One night, I happened upon a chicken breast I'd thawed two days before... so it was fast approaching the moment of No Return... or at least the moment of No Useable Chicken!
But I was in a pasta state of mind. So the brain started to whir...
What about a creamy chicken and garlic sauce tossed with pasta?
So... I sautéed a ton of garlic (I know... almost every recipe I send you starts out with "I sautéed a ton of garlic..." I like garlic... So sue me!!!). Before the garlic had a chance to brown, I deglazed the pan with a little white wine, added some chicken stock, reduced it all a bit, added some cream, salt, and pepper.
To this I added the chicken, cut into smallish cubes, and let it gently poach in the sauce. This way, the chicken stays soft.
I then combined the sauce with some drained ALMOST cooked pasta... let it "marry" for a minute or so... showered it with Parmesan, poured a glass of dry white...
And became a very happy man.
P.S. This dish can handle a lot of fresh black pepper and, if you have some fresh, chicken-compatible herbs on hand (like sage, thyme, parsley, basil, marjoram, etc.)... Feel free.