Gourmet Bling on a Shoestring

Light Lentil Penne & Chicken Primavera

Tired of the same old leftover chicken dishes? Life Recipe Magazine to the rescue! Healthy, gorgeous, filling, fresh-delicious and worthy of sharing with anyone as an entre’ or potluck dish. You can alter ingredients to make it your own; I find this one so colorful (10 VEGGIES!); it happens to be gluten free but you can use your favorite penne pasta or noodles here. Simple. Elevated comfort food. And inexpensive. (At about $3.00 per person, does it get any better?)

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Ingredients

3 rounded cups cooked white and/ or dark moist chicken meat. You can use any cooked chicken; I used ½ a chicken that I had roasted and refrigerated.

4 oz. penne pasta (I used Barilla’s Red Lentil penne – absolutely delicious, colorful, GF, and packed with nutrients.)

1 lg onion, chopped into smallmedium slivers

2-3 stalks celery, chopped into thin diagonal slices

4-5 organic carrots, scrubbed and sliced on the diagonal

8-10 asparagus spears, cleaned and sliced on the diagonal replace any green: spinach leaves, small broccoli florets…)

1 or more cold cherry tomatoes, sliced, for a last-minute texture, temp and color pop!

3-4 large cloves garlic, chopped.

1 large handful of large-leaf parsley; leave ½ on stems for cooking and small-chop the other ½ for garnish

½ fresh lemon, juiced

½ - 1 sm. orange if available, juiced

½ cup shredded cheese

½ rounded cup cream or Half & Half

1 cup milk/oat milk or replacement

Handful of crunchy nuts for garnish added crisped, dried edamame for texture – only because it was in the freezer, and makes a great fit here.)

1 Tbsp “Better than Bullion” or 4 bullion cubes, crushed into a small bit of warm water.

¼ cup olive oil

¼ cup coconut oil

1 tsp Italian Seasoning

1 Tbsp onion powder

Salt & pepper to taste

LINK TO EASY CONVERSION CHART

Method

Serves 2-4

1. Cook pasta to your liking. Test after 6 minutes for al dente. (Ok to add salt to the water; NOT oil – this will prevent the sauce from holding on to the pasta.)

2. Drain, set aside and cover to prevent drying. DO NOT RINSE after draining.

3. Debone chicken thoroughly. I use surgical gloves, it’s more thorough and keeps my fingernails clean!

4. Chop veggies to be in similar size/shape as the penne pasta and chicken pieces. So many flavors on one forkful.

5. Chop garlic and leave separate from other veg.

6. Chop ½ the parsley and put aside for garnish.

7. Keep the other ½ of parsley on the stems for cooking (stems are good!)

8. Freeze the nuts: they taste so much better and they’ll hold a crunch more as a garnish on a steaming dish.

9. Into a large soup pan, melt the oils.

10. On medium-low, sizzle the veggies (not the garlic) wit h a touch of salt, until tender-crisp, about 5-8 minutes. Don’t let them get too soft.

11. Fold in the garlic.

12. Immediately add the chicken, pasta, a little water, and sti r gently JUST enough to blend ingredients. Cover. Put aside for a minute.

13. Meanwhile, on med-low heat in a small saucepan, melt a little oil and/or butter, quickly stir in the bullion paste, milk, cream, shredded cheese, salt & pepper, and Italia n Seasonings. Stir constantly. This is NOT going to be a thic k sauce.

14. As soon as the sauce is incorporated – only a few minutes –pour it over the pasta mix. Stir gently but thoroughly over warm heat. Do not overcook.

15. Season to taste – though you shouldn’t need anything more than a few waiting bowls for this steaming, beautiful bowl of delicious health.

16. Lightly garnish with a few of the chilled nuts, chopped parsley, and if desired — a few cold tomato bits.

17. Serve with a tall glass of cold water infused with sliced lemon, orange, and cucumber.

Healthy Hint – Don’t let the

cream

And Cheese Fool

you: both of these small amounts add up to just 1 cup within a hefty pot of food. Once divided by 4, these dairy ingredients amount to 90 calories or fewer per person. Given the huge veggie, fresh chicken and GF pasta combo, these ingredients present a very healthy yet hardy recipe. You can replace the dairy products with your favorite alternatives, also.