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Pasta with Pesto, Peas, Pancetta and Grilled Chicken

Christina Austin
Flavour packed weeknight dinner with pasta, pesto, peas, pancetta, mini mozzarella pearls and grilled chicken.
Servings 4

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup fresh basil washed
  • 1 tbsp pine nuts toasted
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese + more for serving
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil use more if you like the pesto runnier
  • 5 slices pancetta
  • 1/2 cup fresh shelled peas
  • 1 cup of bocconcini pearls little mozzarella balls
  • 2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • 3 tbsp lemon juice
  • salt and pepper
  • 400 grams pasta*
  • handful of cherry tomatoes optional

Instructions
 

  • Marinade the chicken in the lemon juice, 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil and a good sprinkle of salt and pepper. You can do this an hour or so ahead of time or just a few minutes.
  • Grill the chicken and when it is done, cover with foil and set aside.
  • Fill a large pot and set it to boil so that it is ready for the pasta
  • Slice the pancetta into little bite size pieces - about the size of a quarter. Add a little drizzle of olive oil to a frying pan and fry the pancetta until it is crispy and golden brown. When it is cooked, set it aside until you are ready to assemble the pasta dish.
  • While the pancetta cooks, add the basil, pine nuts and garlic to a food processor. Pulse 5 or 6 times so that it starts to get blended. Now add the olive oil, a pinch of salt and pepper and the Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and pulse the machine until it is all chopped and blended together.
  • When you have almost everything together, start cooking the pasta. When the pasta is almost done, add the fresh peas to cook with the pasta.Cook for the length of time on the package. The gluten-free pasta I use takes 7-8 minutes.
  • Cut the cooked chicken into thick slices.
  • When pasta is cooked al dente, drain the pasta and peas and pour into a large serving bowl. Add the pesto and mix well with the hot pasta and peas. Then add the pancetta and bocconcini pearls and mix those in with the pasta. Put the slices of chicken on top.
  • Serve with a generous amount of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

Notes

*I used gluten-free pasta but any kind you have is fine.