Creamy Chicken & Pasta Bake

I found this recipe in the Spring issue of Kraft's Food & Family magazine. According to the article, this dish has less than 500 calories. Browning the chicken.

The pasta happily cooking.

Adding the broccoli the last 3 minutes.

Combining the pasta and broccoli with the chicken and adding some of the mozzarella cheese.

Finshed dish. Sorry the picture is dark.

Dished up on dinner plate with some bread.

Spring greens salad with red wine vingarette. Other bowl is some olive oil with balsamic vinegar to dip the bread in.

Garlic Parmesan Bread from Bel Air.

Here's the recipe:

1 1/2 cups multi-grain rotini pasta, uncooked. (I used regular rotini)

1 small bunch broccoli, cut into florets (about 3 cups)

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces

1/2 cup fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth

2 oz (1/4 of 8 oz pkg.) Philadelphia Neufchatel Cheese, cubed

1 cup Kraft 2% milk shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

2 T Kraft grated parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 375 deg. Cook pasta in large saucepan as directed on package, adding broccoli for the last 3 minutes.

Meanwhile heat large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat. Add chicken, cook 3 minutes or until no longer pink, stirring frequently. Stir in broth; simmer 3 minutes or until chicken is done. Add Neufchatel cheese; cook and stir on low heat 1 minute or until melted. Stir in 1/2 cup mozzarella.

Drain pasta and broccoli. Add to chicken mixture; mix lightly. Spoon into 8 inch square baking dish; cover. (I used an 8x11 oblong baking dish).

Bake for 15 minutes or until heated through. Sprinkle with remaining cheeses. Bake, uncovered for 3 minutes or until cheese is melted. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. Makes 4 servings.

This was good, however, I don't know that I will make it again. Gerry enjoyed it.

Bel Air's central bakery makes different artisan breads each day. Today they had the Garlic Parmesan bread. It was very good, moist and soft. Dipping it into the olive oil and balsamic vinegar made it all the better. For a salad we like the spring mix with a simple vingarette for a dressing. This red wine vingarette is actually by Wishbone and is fat-free.

There are several recipes in this issue that sound and look really good. I bookmarked a few of them to try, like for instance, Layered Strawberry Cheesecake Bowl (a trifle), Berry Cheesecake Parfaits, Peaches 'n Cream No-Bake Cheesecake, Fruit-Filled Coffee Cake, Easy Lemon Cake and Cheeseburger Joes.

Let me know if you try this recipe.