Fig and Balsamic Linguine

I love pasta. And I LOVE figs...especially fresh, but dried too. And I love that my lifelong friend, Kristen, gave me a subscription to Clean Eating magazine. This is the first recipe I tried from the April issue.


Ingredients
Whole-wheat linguine pasta
4 shallots, thinly sliced
1/4 tsp. fresh thyme (the original called for dried, but why not use fresh if you've got it?)
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 1/2 cups dried mission figs, roughly chopped
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 oz. crumbled bleu cheese
Salt and black pepper, to taste
Olive oil
3 tbsp. chopped fresh basil


Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Prepare the chicken breast by seasoning with salt and pepper.
3. Heat olive oil in a large skillet and sear the chicken on both sides.
4. Place the chicken in a baking dish and bake for 40 minutes. Set aside to let the juices re-distribute before slicing.


5. Cook the linguine according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
*Note: you can reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water if you need to thin out the sauce later on.
6. Meanwhile, slice the shallots and chop the fresh thyme. Cook in a skillet with olive oil, and add salt and pepper to taste. Stir until the shallots are tender, about 8 to 10 minutes.
7. Increase to medium-high heat and add the balsamic vinegar.
8. Simmer until reduced by about 1/3, about 1 to 2 minutes.
9. Stir in the chicken broth and dried figs, and summer until the sauce is reduced by 1/2, about 4 to 8 minutes. Remove from the heat.


11. Stir the linguine into the sauce and toss to combine.
12. Slice the chicken and toss into the pasta, along with the bleu cheese. Top with fresh basil and serve.