Tuscan Roma Chicken and Pasta

There is this pizza, called Tuscan Roma, that I LOVE from a local pizza chain . It's Roma tomatoes, spinach, alfredo sauce and of course cheese! I have my own recipe to make it a home.

This hearty pasta takes all of those flavors I love and puts it all together in this creamy pasta dish.  Italian comfort food, good for the tummy and good for the heart!

Tuscan Roma Chicken and Pasta

1-1/4 pound chicken breasts or tenders

olive oil

salt and pepper

Sauce:

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1-1/2 Tablespoons flour*

1/4 cup white wine

1/2 cup chicken broth

1-1/2 cups whole milk or half and half if you prefer it richer

4 ounces fresh spinach, chopped

6 ounce bag (1-1/2 cups) shredded Parmesan (not the stuff in the shaker)

1 medium tomato, seeded and chopped

4 ounces spaghetti noodles (or other favorite pasta, GF works well too)

Toss chicken breasts or tenders in olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill, chop and set aside.

Cook your pasta as you make your sauce.  For the spaghetti I cut them in half to make them more manageable. 

Sauce instructions:

Drizzle olive oil in large skillet (I used a cast iron pan.) Saute red pepper until tender.  If you find it burning you can add little bit of water to it. 

For the sauce you will need to see if your olive oil has "disappeared." If it has you can add up  to 1 Tablespoon more. Add flour and stir (this is your roux.)

Add chicken broth, wine, and milk, whisking as you add. Continue whisking over over medium heat until thickened.  Add Parmesan.

Stir until melted.

 Add spinach (I added mine whole and then decided it was too large, chops yours first!)

 Stir for a minute or so until spinach is cooked. 

 Stir in chicken pieces and tomatoes and heat for a minute or so. 

 Serve in pan, family style!

My 8 year old plated this.  She added some "sprinkle cheese" and spinach leaves for garnish.

I have not tried to freeze this meal yet but have frozen my garlic cream sauce sucessfully so I think I will try this some time!

* (use GF or a bit of cornstarch slurry to make it gluten free)