Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta Salad with Cottage Cheese Dressing

Photo: whitneyinchicago · CC BY 2.0 · source

Protein pasta and juicy chicken tossed in a silky blended cottage cheese and basil pesto dressing with tomatoes, cucumber, spinach and mozzarella pearls. It tastes indulgent and holds up all week.

Ingredients

• 7 oz protein penne or rotini
• 1½ lb boneless chicken breasts
• 1 cup 2% cottage cheese
• ⅓ cup basil pesto
• 3 tbsp grated Parmesan
• ½ lemon, juiced
• 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
• ½ English cucumber, diced
• 3 cups baby spinach, chopped
• ½ cup mozzarella pearls

From your pantry: 1 tsp Italian seasoning, ½ tsp garlic powder, cooking spray, salt, pepper.

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta in salted water until al dente, then rinse under cold water and drain well.
2. Season the chicken with the Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Cook in a skillet misted with cooking spray over medium-high heat, 5 to 6 minutes per side, until 165°F inside. Rest 5 minutes and dice.
3. Blend the cottage cheese, pesto, Parmesan and lemon juice until completely smooth, adding a splash of water if needed to make it pourable.
4. Toss the pasta, chicken, tomatoes, cucumber, spinach and mozzarella with the dressing. Season with salt and pepper and chill at least 15 minutes.

Tip: Blend the cottage cheese until no curds remain; a blender or immersion blender turns it into a dressing that tastes like a creamy pesto.

Nutrition per serving

Good for

Adapted from The Clean Eating Couple.

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