One. More. Week. Just one more week of summer vacation left. Have you seen the video of the mom singing “Bye, Bye, Bye” as the bus leaves on the first day of school? Yeah, that’s me right now. I’m ready to see that bus pull away (ok, we don’t have busses but if we did….) and I’m ready to get back to the “school year” schedule. Don’t get me wrong, I love my oldest son dearly. It is just that I’m 36 weeks pregnant, FAT as ever, out of energy, can’t bend over, and have exhausted all of our summer plans. But here I am making this Chicken Bacon Broccoli Pasta anyway!
I never thought I would be ready for summer to be over, but today when it hit me that next Tuesday is the first day of school I was kind of excited! Maybe it is because I really am just tired of adulting, or maybe it is because I have been telling myself over and over again that at the end of summer I will have a new baby. Which ever the case I’m just not so sad to see summer go this year.
Speaking of adulting, I did a little bit of it today and whipped up some brownies PLUS this delicious, cheesy, and somewhat indulgent pasta. Who doesn’t love a pasta dish like this one? Cheesy..check. Creamy..check. Bacony..check. Carb-o-licious..check. Oh and then there is the broccoli that I threw in there to convince myself I was being healthy..check. 🙂 This dinner is a win-win in the ingredient department, but even better is that it takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish! With back to school schedules in full swing I know I will be needing meals like this to get me through the week (and keep my kids from complaining).
Recipe Tips:
- I used thin sliced chicken breasts for this recipe, as I always do. If you pick up regular chicken breasts at the grocery store, you can easily slice them in half lengthwise before slicing into strips, or use a meat tenderizer to flatten them a bit before slicing into strips. There is something really gross about biting into a super thick and chunky piece of meat so I always recommend thinner pieces.
- I only cook the broccoli for a minute or two when I first put it in because it will continue cooking. When your broccoli brightens up in color you are good to add the rest of your ingredients.
- Additional salt and pepper to taste can make or break a recipe. The cheese in this recipe is pretty salty, so you probably won’t need to add too much additional seasoning if you do.
- When cooking your bacon you may notice some residue on the bottom of your pot. THIS IS GOOD. When you stir in your milk go ahead and scrape that residue off the bottom of your pan for extra flavor.
- As always when cooking I keep my burner at a medium temperature. Often times I feel like people want to crank up the heat but this can easily ruin a recipe. A steady low-medium is where I do most of my cooking!
- Recipe Update: I have made this recipe a couple times and have found that I like cooking the bacon separate from the rest for a crispier result. I just throw my bacon in the oven. When it is cooked I diced it up and mixed it in at the end.
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Chicken, Bacon, and Broccoli Pasta
By August 18, 2015
Published:- Yield: 3-4 Servings
- Prep: 5 mins
- Cook: 25 mins
- Ready In: 30 mins
One. More. Week. Just one more week of summer vacation left. Have you seen the video of the mom singing "Bye, Bye, Bye" …
Ingredients
- 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts thin sliced preferred
- 4 slices thick cut bacon
- 1 head fresh broccoli
- 1/4 cup flour **divided
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 2 cups penne pasta measured dry
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package direction. Slice chicken into thin strips, toss in 2 Tbsp. flour to lightly coat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Chop bacon into small pieces.
- Preheat large skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil, allow to heat up. Add chicken and brown lightly. Add bacon and cook until crisp. **You may be a brown residue on bottom of your pan by the time the bacon is crisp. This is good and will add flavor!
- Add broccoli, cook 2-3 minutes. Add your additional 2 Tbsp. of flour, salt, and pepper. Cook an additional minute, then add milk and bring to a light boil.
- Stir in cheeses and cooked pasta. Season with additional salt and pepper if needed.
Renee
Great recipe! Can you tell me if this can be frozen and re-heated? Thanks 🙂
Dana
I’m not sure how well it would freeze Renee, as I have never tried it. The only thing I would be weary of is the broccoli getting weird after freezing. If you give it a shot let me know!
Sloan Giles
Making this today and I plan on freezing in single serving containers for lunches. I have frozen several pasta broccoli recipes in the past and have never had an issue with funky broccoli (maybe not quite as crunchy but still yummy) but I’ll let you know if this one doesn’t freeze well.
Dana
Thanks Sloan! I’m weird with broccoli so it might just be me! 🙂