Chicken and Spinach with White Wine Sauce

1 Tbsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp dried thyme
2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp flour
1 cup dry white wine
2 bay leaves
salt and pepper to taste
8 oz pasta
16 oz chicken breast, cooked and sliced
6 oz fresh spinach
1/3 cup Parmesan, grated

Fill a large pot with water and place over medium-high heat to boil.  Once water boils, add pasta and cook to desired tenderness.  Meanwhile, pour olive oil in a separate pan over medium heat.  Add garlic, pepper flakes, and thyme and stir for about a minute. Stir in butter and once melted add the flour.  Gradually add wine, using a whisk to work the liquid and flour mixture together.  Add bay leaves, salt and pepper.  Bring wine to a boil and let simmer until sauce starts to thicken. The sauce does not need to get too thick, but a slight thickness will help it coat the noodles.  By now, the noodles should be about done cooking.  Drain the noodles and add them to the pan with the wine sauce.  Toss to coat noodles.  Add sliced chicken and fresh spinach to the pan.  Cover the pan and let it sit a couple minutes until the spinach wilts.  Toss together and serve with Parmesan on top. Serves 4.

Roasted Brussel Sprouts

My journey with brussel sprouts started about a year ago when my neighbor brought me a large stalk of them she had purchased at the farmers market and couldn't finish off. At the time, I had no idea what to do with them. Enter Google. :)  So many recipes I found seemed to want to cover them with sugar or a creamy sauce, but I really wanted something that would show off their actual flavor (since I didn't know what that was).  I decided to stick with a more basic recipe and just roast them...and they were fantastic!  I was delighted to see them back out at the farmers market last week.  Whether you buy them by the stalk or pre-cut, I hope you enjoy them as much as me.  Don't be afraid to let the outer leaves get nice and dark.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Cut large sprouts in halves or quarters.  Toss in a bowl with olive oil, sea salt, and fresh cracked pepper.  Spread onto a baking sheet.  Bake about 10 minutes or until you see the outer leaves start to turn dark and crispy, giving the pan a toss every few minutes to turn some of the sprouts over.