Chicken Bow Tie Alfredo

March. The month. The anniversary month. But also: March 15, 2022. A Tuesday. Curtis did not come upstairs for dinner. He always comes upstairs for dinner. He has come upstairs for dinner every night since he moved into the basement apartment two years ago. The stairs. The cane. The climb. Every night. Without fail. Until Tuesday.

I found him in his apartment. He was in his chair. The TV was on. His cane was on the floor. His left hand was limp. His face was wrong — the left side drooping, the mouth uneven, the eye half-closed. I knew. Before I called 911, before Derek came running, before the ambulance arrived, I knew. I have been a school counselor for twenty years and I have taken first-aid training every year and I know what a stroke looks like and it looks like my father's face on a Tuesday evening in March, fifteen days before the anniversary of my mother's death, in a basement apartment that I built for him so he could be close.

The ambulance. The hospital. The waiting room that I have sat in before — different hospital, same chair, same terror. Derek was there. Marcus was there (he drove from home; he is eighteen and he drove through rush-hour traffic to the hospital because his grandfather was there and the boy has never been anything other than present). Jasmine called from home. Isaiah called. Zoe called. Everyone calling. Everyone scared. Everyone waiting.

Curtis survived. The stroke affected his left side — mobility, grip, some facial drooping that the doctors say may improve. He was awake. He was lucid. He looked at me from the hospital bed and he said, "I missed dinner." He said, "I missed dinner" and I laughed and I cried simultaneously because Curtis Jackson, who just had a stroke, whose face is drooping, whose left hand can't grip, is worried about missing dinner. The man. My father. His first thought: the table. He missed the table. The table matters more than the stroke. The table always matters more.

That Tuesday night, Chicken Bow Tie Alfredo was sitting on the stove upstairs — still warm, still waiting — when the ambulance pulled away. It was the dinner Curtis never made it to, and in the weeks of his recovery, whenever I needed to feel like we were pulling the ordinary back around us like a blanket, it was the first thing I cooked. There is nothing revolutionary about a creamy pasta dish, but that is exactly the point: the table is not about extraordinary food, it is about showing up for it, and this recipe is what showing up looks like in my kitchen.

Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 25 min | Total Time: 35 min | Servings: 6

Ingredients

12 oz farfalle (bow tie) pasta
1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for pasta water
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

Instructions

Cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook farfalle according to package directions until al dente, about 10–12 minutes. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water before draining. Drain and set aside.
Season and sear the chicken. Pat chicken pieces dry and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken in a single layer and cook without moving for 3–4 minutes until golden. Flip and cook another 3–4 minutes until cooked through. Transfer to a plate.
Build the sauce. Reduce heat to medium. In the same skillet, melt butter and add minced garlic. Cook 60 seconds, stirring constantly, until fragrant. Pour in heavy cream and milk, stirring to combine. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook 4–5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the sauce begins to thicken slightly.
Add the Parmesan. Remove the pan from heat and stir in grated Parmesan a handful at a time until fully melted and the sauce is smooth and creamy. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper.
Combine. Return the skillet to low heat. Add the drained pasta and cooked chicken to the sauce, tossing gently to coat everything evenly. If the sauce is too thick, add reserved pasta water one tablespoon at a time until you reach your desired consistency.
Serve. Divide among plates or serve family-style from the skillet. Top with fresh parsley and additional Parmesan. Serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Chicken Bow Tie Alfredo — The Dinner He Missed, and Why the Table Always Matters