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Truffled Chicken Breasts with Pappardelle in a Creamy Garlic Sauce, an homage to Ina Garten

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Ina’s Version as photographed for
House  Beautiful
Almost everything I write about and cook is done to the letter of whatever recipe I want to share with you. It’s not that I don’t have a spirit of adventure; it’s just that if I’m going to cook someone else’s recipe, the least I can do is follow it.  Have you ever noticed the number of people who will “comment” on a specific recipe they’ve pulled from a website even if they have barely followed it at all?  It always reads something like this: “I substituted cornmeal for whole wheat flour and yogurt for the butter.  It was so-so so I’d only give this recipe a fork and a half”.   Never mind what I’d suggest you do with your fork…but today I am slightly guilty of the same transgression, although I’d give this version as many forks as they allow.
The way I choose things to cook is fairly random.  I collect recipes and then cook one of them to satisfy two needs: one for the blog and two for the tastebuds.  I’d been holding onto an Ina Garten recipe that first appeared in House Beautiful months ago.  It looked so deliciously good and had a certain luxurious feel about it and a diet-be-damned attitude. Why not?  It was for Tagliarelle with Truffle Butter and Chicken Breasts stuffed with Goat Cheese and a hint Basil.                       
Now I started out wanting to go full-on Ina.  Here’s what happened. Goat cheese is on Andrew’s no-fly list so I had to substitute it.  Then Ina wisely recommended Cipriani’s tagliarelle which I love.  Cipriani pasta is thinner than most, cooks in a flash and gives you this delicate lightness quite unlike most boxed pasta.  No Cipriani at my grocery store but there was some nice Pappardelle that I would describe as being ‘semi fresco’—partially fresh.   Ina used white truffle butter in her recipe for the pasta sauce.  Scouring the dairy case I found none.  But what I did find was truffled Fontina cheese and Garlic and Herb Butter. So I flipped ingredients and cooked the Chicken breasts stuffed with the truffled cheese.  And I used the Garlic and Herb butter for the pasta sauce.  They were beautiful together even if, as you can see, we had a slight problem tucking the cheese under the non-existent skin on one breast.  My, it was good!  So here’s to Ina!   And here’s the recipe for one deluxe dinner:

 



2 thoughts on “Truffled Chicken Breasts with Pappardelle in a Creamy Garlic Sauce, an homage to Ina Garten”

  • You are so right – if you fuss with the recipe, then you are changing what Ina, no doubtedly, already tested and fussed with, to perfect in the first place. Then you give the in's and out's of the preparation – I give a full fork thumbs up Monte!

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