Thursday, January 14, 2010

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:

7 comments:

Enchie said...

yummy! i'll make some this weekend ;)

Ruth Daniels said...

What a great version to share with Presto Pasta Nights. I can't wait to try some.

Hope to see many more of your creations on Presto Pasta Night.

Reeni said...

This looks so delicious! Rich and creamy and so comforting!

Sara said...

This looks SO SO good! I LOVE pasta with creamy pesto sauce...so yummy! :)

Joanne said...

I definitely see why this was a crowd pleaser on new years! Great dish.

Thomas said...

Looks great! I will put this on my "list" :)

Jason Trevino said...

Grateful for you writing this blog.