Broccoli and chicken pasta

Recipe for broccoli and chicken pasta

Preparation and cooking

• - Prepare ingredients for pasta sauce.
  Boil frozen broccoli in abundant salted water following the directions on the package.
  Be careful: your broccoli should still be crisp and firm because, as you see in the photo, this kind of vegetables lose its shape very easily ;)
  Remove it, when cooked, with a skimming ladle and put apart.
  Preserve the water in which you've cooked broccoli.
  Boil cherry tomatoes for 1 minute.
  In this way you can peel them easily.
  Remove them from the boiling water with a skimming ladle.
  Let them cool and peel.
  Cut chicken breasts into thin strips.
• - Prepare pasta sauce.
  Put olive oil, bay leaf and anchovies in a non-stick deep frying pan.
  Melt anchovies in olive oil over a very low heat, stirring frequently.
  Then add chicken strips and let them brown for few minutes, stirring now and then.
  At this point pour in wine.
  Let flavor a minute.
  Now add marjoram, peeled cherry tomatoes, tomato paste and capers.
  Increase the heat, season to taste with salt and continue cooking until chicken is tender and wine is well evaporated.
  Add hot water only if necessary.
  Once turned off the heat add chives too and stir.
• - Cook pasta.
  Meanwhile cook pasta al dente stage in the same water where you've cooked your broccoli.
• - The last step.
  Remove pasta from boiling water with a skimming ladle and transfer it onto the pan with the chicken sauce.
  Stir very well and cook for a minute in order to flavor all the ingredients.
  Add broccoli only at the last moment.
  Stir with delicacy.

Just before serving

• - Transfer your pasta into individual plates.
• - Serve at once.

Note

Tips

• - You can also use fresh broccoli (400g - 14 ounces). Cook broccoli until tender but according to your personal taste.
• - You can also purée cooked broccoli and add it to the chicken sauce in the last minutes of cooking. In this way you could camouflage them to those children who don't like vegetables. Besides you obtain a creamy sauce.
• - I often use whole wheat pasta or kamut pasta for this recipe as you can see in the photo but you can choose the short pasta you prefer.
• - You can also use canned cherry tomatoes with all its preserving juice. In this case cook the sauce on medium heat and reduce the amount of wine.
• - For an healthier recipe. Don't saute anchovy fillets in olive oil. On the contrary put the following ingredients together in the pan: chicken pieces, anchovy fillets, capers in vinegars, cherry tomatoes, tomato paste, wine and aromatic herbs. Season to taste with salt and pepper (if liked) and cook until chicken is tender and cooking juice is well reduced. Once pasta is cooked transfer it to the pan and complete its cooking stirring with delicacy. Add boiled broccoli at last moment, a few seconds before turning off your stove, and stir. Turn off the stove and add olive oil. Stir. Olive oil will keep all its nutritive properties!

Menu planning

• - Do you like this pasta recipe idea? Prepare it for you Sunday lunch or for get-togethers in winter when you have guests that like Italian recipes.
  Example of Italian menu with pasta, chicken and broccoli.
  Starter: choose your favorite among Italian antipasto, canapés, crostini, Italian finger food, savory tarts.
  Main dish: this pasta dish
  Dessert: in the directory dedicated to cakes and desserts you can easily find a seasonal cake or dessert according to your taste.

Useful links for this recipe

• - Here's the link to Italian antipasto. Browse this directory to choose your favorite recipe.
• - Finally Italian dessert recipes.

Healthy eating

• - Pasta penne with chicken and broccoli is a tasty one-plate meal. You can serve 2 to 3 people if they don't eat a lot. Complete your meal with seasonal fresh fruit.
  Here are the doses per head if you have to change servings: 70g (2 1/2 ounces) short pasta, 100g (3 1/2 ounces) chicken breast, 100 to 150g (3 1/2 to 5 1/3 ounces) frozen broccoli, 150g (5 1/3 ounces) cherry tomatoes, half a tablespoon tomato paste, 2 anchovy fillets, half a tablespoon capers in vinegar, 100ml (3 1/3 fluid ounces- less than half a cup) white wine, aromatic herbs and 2 teaspoons olive oil.
  
• - As you can read in the nutrition facts this pasta dish is rich in protein. You should choose low-protein food to complete your daily plan such as a savory tart with vegetable ingredients or a soup.

Loretta

What's the right wine ?

My husband and I like very much to eat a glass of Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi (white wine of Marche - Italy) with this penne pasta.