Chicken Pesto Penne

My version of Pizza Hut's Chicken Pesto Penne, I cooked this for our New Year's Eve feast, it was my first time to try it without a concrete recipe to boot but to my amazement it was an instant favorite amongst my family, either luck was on my side or I'm really getting good at this craft *grins*.

And as I am super proud of my work, though I'm sure it won't compare to the recipes of other foodies, I am joining Presto Pasta Nights which is hosted this week by Gay of A Scientist in the Kitchen.


Ingredients:

• penne pasta (500g, San Remo)
• 1 chicken breast (or as much as you like)
  
• 1 big can of evaporated milk
• 1 tetra pack of all-purpose cream
• 1/2 bar of cheddar cheese, cubed or grated
  
• 3-4 tablespoon of Barilla Pesto alla Genovese
• olive oil
• butter
• fish sauce or salt
  
• pepper
• sugar (optional)
  

Procedures:

• Boil the chicken until tender. Cut the meat into cubes (as I did) or you can just shred it. Set aside.
• Cook the penne as instructed on the packaging. Put the chicken bones on the water that you'll use to cook the pasta to add flavor.
• Heat a pan or wok and pour an adequate amount of olive oil for sauteing, add a little amount of butter to enhance its taste.
• Saute 3-4 tablespoons (or as much as you prefer) of pesto.
  
• Add the chicken meat, some salt or fish sauce (I prefer the fish sauce as it adds a little tang to the dish) and a little of ground pepper, and saute some more.
• Add the all purpose cream and the evaporated milk while constantly stirring.
  
• Before it reach its boiling point, drop the cheese, stir and let it simmer for a few minutes or until the cheese have melted, be sure to keep on stirring from time to time.
• Taste the sauce, if the milk didn't give enough sweetness to counter the taste of pesto, you can add a little sugar, just be sure not to over-indulge, you don't want a penne pesto dessert *grins*. If you want it a little spicy add some more pepper, if you want it more salty add some more salt, you know the drill.
• When you're satisfied and all, bring it to a boil and you're done.
• Toss it with the penne pasta and serve.

My first (hopefully not the last) entry for: