Penne with Chicken, Asparagus & Pancetta

If you haven't been able to tell yet, I love pasta, with all my heart.
It's honestly a problem, and when I meal plan, there are many times when I think to myself "you just had pasta last week, lets do meat and veggies instead."
But this handy recipe combines meat, veggies and pasta, so I don't feel so bad about the ridiculous amount of pasta I eat in my life.

Ingredients
8 ounces of penne
12 ounces of asparagus, cut into 1 inch chunks
8 thin slices pancetta
2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/4 inch slices

1/2 cup creme fraiche
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup of basil pesto
1/4 cup of pecorino cheese

Directions
In a large pot, cook penne.
When there is about 3 minutes left to cook the penne, add asparagus.
In a large skillet, cook pancetta over medium heat. Once golden, remove with a slotted spoon.
Increase heat to heat, and cook chicken in pancetta grease.
Once chicken is cooked add, creme fraiche and milk, stirring mixture until liquid starts to boil.
Remove from heat and add pesto and cheese.
Once pasta and asparagus is done, add to mixture and top with cheese.

Changes I made!
I am a writer, and not a well known one so I'm on a budget. I replaced creme fraiche with sour cream, and I asked my lovely deli people what cheaper cheese would work.
Also, the pancetta I get is prediced, so the slicing didn't happened, and I used pancetta chunks, which created a more evened out salt bomb.

This recipe is from 100 Perfect Pairings.

Comments

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