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Homemade Orecchiette With A Roasted Tomato Red Wine Sauce & Herbed Pan-Fried Chicken

Ingredients

Homemade Orecchiette Pasta

  • 1 and ½ cups semolina flour
  • 1 and ½ cups all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 4 eggs whisked slightly
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • ¼ cup water

Roasted Tomato Red Wine Sauce

  • 16 roma tomatoes cut in half with seed pulp scooped out and discarded
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 teaspoons pepper
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2/3 cup Swanson chicken broth
  • 3/4 cup cream
  • 1 cup red wine
  • 1 teaspoon basil
  • ½ teaspoon thyme
  • ½ teaspoon oregano
  • ½ teaspoon pepper

Pan-Fried Herbed Chicken

  • 4 chicken legs with thighs attached skin on and bone in
  • 6 tablespoons of butter
  • 4 tablespoons of olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 teaspoon thyme
  • 1 teaspoon sage
  • 1 teaspoon savory
  • 1 teaspoon oregano

Instructions

  1. Begin by making the orecchiette. Mix together the dry ingredients until well blended. Pour them into a mound on a large flat working surface. Make a hole in the center of the mound that is deep and wide, but with high edges so that when you pour the liquid ingredients into the hole they do not overflow and run down the sides of the mound. Pour the liquid ingredients (eggs, olive oil, water) into the hole and use a fork to gently begin whisking in the hole to slowly incorporate the dry ingredients until the mixture in the center becomes thick.
  2. Once it thickens, give it a good few whisks into the entire pile of dry ingredients and then begin kneading the mixture. Knead the mixture for about 10 minutes, or until the dough is elastic and bounces back within a couple seconds after you poke it. Wrap the ball of dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 1 hour.
  3. Roll out the dough in a rectangle until it is about 3/4 inch thick. Cut it into 1-inch wide strips, and roll the strips between your palms so that they round out a bit into a rope of dough. Cut a 1-inch square from the strip. Shape the square into a sphere, and place it on your work surface. Run a butter knife’s serrated edge over the sphere while pressing down so that it curls up a bit around the knife.
  4. Take the curled sphere and invert it over the tip of your thumb to form a saucer, then set it on a wire rack to dry. This video helps give a good visual for the shaping technique; they go over it at about 8 minutes in.
  5. Repeat the process until you’ve used up all the dough. Allow the orecchiette to dry for an hour. To prepare, cook in boiled water for 10-15 minutes or until softened and cooked through. Any orecchiette that you are not going to immediately prepare will keep for a long time if kept in a sealed bag or jar in the freezer.
  6. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Lay the tomato halves on a baking sheet and drizzle and rub them with the olive oil, then sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Roast them in the oven for 1 hour, then reduce the oven’s temperature to 300 and roast for an additional 30 minutes. Remove the tray from the oven and allow to cool until warm enough to handle.
  7. Place the roasted tomato halves in a blender with the remaining ingredients and blend until a puree has formed. Pour the sauce into a medium-sized saucepan and keep warm over the lowest heat setting on the stovetop, stirring every 10 minutes, until heated through, then serve over pasta.
  8. In a small bowl mix together all of the herbs and spices until blended. Rub down the chicken legs with the olive oil, and then rub them down with the spice mixture. Set aside. In a large frying pan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the chicken legs, two at a time, and lower the heat to medium. Pan fry them until they’re cooked through, about 10-13 minutes on each side. If the chicken begins to stick to the pan, add another tablespoon of butter to the pan. Remove them from the pan when their juices run clear. Serve immediately over the plated pasta and tomato sauce.