Creamy Chicken Pasta with Bacon
Kamis, 19 Maret 2020
Chicken and Bacon Pasta with Spinach and Tomatoes in Garlic Cream Sauce – an Italian-inspired dish with lots of vegetables! Sliced chicken breast and bacon are tossed with veggies and penne pasta in a delicious, creamy, homemade Alfredo sauce made with Parmesan cheese.
Craving an easy-to-make comfort food that a whole family will love? Then, make this chicken and bacon pasta! Cream sauce absorbs the wonderful flavors from the ingredients in the recipe, and with every single bite, you get all the goodness and all the flavors! This is one of the best chicken pasta recipes you’ll ever try!
The DELICIOUS creamy sauce permeates every single bite of this dish!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time40 minutes
Servings 4
Calories 768kcal
Ingredients
Main Ingredients:
- 6 bacon strips
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 pound boneless and skinless chicken (thick in size, such as chicken breasts)
- salt and pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 3 garlic cloves (minced)
- 4 small tomatoes (diced)
- 2 cups spinach
- 1 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (more, if desired)
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1.5 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese shredded (more for garnish)
Pasta:
- 10 oz. penne pasta
- 2 tablespoons Parsley (chopped)
Instructions
BACON: Add bacon strips to the skillet and cook until crispy. Transfer cooked bacon to a paper towel-lined platter that will absorb extra grease. Chop into 1 inch pieces
CHICKEN: Paper towel dry the chicken and season with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Then set aside.
Heat olive oil in a large deep skillet. Add chicken breasts and cook on each side on medium high heat for about 4 minutes per side (for a total of 8 minutes) until nicely browned. If chicken is still pink in the center, reduce heat to medium and cook covered for several minutes until no longer pink in the center. Remove chicken from pan and slice it.
Add butter to the hot pan and once it melts, add chopped garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
Add tomatoes and cook for 3 minutes on high until tomatoes release their juices. Add fresh spinach and cook until it wilts.
Season with paprika, Italian seasoning, crushed red pepper flakes and salt. Mix.
Next add heavy cream and bring the mixture to boil. Reduce to simmer and slowly add Parmesan cheese - until the cheese melts and makes the sauce creamy.
PASTA: In the meantime bring a large pot of water to boil, add pasta and cook it according to instructions. Drain the pasta, but do not rinse.
Add sliced chicken, bacon and pasta. Next add chopped parsley. Stir until fully coated in sauce.
Season with more salt if necessary.
TO SERVE: Serve with additional shredded Parmesan and red pepper flakes, if desired.