Creamy Corn Pasta

About This Recipe

Protein pasta in a creamy fire roasted corn sauce with honey jalapeño ground chicken breast.

Ingredients

• 12 oz Protein Pasta (I used Brami radiatori)
• 1 ½ cup Reserved Pasta Water
• 2 ½ cups (350g) Frozen Fire Roasted Corn
• 1 large Jalapeño Peppers (seeds removed and diced)
• ½ cup (110g) Low Fat Cottage Cheese
• ½ cup (56g) Cotija Cheese (crumbled (or parmesan))
• ½ teaspoon Kosher Salt
• ¼ cup Water
• 16 oz Ground Chicken Breast
• 2 Tablespoons (42g) Honey
• 3 Tablespoons (45g) Pickled Jalapeño Peppers (+ 2 Tablespoons of the brine)
• 2 Tablespoons Water
• 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
• 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
• ½ teaspoon Black Pepper
• ½ teaspoon Ground Cumin
• ½ teaspoon Ground Coriander
• Cotija Cheese
• Salsa Macha
• Cilantro

Instructions

1. Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil for the pasta.
2. Add the frozen corn to a bowl and microwave for 5 minutes. Add ½ (175g) to a blender along with the cottage cheese, cotija cheese, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ cup of water. Blend until completely smooth and set aside. Set the other half of the corn aside to add at the end.
3. Once the water is boiling, add the pasta and cook for 10 minutes or until just shy of al dente.
4. While the pasta cooks, make the chicken. Heat a pan over medium-high heat with cooking spray or a drizzle of olive oil before adding the ground chicken. Cook on one side for 2-3 minutes until golden brown before breaking apart and fully cooking.
5. While the chicken cooks, mix together the honey, pickled jalapeño peppers and brine, spices, and 2 tablespoons of water. Add the sauce to the cooked chicken and stir everything together. Cook until the sauce thickens and begins to caramelize on the bottom, about 1-2 minutes.
6. Once the pasta is ready, reserve 1 ½ cup of the pasta water and drain the rest.
7. Add the blended sauce and about ½ cup of the reserved pasta water. Stir together until smooth before adding the other ½ of the corn, about ⅔ of the chicken, and ½ of the freshly diced jalapeño. Fold everything together, adding more pasta water as needed to keep the sauce smooth and creamy (I used about 1 cup total).
8. Add the remaining chicken on top of the pasta and garnish with extra cotija cheese, diced jalapeño, cilantro, and salsa macha, if desired.