The Food Factor: Chicken Alfredo with a Twist

Video by Jonathan Parrish

Alfredo sauce is a favorite comfort food in my circle of friends and family. Loaded with butter, heavy cream, and Parmesan cheese, traditional alfredo sauce packs a lot of calories and unhealthy fats into one dish. So I was excited to find this recipe for Chicken Alfredo with a Twist! It’s a Food Factor Makeover!

The bulk of the liquid in this recipe comes from reduced-fat cream of chicken soup instead of butter and cream! Add some fat-free half and half and a smaller quantity of Parmesan cheese and you have all the flavors of traditional alfredo sauce without all the fat!

When you serve it over whole-wheat pasta, you make a second healthy choice by adding fiber to the dish. This recipe uses diced, cooked chicken, but you could also use grilled shrimp.

To be honest, The Food Factor crew found this recipe too bland. It tasted more like creamy chicken noodle soup than true alfredo. To give it a healthy twist and more flavor, next time I’d add some delicious vegetables! I like to cook diced zucchini with my pasta, which adds color and flavor to my meal without additional pots to clean up. Broccoli, fresh or frozen spinach, or green peas would also work well.

Chicken Alfredo with a Twist

Ingredients

• 2½ cups dry whole-wheat pasta
• 2 cans reduced-fat cream of chicken soup
• 1 1/3 cups fat-free half and half
• ¼ teaspoon ground pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 3 cups (12 oz) diced, cooked chicken

Directions

1. Wash your hands with soap and water.
2. In a large pot, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil. Gradually stir in pasta and return to a boil. Cook uncovered for about 8–10 minutes or until tender. Do not overcook. Drain well.
3. Mix soup, half and half, pepper, garlic powder, Parmesan cheese, and chicken in a large pot. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring often. Heat to an internal temperature of 165°F or higher.
4. Add cooked pasta to the chicken and sauce mixture. Serve hot.

Thanks to our friends at University of Florida IFAS Extension for this printable recipe!

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