Vodka Rustica

in chicken, pasta

Two tablespoons minced garlic!? I use a minimum of 10 to 12 cloves of freshly minced garlic for the sauce and I leave out the shrimp. When it’s bad weather for grilling, I cut the chicken breasts in to strips, season, and cook in a skillet.

Side note: When I deleted my database a couple months ago, I almost lost this little gem. I grabbed as many recipes that I could find in Google's cache, but some how missed The Rustica!!! And what's worse is that I noticed it was missing a couple hours before I was planning on cooking it for my dad and grandma!!!

Gratinata Sauce:

  • 3 tbsp butter
  • 2 tablespoons minced garlic
  • 3 tablespoons marsala wine
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup vodka
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1/2 teaspoon chicken bullion
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon minced fresh thyme
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
  • 1 lb penne rigate cooked
  • 12 medium shrimp peeled and deveined
  • 2 skinless chicken breasts
  • 1/2 cup Prosciutto about 2 ounces thick-sliced, chopped

Topping:

  • 3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
  • 4 sprigs rosemary (garnish)

Directions:

  1. Preheat bbq grill to high and preheat oven to 500F.
  2. Prepare gratinata sauce by melting 3 tbsp of butter over medium/low heat. Add garlic and sweat it for about 5 minutes. Be sure the garlic doesn't brown. Add the marsala wine and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients for the sauce and whisk until smooth. Bring mixture to a simmer and keep it there for 10 minutes or until it's thick. Cover sauce and remove from heat.
  3. Cook past following directions on the package (7-9 minutes in boiling water – until al dente). Strain pasta and set it aside when it's done.
  4. Pound the thick end of your chicken breast a bit with a kitchen mallet to make them a uniform thickness. Rub chicken with olive oil, then sprinkle on a bit of salt and pepper. Spear the shrimp on skewers (6 per skewer should work fine), then rub them with oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill chicken for 5 to 6 minutes per side. Grill shrimp for 2 minutes per side. When chicken is done, slice each breast into strips.
  5. Build each dish in a large shallow baking dish. Or you can use a 9 inch glass or ceramic pie plate. Load 3 cups of pasta into each baking dish. Add one quarter of the chicken, 3 shrimp, and 2 tbsp of prosciutto onto each serving. Spoon 3/4 of a cup of gratinata sauce on each serving and toss to coat. Combine 3 tbsp of grated Parmesan cheese with 1 1/2 tsp paprika, then sprinkle about 1 tbsp of this mixture over the top of each serving. Bake the dishes for 10-12 minutes, or until tops begin to brown.
Serves 4
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