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Creamy Chicken and Asparagus Pasta

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My family loves easy pasta dish made with penne noodles, chicken and asparagus tossed in a creamy parmesan sauce.

One Pan Cream Chicken and Asparagus Pasta on a plate.

When people find out about my blog, they often always, “do you cook every night?!”

My answer is “yes”, but I like to keep things simple too! Tacos, spaghetti, and tomato basil mozzarella toasts are dinner rotation regulars. Most nights I choose from one of my favorite 30-minute meals.

I’m a believer that cooking for your family at home can be just as easy as picking up a pizza or ordering take-out. (It’s less expensive and healthier too!) This Creamy Chicken and Asparagus Pasta can be ready, fridge to table, in 30 minutes.

Start by cooking the pasta in boiling water. I add the asparagus towards the end, so that it can cook in the boiling water and I don’t have to dirty another pan. You could roast or grill it as well, and then add it to the finished pasta at the end. You could also substitute another vegetable, or add more vegetables.

Process photos for sautéing chicken with spices and garlic, and then adding cream and chicken broth to the pan.

Next, brown the chicken. Add garlic and dry spices.

Add the chicken broth and half and half. Half and half is just a mixture of half milk, and half heavy cream. You can buy it at the store, or just mix heavy cream and milk. You could also substitute regular milk for a healthier substitute, but the sauce wont be quite as creamy.

Add the cream cheese and half of the parmesan cheese. Cook and stir until everything is melted and combined, and the chicken is cooked through.

Skillet with the ingredients to toss together creamy chicken and asparagus penne noodles, asparagus and creamy white sauce

Add the cooked pasta and asparagus to the pan and toss to coat in the sauce. Add remaining parmesan cheese and salt and pepper.

Skillet filled with creamy chicken and asparagus pasta.

Consider trying these other popular pasta dishes:

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5 from 7 votes
One Pan Cream Chicken and Asparagus Pasta
Creamy Chicken and Asparagus Pasta
Print Recipe
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
20 mins
Total Time
25 mins
 

My family loves this easy pasta dish with penne noodles, chicken and asparagus tossed in a creamy parmesan sauce.

Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Italian
Unit: bunch, cup, ounce, pinch, pound, Tablespoon, teaspoon
Servings: 5
Calories: 460 kcal
Author: Lauren Allen
Ingredients
  • 12 ounces penne pasta , or other bite size pasta
  • 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts , cut in small pieces
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 bunch fresh asparagus spears , ends removed
  • 1 1/2 Tablespoons garlic , minced
  • 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
  • pinch crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1/4 cup half and half , or substitute whole milk or cream
  • 4 ounces cream cheese , cut into pieces
  • 1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions

  1. Cook pasta according to package instructions. During the last 5 minutes of cooking, add the asparagus to the water. Drain pasta and asparagus.

  2. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook for 2 minutes, browning it on all sides. 

  3. Reduce heat to medium. Add the garlic, onion powder, basil, oregano and red pepper flakes to the skillet. Cook for 2 minutes.

  4. Add chicken broth, half & half, cream cheese, and half of the parmesan cheese. Stir until well combined. Cook until cream cheese is melted and chicken is cooked through.

  5. Add cooked pasta and asparagus toss to combine. 

  6. Add remaining parmesan cheese and salt and pepper, to taste.

  7. Taste and adjust seasonings, if needed. You could also add a splash of milk or chicken broth to thin the sauce, if needed.

Recipe Notes

Adapted from Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom

Nutrition Facts
Creamy Chicken and Asparagus Pasta
Amount Per Serving
Calories 460 Calories from Fat 144
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 16g 25%
Saturated Fat 7g 35%
Cholesterol 64mg 21%
Sodium 244mg 10%
Potassium 404mg 12%
Total Carbohydrates 54g 18%
Dietary Fiber 2g 8%
Sugars 2g
Protein 23g 46%
Vitamin A 8.9%
Vitamin C 1.8%
Calcium 14.1%
Iron 9.4%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

I originally shared this recipe in July 2014. Updated January 2018.

Have you tried this recipe?!

RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.

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Comments

  7. Omg! Absolutely wonderful! My husband and kids don’t do pasta dishes especially anything with vegetables…but they had double servings and still wanted more! This dish definitely gets there attention!

    Reply

  8. I picked up a bunch of asparagus because they were on sale and was looking for an easy and family friendly recipe. I made this tonight just as described above. Very easy and tasty weeknight meal. I precut the chicken and asparagus and easily put together after work. My vegetable averse toddler had a serving without asparagus and he loved it…everyone was happy.n looking forward to leftovers!

    Reply

  10. Made this for dinner today. Have been trying to make new recipes at least once a week. This was delicious!!. I doubled the sauce, added fresh green beans and spinach along with the asparagus. Bought tri-color pasta too. My husband loved it!!!

    Reply

  12. Just made tonight and made as called but added bell pepper and onion to the chicken for additional flavor. It was amazing and will be made again.

    Reply

  14. This is a 100 star recipe! Thank you. I had roasted chicken and fresh asparagus in the fridge and didn’t want the same old dinner with chicken, side, and salad. Trying to use up everything and not waste food because we are going on vacation next week – so I googled chicken + asparagus and ran across your recipe. I had all of the ingredients – and it snowed today, so this is the perfect lighter type comfort food for a fast family meal. It is delicious and everyone asked for seconds. A keeper – and thank you so much!!

    Reply

  15. Just finished making this meal not too long ago, and just wanted to comment that it was better than I expected it to be! I doubled the sauce recipe (the broth, half&half, cream cheese) but followed everything else to a T including boiling the asparagus with the Penne. It was SO good. Definitely going to be making again in the near future!

    Reply

  16. The basil and oregano were all wrong, as they completely overpowered the fresh spring taste of the asparagus. In addition, they looked just awful floating around in the sauce–when I make this recipe again, I will leave them out completely.
    On the plus side, the sauce had a rich, creamy texture and coated the pasta beautifully. The recipe was quick and easy to assemble and the tip about cooking the asparagus with the pasta was genius.

    Reply

  17. I had to reply..i found this last week..was looking for something to do with extra asparagas..i had a heart attack in 2014….at 43 yrs old..i started paying attention to what i was eating..and i started to cook..im not great..but its now my dirty little habit..a lot of baked chicken..brown rice..olive oil..vegs..fruits..the whole deal..my first break thru that i was all excited about was chicken marsala..no flour..lots of mushrooms..and i add onions..but i love the smell of my kitchen lol..like i said..i found this recipe last week and tried it..followed your recipe to the letter…i have no words lol.AMAZING..i made it again..just now..i did tweak a little..i added a SMALL amount of turkey bacon..a handful of chopped red onions..i did cut the cream cheese down a little…other than that…holy macaroni..im walking around licking my spatula lol ..a great recipe..THANK YOU. I took pics of everything..i dont know what i like more..cooking it or eating it lol

    Reply

    • What a great story, thank you so much for sharing with me Chuck! I’m really happy you’ve learned to enjoy cooking, and I’m glad you’ve gotten to play around with this recipe. Your adaptions sound delicious! Thanks for your comment, and I hope you get to try more of my recipes soon.

      Reply

  18. What a great, fresh Pasta entree! I had to make it without chicken but it was just as delightful as a vegetarian dish! At the table we added just a touch of lemon zest and a bit more Parmesan. My husband and boys all went back for more pasta! Thank you for sharing this great recipe.🌸 HMWagner

    Reply

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