pasta with chicken, bacon and roasted brussels
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 6-8 servings
- Category: Main Dishes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 lb bacon, cooked and broken into pieces (see note below about cooking bacon)
- 12 oz calamarata pasta, cooked, reserve 1 cup cooking water
- 4 chicken breasts
- 3 cups brussels
- 6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt, divided
- 1 teaspoon pepper, divided
- 4 cloves garlic, minced, divided
- 1 leek, finely chopped
- 2 cups half and half
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Place chicken in bowl with 2 T olive oil, ½ t salt, ½ t pepper and garlic. Set aside to marinate.
- While chicken is marinating, toss brussels in 2 T olive oil. Spread on foil lined cookie sheet and bake 15-20 minutes, until crispy.
- Slice chicken into strips and saute in 2 T olive oil. Set aside.
- At this point, bacon, pasta, brussels and chicken is cooked. You can refrigerate until serving if desired, just remove from refrigerator 45 minutes prior to serving and make the sauce.
- To make sauce. Heat 2 T olive oil in deep skillet. Add 2 cloves garlic. Cook 1-2 minutes. Add leeks, cook until wilted. Add half and half, cook until sauce is slightly reduced. Add salt and pepper, mixing well. Add chicken and cooked pasta, and heat thoroughly. Add reserved pasta water if needed to thin sauce and cover skillet. When chicken and pasta are heated through, add ¾ of bacon and heat for 2 minutes. Sprinkle brussels and remaining bacon on top. Cover to heat through. Serve immediately.
Notes
Cooking bacon: the easiest way to cook bacon is to line a cookie sheet with foil. Cut bacon strips in half. Place strips on foil and bake in a 425 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until crispy.