Creamy Lemon Pasta With Chicken
Creamy lemon chicken pasta is a tasty 30-minute dish packed with juicy garlic herb chicken, bright lemon, creamy ricotta, fresh spinach and tender pasta. Delicious!
Ingredients
- 1 pound spaghetti
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 pound chicken breasts boneless, skinless, usually about two large chicken breasts
- 1 cup ricotta cheese I used whole milk ricotta
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese
- 1 large lemon
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt divided
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper divided
- 1 clove Garlic minced
- 3 cups Spinach You need about 4 ounces fresh spinach. Chop the spinach to avoid having it clump in the dish.
Instructions
- Set a large pot on the stove filled with water and salted to begin boiling for the spaghetti.
- In a small bowl mix together ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, lemon juice, lemon zest, oregano, ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoons pepper.
- Slice each chicken breast into two thin cutlets the long way along the chicken so you have two wide but thin pieces. Season both sides of the chicken with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
- Add pasta to the now boiling water and cook according to the package (usually 8-9 minutes.) Once it has finished cooking, set aside one cup pasta water. Drain and set aside the pasta
- Add 2 tablespoons olive oli to a large wide pot and allow the oil to warm on medium-high heat. Add one clove of diced garlic to the oil and saute for about thirty seconds.
- Add the chicken and cook 3-4 minutes on each side until you have a nice golden brown color. The chicken should take about 8-10 minutes total to cook through. Remove chicken from the pan and let it rest.
- Turn the heat down on the pot to medium low and add the spinach. Cook the spinach for 2-3 minutes until wilted.
- Add ricotta mixture and ½ cup of pasta water to the wilted spinach. Turn the heat up to medium. Stir in the cheese mixture and cook over medium heat for 1-2 minutes until a smooth sauce forms. If your sauce becomes too thick from cooking too long, add a little more pasta water to thin it out.
- Add the cooked pasta to cheese and spinach mixture, and toss with tongs to coat it evenly in the sauce. Slice the chicken into thin slices and add on top. Serve immediately with more parmesan cheese, fresh parsley or basil, and extra wedges of lemon to squeeze over the pasta. Enjoy!
Notes
Lemon size can vary, and for this recipe you need a larger lemon to have the flavor come through. You need about 1 tablespoon of zest and 1/4 to 1/3 cup of juice total.
If at any point the pasta sauce becomes too thick add some pasta water a little bit at a time. If your pasta sauce is too thin, try adding a little more parmesan cheese.
Give the spinach a good rough chop. This helps keep the spinach from forming big clumps in the final dish and will help the sauce distribute more evenly on it.
Nutrition
Calories: 506kcal | Carbohydrates: 61g | Protein: 33g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 72mg | Sodium: 594mg | Potassium: 612mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 1655IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 181mg | Iron: 2mg