Creamy Chicken Alfredo with Spinach and Kale Over Pasta

Feb 3, 2012 by Nathan    1 Comment     Posted under: Food, Recipes

I’ve made many variations of chicken Alfredo, but this one is a family favorite. Your kids might not like kale as much as mine do, but with this dish you can hide it under all of that creamy cheesy goodness. Go ahead, feed your family this meal and pat yourself on the back for adding some great nutrients and vitamins to your kid’s diet.

Also, this is a fast and inexpensive meal for those busy week nights. Don’t care for meat? Don’t worry, this is great without chicken, just add some extra chick peas.

You’ll need:

• 2 boneless and skinless chicken breasts (1/2 breast per person)
• 1 medium or 2 small onions (don’t cry, rinse off the onion before dicing)
• 3-6 garlic cloves (more is better)
• 1 can chick peas (garbanzos)
• 1 jar Alfredo sauce (creamy goodness)
• 1 pound of pasta (any kind is fine, I used penne)
• 1 bag of baby spinach (large leaf is fine, just chop it small)
• 4-6 cups of kale (collard greens or broccoli rabe are good too)
• Salt, pepper, garlic powder (to taste)
• Olive oil (for your health)
• Freshly grated Parmesan (or the regular stuff)
• Fresh Bread (to mop up the creamy sauce)
• Chilled white wine (Chardonnay would be my choice)
• 10 minutes to prep
• 20 minutes to cook

Prepping the Goods (10 min)

1. Dice the onion and garlic
2. Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces
3. Chop the kale
4. Open the can of chick peas and jar of Alfredo sauce
5. Start a pot of water boiling for pasta, add a dash of salt to the water

Cooking the Chicken (12 min)

1. Saute the onion and garlic in olive oil (2 min)
2. Add the chicken and cook until chicken is white on all side (5 min)
3. Add chick peas
4. Add Alfredo sauce (rinse out the jar with milk and add to sauce)
5. Simmer on low (5 min)

Cooking the Spinach (1 min)

1. Simply add them to the sauce
2. Stir in batches as they cook down (1 min)

Cooking the Kale (5 min)

1. Blanch/steam the kale by adding a little water and cook until boiling (5 min)
2. They will turn bright green
3. Don’t over cook them (dark, blueish green)
4. Drain and add to sauce

Cooking the Pasta (8 min)

1. Just follow the steps on the packaging (8 min)
2. Drain and add a dash of olive oil to prevent sticking

Putting It All Together (1 min)

1. Plate a serving of pasta
2. Top with a heaping serving of the sauce
3. Sprinkle on some fresh Parmesan
4. Garnish with some fresh parsley
5. and enjoy with your wine!

Got anything to say? Go ahead and leave a comment!