kitchen, cooking, cleaning tips: Chicken, Mushrooms and Artichoke Hearts with Cheese Tortellini in a Light Lemon Butter Sauce

I am tired and I didn't feel like making a big dinner. I had some cheese tortellini I needed to use so I decided chicken would be great with it. I marinated some chicken breasts and looked for other ingredients to use. I grabbed some mushrooms, frozen artichoke hearts, garlic, grape tomatoes, lemon and basil. It was really easy to cook, didn't take long and tasted great. The chicken was really flavorful and tender. The combination of flavors worked well together. It was a light, healthy and delicious meal - my husband couldn't get enough.

Marinade:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tbsp olive oil
1 clove of garlic, minced
3-4 leaves of basil, chopped
Zest of one lemon, chopped finely
Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
1 tbsp olive oil (for cooking)

Place the chicken breasts between two pieces of plastic wrap and pound them, with a mallet, until they are 1/4 inch thick. Place chicken into a large zip lock bag and add the olive oil, minced garlic, chopped basil, lemon zest, sea salt and pepper. Mix so the chicken is evenly coated with marinade. Let it marinate for at least 1 hour.

Heat the 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add chicken breasts and cook for 4 minutes then flip. Cook for an additional 3-4 minutes or until juices run clear. Remove from heat and let sit for at least 5 minutes before slicing into bite size chunks.

8 oz of button mushrooms, sliced
1 cup of frozen artichoke hearts, thawed
1 handful of grape tomatoes
1 clove of garlic, minced
3 tbsp Parmesan cheese
Cheese tortellini, prepared per instructions
Juice of 1-2 lemons (to taste)
1-2 tbsp butter
5-6 basil leaves, chopped
Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

Cook the tortellini per instructions. While the pasta is cooking, add mushrooms to the hot skillet you cooked the chicken in. Add more oil if needed (I didn't need to). Sauté for 3-4 minutes or until golden brown. Add the artichoke hearts, tomatoes and minced garlic to the pan then stir frequently for 60 seconds. Add the tortellini, chicken chunks, lemon juice, butter, Parmesan, basil, sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste. Enjoy.