Cajun Chicken Pasta {a recipe!}

Trey and I could live off of pasta, seriously.Its a wonder that we don't weigh 500 pounds each.
While perusing Pinterest one day (what's new?) I found this delicious looking recipe for Cajun Chicken Pasta.  Pioneer Woman doesn't disappoint!  As long as I've known Trey, it has been one of his favorites!  There is a restaurant in our hometown where Trey orders it every time we go.  I knew I had to give it a try!
And amazingly enough, I took pictures along the way.  This is rare!

Pioneer Woman's Cajun Chicken Pasta
Ingredients3 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes3 teaspoons Cajun Spice Mix (more to taste)1 pound Fettuccine2 tablespoons Olive Oil2 tablespoons Butter1 whole Green Bell Pepper, seeded and sliced1 whole Red Bell Pepper, seeded and sliced1/2 whole Large Red Onion (I used the whole thing!)5 cloves of garlic, minced (you'll see that I used a whole lot more!)4 whole Roma tomatoes, diced2 cups Chicken Broth1/2 cup White Wine1 cup Heavy CreamCayenne Pepper to tasteFreshly Ground Black Pepper to tasteSalt to TasteFresh Chopped Parsley to top

First, chop your peppers, onion and garlic into bite sized pieces.  Set them aside. Cut your chicken into small cubes. Get your water boiling and cook your noodles!

I told you we liked garlic.  We always triple the amount of garlic a recipe calls for!

Preparation

Use a deep frying pan and heat up 1 Tablespoon Oil, 1 Tablespoon of Butter and half of your minced garlic.  Let that heat up for a minute.  Then add your cubed chicken.  Sprinkle half of Cajun Spice mix over chicken and toss to coat.  Cook chicken until done.  I am always leery about cooking chicken, so I tend to over cook.  I let my little pieces sizzle for about 5 minutes.  Once done, remove chicken to a plate and set aside.

Leaving the pan on high heat, add remaining olive oil, butter and garlic.  Add peppers and onions and remaining Cajun spice.  Add salt and pepper if desired.  Cook down, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are tender and dark.  Add tomatoes and cook for an additional minute.  Remove from pan and put on plate set aside.

With the pan still over high heat, pour in the wine and chicken broth.  I always make Trey do this step because it scares me with the loud sizzle!  Don't worry, you're getting all the tasty bits off the bottom of your pan!  Cook on high for 3-5 minutes, scraping the bottom of pan to de-glaze it.
Reduce heat to medium-low and pour in cream, whisking constantly.  Cook sauce over medium-low heat for a few minutes, until cream starts to thicken in the mixture.  Add pepper, cayenne pepper and/or salt to taste.

Next, add the chicken and vegetables to the sauce.  Be sure to include all the juices left on the plate - that is the yummy part!  Stir and cook for 1-2 minutes, until mixture is bubbly and hot.  Drain your noodles and add all of the noodles to your pot.  Toss to combine.  Turn the heat off.

By now you are hungry and anxious to eat your creation, but be patient.  We have learned to let your noodles and sauce sit for about 5 minutes.  The sauce thickens and gets nice and creamy!
Top with parsley and enjoy!

Several notes about this recipe:1. We don't find it spicy enough for our taste.  In fact, there is no heat at all.  Maybe our Cajun Spice is wimpy?  Next time we will be adding a real pepper to the mix to give it a pop!2.  We love mushrooms.  We will be adding those, as well!3. The recipe calls for fettuccine, but obviously we used spaghetti noodles.  Use what you have!4. It makes a TON, so invite company or be ready to have left overs for days!
I have to admit, this was pretty fun!  I hope you enjoyed!Are you hungry yet?