Pesto Farfalle

The inspiration for this yummy pasta dish came from my favorite item on the menu at Noodles & Company; Pesto Cavatappi. I normally order it with shrimp but for this attempt I used chicken. This dish turned out great but I didn't feel that the chicken did anything to add to the dish and eliminating it would not have taken away from anything. Next time I think I will skip the chicken and replace it with some more veggies. Perhaps, some yellow peppers for a nice color addition. This recipe was super simple and received rave reviews. It was not exactly like the dish from Noodles but it was very very good.

Here is my recipe:

Ingredients

3 chicken breasts
1 container of grape tomatoes halved
1 container of fresh sliced mushrooms
1/2 to 3/4 cup of your favorite pesto sauce
1 pound of Farfalle
1/4 to 1/2 cup of heavy cream
splash of white wine
a little EVOO
salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese to taste

1. Preheat large frying pan and a couple of splashes of EVOO on medium high. Add the chicken and cook through. Remove chicken and set aside. Add the mushrooms and more EVOO if needed. Saute until done. Add the tomatoes and saute with the mushrooms until warm. Remove mushrooms and tomatoes and set aside. Wash skillet.

2. Cook Farfalle to your desired firmness. Drain and set aside.

3. Preheat skillet on medium high. Add chicken, mushrooms, tomatoes and pasta. Combine thoroughly. Add Pesto and stir until combined. Add a splash of white white; stir to combine. Allow to cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the heavy cream and combine. Allow to cook for 4 or 5 minutes until a nice sauce is covering everything. Remove from heat and serve immediately. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over dish if desired.