Marry Me Chicken Pasta

This was a lovely hearty chicken recipe we recently enjoyed! I had some open diced kalamatas in my refrigerator and when I tasted the dish I thought a little extra salty flavor pop would work well and think it was a delicious addition but feel free to leave them out if you don't have or would rather not try them in this creamy tomatoey dish! 

You could use probably just about any type of pasta in this - or skip the pasta and serve this over rice or mashed potatoes. It's very saucy so definitely a carb base to serve it over works well! 

Serve alongside some steamed broccoli or with a fresh green salad to lighten it up a little if desired. 

Marry Me Chicken Pasta

Ingredients

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips

Salt, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

4 TBS butter, divided

1 TBS olive oil

1 small onion, finely diced 

1 TBS minced garlic

2 TBS tomato paste

1/2 cup dry white wine

2 cups chicken broth

2/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes, diced

1/2 tsp Italian seasoning

1 cup half and half

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan, plus more for serving

Optional: 1/2 cup diced kalamata olives

1 16-oz package fettuccine noodles (broken in half before boiling)

Directions

1. Put a large pot of salted water on to boil, and cook the fettuccine according to package directions. Meanwhile, prepare chicken as the pasta cooks. When pasta is cooked to al dent, drain and set aside. 
2. Season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper.
3. Place the flour in a shallow bowl.
4. Press the seasoned chicken into the flour on both sides until well coated in flour, and set floured pieces aside on a plate until all pieces are well coated.
5. In a large nonstick skillet, melt 2 TBS butter with 1 TBS olive oil. Sear the chicken, in batches to avoid crowding the pan, until lightly browned on both sides. Set browned pieces aside on a plate. Do not wipe pan out between batches unless you have flour pieces burning.
6. Reduce the heat to medium low and add remaining butter. Add diced onion and cook until tender, about 8 minutes. Add in the minced garlic and the tomato paste. Stir and cook until the tomato paste color darkens and the garlic is fragrant. Add in the wine and stir to deglaze the pan and get any bits from the bottom of the pan loosened. Cook the wine down to reduce it by about half, about 2 minutes.
7. Add in the chicken broth, sun dried tomatoes, and italian seasoning (if you 'd like to add in the kalamatas, stir them in here). Stir to combine, and bring to a simmer. Add back in the seared chicken, and any juices accumulated on the plate; cook about 5 minutes (sauce should begin to thicken). Stir in the half and half and parmesan and stir gently. Simmer another 5 minutes to be sure chicken is cooked through, and tender, and flavors have blended. 
8. Taste, and adjust the seasonings if needed.
9. Stir in the cooked pasta until well coated.
10. Serve with additional parmesan if desired! 

Recipe adapted from Pioneer Woman