Chicken Pasta Primavera Dish (Printer-friendly)

Delight in a colorful chicken pasta tossed with fresh veggies and a creamy Parmesan sauce.

# What You'll Need:

→ Proteins

01 - 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 10.5 oz), cut into bite-sized pieces

→ Vegetables

02 - 1 red bell pepper, sliced
03 - 1 zucchini, sliced into half-moons
04 - 1 yellow squash, sliced into half-moons
05 - 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
06 - 1 cup broccoli florets

→ Pasta

07 - 10 oz penne or farfalle pasta

→ Dairy

08 - ¼ cup heavy cream (60 ml)
09 - ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (30 g)

→ Pantry & Aromatics

10 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
11 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
12 - 1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs
13 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

→ Garnish

14 - Fresh basil leaves, torn (optional)
15 - Extra Parmesan cheese, for serving

# Directions:

01 - Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente. Reserve ½ cup of the pasta cooking water, then drain pasta.
02 - Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper, then sauté until golden and fully cooked, about 5 to 6 minutes. Remove chicken and set aside.
03 - In the same skillet, add additional olive oil if needed and sauté minced garlic for 30 seconds until fragrant.
04 - Add red bell pepper, zucchini, yellow squash, and broccoli florets. Cook, stirring frequently, for 4 to 5 minutes until vegetables are just tender.
05 - Stir in cherry tomatoes and the cooked chicken. Continue cooking for 2 minutes.
06 - Reduce heat to medium-low. Add cooked pasta, heavy cream, Parmesan cheese, and dried Italian herbs. Toss to combine and heat through. Gradually add reserved pasta water as needed to create a light sauce.
07 - Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately, garnished with torn fresh basil and additional Parmesan cheese if desired.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • Five varieties of vegetables means you're eating a garden, not just pasta, and your body feels it immediately.
  • It comes together in under forty minutes, which somehow feels like cheating for a dish this bright and filling.
  • The cream and cheese create this silky, barely-there sauce that lets the vegetables actually taste like themselves instead of drowning in something heavy.
02 -
  • Reserving that pasta water is not a suggestion—it's the difference between a dish that feels sticky and one that feels intentional, and the starch is what makes it work, not more cream.
  • The vegetables will continue cooking slightly after you add the pasta and heat everything together, so pulling them out while they still have a bit of bite means they'll be perfect, not soft, by the time it hits the plate.
03 -
  • Cut your vegetables into roughly the same size so they cook evenly and the dish feels cohesive rather than chaotic on the plate.
  • If you're cooking for people with different preferences, cook the vegetables in a separate pan first and let people choose their ratio—you'll avoid arguments about texture and get compliments instead.
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