Chicken Broccoli Pasta Bake
Ingredients
2 tablespoon butter divided
1 lb chicken thigh filets cut in bite-size pieces
1 teaspoon paprika powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
½ lb dry penne pasta uncooked
½ lb broccoli cut in bite-sized pieces, stem peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves peeled and crushed, but in one piece
2 tablespoon chopped parsley fresh or frozen
1 cup shredded cheese divided
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese divided
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups milk
Directions
Preheat the oven to 390°F (200°C)
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a pan over medium-high heat. When the butter is melted, add in the chicken pieces. Season with paprika powder, onion powder, salt and pepper and mix well to spread out the seasonings. Cook for about 2 minutes per side, until the chicken has nice color. It does not have to be cooked all the way through at this stage as it will finish cooking in the oven.
Bring out a casserole dish that measures about 8×10 inches (20×25 cm). Grease with 1 tablespoon of butter.
Place the uncooked pasta in the greased casserole dish. Follow with the cooked chicken, including any leftover fat from frying. Then add chopped broccoli, garlic cloves, parsley and half of both the shredded neutral cheese and the shredded Parmesan. Mix as well as possible.
Pour over the cream and the milk, and top with the remaining cheese. Make sure all pieces of pasta are completely submerged.
Place in middle of the oven and cook for about 1 hour, until the pasta is cooked through. Check often toward the end, and cover with aluminum foil if it starts to get too much color. Then bring out, and let sit at least 10 minutes before serving.
