Category Archives: Poultry

RIGATONI WITH BROCCOLI & CHICKEN

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Today is opening day of the 2026 MLB season for the Houston Astros.  Here’s hoping for an exhilarating season!

To celebrate, I turned to a 2004 cookbook, published as a fundraiser for M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, entitled “From Home Plate to Your Plate — A Collection of Recipes from the Houston Astros Family.”

So many options — should I make Jose Cruz’s Tuna or Chicken Tetrazzini, or perhaps Roy Oswalt’s Baked Chimichangas?  Craig Biggio’s Italian Tomato Sauce or Jeff Bagwell’s Salmon Fillets?  I settled on Roger Clemens’ Rigatoni with Broccoli & Chicken, a dish he reportedly loved from Bertucci’s Restaurant in Boston.

The dish, which serves 2, was easy and tasty enough, although if I were to make it again I’d probably add some mushrooms, a dash of crushed red pepper, and perhaps a sprinkling of parmesan cheese before serving.  But, hey, if you have no one to take you out to the ballgame, you can root root root for the home team while chowing down on “Rocket’s” favorite dish.

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RIGATONI WITH BROCCOLI & CHICKEN
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Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 4 ounces chicken breast, cut into strips
  • 1 cup broccoli florets
  • 1 slice of lemon
  • 1 small clove garlic, crushed
  • ¼ cup chicken broth
  • ¾ cup heavy cream
  • 2 cups rigatoni, cooked all dente
Instructions
  1. Heat the olive oil in a nonstick frying pan over medium heat. Add the chicken and saute until chicken is lightly browned. Add the broccoli and lemon slice, and continue cooking for 2-3 minutes, stirring often, until broccoli is bright green. Add the garlic and cook for 10 seconds. Add the chicken broth and heavy cream and bring to a boil. Remove from heat. When ready to serve, stir in the rigatoni and heat until sauce reduces and clings to the pasta. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Brown the chicken

Add in the broccoli

Chicken broth and heavy cream create the sauce

Add the pasta and you’re almost home

Play ball!

VENEZUELAN AVOCADO CHICKEN SALAD

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Everyone’s always looking for a good no-mayo chicken salad, right?  Well, no one I know, but surely someone is.  And for that person, I offer this recipe for Venezuelan Avocado Chicken Salad.  It uses avocado in place of mayonnaise, and is sort of like chicken guacamole.  Sounds great, right?  Actually, it’s pretty tasty, and one bite will instantly transport you to Venezuela, which looks a lot like my dirty kitchen and hurricane-ravaged street.  (This, by the way, is one of my most hated blogger phrases — “you will be instantly transported” — who are we kidding?). One caveat — do not make this until you’re ready to eat it, otherwise the avocado will turn a most unappealing shade of brown and you’ll no longer want to be instantly transported to Venezuela.

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VENEZUELAN AVOCADO CHICKEN SALAD
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Ingredients
  • 2-1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast (rotisserie chicken is great)
  • 2 ripe avocados, pitted and peeled
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
  • ½ red bell pepper, seeds and ribs removed, diced
  • 3 tablespoons minced onion
  • 3 tablespoons minced cilantro
  • ½ jalapeno pepper, seeds and ribs removed, minced
  • 2 medium cloves garlic, minced
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
  1. Place avocados and lime juice in a large bowl and mash together. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Store in refrigerator until ready to serve. (Note: this is best eaten the day it is made -- the avocado will discolor after that, and although it will still taste good, it will not look good.)

Get ready to rumba