this for me. Thanks so much Dara, for the recipe and just being you. I see great success in your future. You deserve every bit of it. xx

Okay folks make sure you stop by tomorrow when I begin a series of Disney posts for you. We had a blast and I really look forward to sharing the experience with you. I just need written consent to post all the horrifying, embarrassing photos on the blog. Would not want to be sued by people, especially mini-me. It's okay though, I know a good lawyer right Dara!!!

Toodles and smoochies. xx