Chicken Meatball Penne

bluemoon downunder's Note:

A creamy pasta dish with tasty chicken meatballs. Full instructions have been included for freezing this dish. This recipe has been substantially adapted from a recipe in a recent issue of the Australian magazine 'New Idea'. In particular, I have made use of another one of my recipes: Chicken Meatballs Chicken Meatballs. To reduce the fat content of this recipe, use low fat evaporated milk and low fat feta.

• Total Time: 50 mins
• Prep Time: 25 mins
• Cook Time: 25 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 4

Yield: 4 2-cup c ...

• 250 g penne pasta
• 7.39 ml olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 185 ml cans evaporated milk
• 236.59 ml frozen peas
• salt, to taste
• fresh ground black pepper, to taste
• 100 g feta, crumbled
• fresh sage leaf, to garnish

Chicken meatballs

• 500 g ground chicken (Americans) or 500 g ground chicken (Australians)
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 50 g fresh white breadcrumbs
• 14.79 ml fresh chives, finely chopped
• 14.79 ml fresh basil, finely chopped
• 29.58 ml parmesan cheese, grated
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• salt, to taste
• fresh ground black pepper, to taste
• 7.39 ml unsalted butter

Directions:

1. Cook pasta in a large pan of boiling, salted water until tender; drain; cover to keep warm.
2. To make the meatballs, combine the chicken, garlic, fresh breadcrumbs, chives, basil, parmesan and egg in a bowl, season to taste with salt and pepper, mix well and with floured hands, and shape the mixture into 12-16 meatballs, depending on the size of meatball you fancy.
3. Place the meatballs on a tray, cover loosely and chill for 30 minutes.
4. Heat the butter in a non-stick pan, over a medium heat, and sauté the meatballs, turning occasionally, for 6-8 minutes, or until they are lightly golden-brown all over and fully cooked; remove from the pan and cover to keep the meatballs to keep them warm.
5. Heat the oil in the pan, add the onion, garlic and carrot, and sauté until they have softened; add the milk and peas and bring to the boil; add the pasta; season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper; and cook until the pasta is hot.
6. Serve the pasta topped with the meatballs; sprinkle with the crumbled feta and garnish with sage.
7. To freeze: Make the recipe to the end of step 5. Divide the mixture among four ovenproof, freezer-proof (2-cup capacity) dishes; top with the meatballs and sprinkle with feta; cover tightly with plastic wrap; label and date and freeze for up to 2 months.
8. To serve: Thaw pasta in dishes in the refrigerator; remove the plastic wrap; place on an oven tray; cook in a hot oven (200°C) for about 45 minutes, or until hot, and garnish with sage.

Reviews

[Chef Emstar]

These meatballs were fantastic! I used ground turkey because that's what I has on hand. They were very moist and flavorful. Yum! That being said, we thought the sauce was missing something. I think that next time I'll add some mushrooms and parmesan. Thanks, Bluemoon for and easy weekday dinner.

[Noo]

A very quick and easy dish to prepare.The meatballs were lovely.I made really little ones (about 25),and I only used half of them,as it was plenty.Have frozen the rest,ready for next time. A very enjoyable meal (even the non pasta loving husband said so!!).Thanks Blue Moon-another goody!!

[Karen Elizabeth]

Very nice, the meatballs were easy to prepare, while they were chilling I prepared the pasta and sauce, a straightforward meal that we very much enjoyed for a weeknight supper. Although I didn't prepare a second lot for freezing, I can certainly see it would lend itself well to that, and next time will make some for the freezer, to give to DD1 to take with her to varsity, easy for her to defrost and enjoy when she comes home late! The meatballs would also make nice finger snackies with a dip on the side :D Thanks, Bluemoon!