Bruschetta Chicken Pasta

I’m not sure what the weather has been like in your neck of the woods, but here it’s finally starting to warm up during the day! Of course it’s still below freezing in the mornings, but hey, that’s life in the Midwest lol.

The warmer temperatures make me start craving some classic summer-style meals, like Greek-style chicken kebabs, and this bruschetta chicken pasta!

At a first glance, the longer ingredient list might lead you to think it’s a complicated recipe, but I promise it’s not.

There’s a homemade marinade (which you can absolutely swap for a store-bought one if you’d like), and pasta (which you don’t even have to make, we just like to have it alongside)… plus many things can be prepped/chopped ahead of time, which will cut down on your hands-on time during the dinner-making process.

We eat this chicken pasta pretty often during the summer months, when the produce is best, and we can grill the chicken. Even the kiddos enjoy this recipe!

How to make bruschetta chicken pasta?

This is just an overview; the full ingredients and directions are in the recipe card toward the bottom of this post.

1. Pound chicken. Depending on the size of your chicken you may not need to do this, but pounding them ensures they’ll cook evenly.
2. Marinate. Making the marinade in a plastic bag makes for an easy clean up!
3. Cook chicken. We love to grill the chicken, but a grill pan or skillet works just as well.
4. Make tomato topping.
5. Top and drizzle. Balsamic glaze is a strong flavor, so start with just a small drizzle and work up from there.

1. Boil pasta. The exact time will depend on which type of pasta, just follow the package directions.
2. Cook garlic and reduce wine. Reducing the wine doesn’t take too long, and it adds plenty of flavor.
3. Add butter, seasonings, and cheese.
4. Stir in pasta water. Do this a little at a time, stirring and tossing as you add it.
5. Add herbs and zest. Toss to combine.
6. Serve. Serve the pasta, topped with chicken and tomato topping.

Variations of this recipe

• Chicken – if you’d prefer, you can buy thin sliced chicken (sometimes called chicken cutlets), and omit having to pound them thinner. You could also make this recipe with other cuts of chicken, such as bone in or boneless thighs. Just note that changing the cut of chicken will change the cooking time (make sure you’re cooking to 165°F).
• Other protein – I think this recipe would also work well with pork, such as boneless pork chops, or a pork tenderloin.
• Onion – some people don’t enjoy onion in their bruschetta, so if you’d like, you can omit it.
• Balsamic glaze – to save time, I typically buy a bottle of balsamic glaze from the grocery store, but you can certainly make your own if you’d like. In a skillet, add about a cup of balsamic vinegar and cook it over a medium-low heat. The exact time will vary, but you want the vinegar to reduce down and turn into a syrupy consistency.
• Pasta – you can use any cut of pasta for this recipe, we just prefer angel hair or spaghetti.
• Alcohol-free – for the pasta, if you’d prefer not to use alcohol, you can substitute it for an equal amount of low sodium chicken broth.

Making chicken pasta ahead of time

Like most grilled/seared foods, I find this recipe tastes best when made fresh. However, you can prep ahead many parts of this chicken and pasta recipe.

How to prep ahead for this recipe:

• Chicken – you can pound the chicken ahead of time and keep it refrigerated for a day or two.
• Marinade – the marinade can be made and kept refrigerated for several days.
• Garlic and onion – these can be minced and diced ahead of time and kept refrigerated for several days.

Storage

For the best results, I highly recommend storing the pasta, chicken, and bruschetta separately.

Everything should be stored in airtight containers in the refrigerator, with the pasta lasting 4-5 days, the chicken lasting 4-5 days, and the tomato topping lasting about 3 days.