Chicken and Pesto Pasta

This is one of the quickest meals that I have made.  All in all it took only about 20 minutes to make.  I made this on a busy Thursday night when we wanted to have a quick meal before heading to the driving range for a couple hours.

Feel free to add more ingredients to this dish. Mushrooms, pine nuts, or garlic would be great additions.

Serves 2
You will need:
2 Chicken Breasts
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
Pasta
1/3 cup Pesto
1 Tomato, diced
3 tablespoons Parmesan
Salt and Pepper

Step 1:
Put water on the stove under high heat to boil for the pasta.  Then dice the chicken breasts.  Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet.  Generously salt and pepper the chicken.  Then add the chicken to the skillet.

Step 2:
Add 1/3 of the box of pasta to the water once it boils. As the pasta boils, keep an eye on the chicken. It will take about 4-5 minutes per side to cook, just make sure there is no pink in the middle.

Step 3:
The pasta and the chicken should be ready at about the same time. Drain the pasta and return it to the same pot. Pour the chicken over the pasta.

Step 4:
Using the same skillet you used for the chicken, heat up the pesto and tomatoes for 2-3 minutes, until hot. Then pour over the pasta. Add the Parmesan, stir, and serve.

Pasta with a Pesto Parmesan Sauce and Chicken

When you cook frequently, you end up with lots of leftover ingredients.  This meal was a combination of many items leftover from other recipes.  I made far too much chicken for the chicken salad so I decided to make a pasta and add it in.  This was a very quick and easy weeknight meal.  If you do not have cooked chicken breasts on hand, you could add vegetables instead.  Artichokes and mushrooms would be very good in this sauce.

Serves 4
Total time: 15 minutes

You will need:
2 large chicken breasts, diced See Quick and Easy Baked Chicken
2 1/2 cups pasta
4 tablespoons pesto
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1/2 cup Parmesan
4 tablespoons Ricotta

Step 1:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add the pasta and cook according to the directions.

Step 2:
While the pasta is cooking, heat the pesto in a saucepan over medium heat.  Once the pesto is hot, add the flour of stir together.  Mix in the milk and bring to a slow boil.  Let it bubble for a minute stirring constantly.  Then add in the Parmesan and Ricotta.

Step 3:
Once the Parmesan and Ricotta are incorporated into the sauce add the chicken.

Step 4:
Drain the pasta and then add it to the sauce.  Mix together and serve.