Thank you Swanson® for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own.
Today is a special day. One of my favorite pastas, Cajun Chicken Pasta, is getting a makeover into a comforting, cozy, palate pleasing soup bursting with everything you love about the traditional pasta: Cajun spiced chicken, bell peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms and peas… all swimming in more creamy, Cajun sauce!
Somehow in my mind, any food in a bowl – or any food I can slurp – magically feels more indulgent and comforting. Maybe its because I get to cradle the warm bowl in between my hands or maybe its because soups are “hot” and so I’m forced to savor every last drop…. and in the case of this Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta – that’s a very good thing.
I have always loved Cajun food. It tastes so vibrant with its cayenne pepper, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano etc. In my original Cajun Chicken Pasta recipe, I used a lot of these spices. But then I was introduced to the new Swanson® Louisiana Cajun Flavor Infused Broth. It is already packed with the robust flavors of Cajun seasonings, green bell pepper, celery, onion and garlic, so it eliminates the need for a lot of extra spices. The first time I used this flavor infused broth, I was expecting the end soup to still need some spices, but it didn’t need a thing!
With the help of Swanson® Louisiana Cajun Flavor Infused Broth, this soup comes together in less than 30 minutes once you start cooking (this isn’t counting the time the chicken sits with the rub) and is full of accessible ingredients – you probably have most of them on hand.
To make this Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta Soup, first, melt butter and saute onions and mushrooms for a few minutes…
Add bell peppers and garlic, sauté for 30 seconds then add flour and cook for a few minutes…
Add Swanson® Louisiana Cajun Flavor Infused Broth…
Along with some chicken broth and cream and simmer until thickened…
Add cooked mini bowtie pasta, cooked chicken, peas and tomatoes with green chilies and heat through…
Stir in Parmesan cheese, lime juice and fresh basil …
And easy, creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta Soup is served! Grab a bowl, its rich, cozy comforting indulging time!
Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta Soup
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Ingredients
- 6 ounces mini Farfalle pasta or Rigatoni
- olive oil
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin
- 2-3 teaspoons Cajun seasoning (3 for more spicy)
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
- 1 small red onion, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 32 oz. carton Swanson® Louisiana Cajun Flavor Infused Broth
- 1 14.5 oz. can Swanson® Chicken Broth
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream mixed with 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 cup frozen petite peas, thawed
- 1 10 oz. can tomatoes with green chilies, drained
- 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons lime juice plus more for garnish
- 1/4 cup fresh basil cut into thin strips
- chopped bacon for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon olive oil and Cajun Spices. Add chicken and coat. Refrigerate for 30 minutes (time permitting) as you prep the other ingredients.
- After 30 minutes, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken and cook, undisturbed for 2-4 minutes, or until nicely browned on one side. Turn chicken over, add ½ cup Cajun Broth, cover and reduce heat to medium. Cook for approximately 6-8 more minutes (depending on thickness of chicken), or until chicken is cooked through. Remove to a cutting board and let rest 5-10 minutes before dicing into bite size pieces.
- Meanwhile, cook pasta al dente in generously salted water. Rinse and set aside.
- Melt butter in large stockpot over medium heat. Add mushrooms and onions and cook until onions are tender, about 5 minutes. Add bell peppers and garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Sprinkle in flour and cook, stirring constantly for 3 minutes.
- Gradually stir in remaining Cajun Broth, chicken broth and heavy cream. Bring soup to boil, then reduce to a simmer, stirring frequently until thickened to desired consistency, approximately 3-5 minutes.
- Return chopped chicken to the pot along with peas, tomatoes, and cooked pasta. Simmer until heated through then stir in Parmesan until melted followed by lime juice and basil.*
- Taste and add additional salt, pepper cayenne/hot sauce to taste.
- Garnish individual bowls with fresh lime juice and bacon (optional).
Notes
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Teresa says
This looks so wonderful. I love the flavors.
Mary Ellen says
This soup looks good and easy too. What a great combination of flavors.
Erica (@Erica's Recipes) says
ohhh this looks so tasty! Love the flavors going on here.
sarah says
mmmm, I love the mushrooms the chicken the Cajun and cheese. Just an all around perfect soup!
Yvonne [Tried and Tasty] says
Oh yum! This looks GREAT! Your photos are beautiful!
shelby says
I absolutely love soups. They are so easy to take the leftovers for lunch too! This sounds and looks so flavorful and delicious!
Rachael says
I think I could bathe in a vat of that and be perfectly content! So much delicious in one place. My stomach is literally growling.
Sheena @ Hot Eats and Cool Reads says
Such a great idea for a soup! Love these delicious flavors!
Melinda says
This looks yummy! However, no one sells the Swanson broths around here. I think it’s only sold in the US.
Can you give me a substitution recipe for the broth? Thanks!
Jen says
Hi Melinda! You can use regular chicken stock instead of the Cajun infused broth and then add additional Cajun seasoning. I am not how much extra seasoning equals the Cajun broth, so you will just have to add to your liking. Enjoy!
Michele @ Flavor Mosaic says
This looks wonderful! I love Swanson’s!
Renee's Kitchen Adventures says
The perfect soup for this time of year!!
Kristin @ Dizzy Busy and Hungry! says
Soup is such a great dish to serve this time of of. We have it for dinner at least once a week all winter long. This is a perfect one to serve for a family dinner!
Wendy says
I made this last week and my whole family gobbled it up and voted it a “keeper.” Thanks for such a great recipe!
Jen says
Hi Wendy, I am so happy you found a new “keeper” for your family – I know how hard that can be! Thanks for letting me know everyone enjoyed it! Happy 2015!
Mitzi says
i made this soup and it is amazing. However, my husband and I cannot eat it all at once, does it freeze well?
Jen says
Hi Mitzi! I am so happy you both loved the soup! Unfortunately the completed soup does not freeze well because the pasta becomes mushy when frozen/reheated. If you want to freeze some soup the next time you make it, then add pasta only to individual servings and freeze the soup without the pasta then add fresh pasta to the soup after reheated. Hope this helps!
Kelly says
We just finished the batch I made last week and I am still so obsessed with this soup! Awesome recipe and will definitely make again!
Jen says
YAY! I am so happy to hear you are “obsessed” with this soup – the ultimate compliment! Thank you so much Kelly!
Alecia says
I see where 1 14.5 oz. can Swanson® Chicken Broth listed under ingredients but do not see where this is used in the recipe. Am I missing something?
Jen says
No you aren’t – I am! Sorry! I have revised the recipe. The 14.5 oz. can Swanson® Chicken Broth should be added in step 5 along with the Cajun Broth. Thanks and enjoy!
Gina says
Love Love Love this soup!!! Its amazing and so beautiful too! Thank you fantastic soup that I will make again and again.
Jen says
You are so welcome Gina, thanks for the thanks! So happy you love it so much :)!
Tiffany says
I just made this soup for the 7th (10th? 15th?) time since finding the recipe a year ago and I wanted to leave a comment on how fantastic it is. My husband and I love it, it’s a great combination of freshness and still simple to make, plus it’s filling and combines so many of our favorite flavors. You do great work, thank you for sharing it with the rest of us!!!
Jen says
I am so happy you took the time to comment and let me know how much you loved this soup – yay!! Thank you so much Tiffany! I hope you continue to find more recipes to love here!
sonya says
I’m looking for the original recipe as I cannot find the Swanson’s Cajun Flavor infused chicken broth. Would you please post the original recipe for those of us who aren’t able to purchase the flavored broth. Thank you
Jen says
Hi Sonya! This is the original recipe – my own creation using the Cajun Flavored Broth. If you can’t find Swanson’s flavored broth then I recommend adding Cajun seasoning to taste. hope this helps!
Jennifer Connelly says
I made this tonight and it was a hit. I couldn’t find the Cajun broth (our store only had the tortilla and one other one), so I dumped in a bunch of Cajun spice. You couldn’t really taste it, but it didn’t matter because the rest was delicious anyway. I even used the powdered Parmesan because I didn’t have any shredded. It was amazing. I ended up adding the entire pint of cream to the soup because I had no use for the left over. After it sat it was so creamy it was more like a casserole, but I loved it. I served it with buttermilk biscuits and everyone had seconds.
Jen says
Hi Jennifer, I am so happy you and everyone else loved this soup and so glad you were still able to make it using Cajun spices. I am drooling over the whole pint of cream – oh my creaminess – sounds AMAZING as do your buttermilk biscuits. Thanks for commenting and for trying my recipes!
Diana says
Swanson stopped making the Cajun chicken broth 🙁 This was by far my favorite recipe. I tried it by adding cajun seasoning to regular chicken broth and it didn’t taste anything like the recipe. Do you have any suggestions on how to recreate the broth?
Jen says
nooooo! how disappointing! I am sorry Diana! I am thinking the best substitution would some sort of gumbo base or starter like this one: https://www.cajungrocer.com/louisiana-cajun-gumbo-mix.html?gclid=Cj0KEQjwvve_BRDmg9Kt9ufO15EBEiQAKoc6qlyrdskoegZVsndYeBvU4peAL0k9w1kxEaMGjonGFagaAvLv8P8HAQ hope that helps!
Vonna Howell says
I made your Albondigas soup on New Year’s Day. It was incredible! Looking forward to preparing more of your delicious recipes!
Jen says
Thank you so much for taking the time to comment Vonna! I’m so pleased you loved the Albondigas Soup! I hope you find many new favorites here. Happy New Year!