Pasta with Spinach, Chicken, and White Bean Ragu

While I thought this recipe would be a bit more like a pasta-stew (don’t you think stew when you hear the word ragu?) it wasn’t at all disappointing! In fact, we’ve eaten it for 3 meals straight (read: it makes a lot) and are still raving about it.

We added the leftovers from a grocery store roasted chicken we bought on Friday. We were all cooked-out after Valentine’s day, but all the restaurants were jam packed because hey! it’s the Friday after Valentine’s day! Go figure! So we just ran to the store and bought a roasted chicken. Which was great because we spent a whole $6.50 (ok… $13.50 if you count the two boxes of girl scout cookies) on dinner when we could have easily spent $40 at the restaurant, so we weren’t complaining! Anyway, we just cubed the leftover meat and added it to the mixture.

Stew or not… it’s a keeper!

Pasta with Spinach, Chicken, and White Bean Ragu

Makes 6 servings.
Recipe from Global Gourmet

INGREDIENTS
4 tbsp olive oil, divided
1/4 cup pancetta or bacon minced
1 onion, finely chopped
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 (16-oz) can white (navy/cannellini) beans, rinsed and drained well
1/4 to 1 cup white wine
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
Salt and Pepper
1 lb pasta
5 cloves garlic chopped
1 lb spinach, stems removed, leaves chopped or 1 box frozen chopped spinach, thawed
4 plum tomatoes, chopped
1/2 roasted chicken, cubed (optional)
2 tbsp butter
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS
In a large saucepan, heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat. Sauté pancetta in olive oil until lightly golden brown. Add onion and red pepper flakes and continue to sauté until onion is golden brown. Gently add beans, and stir. Add wine and parsley and simmer about 15 minutes or until thickened. If mixture gets too dry keep adding white wine. Add chicken and toss until just heated through. Season with salt and pepper and remove from heat.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling, salted water until al dente; drain.

Heat remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and cook until lightly browned. Add spinach and sauté until wilted. Add tomatoes and cook until tomatoes begin to simmer. Add butter and toss until melted. Season with salt and pepper.

Return drained pasta to pot. Add bean ragu and spinach mixture and combine very well. Add Parmesan cheese, toss to coat and serve immediately.