Friday, January 6, 2023

Penne Chicken Florentine My Way


 Basically Chicken Florentine is chicken in a cream sauce with some cheese and spinach. I added some ingredients to mine as you can see in the picture there’s a big mushroom on top. I did cheat and didn’t make my own cream sauce I used a jar of  

Bertolli Creamy Basil Alfredo Sauce with Aged Parmesan Cheese, Made with Fresh Cream and Real Butter

that I found at Meijer. 

With this recipe I had 2 skillets and one large sauce pan pretty much going simultaneously. I started with the 3 chicken breasts I found on sale at Meijer for 1/2 price (4.26) because they were close to sell by date. And they were delicious. 

Cooks Venture Pasture Raised Heirloom Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast Fillets

I added a tablespoon of olive oil to the larger skillet, salt and peppered the breasts and cooked them to the internal temperature of 165f. In the other skillet I added a tablespoon and a half of ghee (or a tablespoon of olive oil and a 1/2 tablespoon of butter) and cooked up some sliced brown mushrooms. Now I cooked the entire package and you only needed a third of the 8 oz package. But it’s up to you how many mushrooms you want…make this your way.

In a 3 quart sauce pan add water and salt when boils cook a 1/2 pkg or 8 oz. of penne pasta for 15 minutes. 

When the chicken was done I removed it onto a paper plate lined with a paper towel to absorb any oil. Same skillet add the 1/2-3/4th jar of Alfredo sauce (wish I used more and I will add some to my leftovers), 1/2 jar of chopped Sun-dried tomatoes and a good two handfuls of spinach. Here I go again, I had spinach in a spinach and spring salad mix and I just used that. Just as good. Cook until greens wilt, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add the chicken, mushrooms, drain and add the penne pasta and top with some dried basil flakes. Add salt and pepper, if needed. Cook until heated through, about 5-8 minutes and serve. Buon appetito!

Remember: 1 breast per person per serving. More breasts and pasta, you’ll need more sauce, sun-dried tomatoes, mushrooms and greens. This recipe took me about an hour.