Pasta Salad With Asparagus And Chicken Food

CHICKEN ASPARAGUS PASTA SALAD

Steps:

• Bring 4 quarts of water to boil in a stockpot.
• Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente.
• Drain pasta and keep warm.
• Wash asparagus and remove and discard tough ends.
• Slice asparagus into one inch pieces.
• Cook asparagus in a large skillet in shallow water and steam for 1-2 minutes until crisp tender.
• Drain well and reserve.
• Chop chicken into one inch pieces.
• Cut grape tomatoes in half.
• Combine Italian dressing ingredients in a large bowl.
• Add cooked pasta and asparagus to the Italian dressing and mix together until everything is evenly coated.
• Add chicken, tomatoes, basil, olives, and cheese and stir to combine.
• Serve pasta salad warm or at room temperature.

PASTA WITH CHICKEN AND ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• Remove all sinew and cartilege from the chicken breast and cut into strips about 1 and 1/2 inches long and a half inch wide.
• Scrape and trim the asparagus, discarding any tough ends, and cut on the diagonal into one and half lengths.
• Drop the asparagus into rapidly boiling water and cook for just a few moments--they should still be crisp--and drain and reserve, keeping warm.
• Cook the pasta in rapidly boiling salted water until al dente and drain and reserve, keeping warm.
• Heat the butter in a casserole and add the chicken strips, stirring and seasoning with coarse salt and freshly ground pepper, cooking less than a minute, until the chicken just begins to change color.
• Add the asparagus and stir.
• Add the shallots and cook briefly, about 30 seconds.
• Add the cream, hot red pepper (or pepper flakes) and the tarragon and stir.
• Break the gorgonzola cheese into small lumps and add it, cooking just until the cheese melts.
• Add a generous grinding of black pepper and the tarragon and stir.
• Add the drained pasta and toss well.
• Serve with grated parmesan on the side.

PENNE WITH ASPARAGUS AND CHERRY TOMATOES (SPRING)

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the pasta, reserving about 1/2 cup of the pasta water.
• In a large saute pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the asparagus, season with the salt and pepper, and cook for 3 minutes until slightly soft. Add the cherry tomatoes and peas. Cook for 2 minutes. Pour the chicken stock into the pan and bring the mixture to a simmer. Cook until the tomatoes start to burst and the stock is reduced by half, about 3 minutes.
• Transfer the asparagus mixture to a large serving bowl. Add the cooked pasta and 1/2 of the Parmesan. Toss well, adding reserved pasta water, if needed, to loosen the pasta. Garnish with the remaining Parmesan and chopped basil.

ASPARAGUS PASTA SALAD

Steps:

• Heat shallot and oil in microwave safe covered dish for 30 seconds or in a small pan on the stovetop over medium low heat for 5 minutes. Allow oil to cool back to room temperature.
• Hold a spear of asparagus at each end and snap it. The spear breaks where the tender tops meet the tough bottoms. Line the broken spear up with the bundle of cleaned asparagus. Cut the spears using the guideline of the snapped spear. Par boil the asparagus tops in 1 inch simmering water covered for 3 to 5 minutes. Cool under cold running water and drain. Cut asparagus into 1-inch pieces on an angle and add to a bowl. Combine chopped, cooked asparagus with shredded endive, red bell pepper, cooked pasta, green peas and chopped parsley. The peas will defrost as you toss salad. Pour vinegar into a small bowl and whisk in cooled shallot oil. Pour dressing over salad and toss. Season salad with salt and pepper, to your taste and toss again.

CHICKEN AND ASPARAGUS PASTA SALAD

Steps:

• Cook pasta in large saucepan of boiling water until tender; drain. Rinse under cold water; drain.
• Meanwhile, boil, steam or microwave asparagus until just tender; drain.
• Make mustard mayo dressing. Combine the ingredients in a small bowl.
• Place pasta and asparagus in large bowl with dressing and remaining ingredients; toss gently.

ASPARAGUS AND CHICKEN SALAD WITH GINGER DRESSING

Steps:

• To make the vinaigrette, put shallots in a small bowl. Add vinegar, sugar, mustard, salt and cayenne and let steep for 5 minutes. Add ginger and garlic, then whisk in sesame oil and vegetable oil. Taste and adjust seasoning.
• Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Snap off the tough end of each asparagus spear, then cut each spear into 2-inch lengths. Cut thicker pieces in half lengthwise as necessary so all cut pieces are approximately the same size. Place asparagus pieces into boiling water and cook for 1 minute. Drain and cool under running water. Blot dry.
• To make the salad, put asparagus in a salad bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Add chile, if using, and crushed peanuts. Dress with half the vinaigrette and toss to coat.
• Arrange dressed asparagus on a platter or on individual plates. Tear chicken slices into strips and scatter over asparagus. Drizzle a little more vinaigrette over the salad and give it a good squeeze of lime. Garnish with basil, mint and cilantro leaves and serve immediately.

LEMONY PASTA WITH ASPARAGUS AND WHITE BEANS

Steps:

• Grate the zest from the lemon into a small bowl. Halve the lemon and squeeze the juice from half of it on top of the zest. Add the white beans, shallot or onion, grated garlic, red-pepper flakes and a large pinch of salt and toss well. Drizzle in 1 tablespoon olive oil and set aside.
• Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until just shy of al dente, usually 2 minutes less than the package directs.
• Meanwhile, heat a 12-inch sauté pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add the remaining 3 tablespoons oil, then add the asparagus. Sauté until the asparagus is tender and starting to brown at the edges, 7 to 10 minutes. Add a big pinch of salt and the sliced garlic and sauté until the garlic is lightly golden, 1 to 2 minutes longer.
• Dip a coffee mug or glass measuring cup into the pasta water and scoop out about 1/2 cup of it to use for the sauce. Drain pasta, shaking it well. Add pasta, bean mixture, parsley and Parmesan to sauté pan and cook until the beans are hot and the pasta is al dente. If the mixture looks dry, splash in some (or all) of the reserved pasta water. Squeeze remaining lemon half over pasta, toss and taste. Season with pepper; add more salt, red-pepper flakes and lemon juice, if desired.

ASPARAGUS PASTA SALAD

Steps:

• Place asparagus in a large saucepan with enough water to cover; cook until crisp-tender. Drain and cool. In a large bowl, combine asparagus with the remaining ingredients; toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 3-4 hours or overnight.

CREAMY PESTO PASTA SALAD WITH CHICKEN, ASPARAGUS AND CHERRY TOMATOES

Steps:

• Mix dressing ingredients in a small bowl; keep chilled until ready to toss with salad. (Store in clean jar with lid.)
• Bring 1 gallon of water and 2 Tbs. of salt to boil in a large soup kettle. Add pasta and, using package times as a guide, boil, stirring frequently and adding asparagus the last 1 minute, until just tender. Drain thoroughly (do not rinse) and dump onto a large, lipped cookie sheet. Set aside to cool while preparing remaining salad ingredients.
• Place all salad ingredients (except buttermilk dressing) in a large bowl or transfer to a gallon-size zippered bag. (Can be covered and refrigerated several hours at this point.) When ready to serve, add dressing; toss to coat and serve.

WARM CHICKEN SALAD WITH ASPARAGUS AND CREAMY DILL DRESSING

Steps:

• Set a steamer basket in a large pot filled with about 1" salted water. Cover pot and bring water to a boil. Add potatoes, cover, and steam until just tender, about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, cut breast meat from chicken, remove and discard skin, and slice on the bias into 1/2" slices. Remove legs from carcass, remove and discard skin, and slice meat off bones into 1/2" slices.
• Whisk mayonnaise, dill, lemon juice, mustard, pepper, and 1/4 tsp. salt in a medium bowl.
• Add asparagus and chicken slices to potatoes in steamer, cover, and steam until asparagus is crisp-tender and chicken is warmed through, about 3 minutes. Transfer potatoes, asparagus, and chicken to a platter or plates and drizzle with dressing. Top with watercress and mint and serve with lemon wedges alongside.

ASPARAGUS-SPINACH PASTA SALAD

Steps:

• Place asparagus in a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil; sprinkle with salt. Bake, uncovered, at 400° for 8-10 minutes or until crisp-tender, stirring after 5 minutes. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions; drain., For dressing, combine onions, vinegar and soy sauce in a blender; cover and process. While processing, gradually add the remaining oil in a steady steam., In a large salad bowl, combine pasta, spinach and asparagus. Drizzle with dressing; toss to coat. Sprinkle with cashews and Parmesan cheese.