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Serves 6
My friends, this just may be my new favorite pasta dish! It’s creamy, without feeling heavy, and savory, with just the right amount of tang. The best part, with a little prep work beforehand, it can be on the table in about 30 minutes.
I used to be horrible at remembering to thaw chicken in time for dinner AND allowing time for it to marinate. Oftentimes, it just didn’t have enough flavor and tasted pretty bland. Over the years, I have started marinating my chicken as soon as I bring it home from the store. I like to purchase the larger, family packs and break those into 2-3 chicken breasts per freezer bag. In each freezer bag, I add a simple marinade.
Sometimes I just throw together a sauce with whatever I have on hand like lemon juice, black pepper, and basil. Other times, I use bottled salad dressing to make my life just a tad bit simpler. I like to have three or four bags with different marinades. Then I just toss the bags into the freezer. When the chicken thaws in the fridge, it is already in the marinade and is full of flavor.
One of my favorite salad dressings to use is Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette. It is bold and tangy and adds just the flavor punch I am looking for. For this recipe, I used the Kraft brand, but the Organicville Sundried Tomato & Garlic dressing is delicious as well.
I like to serve this with crusty bread and a mixed greens salad.
Ingredients
2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup, plus 2 Tablespoons Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette dressing
2 cups elbow macaroni
1-2 Tablespoons oil (I used olive oil)
½ cup white cooking wine
1 ½ cup stock (I used homemade chicken stock)
2 ounces shredded Parmesan cheese
Juice of 1 lemon
½ teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon dried basil
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup reserved starchy pasta water
Directions
Marinate chicken breasts in 1 cup vinaigrette for at least 30 minutes. Remember, the longer you marinate, the more flavor your chicken will have. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces of approximately 1 inch.
Over medium-high heat, cook the chicken in oil, until cooked through and reaches an internal temperature of at least 165 degrees. Remove chicken from your skillet and set it aside.
While your chicken is cooking, fill a large pot with 4 cups of water and salt, and bring to a boil.
Add macaroni noodles and cook for approximately 8 minutes or until desired tenderness. Reserve ½ cup of the starchy pasta water and drain pasta.
Add white cooking wine to your pan and deglaze for approximately 30 seconds. Add in chicken stock, 2 Tablespoons of vinaigrette, lemon juice, ½ cup of starchy pasta water, and spices. Simmer the sauce on low heat for approximately 10 minutes.
Add chicken, pasta, and the majority of shredded Parmesan cheese. Gently stir to combine. Cover and simmer for approximately 5 minutes or until sauce has thickened and cheese is melted. Top with remaining Parmesan cheese.
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