I just spent an hour talking to my husband and then my friend on the phone about what I should name this recipe.
Yes I really did that.
You’d think titles of recipes would come a little more naturally to me, but alas, they do not. Especially when I’m working late into the night when I have a sugar high from the last of the Easter candy I’ve been hoarding sharing with my children.
Creamy Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Baby Kale, Artichoke Hearts and Chicken?
Parmesan Garlic Kale Chicken Pasta?
Baby Kale & Artichoke Heart Whole Wheat Spaghetti?
Creamy Kale Garlic Chicken Pasta?
Do you see my dilemma? Too many ingredients. Or, according to my husband: I’m too indecisive.
After staring at my computer screen at the same words over and over, I eventually decided on Garlic Chicken and Kale Spaghetti because I figured you can all just read the actual recipe and find those extra fun surprises such as: whole wheat spaghetti! Artichoke hearts! Parmesan cheese! Low fat creamy sauce!
Another fun surprise? My daughter seeing this on her plate and saying “I am NOT going to like this dinner.”
Spoiler alert: that’s not the surprise.
After one bite, she said “Wow Mom, I actually like this! Like, WHOA! I LIKE THIS!” as if I never make her edible food. Psh! Child, please.
So she finished her little portion for dinner, Blake threw his on the ground {as per all the food he eats} and I have the leftovers in my fridge. #winning
This easy dinner recipe is packed with flavor, healthy protein and veggies plus is ready in about 30 minutes. Perfect for weeknight meals at home.
I had everything on hand for this meal, so odds are you should have just about everything on hand too which means I’ll be expecting you all to make this immediately.
Ok, you don’t have to make it immediately, but relatively soon works for me 😉 Lol!
But seriously, though. Make this.
Have a wonderful Wednesday! Printable recipe below:
Garlic Chicken & Kale Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 2 1/2 cups chopped baby kale**
- 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 2 cups milk
- 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon paste
- 1 teaspoon basil
- 1/4 teaspoon thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon oregano
- 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 1/2 cups cooked shredded chicken
- 1 cup chopped artichoke hearts
- 1/2 lb whole wheat spaghetti
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese plus more for garnish
Instructions
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Bring large pot of salted water to boil. Cook pasta to al dente. While pasta is cooking, make the sauce. Heat butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add in garlic and chopped baby kale until fragrant and tender, 2 minutes. Sprinkle in flour. Stir and cook 1 minute. Whisk in milk to prevent lumps and reduce heat to medium low. Incorporate bouillon, basil, thyme, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Add in cooked, shredded chicken, artichoke hearts and parmesan cheese. Heat 3 minutes or so until sauce starts to thicken and chicken is heated through. Toss with hot pasta to coat, top with more cheese if desired and serve.
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**I've seen baby kale and spinach mixes at the grocery store that would work well in this recipe if you can't find just plain baby kale!
Karen @ On the Banks of Salt Creek says
April 8, 2015 at 5:19 amThis looks really good and healthy too.
I’ve always told my youngest (11) that he has a super power. We call it sight taste. He has the uncanny ability to look at something and know how it will taste.
We had a dog when the boys were in highchairs…..he would hang out around the chairs at dinner time….just waiting for the food to drop. He was a pretty fat dog.
Erin @ The Spiffy Cookie says
April 8, 2015 at 6:12 amI’m looking at this, already hungry for lunch too soon, and now I’m gonna have to go get a snack to make it until noon haha. This looks too good!
Meghan says
April 8, 2015 at 7:39 amHi,
This looks delicious. Can you use chicken buillion powder instead of paste? I couldn’t find the paste. Thanks!
Lauren says
April 8, 2015 at 10:06 pmYes, but I’d start with half the amount of bouillon powder.
Jessica - The Novice Chef says
April 8, 2015 at 9:51 amAh! I love this! And yes, I think all food bloggers have been there. Naming dishes is sometimes the hardest part!
Tina says
April 8, 2015 at 10:07 amJust made this for my son for lunch. He says a big thank you. He loved it.
Julia says
April 8, 2015 at 10:13 amLove the kale in this pasta dish!
Senika @ Foodie Blog Stalker says
April 8, 2015 at 11:25 amNo matter the name, this dish looks stellar! Pinned! 🙂
Anne says
April 8, 2015 at 7:05 pmI made this tonight!! So delicious. The husband and daughter loved it!
Anne says
April 8, 2015 at 9:15 pmI made this tonight!! So delicious. My husband and daughter loved it!
Sandra says
April 9, 2015 at 5:58 amWant to make this. Where do I find chicken bouillon paste? Looks yummy!
Lauren says
April 9, 2015 at 9:45 pmIn the soup aisle next to the chicken stocks and broths.
Sharana @ Living The Sweet Life Blog says
April 9, 2015 at 7:11 amLooks delicious!! I always have a really hard time naming recipes too … and then, I find that the titles that I settle on are always so long!! It’s strange, really.
Michelle says
April 9, 2015 at 9:34 amWe have a low salt restriction. Do you think we could leave out the bouillon paste or powder?
Lauren says
April 9, 2015 at 9:44 pmyes!
Gae says
May 17, 2015 at 1:26 pmcould you sub low sodium chicken broth? And if so, how much would you use?
Lauren says
May 18, 2015 at 3:36 amYes, you can use low sodium broth. Use as much as you want to thin out your sauce to the consistency you like.
Debbie says
May 29, 2015 at 9:07 amSo I made this for dinner last night… Zero complaints!! Win!! It was really flavorful, but I’d like to make a recommendation for the name: Artichoke, Chicken, and Kale Spaghetti. The artichoke flavor was very prevalent and I think it’s a mistake to leave it out of the name!! Yummy!! Thank you for another delicious meal. I prob make at least one laurenslatest meals every week. You and your cute blog are the bestest!!
Pam says
July 27, 2015 at 2:16 amThis sounds amazing! I have tried a couple of your recipes so far and have not been disappointed. I am so glad I stumbled upon you! Thank you for all you do!
Nilsa says
October 12, 2015 at 10:19 amHi! This looks amazing! I’m vegetarian, will it still taste good without the chicken/chicken pasta, etc
Angela says
January 14, 2016 at 4:14 pmMy children LOVED this meal! My 13 yo is my taste-tester, I couldn’t keep him out of the pasta long enough to plate it! I used the kale spinach mix, next time I won’t, spinach stems didn’t get as soft as the kale and spinach leaves.And I believe that next time I will leave out the chicken, for meatless Monday! In other words! It’s a keeper,Loved it!!!
Nicole Stovall says
January 17, 2016 at 7:27 pmI just tried this recipe and LOVED IT! I am so excited to try more recipes! Thank you for this little gem!
Anne says
January 25, 2016 at 3:36 pmI made this for dinner tonight and it is delicious! I did add onions when I cooked the chicken. I only put two cloves of garlic, I a garlic shy. But it was ver good and we will be having it again!
Liz says
January 25, 2016 at 5:51 pmYum – Thank you.
Stephanie says
January 26, 2016 at 5:00 pmWe tried this tonight & we loved it! I forgot to get artichokes & bouillon paste but it was still good. Next time I’ll remember all the ingredients. Lol
Jacky says
January 29, 2016 at 8:09 pmMade this the first time exactly as indicated in the recipe. Very tasty but I personally found using the milk made the sauce lay heavy on my stomach. I did a test the second time I made the recipe and used stock to replace the milk. I added slightly less flour and slightly less stock/liquid and it was perfect, loved the recipe even more.
Kirty says
February 16, 2016 at 8:40 pmThis dish was absolutely amazing. I have picky daughters, so I cut up the kale really small so they couldn’t pick it out (hehe) and they said, “that was so good! Can you make that more often??” I also have a husband who works long days and I’m never sure exactly when he will walk through the door. This dish was easy to have everything prepped and then throw together when I heard his work truck pull into the driveway. I used two cubes of powdered chicken bouillon and it turned out great 🙂 new family favorite for us!
Bet @ Bet On Dinner says
July 8, 2016 at 7:33 amI was making my grocery list with this on my meal plan and I realized I’ve never actually bought artichokes before! Do you recommend jarred or canned? Any particular brand? Thanks!!
Caroline says
July 13, 2016 at 1:51 pmVoila
Monika Makarewicz says
September 9, 2016 at 12:12 pmawesome !!!
Tori says
December 19, 2016 at 7:32 pmThis is my little boy’s favorite! It’s so good and easy to make!
Dawn Williams says
May 2, 2017 at 2:04 amGoing to try the spaghetti, i’ve made the Asian BBQ using wings, very good!! Going to make the pumpkin blondies as well, keep those recipes coming.
Nicole says
November 22, 2017 at 7:26 pmThis looks amazing! I love your practical, savory dinners.
Sarah P. says
February 14, 2018 at 9:27 amThanks for this, Lauren! I’ve been meaning to make this recipe for awhile and finally did yesterday. I love me some pasta! Next time I will add even more kale. I love keeping up with you and your family. Happy blogging anniversary!
Marlena Jo Parker says
August 27, 2018 at 2:25 pmVery flavorful…googled chicken, kale and pasta…hit a winner with your recipe…
Carrie says
September 15, 2018 at 7:33 pmWe love this recipie! I use spinach instead of kale, because we always have spinach in the fridge.
I keep cooked chicken in the freezer that makes this the perfect last minute dinner. (I use a rotisserie spice blend in the crockpot for the chicken, then freeze in recipe size portions. )
We even cooked it up in Yellowstone this summer!
Nancy Campbell says
October 10, 2018 at 1:13 pmOne of the pasta dishes I have ever made!!
Sue says
May 29, 2019 at 9:53 pmYum! Didn’t have the bouillon and used Asiago just because I had it. I also used my new fave pasta— broken up spaghetti! Comes that way at Safeway and saves me from cutting it up for my Aspergers BF who has sensory issues and hates long noodles. Also substituted fire roasted red peppers for the artichokes since he doesn’t like artichokes. Blasphemy!!