Chicken Mozzarella Pasta
This recipe is loaded with lots of gorgeous flavor …
Chicken Mozzarella Pasta!
Psst … It’s also GIVEAWAY time!
Recently, I had the wonderful experience of attending the Country Living Fair in Atlanta and let me say,  it was seriously love at first sight. The weather was perfect, the people were smiling and the VENDORS! Oh those amazing vendors were laden with beautiful finds. I was like a deer caught in the head lights. I knew it would be overwhelmingly wonderful, and it truly far exceeded my expectations.
The first day of the fair was slightly extra special …Â their main guest that day was none other than Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman in the flesh (OK so it was a lot of extra special). She was so gracious and was there promoting her latest cookbook, The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime. If you follow me on Instagram or Twitter you may have seen that moment show up with a pic of her signing her book for me. Well, the good news is that she also signed a second book for me. *Cue Drum roll* AND that’s my giveaway this month, a signed copy of Ree Drummond’s latest cookbook, The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime! *Crowds cheer* To enter the Giveaway, scroll down a bit and fill in the entry form for your chance to win.
First things first, Â in honor of November’s Giveaway, I have made a recipe from her latest cookbook, Chicken Mozzarella Pasta. It’s the perfect family meal and you can pimp it up with some extra heat, add in some beef or chicken, or make it meatless and add in extra yummy cheese. It’s a no-hassle kind of meal, and my kids pretty much inhaled theirs. The only thing I added to the recipe was about 1/4 cup of red wine towards the end (in the sauce of course). Nice.
Chicken Mozzarella Pasta
This Chicken Mozzarella Pasta recipe is from The Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond's latest cookbook, "The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime". It's the perfect family go-to meal and is loaded with gorgeous flavor.
Ingredients
- 1 pound Penne Or Rigatoni
- 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil, Plus More For Drizzling
- 2 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, Cut Into Small Bite-sized Pieces
- Salt And Pepper
- 1 whole Large Onion, Finely Diced
- 2 cloves Garlic, Minced
- 1 jar (25 Ounce) your favorite Marinara Sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper Flakes, if using
- 1/2 cup Water
- 2 Tablespoons fresh Flat Leaf Parsley, chopped
- 8 ounces, weight Fresh Mozzarella, cut Into 1/2 inch sized cubes
- 1/4 cup Parmesan, shaved or grated PLUS extra to garnish
- 12 whole Basil Leaves, rolled and cut into ribbons (chiffonade)
Instructions
- In a large pot, boil the water, add pasta and cook according to the directions.
- In a large skillet, add Olive Oil and heat over medium high heat, Carefully add in the diced Chicken, do not over crowd, season with Salt and Pepper, cooking for about 2 minutes without stirring. When the Chicken is golden brown, give it a good stir to continue browning on all sides.
- Remove from heat, set aside.
- Now add in the Onions and Garlic to the same skillet, cook for about 2 - 3 minutes stirring occasionally, until the Onions are nice and golden.
- Once the Onions are golden, turn down the heat to low and add in the Marinara Sauce, crushed Red Pepper Flakes and Water, stirring until well mixed. Now add the Chicken back in and the chopped Parsley, giving it a good stir.
- Simmer the sauce for about 7 - 8 minutes, stir occasionally.
- When the sauce is very hot and bubbly, carefully add in the Mozzarella cheese with a gentle stir, then allow it to sit without stirring for 2 - 3 minutes or until the Mozzarella is just soft. (Do not let it completely melt in the pan).
- By now the Pasta should be ready, drain and place on your serving dish, drizzling with some Olive Oil and sprinkle with 1/4 cup of shaved or grated Parmesan.
- Now pour the hot marinara sauce over the Pasta, add more Parmesan (if desired) and garnish with the finely chopped ribbons of Basil.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Notes
Make sure that the when allowing the Mozzarella cheese to heat in the sauce, that you do not let it completely melt, you want the cheese to be soft, just at the starting to melt stage. You can always heat it up mroe to your preferred stage of gooeyness.In addition to the listed ingredients, I also added 1/4 cup of Red Wine towards the end of the cooking time and used chopped Flat Leaf Parsley to garnish.
Now for THE Giveaway!
Enter below for you chance to win a Signed Copy of Ree Drummond’s, The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime latest cookbook,  filled to the brim with tasty goodness!Â
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This Giveaway is in no way sponsored, simply a Little Figgy thank you! This post does contain affiliate links.
Stacey is a Southern girl with a taste for travel, thriving on the discovery of the world through food. After spending many years traveling and living overseas, she’s now back home in her beloved deep south enjoying life with her three little ones and loving the adventure. She’s a food stylist and food photographer, as well as, the creative behind Little Figgy Food, where she loves to inspire others to try new flavors and foodie techniques.
Love the pioneer woman! I watch her every Saturday, and I’ve made a ton of her recipes. I can’t wait to try this one, you did a great job! I entered the contest, fingers crossed!
She is just as awesome in person! Thank you…. and definitely finger’s crossed! 🙂
I love the Pioneer Woman! This recipe looks yummy. I’m saving to Pinterest!
Thank you LaKisha! She is just as amazing in person. 🙂
yay! I entered! You makeme want to drool early in the morning. I would for you to join our link ups . The Healthy Living linky party ( you can link up healthy recipes or tips),it goes live on Wednesdays 7pm Central Time and the Ultimate Cookies and Treats Party which is live now until Nov 17 ( you can link up holiday related post both old or new).
Thank you for the invite! Fingers crossed on the giveaway. 🙂
I’ve been doing a lot of searching for fall recipes and this one is definitely going in my stash. Mmm, I could eat pasta every day if I let myself.
I understand Kalyn, I’m a pasta-holic myself, just a little bit in denial 😉
This dish looks amazing! I just had to stop by to say that I’ll be trying this recipe. Anything that can be made in under 30 minutes for dinner is a winner, pinned!
Thanks Jessica! Hope you enjoy 🙂