Garlic Butter Fettuccine with Chicken and Zucchini
So buttery, so garlicky, and just so creamy! Made with lemon-herb chicken and crisp-tender zucchini.
Garlic. A whole mess of butter. Parmesan. Heavy cream. And pasta. So let’s just call this what it really is. It’s not diet food. It’s not healthy. It’s pure comfort food with crisp-tender zucchini for a little bit of balance. It’s perfection, really.
And you can easily swap out the chicken for shrimp or take it out completely to convert this to a meatless meal. It’s up to you.
But there’s two important things to do here.
1. It is best to use freshly grated Parmesan cheese. I recommend staying far away from that green can.
2. Extra Parmesan never hurt anybody so be sure to add that on.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Yield 4 servings
So buttery, so garlicky, and just so creamy! Made with lemon-herb chicken and crisp-tender zucchini.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces fettuccine
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 2 zucchini, sliced
- 1 yellow squash, sliced
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup heavy cream, or more, to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; drain well.
- Season chicken with Italian seasoning; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a grill pan over medium high heat. Add chicken and cook, flipping once, until cooked through, about 5-6 minutes on each side; add lemon juice. Set aside and keep warm.
- Add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil to the grill pan. Add zucchini and squash in a single layer and cook until charred on both sides and just beginning to soften, about 2 minutes per side; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Set aside and keep warm.
- Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic, and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
- Gradually whisk in heavy cream, basil, oregano and red pepper flakes. Cook, whisking constantly, until incorporated, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in Parmesan until slightly thickened, about 1-2 minutes. If the mixture is too thick, add more heavy cream as needed; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Stir in pasta and gently toss to combine.
- Serve immediately with chicken and zucchini, garnished with parsley, if desired.
Why It’s A Smart Choice
Nutrition Facts Serving Size Servings Per Container 4
Amount Per Serving Calories 700.9 Calories from Fat 357.3 % Daily Value* Total Fat 39.7g 61% Saturated Fat 23.9g 120% Trans Fat 0.6g Cholesterol 169.8mg 57% Sodium 306.4mg 13% Total Carbohydrate 52.0g 17% Dietary Fiber 4.6g 18% Sugars 5.4g Protein 35.0g 70%
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
When using whipping cream as an ingredient, it’s important to be mindful of portion size since it does add a substantial amount of calories to a dish. But there’s recent evidence that whipping cream might not have quite the negative impact on cholesterol than we once thought due to keeping the milk fat globule membrane intact. More research is needed though.
Nutritional information provided by Jessica Penner, RD at Smart Nutrition.
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