Summer Garden Pasta
The perfect easy, light, & fresh pasta! Full of vegetables & chicken it's very easy to customize & make it your own!
Servings 6
Ingredients
- 1 lb. box of spaghetti noodles
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
- 4 heaping cups broccoli (I used 2 crowns: 1 small & 1 large.)
- ~1 lb. chicken breasts (or a rotisserie chicken)
- 1/3 cup olive oil + some for drizzling over broccoli
- 1/3-1/4 cup lemon juice (depending on how lemon-y you like it)
- 3 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 + 1/4-1/2 tsp garlic powder, divided (the 1/4-1/2 tsp. depends on your preference)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese plus some for topping
Instructions
- Fill up a large pot with water to cook the spaghetti noodles, add a turn or two of the pot with olive oil, & add a heavy pinch of salt. Place it on the stove & turn it on to bring to a boil.
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Place the broccoli on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Drizzle some olive oil over the broccoli. Sprinkle 1 tsp. of garlic powder plus ½ tsp. salt, and ½ tsp. pepper on top. Using your hands or tongs, toss the broccoli all together so it’s covered in olive oil and the seasonings. Set aside.
- Using the 3 tsp. of Italian seasoning, rub it over both sides of the chicken breasts. Set aside
- Place the broccoli in the oven to roast for 18 minutes.
- When the water for the pasta is boiling, add the noodles & cook them to your liking. I like it past al dente so I cook them for roughly 14 minutes.
- Cook the chicken however you prefer: sauté,bake, or grill. I grill & depending on how big they are, I cook them for roughly 7 minutes per side.
- While everything is cooking, halve the cherry tomatoes.
- During the last few minutes of cooking time for the roasted broccoli, pasta, & chicken, place the remaining two cups of broccoli in a microwaveable bowl. Wet a paper towel & squeeze out excess water over the broccoli, place the paper towel over the bowl, place in the microwave & cook for 2 minutes.
- When the pasta is ready, drain it into a colander & immediately place back into the pot. Once the chicken is done, cut it up into bite sized pieces.
- Add the roasted broccoli, steamed broccoli,cherry tomatoes, & chicken on top of the noodles.
- Pour the 1/3 cup of olive oil, 1/3- ¼ cup of lemon juice (depending on your preference), plus a ¼- ½ tsp. of garlic powder (depending on your preference) and the ¼ cup of grated Parmesan cheese.
- Toss it all together & enjoy!
Notes
If you want to roast all of the broccoli, double the amount of seasoning for it & roast it for 20-22 minutes. Begin checking around the 20 minute mark.
If you want to steam all of the broccoli, follow the same instructions but cook it for 2 minutes & 35 seconds.