The first time I made this dish, I was overwhelmed in the kitchen. It was a miracle that I did not burn anything and that everyone actually stuck around until I was finished (they must have been hungry)! I learned quickly that it is a lot easier to juggle all of the steps by 1) prepping the vegetables and chicken an hour or so before I am ready to cook and 2) having an extra pair of hands in the kitchen to help. Thanks, Mom!
This dish was an instant hit with my family and friends. They can't get enough of it! I hope you guys like it too ☺
Ingredients:
1 head of cauliflower cut into small chunks
1 bag of frozen snap peas
1 red pepper (sliced)
1 red onion (sliced)
2 carrots (cut into thin rounds)
2 bulbs of garlic (crushed in garlic press)
2 cups fresh Parmesan cheese (grated)
4 chicken breasts (diced)
1 head of cauliflower cut into small chunks
1 bag of frozen snap peas
1 red pepper (sliced)
1 red onion (sliced)
2 carrots (cut into thin rounds)
2 bulbs of garlic (crushed in garlic press)
2 cups fresh Parmesan cheese (grated)
4 chicken breasts (diced)
4 slices of stale wheat bread (crumbled)
1 box of mini bow-tie pasta (or any other small pasta you like)
Parsley (chopped)
Parsley (chopped)
Rosemary (chopped)
Olive oil
Olive oil
Directions:
Preheat oven to 425ยบ F
Spread cauliflower out on a cooking sheet and drizzle it with about 2 tbs. of olive oil. Add about 1½ tbs. of the garlic to the pan and toss. Put cooking sheet in oven and bake for 20 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally.
Put ¾ of the sliced onions on one side of another cooking sheet. On the other side of the cooking sheet put all of the red peppers. Drizzle both the onions and red peppers with olive oil and bake for about 15 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Watch the red peppers and onions carefully as they can burn easily.
Cook snap peas according to instruction on the bag and set aside.
Heat a large frying pan with about 1 tbs. of olive oil. Reduce to medium heat. Put remaining garlic into pan and begin to cook, stirring frequently. Add the rest of the sliced onions and continue to cook until onions become tender. Add diced chicken. Stir in parsley and rosemary to taste (I usually use about 3 sprigs of chopped parsley and 2 sprigs of chopped rosemary...both fresh from the herb garden!!). Once the chicken is almost completely cooked, reduce heat and put lid on pan.
Cook pasta according to instructions on pasta box and strain. Save about a cup of the pasta water! That's going to be the sauce!
Put crumbled breadcrumbs on a small cooking sheet with a couple tbs. of grated Parmesan cheese and parsley. Mix thoroughly with some olive oil. Bake for about 5 minutes or until crisp, stirring frequently. Be careful! These will cook quickly and burn if you leave them unattended!
Combine pasta, chicken, cauliflower, carrots, snap peas, onions, red pepper, and 1½ cups of Parmesan cheese into pasta pot with 1 cup of pasta water.
Serve and top with breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese!
(Note: I did not cook carrots because they were finely sliced and added a slight crunch to the dish. You may want to cook the carrots if you prefer them that way.)
