Menu
Author:
Franco Salzillo
You know I love home-cooked meals, but if there’s one restaurant you can visit often without breaking the bank with consistently great meals one after another is Olive Garden.
And although everyone has an Olive Garden favorite dish, one of mine is the chicken Caprese. A pasta dish as light as a salad and as flavorful as the heartiest pasta.
The secret is in the roasted tomatoes, but don’t tell anyone! Here’s how I make an Olive Garden Chicken Caprese.
The heartiest part of this dish is the pasta. And we’re not using any type of pasta but the thin capellini or angel’s hair pasta. We’re cooking this one like any pasta in boiling saltwater.
You’ll also need a few tomatoes, which we’ll rub with olive oil, salt, pepper and minced garlic before oven roasting them until flavorful and slightly charred.
The rest is tossing the tomatoes with cubed mozzarella and fresh basil leaves. We’re also adding a splash of Balsamic and dried Italian herbs for a fragrant feel.
And of course, what’s a chicken Caprese without chicken? We’re grilling this one for the smokiest flavor, which will match the tomatoes perfectly. Drizzle the salad with a whole lot of olive oil and top it with Parmesan for the best experience.
Cut the tomatoes into quarters, mince the garlic, chop the basil leaves, dice the mozzarella into 1-inch cubes.
In a pot with boiling saltwater, cook the capellini until ‘al dente.’ Drain, drizzle with olive oil and toss to prevent sticking. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl, toss the tomatoes with olive oil, minced garlic, salt and pepper. Place in a baking tray and roast for 20-25 minutes at 375 degrees F.
Toss the roasted tomatoes with the mozzarella and basil leaves. Incorporate the balsamic vinegar, Italian herbs and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
Season the chicken with olive oil, salt and pepper. In the grill, cook the chicken until you reach a core temperature of 165 °F (73.9 °C). Dice into cubes.
In a large serving bowl, combine the capellini with the tomato mixture, incorporate the chicken and serve with Parmesan.
