Mezze Rigatoni in Roasted Kumato Tomato Sauce with Grilled Chicken and Arugula

As someone who grew up in an Italian household, I have eaten more pasta than most people will their whole lives. I even eat pasta on Thanksgiving - although there is a divided stance within our family on whether this should be allowed. I had made a tomato salad earlier in the week and bought a few different types of tomatoes. The only remaining type when I went to make food last night was the Kumato.

The color of Kumato tomatoes varies from dark brown to golden green. This stark contrast from your typical red Camparis or yellow and orange Heirlooms made me buy them for my tomato salad in the first place. What I found when eating these unique Spanish-origin tomatoes is that they are incredibly sweet. With this in mind I decided to make a pasta dish with arugula, as the peppery greens would contrast the sweet tomatoes well.

Ingredients (serves 1):

4 Kumato tomatoes

3 Crimini mushrooms

1 Spanish onion

1 handful of arugula

2 thin chicken cutlets

1.5 cups of mezze rigatoni

For the Roasted Kumato tomato sauce:

1. Quarter and remove the seeds from the tomatoes. Press any possible juice from the seeds and flesh into a cup to be used later.


2. Place the tomatoes cut side down in a pan and drizzle olive oil over the top. Season with parsley. They will look as below.



3. Preheat an oven to 400 degrees farenheit.


4. Add the tomatoes and cook for 20 minutes until they begin to start shriveling as below.





5. Remove the skins and discard.


6. Add the tomatoes, juice from the roasting pan, juice from step 1, basil, and garlic into a food processor and mix until smooth. The roasted tomatoes will yield a vibrant burnt orange color.


7. Add to a pot on a low heat.


8. Chop the onion and mushrooms and saute with olive oil for about 5 to 7 minutes until golden over a medium-low heat.





9. Add the onion and mushrooms to the sauce and let simmer until serving.

Once your sauce is made simply grill a piece of chicken, chop into strips, and add to your sauce. Boil some water for your rigatoni and once cooked to al dente (normally 5 to 7 minutes) drain the water from the pot. Add in your sauce and fresh arugula, mixing until the arugula starts to wilt slightly. Enjoy!