Chicken Ziti Broccoli

Whenever we go out for Italian food, I can pretty much guess what Brian is going to order. Chicken Parmesan or Chicken Ziti Broccoli. Occasionally he surprises me and orders something different but if either of those meals are on the menu it's almost a sure bet.

We didn't feel like going to the grocery store on Saturday morning like we usually do, so I was looking in the refrigerator/freezer/pantry to see what we could make up. When I mentioned that we had broccoli in the refrigerator and chicken in the freezer Brian requested some chicken ziti broccoli.

This recipe came together very quickly and was super delicious. This will definitely be making more appearances in our weekly menus.

Ingdients

- 1 lb chicken breasts
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 1 lb pasta (shape of choice)
- 1 head of broccoli chopped in florets
- 1 1/2 cups milk (I had whole on hand but any should work)
- 4 ounces reduced fat cream cheese at room temperature
- 1/2 grated parmesan cheese
- salt and pepper to taste

1.) Salt and pepper the chicken and then rub in about half of the lemon zest. Grill the chicken until cooked through then slice thinly
2.) Cook the pasta according to the package directions adding the broccoli in the last 2 minutes of cooking time, save about 1 cup of cooking liquid before draining
3.) After the pasta is cooked, use the same pot to heat the pasta water, milk, cream cheese and parmesan, whisking to combine
4.) Simmer the sauce until bubbly and slightly thickened then stir in the remaining zest, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste
5.) In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients and enjoy!