Chicken Noodle Bowl

I love dinners that come together quickly, particularly when I am multitasking in the kitchen (which is most all of the time) They come in quite handy as well when you spend all afternoon browsing recipes and blogs on the computer, and realize that a ravenous teenager is going to come through the door at 6pm, and you need to find something to feed him FAST! I found this recipe on the Kitchen Cafe blog, and had all of the ingredients at hand, no grocery store trip needed. (actually, what I thought was mozzarella cheese in my fridge was in fact Monterey Jack, but it made a pretty good substitution) It also boasted being ready in the time it takes to cook the noodles, which it was, almost exactly. I upped the veggie content a bit, by doubling the peppers and adding some leftover steamed broccoli. Easy, quick, and pretty darn tasty. It doesn’t get any better! I changed the name from Balsamic Chicken Noodle bowl, because the name seemed to suggest a strong balsamic flavour, which I didn’t really get. Maybe it was the cheese substitution, the Monterey Jack is certainly a bit stronger of a flavour than mozzarella. Whatever it was, the balsamic flavour was in there, but definitely more in the background.

(I actually weighed my pasta for this recipe, I usually just eyeball it. I am really loving the scale that my wonderful guys bought for me at christmas)

Chicken Noodle Bowl

1 pound long pasta (I used spaghettini, the original called for linguini, use your favourite)

2 yellow peppers, cut into thin strips

1 ½ cups steamed broccoli, optional

2 cups cooked, shredded chicken

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1 1/2 cups shredded or cubed mozzarella or Monterey Jack cheese (or use your favourite)

½ cup feta cheese, crumbled

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Dressing:

4 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar

5 garlic cloves, finely minced

½ teaspoons coarse sea salt

¼ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 1/2 tablespoons dried basil (can substitute 1 cup fresh basil)

Heat a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta till el-dente, according to package directions.

 Drain and set aside until needed (pretty much right away!)

While water is heating, whisk together vinegar, garlic, basil, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Whisk in the olive oil and set aside.

I love my garlic press!

While the pasta is cooking, heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a 12-inch non-stick skillet over medium heat and cook the bell pepper for a minute or two, just until tender crisp. Toss in the cooked chicken and broccoli if using, and cook for 1-2 more minutes, until they are heated through.

Toss the hot noodles and cheese in the skillet with the red pepper and chicken and mix quickly before the cheese totally melts. Pour the dressing over the top and toss well.

(I made a TOTAL mess of my stove top when I was tossing!)

 

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Yummy leftovers for lunch!