Italian pasta salad with chicken and basil dressing

Ingredients for 8 servings:

• 350 g chicken breast fillet(s)
• ½ lemon(s), the juice
• 1 garlic clove(s), chopped
• 80 ml olive oil
• 1 tbsp vinegar (white wine vinegar)
• Salt
• Pepper (steak pepper)
• 1 tsp mustard (Dijon mustard)
• 3 tsp cornstarch
• 125 ml water
• 1 bunch of basil
• 250 g penne or fusilli
• 100 g ham, cooked, cut into thin strips
• 1 small zucchini, finely chopped
• 1 small cucumber(s), finely chopped
• 2 tbsp pepper (steak pepper)
• 2 tbsp olive oil for frying
• ½ jar tomatoes (dried, pickled in oil), drained, finely chopped
• ½ jar black olives, halved
• ½ jar artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
• 100 g Parmesan, sliced

Instructions

Working time approx. 45 minutes; Rest time approx. 12 hours; Total time approx. 12 hours 45 minutes

The slightly higher effort is definitely worth it

Trim the chicken, pound it flat, and cut it into thin strips. Place it in a bowl with the lemon juice and garlic and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight. Drain the meat, reserving the marinade. Brown it in 2 tablespoons of hot olive oil, then add the marinade and cook it in the water. Set aside and let it cool. Cook the pasta al dente according to the package instructions and let it cool. Meanwhile, put the other ingredients—except the Parmesan—in a bowl and mix with the meat. For the basil dressing, put the olive oil, white wine vinegar, steak pepper, and Dijon mustard in a saucepan with the mixed cornstarch and bring to a boil for about 2 minutes. Let it cool slightly and then mix in the basil with a hand blender. Fold the dressing into the salad. Serve with shaved Parmesan. The salad tastes good without the dressing, just stir in a little white balsamic vinegar.