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Chicken Pesto Pasta is full of flavorful chicken and tender pasta in a creamy, cheesy pesto sauce. It’s quick and easy, coming together in under 30 minutes.
Why We Love This Chicken Pesto Pasta Recipe
This recipe is a family favorite and a great way to use my nut-free pesto. It’s easy to make – I just whip it up in my food processor. Serve with a side of broccoli or a copycat Olive Garden Salad for a complete meal.
It’s also…
- Fast – This pesto chicken pasta is a quick and easy 30-minute meal!
- Ultra creamy and cheesy – Parmesan and Mozzarella cheeses blend together with the Pesto to make a supremely luscious sauce.
- Great for leftovers – If you’re lucky enough to have leftovers, this dish reheats beautifully.
What you need
Ingredients
This recipe combines my Nut Free Pesto and a creamy cheese sauce for a truly magical dish. Most of the ingredients are pantry staples you probably already have on hand.
- Pasta – I chose penne pasta, but you can use any small-cut pasta like farfalle or rotini. You could even use fettuccine or spaghetti if you like.
- Chicken breast – You need 1 pound of chicken which is usually 2-3 chicken breasts. Chicken tenders will work too since you’re going to cut the meat into bite-sized pieces.
- Fresh garlic and Italian seasoning – for the chicken.
- Cheese sauce – Flour and butter to make a roux, chicken broth, heavy cream, Parmesan, and Mozzarella cheeses.
- Pesto – Fresh is best, and you can use one of my recipes for Nut Free Pesto or Walnut Basil Pesto. You only need about half a cup and the leftover can be added to scrambled eggs or spread on Crostini to make Pesto Bruschetta. If you need something quick, there are plenty of delicious jarred options as well.
- Salt and pepper
- Fresh basil – Optional, for garnish.
How To Make Chicken Pesto Pasta
See the recipe card below for full, detailed instructions
This recipe is pretty easy to make as long as you follow the steps: cook the chicken, cook the pasta, make the cheese sauce, then bring it all together.
The creamy pesto sauce is similar to an Alfredo but not quite as heavy. It starts as a sort of bechamel, then Parmesan adds a nice bite while Mozzarella makes it super creamy.
- Pasta – Cook your favorite pasta according to the package directions. Drain the pasta really well and set it aside with the chicken.
- Chicken – Cut into bite-sized pieces and cook chicken with Italian seasoning, garlic salt and pepper. Transfer to a plate and use the same skillet for the sauce.
- Pesto Cheese Sauce – Cook melted butter with flour to make a roux, then add milk, half and half or heavy cream to thicken. Simmer, then add cheeses and pesto, stirring to melt completely.
- Finish and Serve – Combine the chicken, pasta, and sauce together in the skillet. Serve with fresh chopped basil for garnish.
What is Pesto Sauce?
Pesto sauce is traditionally made with fresh basil, olive oil, garlic, pine nuts, and parmesan cheese. I make mine with sunflower seeds to keep it nut-free. In place of the pine nuts, you can also use walnuts, cashews, or macadamia nuts.
I absolutely recommend making your own pesto. There are just a few ingredients and you can whip it up quickly in your food processor. Fresh really does taste so much better.
Serving Suggestions and Variations
- Add a side: With chicken, pasta, and a creamy pesto sauce, this is a pretty heavy meal. I like to serve it with a simple garden salad on the side. If I’m feeding a larger crowd, I’ll whip up a loaf of garlic bread, too.
- Add some veggies: Another option is to add some veggies to the pasta. Fresh spinach, kale, or sun-dried tomatoes could simply be added and simmered with the sauce. Or sauteed broccoli, sauteed asparagus, mushrooms, or sliced cherry tomatoes would all be fantastic.
- Adjust the cheese: I have heard from some readers that there is too much cheese in the sauce. While I don’t think you could ever have too much cheese, if you are thinking the same, try adding just half of the cheese first, then add more as desired.
Storage Tips
Storage and Freezing
Storing: Leftovers should be stored in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days in the refrigerator, or you can freeze them for up to 4 months. Thaw in the fridge when you are ready to eat.
Reheating: I recommend reheating on the stove, at a low heat and adding a couple splashes of milk to keep it creamy. You can also reheat in the microwave, gently, for 60-90 seconds, stirring every 30 seconds to keep the sauce from breaking.
Recipe Tips
- Make this a meatless dish and forego the chicken.
- Use leftover or rotisserie chicken breast instead of cooking the chicken. If you do pre-cooked chicken, saute it with some garlic and Italian seasoning to give it a little flavor, just for a few minutes.
- I recommend using chicken breasts rather than thighs or dark meat, which can be a little greasy in this recipe.
- Cook chicken in a single layer so it will cook and brown evenly.
- Remove the pan from the heat when adding the pesto and cheese.
- The mozzarella can seize up if you don’t get it blended in right away. Mix quickly. You could also add the mozzarella a little at a time, stirring well to blend it in each time. Same with the parmesan.
More Pasta Recipes You’ll Love
Looking for some more easy pasta recipes to add to your recipe box? Try these:
- One Pot Pizza Pasta
- Bruschetta Chicken Pasta
- Creamy Garlic Penne Pasta with Chicken
- Pesto Chicken Florentine
- Creamy Lemon Chicken Pasta
- Cacio e Pepe
Creamy Chicken Pesto Pasta
Ingredients
- ½ pound Penne pasta about 2 ½ cups dry (half of a one pound box)
- 1 tablespoon Olive oil
- 2 Garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 pound Boneless skinless chicken breast cut into bite-sized chunks
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons Butter
- 3 tablespoons All-purpose flour
- 1 cup Chicken broth
- 1 cup Half and half or all milk/cream
- ½ cup Freshly grated Parmesan
- 1 cup Freshly shredded Mozzarella
- ½ cup Basil pesto or more, to taste
- Fresh basil for garnish, if desired
Instructions
- Boil pasta to al dente according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat and olive oil, then add minced garlic, italian seasoning and diced chicken breast. Season with salt and pepper and cook until chicken is no longer pink, stirring chicken a couple of times to brown on all sides. Transfer chicken to a plate and discard any liquid in the skillet.
- Return skillet to the stove over medium heat and melt butter. Whisk in the flour and cook until golden, about 3 minutes.
- Whisk in chicken broth and half & half and bring to a boil. If it begins to boil too rapidly, turn the heat down a little. Simmer for about 5 minutes or until the sauce has reduced and thickened.
- Remove from heat and stir in pesto and cheeses. Add the pasta and chicken and stir to coat. **I recommend adding the cheese in small increments and mixing well with each addition, to avoid the mozzarella seizing and sticking together.
- Garnish with fresh chopped basil and fresh cracked black pepper and serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer Kristin Maxwell of “Yellow Bliss Road” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. For accurate calorie counts and other nutritional values, we recommend running the ingredients through your preferred online nutritional calculator. Calories and other nutritional values can vary depending on which brands were used.
So delicious! I added about half the amount of pesto suggested ( I find pesto to be pretty strong) and it turned out perfect.
Love the feedback Natalie! Thanks for stopping by.
I love this recipe!!! I want to gift one to a new mom and I was wondering how you would recommend freezing it?
Would it be better to freeze it after it’s all prepared before baking or after baking it?
There are instructions within the post, but I’ll make sure they’re in the notes too. You can freeze as a fully prepared meal, just make sure to let it cool completely first. Instruct your recipient to thaw the dish completely, and reheat on the stove in a large pan at low heat. Baking again could cause the cheese sauce to separate.
This dish tastes amazing! However, if you want it to turn out looking like the picture…double the chicken and pasta.
I sadly ended up with WAY too much sauce and it drowned everything.
I tried making this tonight but as soon as I added the flour to the butter it turned into dough almost ! I’m from the UK so have different measurements but I’m sure I did as I was told. What kind of flour do you use ? Thanks
Hi Dean, It’a all-purpose flour. The measurements are correct in the recipe. When you add the flour to the melted butter, it makes a roux, which looks a little like crumbled dough. Once you add the cream and chicken broth though, it should simply thicken the liquid to form a sauce.
Thank you Kristin, I’ll try it again.
Hi, do you have any keto recipes, thnx mary
Hi Mary, You are free to look around and see if anything appeals to you, but no we don’t have any keto specific recipes.
This was so yummy that even my picky kids ate it! My husband said it tasted like something you would eat at a restaurant. I halfed the mozzarella and used lactose free 2 percent milk instead of half-and-half to make it easier on lactose-sensitive stomachs.
Awesome feedback Becca! Thanks for stopping by.
SO DELICIOUS ??? Did exactly what you aren’t supposed to do and made this for the first time for friends coming to dinner and it was a hit! Easy and incredibly tasty!
THANK YOU BECCA!
I want to make this for my family what do you think would be a good side to go along with it?
Hi Amanda, in the post I talk about what to serve with the pasta. It’s a pretty heavy dish, so I recommend some veggies or a salad.
I can’t wait to try this recipe! Looks delicious! Do you have a favorite go-to pesto recipe that you use?
Hi Lara, I mentioned my Nut Free Pesto in the post, but I also have a Walnut Basil Pesto recipe. In the nut free version, you could swap the sunflower seeds for pine nuts or really any nut you like. Cashews are great too. The nut free is my go-to because my son has a severe nut allergy.
Hi. I wanted to make this but don’t know where to get Basil pesto. What would be an alternative to this?
Hi Donna, you can make the pesto from scratch using my Nut Free Pesto mentioned in the post, or you can usually find fresh, premade pesto in the refrigerator or deli section of your grocery store, or on Amazon fresh: https://amzn.to/3iA7RSR
hello! when should I add the spinach to the sauce? after removing from heat?
I would add it while simmering the sauce for 5 minutes. If will wilt during that time. If you want it to wilt less add with the cheese after removed from heat.
I made this and being the knucklehead I am, put in too much cheese! So it became VERY thick. That’s okay. I just put more chicken broth in until it reached the right consistency. Thought I would share that tip, just in case someone goes cheese crazy like me! Thank you for the recipe! It was amazing!
Hi. I was wondering if I could substitute the cream with coconut cream? Would it be less calories and still taste ok?
Hi Cindy, I think you could replace it that way, but I’m not sure how the flavors would work.
The recipe says it makes 4 servings, do you know about how much one serving size is? Trying to decide if I should double the recipe for a family of four
It makes 4 generous servings. Should be fine for a family of 4. It feeds my family of 3 adults and 2 teens.
Outstanding recipe. My family loved it!
Nice! Thanks for stopping by Timmi.
this sounds ,more like pasta alfredo with pesto mixed in… this is not a pesto sauce…..This is not pesto sauce… Sorry. this is alfredo sauce with pesto mixed in. Not Pesto sauce !!!!!!
You are awfully feisty about some pasta there Brian. It’s a creamy pesto pasta. Creamy, meaning cream and pesto because there’s pesto in it. Simmer down now.
I love your reply!,
A must try!! I made this for my family last night, and they’re still raving about it today. Funny too-My Mom didn’t sound too impressed when I said I was making pesto pasta, but she absolutely loved it. Delicious dish!!
Thank you Katie! Glad everyone enjoyed it. Thanks for stopping by.
I made this tonight and packed up servings for my adult kids as takeout… trying to still distance. It was a big hit with us all!
I love that idea Molly!
This recipe is one of those rare “unicorn” recipes! You know the ones…where everyone in the family loves it. Everyone is happy. So delicious. Very easy to make & with items I typically have on hand. Thank you so much for giving us a new family favorite!
You are so welcome Crystal! Thank you for the awesome feedback.
Jus wanna say this rocks b blessed
Thank you so much for stopping by Kimberly!