Chicken and Pesto Fettuccine

Sorry, no picture! This is one of our favorites, and is normally gone before I think to get the camera out. This dish looks different, but tastes so good. If you use the pesto recipe below, it makes more than this recipe calls for. If you don’t have another use for the left over pesto, cook a full pound of pasta, increase the cream to 1 ½ cups and use all of the pesto. If you don’t want to make the pesto (trust me, you want to make the pesto), Bertolli has an okay jarred pesto (usually next to pastas and sauces). The jar has enough for two batches.

12 oz fettuccine (lots of other pastas work in this recipe, just use what you already have in your cupboard)
1 ¼ cup light cream
1 tbs olive oil
⅓ cup prepared pesto
1 lb chicken breasts, cut into strips and seasoned with salt and pepper
½ tsp salt
7 oz jarred roasted red pepper drained and chopped

1. Cook pasta until al dente then drain. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, heat oil; add chicken. Cook, stirring frequently, until chicken is thoroughly cooked, and slightly browned.
2. Add roasted red pepper; cook one minute. Add cream and simmer until thickened, about five minutes. Remove from heat and stir in pesto and salt.
3. Toss pasta and sauce. Sprinkle with fresh, diced tomatoes and Parmesan cheese if desired.

Pesto Sauce

This needs to be made with fresh basil. If freezing, add the nuts and cheese after thawing. The recipe calls for a food processor. A blender will work; just make sure to give it a stir by hand and pulse a few more times before serving. Use it immediately or store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a week. This works well with the above recipe but can also be used as a dip, instead of a red sauce for pizza, alone with pasta, and a lot of other ways.

2 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
⅓ cup pine nuts
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium garlic cloves
salt and ground black pepper

1. Process basil, nuts, garlic, and Parmesan to a rough paste in a food processor.
2. With the machine running, slowly pour oil through the feed tube. If the sauce seems dry (it should be a thick paste), add a little more oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.