Chicken Florentine Pasta for Two

Unlike more traditional Florentine-style dishes, this recipe does not rely on cream or a Mornay or béchamel sauce, yet it still turns out deliciously creamy. The chicken makes it hearty and satisfying, while the spinach gives the pasta that fresh Florentine touch that keeps the whole dish from feeling too heavy.

The chicken is cooked separately from the pasta, which is a deliberate choice and the right one. When chicken and pasta share a pan with different cooking times, the chicken dries out before the pasta is done. Here the bite-sized chicken pieces stay juicy, cooked until just golden, holding their moisture in the sauce that receives them. The spinach wilts into that sauce and the pasta follows, everything coming together at the end rather than racing through the pan at different speeds.

Chicken Florentine Pasta is warm, familiar, and exactly the sort of recipe that makes a quiet dinner for two feel especially good.

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Key Ingredients in This Recipe

You’ll find the complete list of ingredients and exact quantities in the recipe below.

• Chicken breast – or chicken tenders.
• Spinach
• Pasta – I used linguine, but any pasta shape will do.
• Chicken broth
• White wine
• Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
• Flour
• Nutmeg

How to Make Chicken Florentine Pasta

• Step 1 – Cook the pasta according to the direction on the packaging. When done, drain and set aside. Hold some pasta water aside.
• Step 2 – Cut the chicken breast in bite-size pieces. In a plate, combine flour, salt and pepper, add the chicken pieces and toss to coat.

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• Step 3 – Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat and add the chicken and saute for a few minutes. Take the chicken out of the skillet and keep warm. If you want to add onion and garlic, do it at the end of this step and before you add the liquid.
• Step 4 – Add broth, white wine and nutmeg and bring to a simmer for about 2 minutes. The sauce with thicken a little as the broth and the wine will bind with the flour of the chicken. White wine is optional, if you don’t want to use is, add more broth.
• Step 5 – Add the pasta, spinach and cheese, as well as the chicken. Cook until spinach is wilted, all ingredients are warm and chicken is done. This is a few minutes. Add pasta water if needed.

Other Chicken Pasta Dishes to Try

• Creamy Linguine with Cilantro Chicken
• One Skillet Herb Chicken & Lemon-Lime Orzo
• Pasta with Chicken, Mushrooms and Walnuts