WARNING: If you have high cholesterol, heart disease, or any other medical issue that can be affected by butter, cream, and cheese, make this recipe at your own risk.

If, however, you don’t have any of those conditions but are willing to risk getting them or having a heart attack while having a delicious meal, this is the one dish you will want to be eating when it happens!

A recipe by Emeril Lagasse was the starting point for this, but I made several changes to it to keep the heat down enough for the wee beasts to eat it and to use some ingredients I already had in the pantry.

Chicken and Pasta in a Tomato-Chili Cream Sauce

12 ounces penne pasta

4 chicken breasts, rinsed and patted dry

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 tablespoons Essence of Emeril seasoning (if you can’t find this, follow the link to the original recipe where it tells how to make some)

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 cup finely chopped sweet yellow onion

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 1/2 cups (yes, cups!) heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 14 ounce can chopped tomatoes with chiles

2 teaspoons dried basil

1 cup shredded Three Pepper Cheese (I used Crystal Farms‘)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Preheat your oven to 350 F. Season the chicken breasts with 1 tablespoon Essense, salt and pepper. Cook in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat for 6 minutes on one side, flip and cook other side for 3 minutes. This will create a nice brown crust. Then put the skillet in the oven for another 10-15 minutes (depending on how thick the breasts are) to finish cooking the chicken.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil and add a little salt. Place the penne in the pot, stir to keep the pieces from sticking together, and bring the water back to a boil. Cook until al dente, about 9 minutes. Drain the pasta and return it to the pot.

While the pasta is cooking, make the sauce. In a large saute pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until they are soft and slightly caramelized, 4-5 minutes. Then add the garlic and saute 30 seconds to a minute while stirring to keep it from burning. Add the cream, the remaining 2 tablespoons of Essense, salt and pepper and bring the mixture to a boil. Let the sauce cook down for about 2 minutes.

Add the can of tomatoes and chiles (undrained) and basil and cook another 3-4 minutes. Mix together the pasta and cream sauce in either pan or in a large serving dish. Add the cheeses and chopped parsley and toss to blend.

Remove the chicken from the oven and let it rest for a few minutes. Then slice it and mix it into the pasta dish or put the pasta in a bowl and place some chicken slices on top. Then dig in and enjoy!