Caprese Chicken Meatball Pasta
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 410kcal
All credit for this recipe goes to Italian master chef Giada De Laurentiis! We originally made this kid-friendly recipe from her cookbook and later adapted it to be a bit easier and also completely gluten-free.
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Ingredients
- 1 8 oz box Banza or other gluten-free pasta like shells, penne or orcchiette
Meatballs
- 1/4 cup plain gluten-free bread crumbs like Schar
- 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley use 1 tbsp dried parsley plus 1 tbsp dried thyme or basil in a pinch
- 2 large pasture-raised eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 tbsp non-dairy or dairy milk
- 1 tbsp gluten-free ketchup, or tomato sauce or paste omit if none on hand
- 3/4 cup grated Romano cheese
- 3/4 tsp salt & pepper each
- 1 lb ground white meat chicken
- 3 tbsp olive oil
Sauce
- 1 1/2 cups gluten-free chicken stock, warm
- 2 pints cherry tomatoes halved
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 8 oz bocconcini or ciliegine fresh mozzarella cut into smaller pieces similar to tomatoes
- handfull basil leaves sliced thinly
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions once you begin the meatball cooking process
- To make meatballs, in a medium size bowl, mix together bread crumbs, parsley, eggs milk, tomato sauce, Romano cheese, salt and pepper. Add chicken and stir to evenly combine all ingredients
- Line a baking sheet with parchment. Use a melon baller or spoon to scoop and shape approximate one-inch round meatballs and place on baking sheet. You can do this step ahead of time and place in fridge until ready to make recipe
- In a large skillet, heat oil on medium high heat. Add meatballs and leave in place to cook until bottoms are lightly browned, approximately 3-4 minutes. Use two forks to flip meatballs (remove from heat if oil is sputtering). Cook an additional 3 minutes
- Add the chicken stock and tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Scrape bottom of pan and evenly distribute meatballs throughout sauce. Reduce heat to low and simmer until tomatoes are soft and meatballs are cooked through, about 5 minutes
- Meanwhile, drain your pasta and reserve about 1 cup pasta water. Add pasta to large pot and cover with parmesan cheese and most or all of the pasta water to keep moist
- Add your meatball mixture to your pasta and stir gently to combine. Add your fresh mozzarella and stir -- mozzarella will just start to melt and pull. Add basil and serve
- Extra portions can be refrigerated up to a week or frozen in single servings if desired
Notes
- We usually make our meatballs ahead of time and place our baking tray and mini meatballs in the fridge until ready to make the recipe
- Use a thicker pasta noodle to stand up to the meatballs and sauce, like shells, orcchiette, or penne
- We keep our pasta water warm and start cooking our pasta a couple of minutes into the meatball cooking process to time everything best as possible
- There is a lot of cheese in this recipe; you can easily cut back on your grated Parmesan cheese in the sauce and actually skip the fresh mozzarella all together and you will still have a delicious dish
- For a recipe alternative, skip the pasta altogether and just make the meatballs -- freeze individual portions and reheat for a tasty lunchÂ
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 410kcal