Have you ever had one of those days when dinnertime sneaks up on you? At least once a week for me! When that happens I have to improvise with what I can find and sometimes when I make stuff up on the fly, it turns out delicious. My recipe for Spinach Parmesan Pasta with Chicken is the perfect example! It happened one night when I didn’t have anything planned for dinner, and this easy recipe was on the table in under 30 minutes. The whole family loves this satisfying meal!
Those days I’m so focused on what I’m doing I tend to forget to eat, and by the time dinner rolls around, my stomach is screaming at me! It gets to the point where I can’t ignore it anymore and must feed it…something. But what? It never fails that those are always the days when I don’t have anything planned for dinner, so I go into survival mode. I end up scrounging around the cupboards and the deep dark recesses of the freezer pulling out this and that to see what I have. Inevitably, I always have pasta, cheese, chicken, and some sort of vegetable that is in desperate need of being used in something. Perfect! I can work with this.
I get the pasta going in a big pot of salted, boiling water and turn my attention to the chicken. After seasoning it generously with salt and pepper, I melt some butter in a hot skillet and sear the chicken on both sides until it is cooked through. This only takes about 7-10 minutes.
Since I’ve been working all day, I don’t want any more dishes to do than I have to, right?! With that in mind, I reduce the heat to medium and add another tablespoon of butter to the skillet with the chicken. Once that butter melts, I pile on 10 ounces of fresh spinach, a tablespoon of freshly minced garlic, 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt right on top of the chicken. I know that looks like way too much spinach, but trust me, it will wilt down and be just right.
Please continue to Next Page (>) for the full list of ingredients and complete cooking instructions.