This Easy Pesto Chicken Pasta for Two looks and tastes great but couldn’t be easier to throw together.
I feel like it’s been a long time since I last posted a creamy, cheesy pasta recipe. I looked back in the archives and my last was my Bacon Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese, four months ago, and my Mac and Cheese for One months before that. That’s too long!
So today, Easy Pesto Chicken Pasta for Two With Oven-Roasted Tomatoes.
You should make this pasta for dinner tonight. It’s really good.
Like, really, really good.
Also really easy.
Like, really, really easy.
This is my very favorite sort of dish, the sort that looks and tastes so good that the world is going to be convinced you have your life together, but really it’s faster and more delicious than getting takeout delivered.
How to Make Pesto Chicken Pasta
Here’s the process: slice a cup of cherry tomatoes in half. Use this method; it will take you 30 seconds. Then you mince a clove of garlic, 30 more seconds. Chop up a chicken breast–it doesn’t have to be pretty, and you can do it on the same cutting board as the garlic because they’re going to be cooking together in a minute anyway. You have now finished all the cutting there is to do.
Then you roast your tomatoes while you boil your pasta, and you boil your pasta while you cook your chicken and sauce. Stir everything together in the end, and done! 20 minutes, and now you are tucking into a fab pesto chicken pasta for two. You’re welcome. 😉
More Easy Pasta Dishes
Pesto Chicken Pasta Recipe Notes
- As written, this Pesto Chicken Pasta recipe serves 2. To change the recipe yield, hover over the number of servings in the recipe card (or click if you are on mobile) and slide the slider–no cooking changes are needed.
- If you have leftover pesto after making this recipe, check out my post What to Do With Leftover Pesto for ideas for using up the rest. And for leftover half and half: What to Do With Leftover Half and Half.
Easy Pesto Chicken Pasta for Two With Oven Roasted Tomatoes
Ingredients
Oven-Roasted Tomatoes
- 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes halved
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Pasta
- 4 ounces (1 1/3 cup) penne pasta
- 8 ounces (about 1 small) boneless skinless chicken breast cubed
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 cup half and half
- 2 tablespoons pesto
- 1/4 cup (1oz) shredded Parmesan cheese plus more for topping
Instructions
Oven-Roasted Tomatoes
- Preheat your oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly grease. Toss cherry tomato halves with olive oil and spread out in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and bake for 15 to 17 minutes, until nicely roasted.
Pasta
- Once your tomatoes go into the oven, bring a pot of lightly salted water to boil. Cook pasta according to package instructions and set aside.
- While your pasta is cooking, lightly grease a medium skillet with cooking spray or a drizzle of olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add chicken, garlic, salt, and pepper and cook until the chicken is well-browned.
- Add remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 4 to 6 minutes, until thick and saucy and chicken is cooked through. Stir in drained pasta and then gently stir in roasted tomatoes. Top with additional Parmesan cheese if desired, serve and enjoy!
Adapted from Buzzfeed
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Carlos says
Giving this recipe a thumbs up. Simple recipe with great results. The only change I made was that I used some leftover roasted chicken. Definitely will making this again.
Jerry says
Any pepper ideas to spice it up a bit
Lorie says
This is delicious!
Tracy says
Thank you!!
Sandra B Singer says
Could you use rotisserie chicken or left- over cubed Sous vide chicken breast?
Tracy says
Absolutely. Just brown the garlic on it’s own, skip cooking the chicken, and make the rest of the recipe as written. Warm the chicken separately and then add it to the sauce right before the pasta, and you should be good to go. Hope you enjoy it!
Kenny says
Do you think tortellini would work well instead of penne?
Tracy says
That sounds really good and should work just fine. If you try it, please let me know how it turns out!
Georgia says
Thank you so much!! This recipe is fantastic and so easy! It was a total hit ❤️
Tracy says
Yay! So glad to hear, Georgia!
Bob says
I really like the slider allowing me to adjust the quantities from 2 to 6 or 8 very easily.’
Tnanks!
Tracy says
Thanks, Bob! Glad you’re finding it useful!
Debbie in Baltimore says
Loved the recipe. Will make again for sure. Thank you! I love that the pesto is not such an overwhelming part of this.
FYI, I used small hot house tomato’s diced along with some red pepper and it was terrific! I agree that zucchini, yellow squash, onion, asparagus would all be good additions. Very flexible!
Tracy says
So glad you enjoyed it, Debbie! Thanks for taking the time to let me know!
Janet says
Thank you! This was really tasty. I had a few stalks of asparagus that i needed to use, so i roasted them with the tomatoes and added them in. Definitely a keeper!
Tracy says
Thanks, Janet. So glad you enjoyed it!
Jessica says
This looks so good! I can’t wait to make this tonight. I was thinking of doing asparagus on the side but am wondering if it would be better to add it to the pasta? I like the idea of zucchini too, so I may do that instead and leave the asparagus on the side. I also thought about adding mushrooms but think it might make the pasta too watery. Any thoughts would be appreciated! Thanks for the awesome recipe!
Tracy says
Any of those options would be good! If you want to add asparagus into the dish, you can just toss chopped asparagus into the pasta water for the last 3-5 minutes of cooking time. I’d cook the zucchini with the tomatoes, though depending on how soft/firm you like your zucchini, you might want let the tomatoes cook for a couple minutes first. And depending on how much veggie bulk you’re adding to the dish, you might want to add a little extra pesto and splash of half and half so there’s plenty of sauce to coat everything. Hope you enjoy it!
Jessica says
Is it okay to use grape tomatoes ? Can’t find cherry anywhere !
Tracy says
Totally fine. Hope you enjoy the pasta!
Sara says
This looks SOOOOO good. I’m making this tonight for me and the hubby! Thanks so much for the recipe and post 🙂
Tracy says
Thanks, Sara. Hope you both enjoyed it!
Marsha says
Just made this and loved it. I did add about 1/4-1/2 cup of diced onion. I also used a combination of yellow and red cherry tomatoes for additional color. I’ll bet those small organic heirloom tomatoes work be yummy too. We loved the recipe….Thanks!
Tracy says
Thanks, Marsha! And I love the idea of adding some yellow tomatoes and onions in there!
Tunisha says
This is so good! We don’t ever eat chicken pasta but this is a winner! Just wondering if more veggies could be added along with tomatoes? Any ideas?
Tracy says
Thank you, Tunisha!! If you want to add veggies, my first choice would be zucchini. Just add a little more olive oil and cook it on the same pan with the tomatoes. It would bulk up the dish a bit, but not change the flavor too much. Hope that helps!
Caitlin says
You really need to specify the type of Parmesan cheese… I used grated and it became a watery mess because the half and half got absorbed into the cheese. For anyone trying this recipe use shredded or shaved just as long as it’s not grated. Was really excited about this dish but couldn’t eat it on account of the mishap. Not everyone is a chef so you need to be more descriptive in recipes. Also, (realistically speaking) 4 ounces of pasta is not enough for two people. I’m giving this two star only because it smelt good.
Tracy says
Hi, Caitlin, I’m so sorry! It hadn’t even occurred to me that someone might use the powdered grated stuff. I’ve updated the recipe to clarify that.
On the serving size, 2 ounces per person is the recommended serving size for pasta. I usually try to stick to that for Baking Mischief recipes, but you can definitely double the recipe if you or your partner want bigger portions!
sandra says
What is half and half
Tracy says
Hi Sandra, you can use the same amount of single cream or if that feels too rich for you, half single cream, half milk.
Amanda says
Can you just use milk instead of half and half?
Tracy says
It should work, but I’ve never tried it with this particular recipe. If you do, please let me know how it works out!
Dawn - Girl Heart Food says
Any recipe that makes me feel like I have my life together has GOT to be good 😉 Gorgeous photos too, Tracy. Love that picture of the tomatoes…they look like little candy. I would eat this weekday or weekend – perfect with some nice crusty garlic bread, if you ask me. Pinned! Can’t wait to try!
Tracy says
Hehe, thanks Dawn!
Jan says
What does it mean by half and half ?
Tracy says
Hi, Jan, half and half is cream with 12% fat. If you’re in the UK, you can use single cream which has just a slightly higher fat content. You can also heavy cream/whipping cream if that’s what you have on hand. Hope that helps!