Pesto Spaghetti with Roasted Tomatoes and Grilled Chicken
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Isn’t pesto one of the best foods ever created? The flavor is so bold and vibrant, and when it’s homemade it’s just bursting with fresh flavor. It’s makes for one of the easiest and best pasta sauces, plus its healthy! Add it to spaghetti with some sweet roasted cherry tomatoes and some perfectly grilled chicken strips and you’ve got a meal worth remembering!
I was actually so surprised, I was planning on eating this pasta the next few days by myself. I didn’t think my husband would like it and I thought the flavors would be a little to fancy for my kids. They all loved it! My four year old was asking for more, and normally she’s the toughest critic for stuff like this. She’ll always say “I don’t like that green stuff, could you take it off please” whenever there is anything like spinach, basil, cilantro etc. Not this time and it was covered in green stuff :). Success!
I loved it so much I’m planning on making it again in the next few days! All the best Italian flavors in one delicious pesto spaghetti dinner. And you’ll love what the roasted tomatoes bring to this, it was hard for me not to eat them all straight from the baking sheet. Roasting veggies, or fruits in this case, always brings out the most irresistible flavors in them and it just brings out that delicious natural sweetness that sugar simply cannot duplicate.
Try this one soon, trust me you’ll love it!
Follow Easy Cooking Zone
Pesto Spaghetti with Roasted Tomatoes and Grilled Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts , grilled
- 10 oz dry spaghetti
- 12 oz grape or cherry tomatoes , halved
- 7 Tbsp olive oil , divided
- 1 cup (45g) packed fresh basil
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- 2 Tbsp pine nuts
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup finely shredded parmesan cheese , plus more for serving
- Red pepper flakes , for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Prepare pasta in a pot of salted water according to directions listed on package, reserve 1/4 cup of the water before draining. Toss tomatoes with 1 Tbsp olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray and spread tomatoes into an even layer on baking dish and roast in preheated oven 10 - 15 minutes, until soft.
- In a food processor pulse together basil, garlic and pine nuts until minced. With processor running, slowly pour in 6 Tbsp olive oil in a slow stream. Pulse until finely minced and well blended. Add in parmesan cheese, season with salt and pepper (about 1/4 tsp of each) and process about 1 minute longer.
- Toss drained pasta with pesto and a few tablespoons of reserved pasta water as needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Top with chicken and cherry tomatoes. Sprinkle with parmesan and optional red pepper flakes to taste.