Peas & Chicken Alfredo

The other day I made the delicious Creamy Cajun Shrimp Pasta and was so impressed with the sauce I knew I would be using it again, though modified for other recipes, to make creamy pasta with no guilt. Today it occurred to me that I could make this sauce into a nice alfredo without a drop of butter or cream! I know you think I'm crazy, that's fine, I am. But this still tasted pretty awesome! If you are not a fan of peas or don't want the starchy vegetable you can easily swap out another favorite, asparagus and broccoli come to mind!



Peas & Chicken Alfredo: Serves 2-3

4oz Pasta
8oz Chicken Breast - Cubed
1C Frozen Peas
1tsp Olive Oil
1/2C Milk
1/2C Chicken Stock
2TB Cream Cheese - 1/3 Less Fat
2TB Parmesan Cheese
1/4tsp Garlic Powder
1/2TB Flour
Salt & Pepper

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta until al dente. Drain and return to the pot. While the pasta is cooking put the milk, chicken stock, cream cheese, parmesan cheese, flour and 1/8tsp garlic powder with a pinch of salt and pepper in a blender and blend until smooth, set to the side. Thaw the peas in a bowl with warm tap water, drain once fully thawed (the beauty of frozen peas is they are flash steamed before being frozen so really you just need to get them warm, no real 'cooking' required)

Mix the cubed raw chicken with some salt, pepper and the remaining 1/8tsp of garlic powder. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat with the olive oil and once the pan is nice and hot add the chicken to the pan and cook in a single layer flipping once after 3-4 minutes and finishing cooking through.

Now time to assemble. If your saute pan is pretty large then add the pasta and peas to the chicken and give it a toss, add the sauce and turn the heat on to medium (if it isn't big enough pour it all into the pasta pot!). Bring it up to a simmer and continue to stir and reduce / thicken the sauce until it has reduced by half. Turn the heat off and place a lid on the pan and let it sit for 5 minutes, then take the lid off, give it one last stir, serve and enjoy!

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WW: 12 Points Plus / serving @ 2 servings
8 Points Plus / serving @ 3 servings