By Misty I.

July 22, 2020

My favorite dish at Cafe Pesto is their Salmon Alfredo. It’s been my favorite for years and it’s unbelievably delicious. After throwing some items together one night for dinner the finished dish reminded me a little of Cafe Pesto’s Alfredo but my version is not nearly as good but my sons did enjoy it. The beauty of pasta dishes like this is you can add/delete whatever you want. This is what I did:

Only Easy Chicken Alfredo

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. fettuccine pasta, cooked al dente
• 2-3 T. olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 Tbsp. butter (salted)
• 1 C. heavy cream
• ½ C. chicken broth (33% less sodium)
• ¾ – 1 C. freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano, (no you can’t sub the stuff in the green can)
• 1 tray fresh cremini (or white) mushrooms, sliced (Pesto uses Hamakua mushrooms)
• 2 C. rotisserie chicken, shredded
• 4 T. jarred capers, unrinsed
• ⅓ -½ C. sun dried tomatoes, sliced
• 4 C. fresh spinach (Pesto uses Rainbow chard)

Method:

1. Bring a pot of liberally salted water to a boil. Cook the fettuccine until al dente, about 8-9 minutes. Drain, but reserve 1 cup of the pasta water to loosen.
2. In a pan large enough to hold the finished dish, sautee the chopped garlic and mushrooms in olive oil and butter for a few minutes.
3. Add in the heavy cream, chicken broth and ⅓ cup of pasta water and simmer for 1-2 minutes or until mushrooms are softened. Turn down the heat to low and add grated Parmesan cheese.
4. Add the cooked pasta and coat the noodles in the alfredo sauce.
5. Add the chicken, capers, sun dried tomatoes, and spinach (it’ll wilt quickly) to the pasta. Add salt, pepper, additional pasta water and more cheese if desired.
6. Serve with garlic bread and green salad.

That’s it, only easy!