Chicken Mozzarella Pasta With Sun Dried Tomatoes Recipe 455

Steps:

• In a large pan, on high heat, sauté garlic and sun-dried tomatoes in reserved oil for 1 minute until garlic is fragrant. Remove sun-dried tomatoes from the pan, leaving the oil, and add chicken tenders, salted and lightly covered in paprika (for color) and cook on high heat for 1 minute on each side. Remove from heat. Cook pasta according to package instructions. Reserve some cooked pasta water. Drain and rinse the pasta with cold water to stop cooking. Slice sun-dried tomatoes into smaller bits and add them back to the skillet with chicken. Add half-and-half and cheese to the skillet and bring to a gentle boil. Immediately reduce to simmer and cook, constantly stirring, until all cheese melts and creamy sauce forms. If the sauce is too thick-don't worry-you'll be adding some cooked pasta water soon. Add cooked pasta to the skillet with the creamy sauce, and stir to combine. Add 1 tablespoon of basil, and at least 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes. Stir to combine. Add about 1/2 cup reserved cooked pasta water because the creamy sauce will be too thick (do not add all water at once - you might need less or more of it). This will water down the thickness of the cheese sauce and make it creamier. Immediately, season the pasta with salt and more red pepper flakes, to taste, if needed. Let it simmer for a couple of minutes for flavors to combine. Note: Make sure to salt the dish just enough to bring out of the flavors of basil and sun-dried tomatoes.

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat, and cook and stir the chicken breast meat for about 10 minutes, until the chicken is browned. Add the garlic, cook and stir with the chicken for about 1 minute, and pour in the cream. Mix in the sun-dried tomato pesto, roasted peppers, basil, and cayenne pepper; simmer over low heat for 30 minutes, until the sauce has thickened.
• While the sauce is simmering, fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Stir in the penne, and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through, but is still firm to the bite, about 11 minutes. Drain well.
• Serve the sauce over the cooked penne.