• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
The Hangry Economist logo
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
  • Recipes
    • Recipe Index
    • 30 Minutes or Less
    • Healthy-ish
    • Appetizers
    • Breakfast
    • Lunch
    • Dinner
    • Sides
  • Lifestyle
    • DC/MD/VA Local Finds
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipes
  • About Us
  • Lifestyle
  • Contact Us
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipes
    • About Us
    • Lifestyle
    • Contact Us
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×

    Home » Recipes

    Chicken Pesto Hearts of Palm Pasta

    Published: Jan 31, 2023 · 1 Comment

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    This chicken pesto hearts of palm pasta is super healthy and tastes so good you'll forget you're not eating real pasta. It's loaded with pesto, bacon, toasted pine nuts, and pesto-marinated chicken. As an added bonus, it's also dairy-free, gluten-free, Whole30, and paleo.

    Hearts of palm pasta in a bowl with pesto sauce, chicken, and pine nuts.

    This chicken pesto hearts of palm pasta is perfect for busy weeknights. The hearts of palm pasta cooks in a couple of minutes (you just have to heat it!), and most of the meal is made in one pan. We make our own pesto, but you can even cheat and use store-bought. It really couldn't be easier, healthier, or tastier.

    Serve this hearts of palm pesto pasta with our simple Italian salad or classic wedge salad.

    Looking for other pesto recipes? Try our pesto caprese pasta salad, shrimp and pesto pasta with tomatoes, or creamy pesto salmon.

    Jump to:
    • Key Ingredients
    • Step-by-Step Instructions
    • Frequently asked questions
    • Chicken Pesto Hearts of Palm Pasta Recipe
    • 💬 Comments
    Chicken pesto hearts of palm pasta in a bowl.

    Key Ingredients

    • Hearts of palm pasta- We use two packages of Palmini linguine--it's our favorite, and our local grocery store carries it. You can usually find it in the pasta aisle. Trader Joe's also has their own brand of hearts of palm pasta, as does Whole Foods.
    • Bacon
    • Pine nuts
    • Lemon zest
    • Chicken breasts or tenderloins
    • Salt and pepper
    Two packages of Palmini linguine.

    For the pesto:

    • Spinach
    • Basil
    • Olive oil
    • Garlic
    • Lemon juice
    • Almond butter
    • Salt and pepper

    Step-by-Step Instructions

    Step 1: Make the pesto (if you're using store-bought pesto, you can skip this step). Add spinach, basil, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, almond butter, black pepper, salt, and crushed red pepper to a food processor and blend until combined.

    Pesto ingredients in a food processor.
    Blended pesto ingredients in a food processor.

    Step 2: Prepare the chicken. Cut the chicken into thin bite-sized strips. Add them to a bowl with ½ a cup of the pesto, lemon zest, salt, and pepper. Set it aside. Reserve the rest of the pesto.

    Chicken cut up in a bowl.
    Chicken marinating in pesto in a bowl.

    Step 3: Toast the pine nuts. Add the pine nuts to a large pan over medium heat. Cook them for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently, until golden brown and toasted. Remove them from the pan and set aside.

    Pine nuts toasting in a pan.

    Step 4: Cook the bacon. Add the bacon to the same pan over medium heat. Cook for 7-8 minutes, or until crispy. Remove the bacon from the pan and set aside (leave the grease in the pan).

    Bacon cooking in a pan.
    Cooked bacon pieces resting on a plate.

    Step 5: Cook the chicken. Transfer the chicken to the same pan. Cook over medium heat for 8-10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.

    Raw pesto marinated chicken in a pan.
    Cooked pesto chicken in a pan.

    Step 6: Put it all together. Add the hearts of palm, remaining pesto, pine nuts, and bacon to the pan with the chicken. Stir to combine everything (tongs are useful here), and cook for an additional 2 minutes, until the hearts of palm is warm. Then enjoy!

    Finished chicken pesto hearts of palm pasta in a pan.

    Frequently asked questions

    What is hearts of palm?

    Hearts of palm is found in the core of certain palm trees. It's high in fiber, iron, zinc, magnesium, and potassium. The flavor is fairly neutral, so it's a great vehicle for sauce. I think it tastes like a super mellow artichoke but with a denser texture.

    Can I use store-bought pesto?

    Yes! Use whatever pesto is your favorite. Just skip step 1 and use your own pesto. Our pesto recipe makes about 1.75 cups.

    I can't find hearts of palm pasta. Can I use something else?

    You can use regular pasta or zucchini noodles. Just cook them according to package instructions, then add them to the rest of the ingredients at the very end.

    Hearts of palm pesto pasta on a fork.
    Chicken Pesto Hearts of Palm Pasta Recipe

    Chicken Pesto Hearts of Palm Pasta Recipe

    Recipe by Mollie

    This chicken pesto hearts of palm pasta is super healthy and tastes so good you'll forget you're not eating real pasta. It's loaded with pesto, bacon, toasted pine nuts, and pesto-marinated chicken. As an added bonus, it's also dairy-free, gluten-free, Whole30, and paleo.

    Course: DinnerCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy
    5 from 2 votes
    Pin
    Print
    Servings

    6

    servings
    Prep time

    10

    minutes
    Cook time

    20

    minutes
    Calories

    500

    kcal
    Total time

    30

    minutes
    Cook Mode

    Prevent your screen from going dark!

    Ingredients

    • For the pesto:
    • 6 cups 6 spinach

    • ¾ cup ¾ basil

    • ½ cup ½ extra virgin olive oil

    • 6 cloves 6 garlic

    • 3 tablespoons 3 lemon juice

    • 3 tablespoons 3 almond butter

    • 1 teaspoon 1 black pepper

    • ½ teaspoon ½ salt

    • ¼ teaspoon ¼ crushed red pepper

    • For everything else:
    • 1 pound 1 chicken breasts

    • 1 teaspoon 1 lemon zest

    • ¼ teaspoon ¼ salt

    • ¼ teaspoon ¼ black pepper

    • ½ cup ½ pine nuts

    • 6 slices 6 bacon, cut into small squares

    • 24 ounces 24 hearts of palm pasta

    Directions

    • Make the pesto (if you're using store-bought pesto, you can skip this step). Add spinach, basil, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, almond butter, black pepper, salt, and crushed red pepper to a food processor and blend until combined.
    • Cut the chicken into thin bite-sized strips. Add them to a bowl with ½ a cup of the pesto, lemon zest, salt, and pepper. Set it aside. Reserve the rest of the pesto.
    • Add the pine nuts to a large pan over medium heat. Cook them for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently, until golden brown and toasted. Remove them from the pan and set aside.
    • Add the bacon to the same pan over medium heat. Cook for 7-8 minutes, or until crispy. Remove the bacon from the pan and set aside (leave the grease in the pan).
    • Transfer the chicken to the same pan. Cook over medium heat for 8-10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.
    • Add the hearts of palm, remaining pesto, pine nuts, and bacon to the pan with the chicken. Stir to combine everything (tongs are useful here), and cook for an additional 2 minutes, until the hearts of palm is warm. Then enjoy!

    Notes

    • If you choose to use store-bought pesto, you'll need about a cup and three quarters (1.75 cups).

    Did you make this recipe?

    Tag and follow @hangryeconomist on Instagram

    Like this recipe?

    Follow @hangryeconomist on Pinterest

    More Recipes

    • Air fryer baby carrots in a serving bowl topped with green garnish.
      Air Fryer Baby Carrots
    • Brown butter sage ravioli in a bowl with peas and parmesan cheese.
      Brown Butter Sage Ravioli
    • Two purple rain cocktails garnished with lime.
      Purple Rain Cocktail
    • Strawberries, basil, and halloumi on skewers on a serving plate.
      Strawberry and Halloumi Skewers

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Sharie S. says

      February 08, 2023 at 6:22 pm

      Made this for dinner tonight, super yummy! The hearts of palm tasted just like regular pasta! Highly recommend!

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Primary Sidebar

    hi, we're Michael and Mollie

    Welcome! We are Michael & Mollie, a hangry economics enthusiast and her husband. Our goal is to provide you with delicious, accessible, and healthy-ish recipes that are both time- and money-efficient.

    More about us →

    trending Recipes

    • A bowl of creamy red pepper and tomato pasta garnished with basil.
      Creamy Red Pepper and Tomato Pasta
    • Escabeche Vegetable Salad
    • A grilled cheese burger in a basket with chips and tomato slices.
      Grilled Cheese Burger
    • Coconut Water Mocktail

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    Info

    • Privacy Policy
    • Accessibility Statement

    Contact

    • Email us

    Copyright © 2022 The Hangry Economist

    We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website. Learn more here.

    The Hangry Economist
    Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

    Strictly Necessary Cookies

    Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

    If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.