Chicken Alfredo Fritta Olive Garden Copycat Recipe

Description

Cheesy, garlic-spiked chicken alfredo oozing out of a homemade pizza pocket that are pillowy soft on the inside and fried crisp on the outside.

Scale

Ingredients

Pizza Dough

1 ⅓ cups warm water
1 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
3 ½ cups flour, divided
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

Baked Chicken

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon brown sugar, packed
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon dried oregano, (or thyme, parsley, rosemary)
1/2 teaspoon salt, (use seasoned salt for extra flavor)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
cracked black pepper, to taste
1/2 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 chicken breasts
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons butter

Alfredo Sauce

½ cup butter
2 cups heavy whipping cream
4 ounces cream cheese
4 garlic cloves, minced (in a pinch use 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
¼ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
¼ teaspoon pepper (or to taste)
1 cup Parmesan or Romano cheese freshly grated

Optional – parsley for garnish and marinara sauce for dipping

Instructions

Pizza Dough

In a liquid measuring cup, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water. Set aside for 5 minutes to bloom.
In a bowl, add 3 cups (375 g) of the flour, Parmesan, baking powder, salt, and sugar, and stir to combine.
Add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and stir to combine. Pour the yeast water over the flour mixture and stir until the dough forms into a ball.
Use remaining flour for dusting the surface. Scrape the dough out of the bowl onto your floured surface. Knead the dough for about 10 minutes until the dough is tight and form the dough into a ball.
Pour 1 tablespoon olive oil in a bowl. Place the dough in the bowl.
Cover, let rise for 1 hour in a warm area, or until the dough has doubled in size.
Flour the surface. Flip bowl over surface and let the dough fall out of the bowl. Cut the dough into 2-inch (5-cm) pieces. Roll into balls.
Begin forming the dough into a circle about ½-inch (1-cm) thick and 5 inches (12-cm) wide, making sure the middle of the circle is not too thin. Repeat with the other balls of dough.

Baked Chicken

Preheat oven to 425°F
Using a meat mallet or rolling pin, pound each chicken breast thin, making sure your fillets are all the same thickness to ensure even cooking.
Combine all dry ingredients into a small bowl
Line a baking pan with parchment paper or foil. Transfer chicken to the pan and toss chicken in the seasoning. Drizzle with the oil and rub seasoning all over to evenly coat.
Scatter small chunks of butter all over the tops of the chicken breasts so they will melt into the chicken as it cooks.
Bake chicken in preheated oven for 16-18 minutes, or until internal temperature is 165°F (75°C) using a meat thermometer. It should be golden with crisp edges.*
Move chicken to the top rack and broil on high heat during the last 3-4 minutes of cooking until golden and crisp around the edges.
Remove pan from oven, cover loosely and let rest for 10 minutes before piercing or cutting into it. Once cooled, chop chicken into dime-sized chunks.

Alfredo Sauce

In a medium saucepan add butter, heavy whipping cream, and cream cheese. Cook over medium heat and whisk until melted.
Add the minced garlic, garlic powder, italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Continue to whisk until smooth. Add the grated parmesan cheese.
Bring to a simmer and continue to cook for about 3-5 minutes or until it starts to thicken

Assemble & Fry

Spoon 1-2 tablespoon of Alfredo sauce on to the center of the dough.
Spoon 1-2 tablespoons chopped chicken.
Fold the dough over the fillings and seal. Pinch the edge of the dough together and fold back. Repeat with the rest of the dough.
Heat 2 inches (5 cm) of oil until the temperature reaches 365˚F (185˚C).
Fry the calzones 2 at a time for about 3 minutes on each side. Remove from oil and drain on a paper towel-lined plate.
Place a bowl filled with the rest of the tomato sauce on the plate.
Sprinkle with parsley. Serve immediately.

Notes

Frying foods can be a bit stressful when you have multiple items to prep and cook. A candy thermometer is always recommended. In this recipe we are baking chicken, making homemade alfredo sauce, making pizza dough from scratch and then assembling and frying altogether. It doesn’t have to be as overwhelming as it sounds, this recipe is actually super simple if you organize it correctly. It can totally lessen the stress of multiple things cooking at once.

Here is how I like to do it: Prep the pizza dough and while it’s rising for an hour… then bake the chicken (this can also be done the day before). While chicken is baking, make alfredo sauce (this can be done the day before). Set both aside to cool while you finish the pizza dough. Assemble the alfredo pockets while oil is heating.