Recipe: Chicken and Pasta in Creamy Tomato Sauce

Originally posted on Stretching a Dollar on July 4, 2008. 

I recently scored an italian cookbook on sale at Borders (it turned out to be free with my Borders Bucks) and this was the first recipe I tried from it. For anyone who knew me in Sault Ste. Marie, it mimicks one of my favorte Ang-Gio's recipes.

1 tbsp olive oil

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch strips

1 jar pasta sauce

2 cups water

8 oz pasta (we used spaghetti)

1/2 cup whipping or heavy cream

1/2 tsp dried basil leaves, crushed (or 1 tbsp chopped fresh basil leaves)

1. In 12-inch skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat and brown chicken. Remove chicken and set aside.

2. In same skillet, stir in pasta sauce and water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in uncooked pasta and return to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally (about 15 minutes or until pasta is tender.

3. Stir in cream and basil. Return chicken to skillet and cook 5 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked.

The whipping cream and basil add a little bit of a cost to this recipe but not much and it's really good. The sauce is heavy and filling but has a great taste. There are a few things we're going to change next time though. The chicken was a little bland, so we're going to bread it parmesan style next time. We're also going to try cheese filled tortellini for the pasta to give it a kick. Cooking directions may vary slightly due to this change, so be careful if you do it first.