If you're someone who enjoys cooking, you probably remember the first time the act of helping to prepare a meal felt more like fun than like a chore. For me, it was sometime in high school, helping my friend Erica make this chicken and pasta dish.
My cooking experience up until that point consisted of preparing scrambled eggs and grilled cheese sandwiches for myself when my mother wasn't around to do it for me. At holidays, I'd reluctantly help snap the ends off green beans or peel potatoes, eager to get back to doing something, anything, else. Cooking took so long, and I wasn't interested in anything but the finished product.
Erica's family was Italian. She knew her way around the kitchen, and she didn't even need to look at a recipe to put this dish together. She'd invited a few of us over, saying she was cooking, and when she asked if I wanted to help, I said, "Um, okay." I didn't really want to, but hey, I was getting a free meal.
I was tasked with crushing the tomatoes and removing their cores. The visceral experience—having seeds stuck to my hands, dodging squirts of tomato juice—was unlike any I'd had with cooking before. And, these were going in a sauce we were making ourselves, a completely new concept to someone raised on Ragu. I was skeptical—why make sauce when you can just heat some up?—but the finished product rocked my world.
And now, even after I've gone through the process of Running in the Cold, this recipe stands up. The sauce combines tomatoes and white wine, an unexpected pairing that works. Runners will love it for the carbs in the pasta, sure, but the butter and the chicken add fat and protein to keep you satisfied and feeling full for longer. Sprinkle cheese on top for an extra fat-and-protein punch, or opt instead for fresh basil, which just looks pretty.
Chicken DeMillio
Heres Exactly What to Eat Before a Half Marathon
What you'll need:
1 A large handful of fresh parsley
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A large handful of fresh parsley
1 cup of dry white wine (like chardonnay)
3-4 Heres Exactly What to Eat Before a Half Marathon
2 cans of whole peeled tomatoes (crushed in your hand, discarding fibrous/hard parts)
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Box of pasta (we used linguine)
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Chopped fresh basil (optional)
How to make it:
1. Melt butter in a large saucepan. When melted, add 4-5 large cloves of crushed garlic and a large handful of fresh parsley. Let sauté for 30 seconds.
2. Add 1 cup of white wine, let simmer for about 5 minutes.
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4. Once the chicken is completely cooked, add all the tomatoes. Be sure to add the juice from the cans as well. Cook on low heat. CA Notice at Collection.
5. Cook the pasta with sauce still on low heat. Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and add to sauce. Add cheese and/or basil for garnish (optional). Serves 4-6.
If you have a recipe you'd like to share with fellow runners, or any other food-related content you'd like to see, email [email protected].
