Stuffed Chicken and Garlic Tomato Pasta

So tonight was one of those nights that I was trying to cook something quality without having much in the pantry/freezer. It's time to go shopping and we're running low, so I had to get creative. Here's what I ended up with:

Stuffed Chicken

2 cloves garlic (+1 clove for pasta dish)
1/2 Tbsp Red Pepper Flakes
1 tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Oregano
5 Tbsp Butter (Margarine)
2 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts


Garlic Tomato Pasta
1/2 pound angel hair pasta
1 can peeled tomatoes
1 Tbsp Lime juice
1 clove garlic (+2 cloves for chicken dish)
Salt

Creating a garlic paste with the salt and garlic (this will also be used for the pasta side).
Mince the garlic as finely as possible and cover with a fair amount of salt. Use the flat side of a chef's knife to mash the mixture to a paste. I alternatively mash and mince, mash and mince, until I have a reasonable paste.

Make the stuffing.
Take about 5 Tbsp of butter ( I used margarine ) and place it on a plate. Mix in about 1 Tbsp of Oregano ( I used dried Oregano from the spice cabinet ), 1/2 Tbsp Red Pepper flakes ( the kind you might put on your pizza ), and the garlic paste.

Stuff the chicken.
I was using boneless skinless breasts but it would have been much nicer if they had been bone-in. Take a sharp knife and slice a 2 inch 'pocket' into the fat side of the breast. Spoon 1 Tbsp of the butter mixture into each breast, reserving the remainder for use during cooking. Season each side of the breast with salt and pepper.
Heat 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a heavy skillet. When the oil just begins to smoke, add the chicken and cook uncovered about 5 minutes.

Prepare the pasta side.
Bring a full pot of salted water to a boil. While waiting for the water to boil (and watching the chicken to make sure it doesn't stick) open the canned tomatoes. Obviously, fresh tomatoes would be better but we're working with what we have on hand. Wash the tomatoes and quarter them, leaving one whole tomato for the chicken. In a bowl, toss the tomatoes, lime juice, and garlic paste.

Dress the chicken
After 5 minutes in the frying pan, flip the chicken breasts. Brush the remaining stuffing on top of the breasts. Make sure the butter covers the entire surface as it melts. Let the chicken cook for about 8 more minutes.

Finish the pasta
You should have a nice rolling boil now, go ahead and cook the angel hair. It cooks fast, it should only take about 2 minutes. You want to remove it when it is still 'al dente', it will continue to cook when you remove it from the water. Don't wash the pasta. Toss the pasta in the bowl with the tomato mixture and set it aside. Go ahead and throw in a scoop of butter too ( makes everything better )

Finish the chicken.
Just before you take off the chicken, very thinly slice your remaining tomato and lay a slice on each breast. Let the tomato 'sink into' the breast during the last moments of cooking and remove. Let the chicken stand for a few moments and serve with the pasta.

Voila! Sorry I didn't get any pictures, we were starving! All in all, it was a nice way to throw something together with what we had on hand. I thought the lime juice and tomato blended really well to give the pasta a nice, bright flavor.

*Aimee's comments*
Surprisingly, Aimee really liked the dish. She thought it would have been nice to serve with some bread. It was a bit heavy on the garlic but not to an extreme. Much less, and it would have been bland.