This Weight Watchers Tuscan Chicken Pasta is a delicious and easy weeknight meal that your entire family will love! Weight Watchers Crockpot recipes are healthy and yummy! I love that you can make this in the Instant Pot, slow cooker, or even on the stove.
When a pasta craving strikes I get nervous…It’s so easy to go off the rails when you get super hungry for pasta on the Weight Watchers Freestyle program. The good news is that this creamy and indulgent pasta recipe is Weight Watchers friendly and won’t blow your whole days worth of points!
How many Freestyle Smart Points are in this Weight Watchers Tuscan chicken pasta?
My first question is always “how many points” so let’s take a look at this tasty recipe and see how many Freestyle Smart Points you have to give up to indulge!
This recipe makes 6 servings (approximately 1 1/2C servings). Per serving, each counts as 7 Weight Watchers Freestyle Smart Points. Just divide the recipe into 6 equal servings for your most accurate portion size.
Please note that certain products will change the points for this recipe, so make sure to note what we used for this recipe and points count.
What kind of ingredients do I use for Weight Watchers Freestyle recipes?
For this Weight Watchers Tuscan chicken pasta recipe I used fat free cottage cheese and fat free plain greek yogurt.
Using the fat free options is totally up to you but for the purposes of the calculations I’ve done, those are the types I used. If you want a creamier Tuscan Chicken Pasta, you can bump up the fat in the cottage cheese and greek yogurt, BUT know that this will change your points.
I also recommend using at least 2% because of the food additives needed to reduce the fat in the ingredients–I prefer to not use fat free for this reason.
How did you figure out that this recipe has 7 Freestyle Smart Points per serving?
To calculate Weight Watchers Freestyle Smart Points I use the recipe creator on the Weight Watchers website. It takes the ingredients and their points and divides them across the listed number of servings.
I noted a few alterations I used above so you can see exactly how I came up with this number. If you make any changes to the recipe you will need to recalculate on your own to come up with an accurate number of Freestyle Smart Points per serving.
Different brands can sometimes vary and we don’t always like everything that is included in a recipe we find online…these are great reminders of why it makes sense to calculate the points for yourself!
I do my best to provide an accurate count for all my Weight Watchers recipes but I still recommend you calculate for yourself if you have questions or concerns.
Do you have more delicious Weight Watchers Freestyle recipes?
You bet! There are a bunch of delicious options here at My Crazy Good Life. Check out some of these tasty dinner recipes:
- Weight Watchers Mac and Cheese
- Weight Watchers Instant Pot Goulash | Stovetop Instructions
- WW Friendly Swedish Meatballs | 5 Freestyle SmartPoints
How to cook Tuscan Chicken Pasta
Instant Pot Weight Watchers Tuscan Chicken Pasta
1) Turn the Instant Pot to sauté mode. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant.
2) Next add the chicken to the Instant Pot. Brown the chicken for 1-2 minutes, this will keep the chicken from sticking together while cooking.
3) Add the pasta and chicken broth to the Instant Pot, if needed stir the pasta to make sure all the pasta is covered by the liquid.
4) Close the lid and turn the pressure valve to sealing. Cook on high pressure using the manual setting for 4 minutes. Quick releasing the pressure is preferred, but know that sometimes pasta can spray out and make a mess so watch for that.
5) While the pasta is cooking blend together the cottage cheese and Greek yogurt to make a cream sauce. Set it aside until ready to use.
6) Remove the Instant Pot lid and stir the noodles and pasta. While the pasta is still hot add the parmesan cheese, spinach, and basil. Mix the pasta until the cheese melts and the spinach wilts.
7) Pour the blended cream sauce over the pasta. Stir it until all the pasta is covered in sauce. Serve immediately.
Slow Cooker Weight Watchers Tuscan Chicken Pasta
1) In a large skillet sauté the sun dried tomatoes, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper on high heat for about 30 seconds until fragrant.
2) Add the chicken to the skillet, brown the chicken for 1-2 minutes. This will keep the chicken from sticking together while cooking.
3) Transfer the chicken and sun dried tomatoes to your slow cooker insert. Add the chicken broth.
4) Place the lid on the slow cooker. Cook on high heat for 2-3 hour or low heat for 4-5 hours.
5) Add the pasta and stir the pasta to make sure it is all under the broth, add it in the last 30 minutes of cooking!
6) Remove the lid and stir in the parmesan cheese, spinach, and basil. Let the cheese melt and the spinach wilt.
7) Blend together the cottage cheese and Greek yogurt to make a cream sauce. Pour the cream sauce over the pasta and stir it until the pasta is completely covered in sauce. Serve immediately.
Note: If you are using dried basil instead of fresh add your basil when you sauté the sun-dried tomatoes instead of the end.
Weight Watchers Tuscan Chicken Pasta Directions for the Stovetop
1) In a large skillet sauté the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper on high heat for about 30 seconds until fragrant.
2) Add the chicken to the skillet, brown the chicken for 1-2 minutes. This will keep the chicken from sticking together while cooking.
3) Pour the pasta and chicken broth in the skillet. Give it a quick stir to make sure all the pasta is covered by the liquid. Bring the broth a boil then reduce the temperature to medium heat.
4) Cover the pan and cook for 12-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is done.
5) While the pasta is still hot add the parmesan cheese, spinach, and basil. Mix the pasta until the cheese melts and the spinach wilts.
6) Blend together the cottage cheese and Greek yogurt to make a cream sauce. Pour the cream sauce over the pasta. Mix until all the pasta is covered in sauce. Serve immediately.
Is this a Weight Watchers Freestyle recipe I can use for meal prep?
No lie, this recipe is better the next day. After it sits in the fridge something magical happens with the sauce and the noodles. It’s amazing.
Weight Watchers Freestyle Tuscan Chicken Pasta is a great way to meal prep for the week. It makes great lunches or dinners and then you don’t have to think about making healthy food for the rest of the week
Printable Weight Watchers Tuscan Chicken Pasta Recipe:
Weight Watchers Healthy Tuscan Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes (no oil)
- 1/2 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 2 lbs. chicken breast diced into 1-inch cubes
- 12 oz whole wheat noodles (I used one 12 oz. box)
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 3/4 cup Fat Free Greek Yogurt
- 3/4 cup Fat Free cottage cheese
- 2/3 cup parmesan
- 1/4 cup fresh basil 1 tsp dried
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Instructions
Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta Directions
- Turn the Instant Pot to sauté mode. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Next add the chicken to the Instant Pot. Brown the chicken for 1-2 minutes, this will keep the chicken from sticking together while cooking.
- Add the pasta and chicken broth to the Instant Pot, if needed stir the pasta to make sure all the pasta is covered by the liquid.
- Close the lid and turn the pressure valve to sealing. Cook on high pressure using the manual setting for 4 minutes. Quick releasing the pressure is preferred, but know that sometimes pasta can spray out and make a mess so watch for that.
- While the pasta is cooking blend together the cottage cheese and Greek yogurt to make a cream sauce. Set it aside until ready to use.
- Remove the Instant Pot lid and stir the noodles and pasta. While the pasta is still hot add the parmesan cheese, spinach, and basil. Mix the pasta until the cheese melts and the spinach wilts.
- Pour the blended cream sauce over the pasta. Stir it until all the pasta is covered in sauce. Serve immediately.
Slow Cooker Tuscan Chicken Pasta Directions
- In a large skillet sauté the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper on high heat for about 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the chicken to the skillet, brown the chicken for 1-2 minutes. This will keep the chicken from sticking together while cooking.
- Transfer the chicken and sundried tomatoes to your slow cooker insert.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker. Cook on high heat for 2-3 hour or low heat for 4-5 hours.
- Add the pasta and stir the pasta to make sure it is all under the broth, add it in the last 30 minutes of cooking!
- Remove the lid and stir in the parmesan cheese, spinach, and basil. Let the cheese melt and the spinach wilt.
- Blend together the cottage cheese and Greek yogurt to make a cream sauce. Pour the cream sauce over the pasta and stir it until the pasta is completely covered in sauce. Serve immediately.
Weight Watchers Tuscan Chicken Pasta Directions for the Stovetop
- In a large skillet sauté the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper on high heat for about 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the chicken to the skillet, brown the chicken for 1-2 minutes. This will keep the chicken from sticking together while cooking.
- Pour the pasta and chicken broth in the skillet. Give it a quick stir to make sure all the pasta is covered by the liquid. Bring the broth a boil then reduce the temperature to medium heat.
- Cover the pan and cook for 12-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is done.
- While the pasta is still hot add the parmesan cheese, spinach, and basil. Mix the pasta until the cheese melts and the spinach wilts.
- Blend together the cottage cheese and Greek yogurt to make a cream sauce. Pour the cream sauce over the pasta. Mix until all the pasta is covered in sauce. Serve immediately.
Please see the video for this recipe at MyCrazyGoodLife.com
Notes
Nutrition
*nutrition calculations are approximate
Julie says
Hello!! I can’t wait to try this recipe! I can’t eat pasta so I’m going to try this with spaghetti squash instead…is the chicken stock really there as a cooking agent for the pasta? Im not great in the kitchen and am trying to figure out how to alter this recipe…thanks!
Becca says
It depends on how you’re cooking it–if you’re using the stovetop follow those directions and use spaghetti squash instead–that would be easiest. In the IP, yes, the chicken broth is there for the pasta.
Joann says
This was a good dish. However, I made it in my instant pot exactly how the recipe calls (sans tomatoes cause I couldn’t find them). But I wound up with SO much broth still in my pot when I opened it.
Any advice on why this would have happened!
Becca says
Sorry it didn’t work out for you! What kind of noodles did you use, Joann?
Joann says
I used True Goodness Organic Whole Wheat Pasta (it is a Meijer brand organic). I wasn’t able to find any other brands of whole wheat pasta.
Becca says
Glad you found one!
Shelley says
I only put in enough broth to cover the pasta. It was a little bit watery, but once I put in the cheese, and sauce it started to thicken. It was amazing.
Allison Summey says
How do you recommend reheating? I decided to take your advice and I made it earlier in the day to have for dinner but I want to reheat correctly. Thanks!
Becca says
I’d stick it in the microwave or warm it in a large pan on the stove! If it seems to be dry at all, I’d add a few tablespoons of water to it and cover.
Lori says
This was so good! I love how easy it was to make. My family loved it and they actually said they would prefer to not have the cream sauce with it.
Tracy says
Just made this today for my husband who is trying to watch what he eats. I am a very picky eater and although your picture is amazing I was unsure with a couple ingredients if I would eat. OMG amazing, I did the slow cooker version, I have an instant pot I am still not comfortable using it, this is simple, and easy thank you
Becca says
Yay!! I don’t care for the greek yogurt or cottage cheese, but they’re totally different when blended!
Pamela says
Super easy to make and so much flavoring. Will make again.