Mediterranean Pasta
Ingredients
Scale
- 8 ounces torchiette pasta (or any “twisty” style of pasta), uncooked
- 2 chicken breasts, skinless and boneless, sliced in half to create 4 thinner cutlets
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Olive oil
- 2 small zucchini, quartered and cut into 1/4”- 1/2” thick pieces
- 2 small yellow squash, quartered and cut into 1/4” – ½1/2” thick pieces
- 1/2 small eggplant, quartered and cut into 1/4” – 1/2” thick pieces
- 1 cup small cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives
- 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped, for garnish
- 1 cup plain, non-fat Greek yogurt
- 3/4 ounces fresh dill (about 1 small package), roughly chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
- 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon zest
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup water plus 2 tablespoons
- 4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 cup olive oil
Instructions
- Begin by gathering and prepping all of your lemon-dill dressing ingredients according to the ingredient list above to have ready and organized for use.
- Place all of the ingredients up to and including the black pepper into the bowl of a food processor, and process until smooth. With the processor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil, and process until well incorporated and smooth/creamy. Set aside.
- Next, gather and prep all of your pasta ingredients according to the ingredient list above to have ready and organized for use.
- Cook your pasta according to the package instructions, then drain and keep warm.
- While your pasta cooks, prepare the chicken cutlets by sprinkling them with a few pinches of salt and pepper. Place a large grill pan over medium-high heat and add about 1-2 tablespoons of the olive oil in, and once the oil is hot, add the chicken and grill for roughly 2-3 minutes per side, or until the chicken in golden and cooked through. Set the chicken aside on a plate, and once cool enough to handle, slice into very thin strips. Keep warm.
- To grill the veggies, place the same grill pan onto medium-high heat, and add in about 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add in about half of the zucchini and squash, and do not move it in order to allow it to brown/caramelize and grill for about 3 minutes. Sprinkle with some salt and pepper, then toss them over and allow them to grill/caramelize on the other side, as well. Turn them out onto a plate or bowl and keep warm, and repeat the process with the remainder of the zucchini/squash.
- Next, add a touch more olive oil to the grill pan, and add the eggplant in along with a couple of pinches of salt and pepper. Allow the eggplant to caramelize and grill for a few moments on each side, stirring occasionally to prevent it from sticking. Once golden brown and soft, turn out into the same bowl/plate as the zucchini/squash, keeping it warm.
- Grill the tomatoes in the grill pan last, with a touch more oil if necessary, and a pinch of salt and pepper, for about 1-2 minutes, just to warm them through and lightly char/blister their skins, then add them to the other veggies to hold.
- To finish the pasta, add all of the ingredients to a large bowl. Start by drizzling in about half of the lemon-dill dressing to start with, and gently toss to combine. Check to see if you'd like additional dressing, or if any additional salt/pepper is needed.
- To serve, spoon portions of the warm Mediterranean pasta into bowls, and garnish with a few of the halved Kalamata olives, a sprinkle of some of the crumbled feta cheese and fresh dill.