Chicken Mushroom and Spinach Fettuccine

There is something just so special about homemade pasta. Maybe the love and time you put into kneading, rolling and cutting the dough it’s just so therapeutic for me. The boys just love to get their hands in there and helping too. If you have a little bit of extra time give this pasta recipe a try. The chicken is pulled and sautéed together with lots of mushrooms, garlic, shallots, a little white wine, herbs and heavy cream for a little added richness. Garnish with more herbs and fresh parmesan. It’s just so good.

Pasta dough

• 6 egg yolks
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 1 tsp. salt

Chicken Mushroom and Spinach

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 3 chicken breast, boneless and skinless
• 4 tbsp butter, unsalted, divided
• 1 pint cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 shallot, peeled and minced
• 4-5 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 3 cups baby spinach
• 2 tbsp. Italian parsley
• 2 tsp. thyme
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• salt and black pepper
• garnish with parmesan cheese and herbs

*you can either make the dough in the food processor or you can do it the traditional way, right on the counter.

Directions

For the Pasta

Pour the flour directly onto the work surface and create a well in the center. Crack the yolks and egg in a small bowl and pour directly into the well, along with the salt and olive oil.

Then use a fork and gently start whisking the eggs in the center gradually incorporating flour as you go. Letting it fall and mix into the eggs. Continue until all the eggs are mixed into the flour, it will be a shaggy dough at first. Gather it all together and start to knead the dough until it comes together. Keep kneading until smooth. Wrap in plastic wrap and let it rest for about 30 minutes while you prep the rest of the dish.

*if you want to do it in the food processor just add the flour, eggs, salt and oil into the food processor with a metal blade attachment. Mix until all the eggs are incorporated into the flour and it looks like course sand almost. Dump the dough out onto the counter and knead together until smooth.

For the sauce, in a large skillet over medium heat add the oil. Season the chicken breast on both sides with salt and black pepper. Place in the skillet to brown for about 5-6 minutes on each side. On the last minute or two, add in 2 tbsp of butter and 1/2 cup of the chicken stock just to finish the cooking. Once it’s cooked through take a fork and tongs and shred the chicken. Remove chicken from the pan and set aside.

In the same pan add in the remaining butter and the mushrooms. Season with salt and black pepper and spread them all out evenly to ensure they cook evenly. Let them go for about 7-8 minutes until they start to brown stirring occasionally. Let all of their liquid come out and evaporate so they will caramelize a little. Then add in the shallots and garlic. Pour in the white wine and let it reduce for just a couple minutes scraping up the bottom. Then add the chicken back in along with the chicken stock. Turn the heat down to simmer and let it all come together. Then add in the spinach and heavy cream stirring until the spinach start to wilt down. Let it simmer on low while you make the pasta.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil

For the pasta dough working on a lightly floured surface, cut the dough in half and starting with one at a time. Roll it out to about 1/4 inch thick and then if you have a pasta roller, roll it through the machine until it’s about 1/8 inch thick. IF you don’t have a pasta machine just continue to roll the dough out, making sure it’s even, rolling it out as thin as you can.

Then gently roll/fold the dough horizontally up and away from you. Then with a sharp knife cut the dough into 1/4 inch strips vertically. Gently gather the pasta together and unfold each pasta strand. Lightly flour if needed. Place pasta on a baking pan and continue with the other half of dough.

When all the pasta is ready place in the boiling water for about 30 seconds just until it floats and then use tongs or a spider, and remove from the pasta water and right into the sauce. Toss it all together so everything is combined. Season again if needed and spoon onto serving plates. Garnish with herbs and parmesan. Enjoy!