Phil is an avid reader of the local paper, in addition to several newspapers with national circulation. When we still got print copies of everything, Phil occasionally clipped something out (a well-established family tradition) and posted it on the fridge. There were two such clips that were there for so many years that they are firmly planted in my memory, though the paper copies are long gone.
The first clipping was a Far Side cartoon. Two earthworms sit in arm chairs reading the paper. The wife earthworm says, “You’re not half the man you were when I married you.” The husband earthworm, whose bottom does not extend beyond the seat of the chair, says, “Come on. Give me a break. That shovel came out of nowhere.” Phil and I both found this enormously funny. I don’t know why. The only Far Side that topped it was the one where a bespectacled lad pushes with all his might at the door into the School for the Gifted. The sign on the door says “Pull.”
The other clipping on our refrigerator was a letter to the editor with the header, “The following are reasons for upsetting me.” While I can’t remember all the petty particulars in numbers 1-9, number 10 stands out: “Shopping carts with one bad wheel.” Really? Really??? This impacts your life negatively enough that you need to air your rage to the Sun Gazette’s readership? Wow. Whoever wrote this letter to the editor was the anti-Ben. Ben’s glass is always half full. I’m pretty sure that if I asked Ben to complete the list, “The following are reasons for upsetting me,” he wouldn’t understand the question. Why am I upset? What’s for dinner? Awesome!!!
Sometimes agencies check in on Ben to be sure he is safe and well cared for. While I’m very glad these checks are in place, interviewing Ben is no easy task. (Remember when he said that the fire alarm going off means Dad is cooking?) He once was asked how he would feel if his contact information was compromised. He looked at me and I gave him nothing because I thought the questioner should see what happens when you use three words Ben doesn’t know in a single sentence. He hesitated a moment and said, “I think I would feel gorgeous, I guess?” The questioner wrote it down verbatim.
Which side of the fence are you on? “Shopping carts with one bad wheel,” or “I would feel gorgeous”? We unequivocally recommend gorgeous. Ben never dwells on what isn’t working, so why should we?
This week, the gorgeous picture in his cookbook that made Ben’s heart thump, was “Creamy Italian Chicken and Pasta,” from Hope’s Table. Our version streamlines things a bit and uses 2/3 cup heavy cream and 1 1/3 cups skim milk.
Creamy Italian Chicken and Pasta
6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
Salt and pepper
3 tablespoons butter
3 large garlic cloves, crushed and roughly chopped
12 grape tomatoes, halved diagonally
1/3 cup white wine
1 cup half-and-half
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
- Salt and pepper chicken thighs. Melt butter over medium heat and add chicken.
- Sprinkle garlic on top of chicken. Fry on medium heat, uncovered, until almost done, about 3-4 minutes per side. Remove chicken from skillet.
- Add tomatoes to skillet, cut side down, and cook until they begin to brown or blister.
- Add wine to skillet and cook, reducing by half.
- Whisk half-and-half with milk and cornstarch.
- Add milk mixture, parsley flakes, and salt to skillet and bring to simmer.
- Return chicken, with juices, to skillet, and top with cheese. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Serve chicken over cooked penne pasta, spooning cream on top.
