Chicken & Bowtie Pasta

This is one of my favorite recipes to make because I love ALL the ingredients a lot. Plus, I got the best compliment ever from my neighbor on this dish; she said it was restaurant quality! I know you aren't supposed to toot your own horn, but I think so too. haha!

The original recipe only called for chicken, bowtie pasta, and broccoli and half the sauce. I added in the roasted red pepper and doubled the sauce. Sometimes I make my own roasted red peppers, but today I am using jarred. I am pretty sure I got the original recipe from the Food Network site, but I recently searched their site for it using the term "chicken and broccoli" and I could not find it. Oh well.

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CHICKEN AND BOWTIES
3 broccoli heads, cut into bite-size pieces
1/2 lb. bowtie pasta
6 tbsp. butter
6 tbsp. olive oil
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 lemons: juice from both and 1 tbsp. zest
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. salt
1 jar roasted red peppers, cut into thin strips OR 2 freshly roasted red peppers, cut into thin strips
3 chicken breasts, seasoned, cooked and diced

In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook the broccoli for 3 minutes. Remove the broccoli with a slotted spoon (do NOT dump out the water!) and place in a colander set in a large bowl; cover with tin foil and set aside.

In the same water used for the broccoli, cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain well.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat the butter and oil. Add the garlic and lemon zest and cook for one minute. Off the heat add the salt, pepper, and lemon juice; stir well. Then add the red pepper and chicken, stir well to coat. (You may need to heat it all up over low heat if your chicken or peppers are cold.)

Return pasta and broccoli to the large pot used to cook them, then add the chicken mixture and stir well.
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ROASTED RED PEPPERS
red bell peppers (however many you wish to make)
olive oil
salt
pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place whole peppers in a 2" deep pan. Coat with olive oil and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Use your hands to move them around so they are really coated.

Roast the peppers for 30-40 minutes, turning twice during the roasting time. Remove the pan from the oven and immediately cover with foil. Set aside for 30 minutes, or until peppers are cool enough to handle.

Discard the stem, seeds and peel. Save as much juice as possible to store peppers in until ready for use.
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SEASONED CHICKEN BREASTS
boneless, skinless chicken breasts
salt
pepper
paprika
olive oil

Season chicken breasts with salt, pepper and paprika. Coat a large skillet with olive oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken breasts and cover; cook for 8 minutes. Lower heat to medium, turn breasts over, cover again and cook an additional 8 minutes. Let cool, and cut into bite-size pieces.
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My mouth is watering just thinking about it! I always have seasoned, cooked, diced chicken in the fridge; it is one of my kids favorite snacks. I love the taste of fresh roasted peppers, but when they are on sale for $1 a jar and you are short on time, jarred wins.

My FiL never came over for dinner yesterday, my husband had to work really late so he called his dad and re-scheduled for today. It actually works out better for my FiL because after dinner tonight I will send him home with the leftover scampi from yesterday.

Happy eating!