Quick and Easy Pasta Dish (Recipe)

Love pasta? Chicken? Tomatoes? Zucchini? A light pink sauce? Great! You'll love this dish.

This is a recipe that I created with some help from a dish at a restaurant (I so can't remember the name of the dish nor the restaurant I ate it at).

For 2 people (sometimes with a little leftover) :

2 Boneless Chicken Breast
1 Zucchini*
1 Can Diced Tomatoes
4 ounces of Pasta**
2 ounces of Cream Cheese - softened
2 tablespoons of Butter
1/2 teaspoon of Garlic Powder
1/2 cup Milk
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese

1. Bring water to a boil and add pasta. Cook until al dente. Remove from pot, drain, and set aside.
Cassie's Note: Al Dente means the pasta is not quite done - bite into it, and see if it's still not-quite-totally-soft.
Cassie's Note #2: Use a large saucepan if you're only cooking a little bit of pasta, but for larger amounts, use a bigger pasta pot.

2. Cube chicken into bit size pieces season with salt and pepper and set aside. Cut zucchini in half length wise, then cut each half in half length wise again. Cut each quarter of the zucchini into 1/4 inch pieces set aside.
Cassie's Note: You probably guessed this one, but cubing is just cutting into cubes :)

3. In a 10 inch round pan add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil add chicken and cook over medium heat. When the chicken is almost done, add the zucchini. After 2-3 more minutes, remove the chicken and zucchini from the pan and cover with foil to keep warm.

4. Lower the heat and add the butter to the pan and cook until melted. Then add the cream cheese. Slowly add the milk and whisk together. Add the garlic powder and Parmesan cheese; continue whisking until smooth. Add the can of diced tomatoes, juices and all.

5. Add the reserved chicken, zucchini, and pasta to the pan. Toss everything together.
Cassie's Note: Another one that's probably obvious; reserved is set aside; saved.

6. Serve with grated Parmesan on top.


This recipe can easily be doubled or tripled for company. A garden salad and some garlic toast go nicely with this recipe.

*If you are not a fan of zucchini, summer squash is a nice substitute. Or if you are a fan of both, they go nicely together in the recipe.
**I used a Penne for this recipe, but any type of pasta would work, so just use whatever you have on hand.

Enjoy!