Phenomenal Chicken and Pasta in Creamy Pesto Sauce or (Soup)

By KSmitherman

Ingredients

• Pesto:
• 2 cups fresh basil
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/3 cup pine nuts ( I used roasted walnuts)
• 1 medium ripe tomato, chopped ( I did not add this)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips I think 2 or 3 breast is plenty for us)
• About half of a can of chicken broth
• 1 (16 ounce) package dried penne pasta (I used half of a box and it made enough to feed about 8, so only need about a 1/4 of the box)
• 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 (did not add)
• 1 cup heavy cream ( I only added a little maybe 1/2 a cup or so)
• salt to taste

Details

Servings 6
Adapted from allrecipes.com

Preparation

Step 1

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.

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook until just al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain. Set aside.

Put the chicken in a large skillet with about 2 tbs. olive oil to brown sides. Do not cook it through just brown it some. Remove from skillet.
Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in 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. 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.

I made this and had quite a bit leftover. I froze the leftovers for about a week. I then thawed it overnight in the refrigerator. I sliced 2 zucchini and sauted in a large pot with some butter. I added a box of Chicken broth and then put the leftover recipe into the pot. This was a very tasty soup. Serve with French Bread and a salad.