You’ll love this fresh spinach pesto pasta served with juicy garlic butter chicken bites. It’s a great weeknight dinner recipe the entire family will love.
Ingredients needed
For the homemade pesto
- Baby spinach.
- Fresh basil leaves.
- Fresh garlic gloves.
- Nuts. Pine nuts, almonds, cashews or pecan nuts are all good options.
- Parmesan cheese.
- Extra-virgin olive oil.
- Salt and black pepper.
For the chicken pesto pasta
- Pasta. I used spaghetti but any pasta shape of your choice will work. Penne or rigatoni are good options if you want short pasta. Gluten-free pasta can also be used.
- Chicken breasts.
- Oil.
- Paprika.
- Dried oregano.
- Salt and black pepper.
- Butter.
- Fresh garlic cloves.
- Lemon juice.
- Optional: If you want to add veggies to this dish, cherry tomatoes, asparagus and peas can be cooked with the chicken before tossing with the pasta.
How to make pesto pasta
- Make the pesto: Place the ingredients for the pesto in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the pesto is the consistency you prefer. Add a splash of oil or more oil if you want the pesto to be a little looser. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed then transfer to an airtight container or jar. Add a few tablespoons of olive oil to the top of the pesto then store in the fridge until ready to serve. You can store the pesto up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.
- Cook the pasta: Heat a large pot of salted water over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until al dente. Reserve one cup of cooking water then drain the pasta. Toss the pasta with the spinach pesto and a splash of cooking water. If you want the pesto sauce to be creamier, add a splash of heavy cream.
- Cook the chicken: While the pasta is cooking, prepare the chicken. Slice the chicken into bite-size chunks and place in a medium bowl. Add oil, lemon juice, paprika, oregano, salt and pepper then mix well. Heat a large pan over medium-high heat then add the chicken and cook until golden brown and cooked through. Add the butter and garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Serve: Serve the pesto pasta with the chicken and fresh basil or arugula.
Pesto pasta recipes
- Vegetarian lasagna with basil pesto
- Creamy Lemon Corn Orecchiette with basil pesto
- Sun-dried tomato pesto pasta salad

Spinach Pesto Pasta with garlic butter chicken
Delicious spinach pesto pasta with juicy garlic butter chicken bites. This recipe is great as a simple weeknight dinner.
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Servings: 4
Calories: 640kcal
Ingredients
For the spinach pesto
- 3 cups baby spinach washed and dried
- 1 cup basil
- 2 garlic cloves
- ½ cup nuts
- ½ cup grated parmesan
- ½ cup olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
For the chicken and pasta
- 500 g (1lb) chicken breasts cubed
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp butter
- 3 garlic cloves crushed
- 500 g (1lb) pasta
Instructions
- Place the ingredients for the pesto in the bowl of a food processor.
- Pulse until the pesto is the consistency you prefer.
- Add a splash of oil or more oil if you want the pesto to be a little looser.
- Taste and adjust seasoning if needed then transfer to an airtight container or jar.
- Add a few tablespoons of olive oil to the top of the pesto then store in the fridge until ready to serve. You can store the pesto up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.
- Heat a large pot of salted water over high heat.
- Add the pasta and cook until al dente.
- Reserve one cup of cooking water then drain the pasta.
- Toss the pasta with the spinach pesto and a splash of cooking water. If you want the pesto sauce to be creamier, add a splash of heavy cream.
- While the pasta is cooking, prepare the chicken.
- Slice the chicken into bite-size chunks and place in a medium bowl.
- Add oil, lemon juice, paprika, oregano, salt and pepper then mix well.
- Heat a large pan over medium-high heat then add the chicken and cook until golden brown and cooked through.
- Add the butter and garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Serve the pesto pasta with the chicken and fresh basil or arugula.
Nutrition
Calories: 640kcal | Carbohydrates: 95g | Protein: 43g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 91mg | Sodium: 1033mg | Potassium: 653mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 0.2g | Vitamin A: 2619IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 165mg | Iron: 3mg
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