This chicken, broccoli and cheese pasta dish is based on a recipe from a book called The Pasta Bible by Jeni Wright. I bought it quite a few years ago when a selection of books used to be available at places of work for staff to buy – the selection of books was always quite varied and could be anything from kids books to recipe books. I used to make this dish all the time and almost forgot about it…how could I…it’s delicious!! So glad I recently looked through this book again to jog my memory – we enjoyed it just as much as we always did.
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Tips
- The original recipe states to use penne pasta and gorgonzola cheese. I’ve also made it with fusilli and rigatoni. Any creamy blue cheese will work fine – most recently I used Castello creamy blue soft cheese – it was yum!
- In the ingredients list I have doubled the original stated quantity of broccoli to 230g instead of 115g as we really like it.
- I also changed the quantity of chicken to a weight – you can use chicken breasts or chicken thighs…or a mixture of both.
- The recipe is easily halved if you’re only making for 2 people, and if cooking for 1, halve the recipe and enjoy leftovers another day!
- An alternative suggestion from the book is to use leeks instead of broccoli if you prefer – fry them with the chicken.
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Ingredients
- 230g broccoli florets, cut into small sprigs (see Tips)
- 50g butter
- 500g skinless boneless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into thin strips (see Tips)
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 400g dried penne or pasta of your choice (see Tips)
- 120ml dry white wine
- 200ml double cream – we use Elmlea to reduce the calories
- 90g gorgonzola cheese, rind removed and diced small (see Tips)
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- freshly grated parmesan cheese, to serve
Instructions
- Plunge the broccoli into a saucepan of boiling salted water. Bring back to the boil and boil for 2 minutes, then drain in a colander and refresh under cold running water. Shake well to remove the surplus water and set aside to drain completely.
- Melt the butter over a medium heat in a large frying pan or casserole dish, add the chicken and garlic, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and stir well. Fry for 3 minutes or until the chicken becomes white. Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.
- Pour the wine and cream over the chicken mixture in the pan, stir to mix, then simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Add the broccoli, increase the heat and toss to heat it through and mix it with the chicken. Taste for seasoning.
- Drain the pasta and tip it into the sauce. Add the gorgonzola and toss well.
- Serve with grated parmesan and maybe some homemade bread on the side!
Chicken, Broccoli and Cheese Pasta
Ingredients
- 230g broccoli florets cut into small sprigs (see Notes)
- 50g butter
- 500g skinless boneless chicken breasts or thighs cut into thin strips (see Notes)
- 2 garlic cloves crushed
- 400g dried penne or pasta of your choice (see Notes)
- 120ml dry white wine
- 200ml double cream we use Elmlea to reduce the calories
- 90g gorgonzola cheese rind removed and diced small (see Notes)
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- freshly grated parmesan cheese to serve
Instructions
- Plunge the broccoli into a saucepan of boiling salted water. Bring back to the boil and boil for 2 minutes, then drain in a colander and refresh under cold running water. Shake well to remove the surplus water and set aside to drain completely.
- Melt the butter over a medium heat in a large frying pan or casserole dish, add the chicken and garlic, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and stir well. Fry for 3 minutes or until the chicken becomes white. Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.
- Pour the wine and cream over the chicken mixture in the pan, stir to mix, then simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Add the broccoli, increase the heat and toss to heat it through and mix it with the chicken. Taste for seasoning.
- Drain the pasta and tip it into the sauce. Add the gorgonzola and toss well.
- Serve with grated parmesan and maybe some homemade bread on the side!
Notes
- The original recipe states to use penne pasta and gorgonzola cheese. I’ve also made it with fusilli and rigatoni. Any creamy blue cheese will work fine - most recently I used Castello creamy blue soft cheese - it was yum!
- In the ingredients list I have doubled the original stated quantity of broccoli to 230g instead of 115g as we really like it.
- I also changed the quantity of chicken to a weight - you can use chicken breasts or chicken thighs...or a mixture of both.
- The recipe is easily halved if you're only making for 2 people, and if cooking for 1, halve the recipe and enjoy leftovers another day!
- An alternative suggestion from the book is to use leeks instead of broccoli if you prefer – fry them with the chicken.
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