Chicken Mozzarella Pasta with Sun Dried Tomatoes

By á-47644

Chicken

Ingredients

• 3 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1 small jar (3-4 oz.) sun dried tomatoes in oil, ore use 3-4 oz. fat free sun dried tomatoes.
• 1 lb. chicken breasts tenders
• salt
• paprika (just a little bit)
• 1 cup half and half
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese shredded
• 8 oz. penne pasta
• 1 tablespoon basil (if using dry), if using fresh basil you can add more
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (at least, add more to taste)
• 1/2 cup reserved cooked pasta water (or more) salt, to taste.

Preparation

Step 1

If using sun dried tomatoes I oil (in a jar) make sure to drain sun-dried tomatoes from oil, before using them. Reserve 2 tablespoons of this drained oil for sautéing as described below.
In a large pa, on high heat, sautee garlic and sun-dried tomatoes (drained from oil) in 2 tablespoons of oil (reserve fro the sun-dried tomatoes jar for 1 minute until garlic is fragrant. Remove sun-dried tomatoes from the pan, leaving the oil, and add chicken tenders, salted and lightly covered in paprika (for color)and cook on high heat for 1 minute on each side, Remove from heat.
Cook pasta according to package instructions. Reserve some cooked pasta water. Drain and rinse the pasta with cold water (to stop cooking)
Slice sun-dried tomatoes into smaller bits and add them back to skillet with chicken. Add half and half and cheese to the skillet, too and bring to a gentle boil. Immediately reduce to simmer and cook, constantly stirring, until all cheese melts and creamy sauce forms. If the sauce is too thick - don't worry-you'll be adding some cooked pasta water to the skillet with the creamy sauce and stir to combine. Add 1 tablespoon of basil, and at least 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes. Stir to combine.
Add about 1/2 cup reserved cooked pasta water because the creamy sauce will be too thick (do not add all water at once-you might need less or more of it) This will water down the thickness of the cheese sauce and make it creamier. Immediately season the pasta with salt and more red pepper flakes, to taste, if needed. Let it simmer for a couple of minutes for flavors to combine
Make sure the salt and dish just enough to bring out the flavors of basil and sun-dried tomatoes