Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Linguini
"My mother originally developed this recipe -- she always had a great knack for making something great out of basic ingredients on hand. Since those days, I have made a couple of modifications to the dish just to boost the flavor and the eye appeal. Essentially, this dish is chicken and broccoli in a cheese sauce which is poured over pasta. It is very tasty and more filling that you can imagine. While the dish is likely packed with calories and carbohydrates, you can eat just a small serving to feel satisfied. Also, it is a one-dish meal, and inexpensive to prepare, so you don't need any side dishes. I hope that you enjoy it as much as my own family does."
- Ready In:
- 40mins
- Ingredients:
- 15
- Serves:
-
8
ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
- 1 lb linguine, dry weight
- 15 ounces Cheese Whiz
- 10 ounces canned low sodium chicken broth
- 1⁄2 cup canned mushroom slices, drained
- 2 cups broccoli florets, fresh
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1⁄2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 large fresh garlic cloves, minced
- 3 tablespoons butter, divided
- 1 tablespoon red onion, chopped
- 1⁄2 teaspoon hot sauce, West Indies-type (yellow hot sauce, substitute ( 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes)
- 6 quarts water, divided
- 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
- fresh parsley sprig, garnish
directions
- Boil the pasta in 3 quarts of salted water (using the 1/2 teaspoon of salt), also adding 1 teaspoon of the olive oil to the water. Drain the pasta when it is tender and return it to the pan. Add 2 tablespoons of the butter and toss as it melts. Cover and set aside.
- Boil three more quarts of plain water. Boil the chicken breasts 25-30 minutes. Drain and set aside until chicken cools and then chop it into 3/4" chunks.
- In a very large no-stick skillet, pour in the remaining olive oil (2 2/3 tablespoons) and the remaining butter (1 tablespoon). Over medium heat, sauté the onion for one minute and then add the garlic and garlic powder. After 30 seconds more, add the chicken stock and cheese whiz.
- As soon as the Cheese Whiz is melted and blended, add in the chicken and reduce heat to a simmer.
- While the chicken is simmering, place the broccoli florets in a microwave-proof bowl, add two tablespoons of water and cover with cling wrap. Steam the broccoli for 2 minutes on the high setting. Drain the broccoli and add it to the chicken in the cheese sauce.
- Add the mushrooms and the hot sauce (or pepper flakes). Allow to simmer, covered, for five more minutes.
- Serve by plating up individual plates of linguini and pouring the chicken-broccoli-cheese sauce over the top. Garnish each plate with parsley.
- NOTE: The West Indies Hot Sauce is fairly mild so do not substitute Habanero-based or Scotch Bonnet-based sauces which are VERY hot. I like the West Indies sauce for the flavor it imparts and the fact that it does not change the yellow color of the dish, but you could also substitute 1/4 teaspoon of regular ground red pepper, if you prefer that over red pepper flakes, without making the dish spicy hot.
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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
<p>I am a retired State Park Resort Manager/Ranger. <br /><br />Anyway, as to my years in the State Park System (retired now), I was responsible for 4 restaurants/dining rooms on my park and my boss at Central Headquarters said I should spend less time in my kitchens and more time tending to my park budget. I spent 25 years in those kitchens and worked with some really great chefs over those years, (and some really awful ones too!) <br /><br />I spent THOUSANDS of hours on every inch of that park and adjacent state forest (60,000 acres) and sometimes I miss it. But mostly I miss being in that big beautiful resort lodge kitchen. I miss my little marina restaurant down on the Ohio River too. I served the best Reuben Sandwich (my own recipe -- posted on 'Zaar as The Shawnee Marina Reuben Sandwich) in both the State of Ohio and the Commonwealth of Kentucky down there and sold it for $2.95. Best deal on the river! <br /><br />They (friends and neighbors) call my kitchen The Ospidillo Cafe. Don't ask me why because it takes about a case of beer, time-wise, to explain the name. Anyway, it's a small galley kitchen with a Mexican motif (until my wife catches me gone for a week or so), and it's a very BUSY kitchen as well. We cook at all hours of the day and night. You are as likely to see one of my neighbors munching down over here as you are my wife or daughter. I do a lot of recipe experimentation and development. It has become a really fun post-retirement hobby -- and, yes, I wash my own dishes. <br /><br />Also, I'm the Cincinnati Chili Emperor around here, or so they say. (Check out my Ospidillo Cafe Cincinnati Chili recipe). SKYLINE CHILI is one of my four favorite chilis, and the others include: Gold Star Chili, Empress Chili and, my VERY favorite, Dixie. All in and around Cincinnati. Great stuff for cheap and I make it at home too. <br /><br />I also collect menus and keep them in my kitchen -- I have about a hundred or so. People go through them and when they see something that they want, I make it the next day. That presents some real challenges! <br /><br />http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/parks/parks/shawnee.htm</p>
