Baked Penne with Chicken, Broccoli and Mozzarella

I love any sort of baked pasta dish. They are great to prepare in advance, but they usually dirty a bunch of dishes, pots and pans in the process. This recipe cooks the broccoli along with the pasta, which means one less pot to clean up. Miss F was a huge fan of this meal, even the broccoli, aka trees.  This makes a huge pan of pasta and it reheated well as leftovers, which is always a bonus in our house.  I adapted this recipe from Mel's Kitchen Café.

Baked Penne with Chicken, Broccoli and Mozzarella

1 pound broccoli, trimmed and cut into bite sized pieces
16 ounces penne pasta
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ onion, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon dried thyme
¼ cup all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, trimmed and cut into bite sized pieces
3 ounces mozzarella, shredded
1 tomato, seeded and chopped
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a 9X13-inch glass baking dish and set aside. Toss together the bread crumbs and melted butter in a small dish, set aside.

Bring large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the broccoli and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Pull out the broccoli florets and set aside in a large bowl. Cook the penne pasta per package instructions, drain and add the penne to the bowl with the broccoli.

Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and thyme, cooking one minute more. Add the flour and cook until golden, about one minute more. Whisk in the broth, cream, salt and pepper. Add the chicken and cook for 6 to 8 minutes more. Stir in the mozzarella cheese. Pour the sauce with the chicken and the tomatoes into the bowl with the pasta, toss well to evenly coat and pour into the prepared baking dish. Top with the parmesan and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until just beginning to brown. Serve.

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