A lighter twist on a creamy pasta dish for two.

There probably won’t ever be a day that I would say no to a creamy pasta dish. Whether that’s with chicken, chorizo, prawns or mushrooms. Creamy pasta recipes will forever have a place in my heart. But unfortunately, these rich pasta recipes often come at a price. And I don’t mean at the checkout…

Often I feel I have to sacrifice the delicious taste of silky, creamy pasta due to the heaviness of the double cream and butter. Because, well… they aren’t always so forgiving on your waistline. But what is a world without creamy tagliatelle?

That’s where this lighter chicken and mushroom tagliatelle recipe for two comes in. Although this dinner recipe won’t top the charts for ultimate lean health benefits, it’s certainly a healthier version than its traditional cream counterpart. Yet it still manages to taste absolutely fantastic. (That’s if you love mushrooms, which I am guessing since you clicked on a mushroom recipe, you must do…if not…what are you doing here?)

I love to whip up this easy pasta dish on a weeknight when I feel I need a little pasta hug after a long day at work, but I don’t fancy slaving away on a high calorie pasta sauce for ages. And as a weeknight recipe, this chicken and mushroom tagliatelle recipe doesn’t require a heck of a lot of jazzy ingredients that’ll you need to do a last minute supermarket run for, which means it’s often a good budget meal choice too!

Recipe ingredients

• 1 large chicken breast
• 200g chestnut mushrooms
• Approximately 200g dried tagliatelle
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons of lighter creme fraiche
• 1 teaspoon of paprika
• 1 teaspoon of oregano
• Half a teaspoon of thyme
• Half a teaspoon of smoked paprika
• Half a white onion
• 100ml vegetable stock
• 50ml of white wine of your choice
• Olive oil
• Salt & pepper
• A handful of grated parmesan to garnish (optional)
• A handful of rocket to garnish (optional)

Cooking utensils

• A deep dish / saucepan
• A saucepan
• A sieve
• Sharp knives
• Wooden spoon
• Ladle
• Chopping board

1. Grab your onion and finely dice, along with your garlic. Set aside
2. Take a very lightly damp piece of kitchen roll and gently wipe your chestnut mushrooms to clean them – this will save you having to peel those wonderful beige exteriors. Then slice, keeping the stalks intact if you can, and set aside.
3. Grab your chicken breast and season with salt, pepper and half a teaspoon of paprika. Rub it all in and then slice into chunks.
4. Heat some olive oil in your deep pan on a medium heat and cook your chicken until it begins to take on that beautiful golden crust. Normally this takes about 8 to 10 minutes. Then, remove your chicken and put aside.
5. You may need to add a little extra dash of olive oil in the pan, before adding your onion and letting it colour.
6. After a few minutes or so, add your sliced mushrooms along with the oregano, smoked paprika & thyme and again, let the mushrooms begin to turn nicely golden.
7. Tip in your chopped garlic and cook for another minute, stirring often as to not let the garlic burn. Then, deglaze the pan with your white wine.
8. Give everything a good stir, turning the heat down just a tad, and let the wine reduce by about half.
9. This is a good time to get your pan of salted water on the boil and get your dried tagliatelle pasta cooking. Don’t forget, adding a lid to your saucepan will help you boil your water faster, and cost you less money to do so!
10. Once your wine has reduced by half, tip in your vegetable stock and let this simmer for a few minutes.
11. Now, tip your cooked chicken back into to the pan and add 2 tablespoons of low fat creme fraiche. Season well with black pepper (no salt needed due to the saltiness of the vegetable stock), and let this very gently simmer for a few minutes.
12. Important bit! Drain your pasta using pasta tongs, so you can retain the pasta water in your saucepan. This is perfect to add a splash of into your pasta sauce to help things glisten and thicken.
13. Add your drained tagliatelle to the sauce and give everything a good stir. Depending on your liking, you can add more pasta water for a runnier sauce, or let this simmer for a teeny bit longer for a thicker sauce.
14. Serve up in your favourite pasta bowl and top with parmesan and rocket if you wish.

Tasty tips!

• Make this a superb vegetarian dish by simply omitting the chicken breast and throwing in some extra mushrooms.
• A sprinkle of chilli flakes can give this dish an extra zing
• Like most pasta dishes, you can try out using different pasta sizes such as spaghetti, fusilli or rigatoni.
• Don’t forget, keeping a lid on your saucepan can help your pasta water boil quicker!
• Adding a touch of olive oil in your pasta water can help to stop your pasta from sticking together, but it’s not always necessary.