Pasta is one of my favorite meals to prepare because it can be anything you want it to be. A mixture of leftovers that you have in your fridge or pantry, items you find on sale at the market, or to cure a craving. It’s so simple and versatile that I don’t think I could ever get bored of it.
This Mediterranean inspired recipe has loads of fresh flavors like artichoke, roasted red peppers, baby Bella mushrooms, and spinach. You can add or subtract ingredients based on your personal preferences and what you have on hand. I tried this recipe with both bacon and chicken as the protein and both were amazing, however the final recipe has chicken since it’s a healthier alternative overall. If you want to use bacon, render it first and you can omit the olive oil to save on calories and it comes out just as delicious.
This dish was amazing with our grilled bread recipe, definitely worth the extra 5 minutes it takes to prepare it!
Ingredients
- 8 oz cellentani pasta uncooked
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 8 oz chicken breast cut in small cubes or sliced thinly
- ½ cup yellow onion sliced small
- 8 cloves garlic minced
- 2 ½ cups baby Bella mushrooms sliced
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper
- ½ tsp thyme
- ½ tsp pepper freshly ground
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 14 oz cans artichoke hearts quartered and drained
- ¾ cup roasted red bell peppers sliced
- 8 cups spinach
- 2 oz goat cheese crumbled
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to labelled instructions. Reserve pasta water.
- Heat oil in saute pan over medium-high heat and add chicken. Once chicken is browned, add onions and cook for 2-3 minutes, just until they start to turn translucent on the edges. Add garlic, mushrooms, and spices, and cook 3-4 more minutes, stirring often. If you need more liquid (mushrooms tend to soak up a lot of the oil) simply ladle a little pasta water into the pan.
- Once chicken is cooked though, add artichokes, roasted red peppers, spinach, and pasta and just heat through, about 90 seconds. Remove pan from the heat and sprinkle crumble goat cheese all over the top. Stir once to slightly melt the goat cheese but no more. You don't want the goat cheese to completely melt into the pasta, this way it's not only beautiful to look at, but you'll have delicious bites of goat cheese throughout the meal. Add salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!
