Grilled Chicken and Asparagus Pasta

I love the simplicity of this dish. It's simple on so many layers, which made it a perfect candidate for a 4th of July meal. It's simple in preparation and in thought, but the flavor combination is stunning. My husband and I decided to stay close to home for this 4th of July; why go anywhere when we could see the fireworks from our front porch?! Before the show started, we whipped up this dish and even had time for dessert! Clean-up was so simple, too! I love it! Hope you enjoyed your 4th of July!

Grilled Chicken and Asparagus Pasta

Source: Me and Mario

Ingredients:

1 bunch asparagus (tough ends trimmed)

1 handful spaghetti

5 chicken tenderloins

olive oil

2 T butter

salt and pepper

mozzarella cheese

parmesan cheese

Directions:

-Heat a grill to medium high. Fill a large stock pot with water and bring to a boil over high.

-Once your grill is hot, season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides and put on the grill.

-Once the water is boiling, season the water with some salt and stir to dissolve. Put your pasta in the boiling water and stir. Cook the pasta to al dente. Make sure you also flip your chicken during this time. Overall, the pasta and chicken should be done at about the same time. If the pasta finishes first, just leave it in the hot water but turn the flame off. Make sure your chicken is cooked!!

-Once the chicken is cooked, transfer it off the grill to rest. Put your asparagus spears in a large bowl and season with lots of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss to coat evenly. Grill to your desired doneness; I prefer mine to have a slight bite but definitely have some charred tips. Remove the asparagus and cut the stalks into 3 sections.

-Drain the pasta, transfer it to a large serving bowl, and add the 2 T butter; toss to melt the butter. Sprinkle the pasta with the parmesan cheese.

-Slice the chicken into bites as big as the asparagus bites. Add the chicken and asparagus to the pasta bowl and toss to mix together. Sprinkle a little mozzarella cheese on top.

-ENJOY!

Mmmmm...grilled asparagus...

Delish!