NLK's Healthy Chicken Vegetable Casserole
- Number of Servings: 8
Ingredients
1 1/2 lb. chicken breasts, boneless and skinless, poached, and cubed into 1/2 inch squares2 T all purpose flour2 T butter, unsalted [used Smart Balance Light]10 oz skim milk1 T black pepper1 T Italian seasoning1 T parmesan cheese, grated7 oz penne pasta, whole wheat2 heads, approx. 12 ounces broccoli, chopped2 yellow or orange bell peppers, chopped4 cloves garlic, minced1 medium onion, chopped1 zucchini, chopped [Substituted 2 yellow summer squash instead]4 oz. mushrooms, sliced1/3 c monterey jack cheese [used 1/2 cup part-skim mozzarella instead]nonstick cooking spray
1. Poach the chicken by placing chicken breasts in a small saucepan with a lid. Cover chicken with cool water. Place saucepan over a burner on low to moderate heat. Bring to a simmer; cover with lid and poach for approximately 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked. (This step can be done the night before.) [Or you can use an oven poaching method.]
2. Prepare the white sauce by placing the butter/margarine in a small sauce pot that has been preheated over medium heat. Once the butter foams, add flour and stir for 1 minute; try not to let the mixture turn brown. Add milk to the mixture and continue to stir until it starts to bubble. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add pepper, Italian seasoning and parmesan cheese to the sauce. Stir to combine.
3. Cook pasta according to package directions.
4. While pasta is cooking, preheat oven to 350 degrees. During the last minute of the pasta's cooking, add the chopped broccoli to the water. Allow to simmer for one minute.
4a. Optional: saute the chopped peppers, garlic, onion, squash, and mushrooms briefly in a large saute pan with nonstick cooking spray.
5. Drain the pasta and broccoli. Spritz the bottom and sides of a 9 X 13 oven-proof casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.
6. In a large bowl, combine the pasta and broccoli with the chicken and chopped vegetables; cover with the sauce. Place in the baking dish. Sprinkle with the Monterey jack (or mozzarella) cheese and cover with foil.
7. Bake for 20 minutes; remove foil and continue to bake until cheese is melted.
Member Suggestions/Comments:
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1) I really like this but I added 2 Tbsp. low fat whipped cream cheese to give it a little more creaminess. I may also saute the peppers & zucchini prior to baking. The peppers were a little too crunchy for me after baking for 30 mins. Also added some green onions from the garden.
2) I added mushrooms and garlic to it. will make it again
3) I used 2 cups of cheese on top for my family. I am glad I did because there didn't seem to be enough white sauce. Next time, I would add onion and saute the onion, peppers and zucchini prior to baking. I would also increase the amount of white sauce.
4) Great recipe. Subbed regular penne for ww, and added 1 clove garlic and 3 chopped green onions. Cooked peppers, garlic & green onions briefly in pan w/non-stick.
5) I left out the parmesan cheese & used lemon pepper instead of white, and a red pepper instead of yellow or orange. The pepper jack cheese is a nice addition.
6) The servings are HUGE! We liked it very much, but next time will cook the peppers with the pasta and broccoli. I did not have any Monterey Jack cheese, so we used Gruyere instead.
7) Easy and delicious, I added paprika on top of the cheese to get a tasty finish
8) I was out of pasta and have been trying to get my family to eat brown rice, so I used it instead.
9) Made this tonight added fresh ginger and green onions - delicious and tastes even better being a healthy meal.
10) Based on the previous reviews, I added 1/2 onion, ~8 mushrooms and ~5 cloves garlic; cooked vegetables while everything else finished. Try serving with salsa to give kick, instead of making more sauce.
11) I usually don't like italian seasoning but I trusted that it would taste good and it did! I used bird's eye frozen broccoli and cheese. I just used the cheese chunks and melted it in the sauce instead of the monterey jack. Makes a great comfort food too.
12) I do something similar but instead of adding cheese and baking, I cook on the top of the stove and add a chicken stock cube and some mushrooms instead of broccoli.
13) I used both a red and orange pepper and sauteed the strips with the chicken and topped with a skim mozzarella instead of monterey jack.
Number of Servings: 8
Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user PARTSBANK.
2. Prepare the white sauce by placing the butter/margarine in a small sauce pot that has been preheated over medium heat. Once the butter foams, add flour and stir for 1 minute; try not to let the mixture turn brown. Add milk to the mixture and continue to stir until it starts to bubble. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add pepper, Italian seasoning and parmesan cheese to the sauce. Stir to combine.
3. Cook pasta according to package directions.
4. While pasta is cooking, preheat oven to 350 degrees. During the last minute of the pasta's cooking, add the chopped broccoli to the water. Allow to simmer for one minute.
4a. Optional: saute the chopped peppers, garlic, onion, squash, and mushrooms briefly in a large saute pan with nonstick cooking spray.
5. Drain the pasta and broccoli. Spritz the bottom and sides of a 9 X 13 oven-proof casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.
6. In a large bowl, combine the pasta and broccoli with the chicken and chopped vegetables; cover with the sauce. Place in the baking dish. Sprinkle with the Monterey jack (or mozzarella) cheese and cover with foil.
7. Bake for 20 minutes; remove foil and continue to bake until cheese is melted.
Member Suggestions/Comments:
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
1) I really like this but I added 2 Tbsp. low fat whipped cream cheese to give it a little more creaminess. I may also saute the peppers & zucchini prior to baking. The peppers were a little too crunchy for me after baking for 30 mins. Also added some green onions from the garden.
2) I added mushrooms and garlic to it. will make it again
3) I used 2 cups of cheese on top for my family. I am glad I did because there didn't seem to be enough white sauce. Next time, I would add onion and saute the onion, peppers and zucchini prior to baking. I would also increase the amount of white sauce.
4) Great recipe. Subbed regular penne for ww, and added 1 clove garlic and 3 chopped green onions. Cooked peppers, garlic & green onions briefly in pan w/non-stick.
5) I left out the parmesan cheese & used lemon pepper instead of white, and a red pepper instead of yellow or orange. The pepper jack cheese is a nice addition.
6) The servings are HUGE! We liked it very much, but next time will cook the peppers with the pasta and broccoli. I did not have any Monterey Jack cheese, so we used Gruyere instead.
7) Easy and delicious, I added paprika on top of the cheese to get a tasty finish
8) I was out of pasta and have been trying to get my family to eat brown rice, so I used it instead.
9) Made this tonight added fresh ginger and green onions - delicious and tastes even better being a healthy meal.
10) Based on the previous reviews, I added 1/2 onion, ~8 mushrooms and ~5 cloves garlic; cooked vegetables while everything else finished. Try serving with salsa to give kick, instead of making more sauce.
11) I usually don't like italian seasoning but I trusted that it would taste good and it did! I used bird's eye frozen broccoli and cheese. I just used the cheese chunks and melted it in the sauce instead of the monterey jack. Makes a great comfort food too.
12) I do something similar but instead of adding cheese and baking, I cook on the top of the stove and add a chicken stock cube and some mushrooms instead of broccoli.
13) I used both a red and orange pepper and sauteed the strips with the chicken and topped with a skim mozzarella instead of monterey jack.
Number of Servings: 8
Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user PARTSBANK.
Nutritional Info Amount Per Serving
- Calories: 316.2
- Total Fat: 6.3 g
- Cholesterol: 60.5 mg
- Sodium: 199.7 mg
- Total Carbs: 33.1 g
- Dietary Fiber: 6.1 g
- Protein: 33.1 g
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