Lemon Angel Hair With Chicken and Spinach

This recipe's also from pinterest, originally from The Recipe Crayon Box. I adapted it slightly to our preferences and even my husband, who's not a big lemon fan, really enjoyed it! If you don't like a really strong lemony flavor, just cut back a little bit on the lemon juice and zest and the other flavors of the pasta will be just as delicious.

Lemon Angel Hair With Chicken and Spinach

1/2 lb angel hair pasta (about half of a box)

3 tbsp olive oil

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

2 lemons (you'll need the zest and the juice; if you zest 'em before you juice 'em, it's a lot easier!)

3/4 C half and half

1 C Parmesan cheese, shredded

1 C spinach (we added a bit more than that)

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked (try this with The Perfect Chicken recipe, it's FANTASTIC!)

1. Boil water, salt it well, and cook pasta. LEAVE COOKED PASTA IN IT'S OWN WATER UNTIL READY TO USE.
2. Heat a deep skillet on low and add oil, garlic, and pepper.
3. Cook until oil sizzles, about 5-7 minutes.
4. Add the lemon juice, half and half, and a ladle of the pasta water.
5. Raise the heat to medium-low until sauce begins to bubble.
6. Drain the pasta, but don't rinse it.
7. Add pasta, lemon zest, and 1/2 C Parmesan cheese. On low heat, toss for 1-2 minutes.
8. Add spinach and cooked chicken chunks (we cut up the cooked breasts into bite-size chunks). Toss until mixed and top with remaining cheese.

A tip: once the sauce starts bubbling (step 5), try to move quickly... if you let the mixture stay on the heat too long (i.e. if you take too much time adding ingredients, tossing, etc.), it bubbles away pretty fast and you end up with a stickier finished product. Ours came out a little sticky and was still very delicious, but I think it'd taste better if it was just a little bit more moist.

Enjoy!