Spinach-Feta Chicken Penne

Last week before Fenway. Sean has been preparing Liam, which means he's been showing him baseball on TV and explaining things with more detail than a sixteen-month-old can process but with the earnestness of a father who believes in front-loading the information. Liam watches the TV when baseball is on because there are green and white moving things and crowd noise and Dad is interested, which makes it interesting by proxy. He claps when Sean claps. He has no idea what he's clapping for. He's doing it right anyway.

I had lunch with Priya on the roof deck on Thursday and it was one of those lunches that goes over time because neither of us mentioned the time. She leaves in two weeks. I've been on this floor for seven years and Priya has been the person I eat lunch with for three of them and the day she leaves is going to be a specific kind of small loss that isn't tragic but is real.

She gave me a recommendation for a curry place in Cambridge that she says is the best South Indian food in Boston, which I've been told before about several places and which I'll verify. "Don't go without me until after I leave," she said. I said I'd wait. Then she said "no, actually go, I want you to tell me how it is" and I said I'd wait anyway and she said "you're an idiot" and we both laughed and that was the lunch.

Made a big summer pasta—penne with roasted cherry tomatoes, fresh basil, good mozzarella—from the fire escape tomatoes mixed with market ones. The fire escape ones were better. They always are when you've grown them yourself. That's not objectivity. That's just how it is.

The fire escape tomatoes made the pasta, and the pasta made the week feel manageable — which is exactly what this Spinach-Feta Chicken Penne does. It’s the kind of meal you pull together without much ceremony, built around whatever is freshest and brightest, and it rewards you disproportionately for the effort. Think of it as the culinary equivalent of a lunch that goes long because no one checks the time: simple, generous, worth repeating.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 25 min | Total Time: 40 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

12 oz penne pasta
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 cups fresh baby spinach
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
Salt and black pepper to taste
Fresh basil leaves, for serving

Instructions

Cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook penne according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water, then drain and set aside.
Season and sear the chicken. Pat chicken pieces dry and season generously with salt, pepper, and oregano. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken in a single layer and cook 5–6 minutes, turning once, until golden and cooked through. Transfer to a plate.
Build the sauce. Reduce heat to medium and add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the same skillet. Add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook 30 seconds until fragrant. Add cherry tomatoes and cook 3–4 minutes, pressing them gently so they begin to burst and release their juices.
Wilt the spinach. Pour in the chicken broth and add the spinach. Stir and cook 1–2 minutes until spinach is wilted and the liquid has reduced slightly. Season with salt and pepper.
Combine. Return the chicken and drained penne to the skillet. Toss to coat, adding a splash of reserved pasta water if needed to loosen the sauce. Cook 1–2 minutes until everything is warmed through.
Finish and serve. Remove from heat and scatter crumbled feta over the top. Divide into bowls and garnish with fresh basil leaves. Serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Spinach-Feta Chicken Penne — Summer Pasta and the People You’ll Miss