Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 45 minutes

• Chicken Cacciatore

Also called Hunter’s Stew, this famous Italian dish is rich and hearty. The sauce is rustically coarse; for a smoother version, puree the tomatoes in a food processor or blender. A crisp garden salad and gluten-free Focaccia (see recipe) make it a meal.

Makes 2 servings

• 4 chicken legs or 2 bone-in chicken thighs (about 8 ounces total)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 (14-ounce) can whole tomatoes, chopped or crushed, or pureed
• ¼ cup white wine or gluten-free low-sodium chicken broth
• ¼ cup diced onion
• ¼ cup diced green, red, or yellow bell pepper
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• ¾ teaspoon seasoned salt
• ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
• ⅛ teaspoon (dash) freshly ground black pepper
• ⅛ teaspoon (dash) crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/16 teaspoon (pinch) sugar
• 6 ounces hot, cooked gluten-free pasta (penne, rigatoni, or other spiral pasta)
• Fresh basil or parsley, for garnish

1. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. In a heavy 2-quart saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the chicken in two batches and cook until lightly browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

2. To the pan, add the remaining ingredients except pasta and basil. Stir to blend together, scraping the pan to release any browned bits.

3. Nestle the chicken pieces in the sauce so they are covered, cover the pan, and simmer over medium-low heat until the chicken is tender, about 30 minutes. For a thicker sauce, remove the lid and simmer for another 5 to 10 minutes to reduce the sauce. Serve over bowls of hot cooked pasta, garnished with fresh basil or parsley.

MEASURING SHORT-CUT PASTA An easy guide is that 2 ounces of uncooked penne pasta is a generous ½ cup, which cooks up into a heaping cup of cooked pasta. When I cook short-cut pasta (such as penne, fusilli, or macaroni) for two people, I simply measure a generous cup of the dry pasta. For smaller cuts of pasta such as ditalini, ⅓ cup of uncooked pasta equals 2 ounces.

Per serving: 340 calories; 20g protein; 10g total fat; 4g fiber; 39g carbohydrates; 54mg cholesterol; 932mg sodium