Chicken and vegetables grill while the pasta cooks. Stir it all together –at the table?– with goat cheese and fresh herbs, and a fast summer pasta is ready for dinner on the deck.

This post celebrates 5 complete years of blogging on MORE TIME AT THE TABLE. Thanks for your loving kindnesses.  Here’s to the next five years!  Book almost here.   I’m reading the proof copy now. So exciting!!

                                                    (above: iphone photo by sean anthony morgan)

Ok, now on to the pasta dinner on the grill…

For a few years, I’ve loved making summer pastas mostly on the grill.  No big heavy sauce on the stove for hours like wintertime, just a few choice lovelies grilled to perfection and stirred into hot pasta (scroll down for pasta info) with some fresh herbs and maybe a little cheese.  If you’ve a burner on the side of your grill, you can do the pasta outside as well and save your kitchen and you from the damp heat. If it’s not too warm, you can use your stove, which may be quicker.

 My grilled eggplant and sausage pasta made on the grill  is one of the favorites on our deck and also on the blog.  It might soon be one of your summer go-tos as well.

      (above: water seasoned with salt, pepper, cloves of garlic, and basil leaves or stems.)

grilled chicken and vegetable pasta with fresh herbs and goat cheese

Begin by heating the kettle of water, but heat the grill soon after.  You’ll be cooking the pasta –and the tomatoes, very briefly — and grilling the chicken and vegetables at just about the same time.  If one is done before the other, cover and keep warm until you’re ready to stir everything all together with the goat cheese, fresh herbs, and lemon zest. Two cooks would be helpful, but not absolutely necessary.  If you’d like different vegetables (zucchini?) or would like to add some grilled asparagus, for example, go for it.  Do read through the recipe before beginning.  4 – 6 Servings

PASTA:

• Salt, pepper, a pinch of crushed red pepper, fresh herbs or stems from basil, and two peeled, whole garlic cloves.
• 1 pound whole wheat linguine or other pasta
• 4 Roma tomatoes, chopped

Fill a 10 or 12-quart kettle 3/4 full of water seasoned with the salt, peppers, herbs, and garlic.  Cover and bring to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente or nearly done. (10-12 minutes for dried pasta) Tip in the chopped tomatoes, let cook a minute or two, scoop out two ladles of hot water into a bowl (to thin the sauce later), and drain. Return to the kettle and keep warm if the chicken and vegetables aren’t done. The pasta will need to be warm to melt the goat cheese. (see PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER.)

GRILLING THE CHICKEN AND VEGETABLES:

• 2 large sweet onions sliced  1/2-inch thick
• 2 large sweet bell peppers (different colors), trimmed and sliced into 1/2-inch pieces
• 10 large mushrooms, trimmed and cut in half
• 1 – 1 1/4 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• Olive oil
• Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

Heat grill to medium-high and begin by grilling the vegetables,  adding the chicken after three minutes or so, (all brushed with olive oil and seasoned liberally with kosher salt and pepper) for a total of about 15 minutes cooking time until vegetables are tender and the chicken is done through–clear juices and no pink showing. (165 degrees Fahrenheit for the chicken if tested with an instant read thermometer.)  Slice the chicken into 1/4 – 1/2-inch pieces and chop the grilled vegetables into bite sized pieces before adding to the pasta.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER:

• 8 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
• 1/4 cup each chopped fresh basil and parsley, divided (use half in the pasta and half as garnish at table)
• Zest of one lemon
• Hot pasta water and/or heavy cream, if needed to thin sauce

When the pasta, chicken, and vegetables are done, stir them together in the pasta pot and season with just a pinch of salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper.  Stir in the goat cheese, half of the fresh herbs (reserve the rest for garnish), and the lemon zest. Taste and adjust seasonings. If sauce is too thick, stir in 1/4 – 1/2 cup hot pasta water  (or more if needed) or 1/4 cup heavy cream to thin it.  A combination of hot water and cream works just as well. Serve hot or at room temperature with the small bowl of fresh parsley and basil on the table for garnish.

WINE:   Three choices:  –Sancerre to love up the goat cheese, Chardonnay or White Burgundy for the overall dish, or Rosé because it’s summer!

DESSERT:  Fresh strawberries and blueberries.  Maybe a drizzle of local honey.  Maybe not.