Pasta + chicken + broccoli + mushroom sauce = a comforting weekday meal. Instead of using milk or cream, I used chicken stock. Yep, I was thinking. Fewer calories without compromising the taste! Win. Win.
Makes enough for 4 hearty portions with leftovers!
Ingredients
- 2 chicken thighs, skin removed
- 1-2 chicken breasts, skinless and boneless
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 8oz. container of mushrooms, pre-sliced is nice
- 2 heaping tablespoons flour
- 1 teaspoons thyme
- 3/4 cups white wine
- 2 1/3 cups chicken stock
- 5 oz. cream cheese
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 1/2 lb. linguine (any shape/kind of pasta will work)
- 2 medium to large heads of broccoli, cut into bite sized pieces
- optional: 1/2 cup frozen peas (I didn’t add them this time)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees – if roasting chicken. If not, preheat oven during step 3.
1. Either use left over cooked chicken that you already have or roast some for 34-40 minutes with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Let cool before you shred.
2. Melt butter in medium to large sauce pan over medium heat. Add onions, mushrooms and a sprinkle of both salt and pepper. Saute for about 5-7 minutes, stirring every once in a while. Add thyme and flour. Stir to combine and cook for 2-3 minutes to cook out flour taste. Add wine, stirring constantly – mixture will be thick. Add 2 cups of stock while stirring. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Cook until the liquid is somewhat thick.
3. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package, strain and keep warm.
4. Turn heat to medium low. Add cream cheese and Parmesan to mushroom stock mixture. Stir occasionally. Might have to break up the cream cheese while it is melting. Cook until cream cheese is well combined, then turn heat off.
5. Combine cooked pasta, broccoli, shredded chicken and mushroom cheese mixture together into a deep oven proof dish. Mixing it in the dish works best- so you don’t have more dishes to do! Add 1/3 cups of the rest of the stock to the top. Cover with foil and cook until piping hot. About 30 minutes.
*if you add peas, add them with the broccoli- they don’t have to be thawed – since they will cook in the oven.
Sensible Lessons 