ThinkProof Cooking^TM
Pasta with Chicken Sauce: Meal Guide

A. Menu

Type	Informal Meal
Food	Pasta with Chicken Sauce Mincemeat- & Hazelnut-Stuffed Apples
Booze	White wine
Serves	Four diners; Starting 7.00pm
Sources	"Quick & Easy: Practical Cookery", Parragon, Bath, 2002, p156 (for main course) "Quick Cook", Thane Prince, Chatto & Windus, London, 1994, p41 (for dessert)
Notes	Shaded parts for pasta only (note some ingredients are split between pasta and pudding)

B. Ingredients Checklist

Stuff to have or buy:

*Ingredient*	*Already have*	*To buy*
Onion (one; small)
Garlic (one large clove)
Apples (four large; e.g. Golden Delicious)
Parsley (2 tablespoons/about a dozen sprigs; fresh)
Soured cream (or crème fraiche) (140ml/¼ pint)
Butter (45g/1½oz)
Chicken breast (400g/14oz (c.three medium); skinless)
Tagliatelle (500g/18oz; green (spinach))
Sugar (45g/1½oz; any brown)
Tinned tomatoes (600g/21oz; peeled & chopped – probably 1½ tins)
Tomato puree (2 tablespoons)
Olive oil (2 tablespoons)
Almonds (45g/1½oz; whole, blanched)
Hazelnuts (30g/1oz; chopped)
Mincemeat (225g/8oz)
Oregano (1 teaspoon)
Bay leaf (two)
Salt and black pepper
White wine

C. Pre-Preparation

None

D. Preparation

When?: Timeline minus c.50 minutes (e.g. c.5.30pm)

How long?: Preparation takes about 30 minutes

Food Preparation

Ö
	1	Chop up one small onion
	2	Peel one garlic clove and place in garlic press
	3	Open tins of chopped tomatoes (enough for 600g/21oz)
	4	Chop up c.one dozen sprigs of parsley to make two tablespoons-worth
	5	Measure out 45g (1½oz) of blanched almonds
	6	Measure out 15g (½oz) of butter
	7	Measure out 500g (18oz) of tagliatelle
	8	Wash and core the four apples
	9	Cut a shallow line around the equator of each apple
	10	Mix 4 tablespoons of mincemeat with 30g (1oz) of chopped hazelnuts
	11	Mix 30g (1oz) of sugar into 150ml (¼pt) of water
	12	Stuff each apple with the mince/nuts mixture
	13	Put each apple into a shallow baking tray or dish
	14	Put a knob (for the technically-minded, apparently one knob = 7.5g (¼oz)) of butter on top of each apple
	15	Pour the sugary water into the baking tray/disk around the apples
	16	Cover the baking tray with some loose cover

Note: Keep food fresh in containers; Any dairy/fish/meat in fridge

Timeline Preparation

Ö
	1	Get cooking implements ready:	Chopping board and knife; Large saucepan; Two medium saucepans; Colander to drain pasta; Four stirring spoons; Scissors for cutting chicken
	2	Get serving implements ready:	Re-use cooking spoons to serve from saucepans/colander
	3	Get eating implements ready:	Large plates for first course; Bowls for pudding; Cutlery
	4	Make sure ingredients are all to hand:	Measured/prepared ingredients; Olive oil; Oregano; Bay leaves; Tomato puree; Sugar; Salt/Pepper; Chicken; Soured Cream

E. TimeLine Cooking^TM

Ö	*Abs*	*Rel*	*Your*
	6.20	0		Pour 1 tablespoon of olive oil into a medium saucepan over a medium heat
	6.22	+2		Add the chopped onion and fry until translucent
	6.25	+5		Put on 3½ pints (1¾l) fresh water to boil in a large saucepan
	6.29	+9		Crush the garlic clove in with the frying onion and keep frying
	6.31	+11		To the onion/garlic add the 600g/21oz of chopped tomatoes, the chopped parsley, 1 teaspoon of oregano, 2 bay leaves, 2 tablespoons of tomato puree, 1 teaspoon of sugar, and a grind of black pepper
	6.33	+13		Cut the chicken into small strips (c. 1cm x 2cm) and set aside; Wash hands
	6.37	+17		Onion/tomato sauce should now be boiling once again; Turn down the heat and allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes; It needs to reduce to about half its original volume
	6.39	+19		Set the dinner plates near the oven to warm
	6.42	+22		Melt the 15g (½ oz) of butter in a frying pan over a medium heat
	6.43	+23		Give the onion/tomato sauce a stir and check it's simmering OK
	6.44	+24		Place the 500g (18oz) of tagliatelle into the large saucepan of boiling water; Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil
	6.46	+26		Add the cut chicken strips into the buttery frying pan and fry; Add the 45g (1½oz) of blanched almonds; Stir regularly
	6.49	+29		The water around the tagliatelle should be boiling again by now; Give the pasta a quick stir to prevent sticking and turn the heat down to medium-low
	6.50	+30		Give the onion/tomato sauce another stir and check it's simmering OK
	6.53	+33		Turn oven on to 200^oC/400^oF/Gas Mark 6
	6.55	+35		Turn the heat off under the onion/tomato sauce; Remove the two bay leaves; Cover and allow to stand
	6.58	+38		Check the tagliatelle is cooked; Drain in the colander
	6.58	+38		Check the chicken strips are cooked through
	6.59	+39		Pour 140ml (¼pt) soured cream over the chicken/almonds; Stir and turn off heat
	7.00	+40		Serve one portion of pasta onto each plate; Spoon tomato sauce over the top of the pasta; Spoon the chicken sauce onto the centre of tomato sauce
	c.7.00			About 30 minutes before you're ready for pudding, remove the cover from the apples' baking tray/dish and place into the oven
				About 15 minutes later, during your friend's particularly dull story about how he got this really amazing deal on broadband, very carefully spoon the sugary water over the apples and re-close the oven
	c.7.30			25-30 minutes after you put the apples in the oven, push a fork into one to check it's gone soft. Assuming it has, pull the apples out of the oven. It's a good idea to let them cool slightly for a couple of minutes. Except for your friend. Make him eat his whole straight from the oven. And then sympathise about how difficult it is to talk any more with a severely-scalded mouth.

F. Post-Serving Notes

The Meal

First course worked surprisingly well: looks great with the concentric green (pasta), red (tomato sauce) and white (chicken sauce) circles; and tastes good too. Would probably work as a formal meal too, though maybe with a posher pud. Especially if entertaining Bulgarians, Hungarians, Italians, etc.