Creamy Garlic Chicken & Broccoli Pasta
🧾 Ingredients (Serves 4)
Pasta & Veg
- 12 oz penne pasta
- 3 cups broccoli florets
- Salt (for pasta water)
Chicken
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp paprika
- ½ tsp Italian seasoning
- Salt & black pepper
Creamy Garlic Sauce
- 2 tbsp butter
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup heavy cream (or half-and-half)
- ½ cup chicken broth
- ¾ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- Red pepper flakes (optional)
- Chopped parsley (optional)
👩🍳 Instructions
1. Cook pasta & broccoli
- Boil pasta in well-salted water.
- Add broccoli during the last 2–3 minutes of cooking.
- Drain, reserving ½ cup pasta water.
2. Cook the chicken
- Season chicken with garlic powder, paprika, Italian seasoning, salt & pepper.
- Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high.
- Sear chicken 5–6 minutes, until golden and cooked through. Remove.
3. Make the sauce
- In the same skillet, melt butter.
- Sauté garlic 30 seconds (don’t brown).
- Add cream and broth; simmer 2–3 minutes.
- Stir in Parmesan until smooth. Add red pepper flakes if using.
4. Combine
- Add pasta, broccoli, and chicken to the sauce.
- Toss to coat; add reserved pasta water as needed to loosen.
- Taste and adjust seasoning.
5. Serve
Finish with parsley and extra Parmesan.
⭐ Tips & Variations
- Lighter: use milk + a cornstarch slurry instead of cream.
- Extra flavor: add lemon zest or a squeeze of lemon.
- Swap: shrimp instead of chicken, or add mushrooms.
- Spicy: increase red pepper flakes.