Chicken, Ziti and Broccoli – A Northern Italian Delight!

When the weather starts to get cold and my family and I are craving some comfort food, the perfect remedy to satisfy that craving is…..to do the chicken dance!!! After….we prepare and eat a Northern Italian delight of Chicken, Ziti, and Broccoli. Restaurants all over the world have recipes for this classic and I’m just joining the fray by adding another to the collection. However, this rendition stays a little closer to the healthier side, so sit back and enjoy Chicken, Ziti, Broccoli recipe…what a delight!

To start our Chicken, Ziti, Broccoli dinner we chop the chicken into small chunks (trimming the fat off) and seasoning with salt and pepper. In a large pan, add the chicken with olive oil and cook until the outsides begin to turn white, then add finely chopped garlic (a lot of garlic!!!), salt, and pepper. For about the time it takes for the chicken to cook, the same time will take for the water to boil to add your ziti. Now many recipes include adding cream, wine, and or baking the dish but Paggi Pazzo’s version tries to keep it light and healthy (not to mention faster to prepare). In addition, the extra garlic added to the dish provides a nice flavor that makes up for the need to add cream or a thick sauce. Once the water is ready to boil, add the ziti and let cook just before al dente because we’ll be sauteing the pasta a little longer with the chicken. After adding the ziti to the boiling water, be sure that your broccoli crowns have been cleaned and the stems chopped so they can be added to the chicken and garlic pan (add a liitle pasta water to the pan to help flavor the dish). Drain the ziti and add to the pan of chicken, garlic, broccoli and saute for another 5-7 minutes over low-medium heat, keeping the cover on when not stirring. It’s almost chicken dance time!

Were just minutes away from enjoying our Chicken, Ziti, Broccoli so hang in there! Remove the pan from the stove and generously grade Reggiano Parmigianno over the pan, stirring to allow the cheese throughout the dish. Now you’re ready to serve and delight your guests and family! It’s not only a great healthy dish but it takes a little over 30 minutes to have it all done. My mother made this recipe quite regularly growing up with chicken stock and then baking the dish covered with Reggiano Parmiganno on top, and it was fantastic! But I find this dish to be almost as tasty and easy to prepare in about half the time. So there you have it, Chicken, Ziti, and Broccoli from Paggi Pazzo, enjoy!

Chicken, Ziti, and Broccoli Recipe

Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

• 2 (8 ounce) chicken breast fillets
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 pound ziti (Barilla)
• 1 cup fresh or frozen broccoli
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 cup Reggiano Parmigiano

Cooking Directions

1. Chop garlic finely and cut broccoli into chunks, florets and stems
2. Clean chicken, trim fat, season with salt and pepper, then cut into chunks
3. Heat large pan medium-to-high with olive oil
4. Add chicken to pan and cook until edges begin to turn white
5. Add garlic, salt and pepper
6. Boil pasta water and when ready, add ziti. At same time add broccoli to chicken and garlic pan
7. Cook ziti for 8 minutes, just under al dente
8. When ziti is cooked, add 1/3 ladel cup of pasta water to pan with chicken, garlic, and broccoli then drain pasta and add to pan
9. Saute, stir for several minutes, then cover pan for 5-7 minutes
10. Remove pan from stove and add grated Reggiano Parmigiano
11. Ready to serve