Easy Creamy Garlic Chicken Pasta
This easy creamy garlic chicken pasta recipe is one of our favorite dishes to make especially in the summertime when the garlic scapes are in season. It combines roasted garlic scapes in a creamy garlic sauce with chicken, mushrooms and spinach for a comforting and delicious meal that will become a family favorite. We grow a decent sized market garden and raise a lot of garlic. So when the garlic scapes are ready to harvest in June, one of the first things we make is this creamy garlic chicken past. I make it using my own home canned chicken which makes it extra easy. You could make it using any kind of leftover chicken, or cook some up just so you can make this, it is so worth it. Don’t have garlic scapes? Just make it with regular garlic and it will have the same delicious flavor.
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter
- 2 Tbl flour
- 1 jar home canned chicken OR meat from 1 roasted chicken
- 2 cups cream
- ½ cup cheese
- ½ tsp. garlic powder
- ½ tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. pepper
- 2 cups spinach
Instructions
- A few hours before you’re ready to make this creamy pasta dish, mix up your sourdough pasta dough (optional).
When ready to make your sauce:
- Start the water for your pasta on medium-high heat. Roll out your pasta noodles if making sourdough pasta.Preheat your cast iron skillet on medium heat and add butter.
- Saute garlic scapes or regular garlic if you’re not using scapes for 2-3 minutes or until tender.
- When garlic is tender, turn heat to medium low and add all purpose flour. Stir until thickened.
- Start cooking your pasta noodles.
- Add one quart jar of home canned chicken with the chicken broth
OR
- meat from one whole cooked chicken and ½ cup chicken stock.
- Add garlic powder, salt and black pepper. Cook until chicken is warmed through.
- Add heavy cream or whole milk. Feel free to use more to thin down the creamy sauce as it thickens if needed.
- Turn the heat to low. Add cheese and fresh spinach.
- Cover and allow spinach to wilt.
- Check to see if you cooked pasta noodles are done, and strain through a colander.
- Stir creamy garlic chicken well and remove from heat.
- Serve over cooked al dente pasta with a side of garlic bread and a simple side salad for a complete and easy meal.
- Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for up to one week in the refrigerator.
Notes
Tips:
- I like to serve this creamy garlic chicken over homemade sourdough pasta noodles. And it is especially good if you put some garlic oil in your noodles to give them a garlic flavor. (See video below). If you don’t want to take the time to make pasta, you can always just serve this over regular pasta noodles as well.
- This tastes best with fresh garlic scapes, mushrooms and spinach from the garden. It’s a wonderful meal to make in June when most of those things can be sourced fresh from your garden or local farmers market.
- If you don’t have home canned chicken, you should make plans to can some sometime as there are so many healthy convenience foods you can make from it like sourdough chicken melts or chicken and noodles. You can also use leftover chicken in this creamy garlic chicken pasta and it will be just as good.
- Don’t be afraid to add more milk or cream to this luscious cream sauce to thin it down to the consistency you like.
- Substitute 5-6 minced garlic cloves in place of garlic scapes if scapes are not in season.
