Lemon Garlic Chicken with Sauteed Spinach and Tomatoes served over Spaghetti

My family LOVES pasta!  Especially my boys!  The little one always wants a spoon in attempt to "twirl his pasta like Mama does"!  This could have something to do with the fact that I have Italian blood running through me and I serve pasta often!  I have to change it up all of the time - so we don't get bored and so that they continue to try new things!  The boys' reviews on this included "Mom, this chicken tastes awesome!" and "Mama, look, rain!!" (as the little one held up his long strands of spaghetti on his fork!)

We continue to dine al fresco while we enjoy the nice spring weather - so I drank a 2011 Phebus Torrontes from Fabre Montmayou Wines out of Mendoza, Argentina with my dinner.  Thanks again Total Wine!!!

I also made this with an extra virgin olive oil produced by a local olive mill, Queen Creek Olive Mill - I do love a good olive oil and tasted the difference!

I hope you serve this to your family  - and enjoy watching your children eat the long strands of pasta without cutting it into small pieces for them!

Lemon Garlic Chicken with Sauteed Spinach and Tomatoes served over Spaghetti
Serves 4

Ingredients: (seasonings not pictured, olive oil pictured above)

1 box of spaghetti (I am a big fan of Barilla PLUS products)
4 chicken breasts
2 tomatoes, diced
Juice of a lemon, plus lemon slices for garnish, if desired
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
4 cups spinach leaves
Salt and pepper to taste
Melting Pot Seasoning - I love this, but you could use any sort of lemon, garlic, herb type seasoning
Olive Oil

Bring a sauce pan of salted water to a boil, cook spaghetti according to package directions (usually about 10 minutes) until al dente.

Meanwhile, in a large saute pan, heat 1-2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium heat.  Pat the chicken breasts dry and season with salt and pepper.  Cook chicken breasts until browned on both sides, but not necessarily done in the middle. This is where I take the chicken out of the saute pan and cut it into bite sized pieces.  Yes, you can do this while the chicken is completely raw (or completely cooked), but when I was pregnant with my first child, I lost the ability to cut raw chicken as it grossed me out too much!  So - I cook it partially, then cut it!  Return it to the saute pan and finish cooking.

Once the chicken is cooked, remove to a bowl.  Add another tablespoon of olive oil to the same pan and add the spinach leaves.  Saute until wilted - this will only take a few minutes. 

At this point, your pasta should be about done, go ahead and drain it.  To the saute pan, add the garlic, lemon juice, wine, chicken, spaghetti, 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil, seasoning, and pepper (or, just salt and pepper if you choose to not use a special seasoning - just don't double up on the salt and the seasoning), to taste. 

Combine everything and cook for another couple of minutes, add the diced tomatoes, toss, and serve.