This is one of my sure-fire ways to make absolutely certain that everyone around my Carolina dining room table is going to be Very Happy about the dinner menu.
Just the two words “chicken” and Parmesan” are enough to get that table set and candles lit (yes, I always insist upon that part) so fast it could make your head spin in all the good ways.
Of course me being me, I couldn’t leave good old traditional chicken parm alone. I can never resist the temptation to take a classic and switch it up a little, just to see what happens.
Take my white-blonde eyelashes, for example. After one million years of swiping mascara on them (which eventually ended up in my patented raccoon look at the end of the day)…the Southern daughter and I went last week and got our eyelashes DYED.
It took about 25 minutes during which I had to keep my eyes closed and spent the time having anxiety-ridden visions of how this was all going to end in tears (the Southern daughter used that time to take a nap), but guess what?
No more mascara for me! Even if I do have the teensiest lashes in the world, now I can actually SEE them!
Which naturally leads me back to creamy chicken parmesan pasta, which takes the original and messes around with it until you have a pan full of tender breaded chicken mixed in with pasta and cheese and tomatoes and creamy, dreamy sauce.
How to make creamy chicken parmesan pasta!
Heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
Meantime, put a beaten egg in one shallow dish (a pie plate works great for this) and ¾ cup of fresh breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese in another. Mix the breadcrumbs and cheese together.
Dip bite sized pieces of chicken in the egg and then in the breadcrumbs. Add to the skillet and cook for 3 minutes or until golden, turning gently with tongs halfway through. Remove to a plate and add a little more oil to the skillet.
Add a pint of halved cherry tomatoes and stir until softened, about a minute or two. Stir in ¾ of a cup of cream along with a little oregano and salt and pepper and bring to a simmer.
Add chicken and a half pound of cooked pasta and stir gently until everything is combined. Add one cup of mozzarella and stir again.
More tips for making creamy chicken parmesan pasta!
Yep! Just cut them up into bite sized pieces or chicken tender shapes first and you are good to go!
If you can’t get your hands on cherry tomatoes, my next choice would be a 14 ounce can of diced and drained tomatoes. Regular full sized tomatoes can work – just make sure you are cutting them up and getting as much of the liquid out as possible.
Yes! Take it all the way to the last step, and then when you are ready to serve it up, reheat it gently over medium heat (add a little milk if you need to loosen it up) and then do the last step with the mozzarella topping.
Top with another cup of cheese, cover the pan, turn off the heat and let it sit for about 5 minutes until cheese on top is nice and melty. Garnish with parsley and a little more Parmesan, scoop and serve!
And I’m here to tell you that this pasta-fied version of chicken parm passed my in-home test with flying colors!
I think they are still getting used to my new eyelashes look, though. Ha!
OTHER CHICKEN PARM RECIPES WE LOVE!
Creamy Chicken Parmesan Pasta
This easy recipe for creamy chicken parmesan pasta blends the pasta right in with the cheesy chicken and tomatoes for a perfect comfort food supper!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2 pound short pasta like penne or campanelle, cooked and drained
- 1/2 pound chicken tenders, or boneless chicken breasts cut into small strips
- 1 egg, beaten
- 3/4 cup fresh breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for garnish
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in halves
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
- 2 cups mozzarella, shredded
- Chopped fresh parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Heat half of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
- Put the beaten egg in one shallow dish (a pie plate works great for this) and the breadcrumbs and Parmesan in another. Mix the breadcrumbs and cheese together. Dip each piece of chicken in the egg and then in the breadcrumbs.
- Add to the skillet and cook for 3 minutes or until golden, turning gently with tongs halfway through. Remove to a plate and add the rest of the oil to the skillet.
- Add the cherry tomatoes and stir until softened, about a minute or two. Stir in cream, oregano and salt and pepper and bring to a simmer.
- Add chicken and pasta and stir gently until everything is combined. Add one cup of mozzarella and stir again.
- Top with the rest of the cheese, cover the pan, turn off the heat and let it sit for about 5 minutes until cheese on top is nice and melty. Garnish with parsley and more parmesan, scoop and serve!
Equipment We Used to Make This Recipe
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Need to add something to your kitchen equipment to make this recipe? Below are some of the items we used in the Framed Cooks kitchen to help cook this up. These are affiliate links to things we use and love, which helps to pay for all that bacon I keep buying (without any extra cost to you)! Thanks for using them to keep our kitchen cooking…xoxo!
Updated (and made even more delicious!) from a previously published Framed Cooks post!
Carrie Williams says
Thanks for the delicious-sounding recipe–can’t wait to try it! But bigger thanks for the Adele article link which also included a link to the British Vogue article! Like you, I just can’t wait for her new CD to come out! From what was written in the articles, it sounds fantastic!
Carrie! You are so welcome on both ends – isn’t Adele THE BEST?? (Here’s the link for anyone else who needs it) :)