Cajun Chicken Penne

By Addie

I tasted a wonderful Cajun pasta dish on a kayaking trip and attempted to recreate the delicious flavors from memory,” Mary Spikowski explains from Columbus, Ohio. “Chicken can also be grilled, then sliced on top of pasta.

MY NOTES: Add some Parmesan cheese to try and duplicate the Parmesan cream sauce at Ruby Tuesday? This would also be good with some shrimp.

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 cups uncooked penne pasta
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
• 3 teaspoons Cajun seasoning, divided
• 3 teaspoons olive oil, divided
• 1 medium green pepper, julienned
• 1 medium sweet red pepper, julienned
• 1 medium onion, halved and sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 plum tomatoes, chopped
• 1 cup half & half, divided
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Preparation

Step 1

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, toss chicken with 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning. In a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, cook chicken in 2 teaspoons oil until no longer pink; drain. Remove and keep warm.

In the same skillet, saute peppers and onion in remaining oil for 1 minute. Add garlic; saute 1 minute longer. Add tomatoes; saute 2 minutes longer. Stir in 3/4 cup milk.

Bring to a boil. Combine flour with remaining Cajun seasoning and milk until smooth; gradually stir into skillet. Cook for 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Return chicken to the pan; heat through. Drain pasta; toss with chicken mixture.
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REVIEWS:

I have actually made this many times - and I remember making it as the recipe states. A lot of people have asked for this recipe when I make it!

It has a good basic idea but there are some things that need work i will not make this agian unless i made alot of changes

I substituted 1/3 cup sun dried tomatoes, and used regular milk as I didn't have any evaporated on hand. Added 1 tsp. extra cajun and some cayenne.

I really loved this recipe, and can't believe how wonderfully creamy the sauce turns out. I added fresh mushrooms, which were a hit, although next time I will leave out one pepper. Also, I added salt to taste, and felt it still needed a bite: I'd add cayenne and grated parmigiano for a little kick.