Phenomenal Chicken and Pasta in Creamy Pesto Sauce

SUBMITTED BY: GILL846 PHOTO BY: SHAUNA_LYNN

"An extremely delicious meal: the crunch of pine nuts and the tang of sun-dried tomatoes combine with chicken and pasta in a heavenly pesto cream sauce. Be sure to taste and salt before serving, because depending on what kind of chicken broth you use, the dish may require no salt at all or may be extremely under-salted."

PREP TIME	40 Min
COOK TIME	15 Min
READY IN	55 Min

SERVINGS & SCALING

Original recipe yield: 6 servings

USMETRIC

About scaling and conversions

INGREDIENTS

Pesto:
2 cups fresh basil
3 cloves garlic
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup pine nuts
1 medium ripe tomato, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
Marinade:
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 cup white wine
2 tablespoons dried basil
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1 (16 ounce) package dried penne pasta
5 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 large onion, diced
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 (8 ounce) jar oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and sliced
1/3 cup pine nuts
1/2 cup white wine
1 cup heavy cream
salt to taste

READ REVIEWS (32)

DIRECTIONS

Place basil, garlic, Parmesan, pine nuts, and tomato in a food processor. Gradually add olive oil, while pulsing, until mixture is smooth and creamy.
In a bowl, stir together chicken broth, 1 cup white wine, dried basil, oregano, and minced garlic. Stir in chicken pieces.
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook until just al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain, and rinse under cold water. Toss with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Set aside.
Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in onions, and sprinkle with sugar. Cook until the onions are soft and translucent. Stir in sun-dried tomatoes and pine nuts, and cook about 3 minutes. Stir in chicken and marinade. Stir in 1/2 cup white wine. Simmer chicken pieces, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes.
Add pasta and pesto to the skillet. Stir in cream, and cook until the sauce is thickened. Adjust salt and freshly ground pepper to taste, and serve with freshly grated Parmesan.

ADVERTISE WITH US

REVIEWS

MORE MEMBER REVIEWS

Reviewed on Aug. 24, 2005 by CHEF1231

The title says it all - Phenomenal! For a healthy alternative, I used 2% milk instead of heavy cream and the sauce still turned out great. I definitely recommend this dish.

11 users found this review helpful

Reviewed on Sep. 9, 2005 by tbackun

This was great! It was fairly simple to make but came out wonderful. Worked really well with a caeser salad and crusty bread to soak up the sauce. I definately recommend.

5 users found this review helpful

Reviewed on Jan. 28, 2006 by STEFANIE77

This recipe is amazing - I followed the pesto recipe once and later used some frozen pesto my Mum had prepared in the summer. Every bite has something different, and delicious - the tomatoes are tangy, the chicken is satisfying and the nuts are crunchy. As you eat it - you ask "what next"... and are not dissappointed. A nice winter dish to warm you up.

4 users found this review helpful

MORE MEMBER REVIEWS