Last Wednesday was my son-in-law’s 33rd birthday. He is such a great guy, I really wanted to do something special for him so I asked Top Girl what his favorite meal might be………..well, it was Korean and his mom has the market cornered on Asian cooking so I asked for his favorite non-Asian meal. She told me it was Cajun chicken Alfredo pasta. I had never made Alfredo sauce or a Cajun dish so I was a little worried – but I was game for anything! I thumbed through recipe books and cruised around Pinterest for a while and then went for it myself.
I decided to make my own Blackening season:
Cayenne Pepper – I put in 2 teaspoons because SIL likes it very hot, but you could put in 1 teaspoon or none at all!
1 teaspoon paprika
2 teaspoons thyme
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ Tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Mix it all up in a bowl.
Now for the ingredients of the rest of the dish: Cajun Chicken Alfredo Pasta
1 ½ packages of chicken breast tenderloins (use the other half package to cook without spice for the picky eaters in the house).
3 Cups heavy cream
1 14 ounce can diced tomatoes drained and dried on paper towel
¾ box fettuccine
4 Tablespoons finely minced garlic
¼ Cup chicken stock
Olive Oil
1 Cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
½ Cup chopped green onion
Directions:
Pre-heat the oven to 350 F
In a pot of boiling water add fettuccine and cook according to directions.
In an iron skillet, cover bottom of pan with olive oil and put on burner with very high heat.
Rub blackened seasoning all over the chicken tenderloins and lay in skillet.
Blacken on all sides then place skillet in oven for about 10 minutes take out and set chicken aside.
Using same skillet put in 2 Tablespoons olive oil then add minced garlic and cook for about 3 minutes.
Add tomatoes and cook for a few minutes then deglaze pan with chicken stock and add 3 Cups of cream.
Set pan to simmer and allow cream to reduce by half.
Cut chicken on the bias and add to cream stirring well.
Add Fettuccine and mix well.
Plate dish and top with green onions then serve!
If you like the Cajun Chicken Alfredo at Red Lobster, you will love this.
Is 1/2 package of chicken about 1 1/2 pounds?
No I don’t think so Debbie – It is 1/2 a package of breast tenderloins – breasts that have already been cut into fairly thick strips – it’s about 6-8 ounces.
Ok. Around here, we get our chicken tenders and breasts in 3# packs! Thanks for the recipe. I love Cajun chicken and blackened chicken (and fish) so this sounds yummy to me! You really come up with good recipes!
Happy 33rd birthday to him! Delicious looking pasta to celebrate, cajun chicken is so addictive for all my friends 😀
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Thank you!
This looks delicious and easy to make. Recipe is going in my “Try” file.
Lillian
Thank you!
What a thoughtful thing to do for you SIL. I’m sure he loved your homemade version of this favorite meal.
He did! and so did I! However, Mr. Picky Eater and Rocket choose to eat plain old baked chicken. 🙂
You should definitely get the Mother in Law of the Year Award for this birthday dinner! Looks delish!
YUM! I’ll have to try this next time the relatives who used to live in Louisianna visit.
oh my YUM! I’m crazy for Cajun food. This is the stuff dreams are made of!
Thank you Becca and glad you are PP’s now!
I love Cajun pasta so I bet I would love this 🙂
Kelli, it’s so sweet that you were willing to tackle a recipe you’d never tried before for your son-in-law’s birthday. You hit a home run, lady, because this looks incredible! I love the kick the blackening seasoning gives to the classic alfredo sauce! I hope you all enjoyed every bite of this yummy dish!
Happy belated bday to your SiL. Have you ever heard of Pasta YaYa. It is from semi-famous Okie restaurant (but now defunct I think). I’ll have to dig the recipe out and post it.
No but I would love to see you do the recipe!! It sounds fun at the very least!
Ok, so this looks absolutely amazing!!
It was wonderful! In fact, I would make again tonight if we hadn’t already made something else! Thank you!
Looks like you did a great job recreating this dish!
Thank you!
Cajun spiced chicken with a creamy sauce sounds wonderful, Kelli! I will cheat and use my Tony Chachere’s seasonings but I’m definitely putting this on the menu.
I love Tony Chachere’s seasonings but would you believe I am allergic to something in it??? So, I have to make my own but if I could, I would use it too!! Let me know how you like it!
Hmmm. I wonder which ingredient causes you the reaction. Very odd!
I don’t know but every time I eat it I break out in red splotches and itch all over. 🙂
Oh that looks delicious Kelli!! I love Cajun Chicken Alfredo Pasta, especially when it is hot, the hotter the better! 🙂
Thank you!