Chicken Spaghtetti with Tomato Sauce

For whatever reason, I decided tonight that I wanted spaghetti with chicken in it instead of ground beef. Don't ask me why. Maybe it's because I've been on a chicken kick. Kickin chicken. IDK.

Tonight's latest victims on The Cooking Dead:

Those are really black olives in that pepper jar. Why you have to buy them in a can I'll never know.

I guess I'll give you an ingredients list. This was pretty off the cuff:

• 1/2 lb of chicken breast 
• 1/3 lb of whole wheat spaghetti
• 2/3 of a jar of Ragu chunky
• 1/4 of a yellow onion
• 1 clove of garlic
• A handful of olives (I raided the fridge for anything else I could throw in)
• Parmesan cheese
• 1 Tbsp olive oil

Gotta start by getting the frying pan hot with the olive oil and the Ragu chunky simmering.

I chopped up the chicken, onion, garlic, and black olives. I know I look like I'm being sanitary but let's be serious. Everything's about to get cooked in the skillet.

Saute the garlic for a minute or so. Add the onions and let them get translucent, probably 3 or 4 minutos. Pause The Walking Dead because you want to make sure you see the last episode in full before the mid-season premier.

Resume cooking. Throw in the chicken and let it brown.

Oh yeah, if you happened to have a pot of water boiling, now would be the time to throw in the whole wheat spaghetti. Sorry, I forgot to give you a picture and remind you to have boiling water ready. My bad. Next comes the sauce modification...

We're about to make this Ragu Chunky into Ragu Obese. Now let that simmer a few minutes while the spaghetti is cooking.

You know what, tomorrow is a holiday and I don't have to work. Why not.

Well $hit. I forgot to set the timer on the spaghetti. Guess that's what I get for not including that reminder. Gonna have to taste test on one minute intervals until we are AL-DENT-AY...

And I mean "AYYY" like the Fonz.

Commence plate preparation:

The finished product. Not Pictured: Walkers taking a bite out of the mid-season premier's first victims on the Tele that is just outside of frame.

Braised Snapper

Paul Bartolotta's Orata All' Acqua Pazza

http://www.menshealth.com/nutrition/guide-cooking-fish/page/8

It’s called a braise. This rustic, bold-flavored approach will put to rest the notion that seafood is unsexy diet fare. If you're braising fillets, use sturdy ones: Bass, snapper, and grouper all hold their shape perfectly. The best part? You can skip the usual white wine and pair this baby with a hearty red.

Paul Bartolotta's Orata All' Acqua Pazza

• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil (preferably Sicilian)
• 3 garlic cloves, sliced; 1 tsp crushed red-pepper flakes
• 2 lb whole Mediterranean orata (snapper may be substituted for this Italian sea bream)
• 12 oz cherry tomatoes (quartered)
• Sicilian sea salt and black pepper
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped Italian parsley

Preheat the oven to 375°F. In an ovenproof saute pan or roasting pan, warm half the olive oil with the garlic and red-pepper flakes, and cook until the garlic is lightly browned. Add the tomatoes and lightly saute them.

Season the fish with sea salt and black pepper, place it in the pan with the tomatoes, and add water. Bake for about 20 minutes, until the fish reaches an internal temperature of 135° to 140°F. (Check it with a probe thermometer.) Remove the fish from the pan.

Cook the sauce on high heat until it's reduced to about a cup (8 to 10 ounces). Add the parsley and the rest of the olive oil. Add salt and pepper, if necessary. Fillet the whole fish and dress with a few spoonfuls of the sauce. Serve immediately. Makes 4 servings

OR

http://www.esquire.com/features/guy-food/pesce-alla-palermitana-recipe-ll-1107

Ingredients
Serves 2

• 4 oz (1/4 lb) fingerling potatoes (at least 3)
• 2 oz (4 tbsp) extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
• 10 oz cherry tomatoes (about 1 pint), quartered
• 8 green olives, pitted and sliced
• 2 oz capers, rinsed and drained
• 4 sprigs fresh oregano
• 1 lemon, quartered
• 4 oz (1/4 cup) dry white wine
• 2 6-oz orata (sea bream) fillets (or substitute red snapper or American bass)
• Coarse salt and ground black pepper
• 4 oz (1/4 cup) water
• 1 tbsp chopped oregano
• 1 tbsp chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley
• Olive oil for drizzling

Instructions
1. In a saucepan of cold water bring fingerlings to a boil and cook for 6 to 8 minutes. Drain, halve lengthwise, and reserve.
2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
3. In a large (12-inch) ovenproof sauté pan over medium heat, warm 2 tbsp olive oil. Add garlic and cook until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, potatoes, olives, capers, oregano sprigs, lemon, and white wine.
4. Season fish with salt and pepper and place skin-side up in pan. Add water and bake in preheated oven for 8 minutes, or until the fish has reached an internal temperature of 140 degrees. Remove fish from pan and reserve.
5. Place pan over high heat and simmer until liquid is reduced by half. Add chopped oregano and parsley and remaining olive oil. Adjust seasoning. Divide sauce evenly (including potatoes and lemon wedges) between 2 plates. Place fish on top of sauce and drizzle with olive oil.

Paul Bartolotta is the chef of Bartolotta Ristorante di Mare at Wynn Las Vegas.