Talla-hasty Chicken Pasta

The weather was perfect for driving yesterday morning: clear, hot and dry with little traffic between Jacksonville and Tallahassee, where I was headed for a one-day business jaunt. Every time I drive through Tallahassee I’m impressed by how pretty it is even though it isn’t near any bodies of water—blooming crepe myrtles and shady Spanish moss arching over the roads, wide green lawns and white government buildings along brick streets. And of course, because it’s Florida, all the people are happy and tan. The city’s even beautiful in the rain, which was nice enough to escort me home. I stopped for a chicken sandwich interlude between finishing work and beginning the three-hour drive home, and so I bring you:

Talla-hasty Chicken PastaStart boiling a pot of water for pasta. Put a chicken breast in the oven with poultry spices and garlic (I heart garlic!), 425 for 25 min. Put two ears of corn in the water; when they’ve boiled awhile (10 min.) dumb a box of pasta on top of them and cook according to package directions. Drain. Time to reuse that nice pot. Pour in one jar of alfredo sauce (sometimes I make my own, but this is Talla-hasty Chicken Pasta), a can of tender chicken breast pieces, a can of

diced tomatoes in oil and spices. Add more spices of choice: I use garlic (surprise!), basil, etc. Once it’s all warm, stir in the pasta, then present two scoops on each plate along with one ear of corn. Remove chicken breast from the oven and slice, dividing between the two pasta mounds, et voila—time to eat. Don’t do that in haste.