Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta
This 30 minute dinner is a beautifully crafted pasta made with just a few simple ingredients including heavy cream, pesto and parmesan cheese.
Creator: Leslie Stokes
We all love an easy dinner, but this pasta is so decadent and delicious, your family will think you spent hours making this recipe out of some fancy italian cookbook.
Ingredients:
- chicken breast: cut into 2 inch chunks. You could also use chicken sausage for this recipe to save time or use up ingredients on hand.
- olive oil or butter
- salt + pepper
- garlic
- sun dried tomatoes in oil
- pasta water: this helps bind the noodles to the sauce.
- pesto: I just buy a jarred or fresh premade one from the store.
- heavy cream: can sub for coconut cream for a dairy free option
- noodles of choice: I love a thick, wide noodle for this recipe like a pappardelle
- parmesan cheese
- fresh basil
***see full recipe below
Get the grocery list here!
What kind of noodles should I use?
I really love the pappardelle noodles for this recipe, but they can be hard to find. I suggest using a wide, thick noodle for this recipe, but any kind will work!
Can I make this gluten/dairy free?
absolutely! You can make this dairy free, by using dairy free cheese and subbing the heavy cream for coconut cream.
30 minute busy mom dinner series
I started this series thinking it would be a few quick and easy options for busy weeknights, but I really don’t see this series ever ending or at least anytime soon!
obviously you don’t have to be a mom to make these meals and enjoy them, but I did set out with a purpose and that was to help moms feel a little less stressed in the kitchen when it came to putting easy + healthy meals on the table for their family!
make sure you are following along on social media for more recipes like this one!
Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs chicken breast sut into 1 inch slices
- 1 tbsp olive oil or butter
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 cup prepared basil pesto
- 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes in oil (drained)
- 1 tbsp fresh minced garlic
- 6 oz (dry) pappardelle pasta
- 1/4 cup pasta water
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
- fresh basil for topping
Let's Make It
- After slicing the chicken into 1 inch chunks, start to boil your water.
- While the water is coming to a boil, add 1 tbsp of butter or olive oil to a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken to the skillet along with the salt + pepper.
- Once the water starts to boil add the pasta, cook till al dente. Be sure to reserve 1/4 cup of pasta water!
- Continue cooking the chicken until the chicken reaches a temperature of 165℉. Then add in the fresh garlic + sun dried tomatoes, cook for another 2-3 minutes before adding in the heavy cream, basil pesto, pasta water + parmesan cheese. S
- Stir everything together until you have a creamy sauce and then add in the cooked pasta, stir until all of the noodles are covered in the sauce.
- Serve with fresh basil and parmesan cheese on top!
Meal Prep in 1 Hour
You can use any two of the meals in this series to get your meal prep done in just about and hour, give or take!
Having your breakfast and lunch ready for the week helps you stay on track with your nutriton, saves you time and money! I truly beleive that meal prep does not need to be over complicated, take too much time or be boring!
I always get asked- “do you ever get tired of eating the same thing all week?” and the answer is, no! Not when the food taste good! I give plenty of variety in these preps and keep it simple!
As always, thanks for being here and remember, don’t over complicate the process! Take a deep breath, you got this!
