Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Three Cheese Chicken Penne Pasta-By Jani


Three Cheese Chicken Penne Pasta
1 box penne pasta
1/2 pkg fresh spinach leaves (chopped fine)
2 or 3 chicken breasts
1/2 onion chopped
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves
1 jar spaghetti sauce (I like Bertolli olive oil & garlic)
1 can diced tomatoes (drained)
4 oz cream cheese
2 cups mozzarella cheese (reserve 1 cup)
(I like the Italian blend cheese that has several mixed together)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (reserve 1/2 cup)
Pre-heat oven to 375*
Cook pasta in salted boiling water until almost done. Drain and set aside.
In a separate pan, add 1 tablespoon olive oil, chicken, onion, garlic and basil and cook until chicken is cooked through. Add spaghetti sauce, spinach, tomatoes and cream cheese. Heat until cream cheese is all melted in. Add chicken mixture to pasta and stir in 1 cup mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese.
Place in greased 9x13 pan and bake in oven for about 15 minutes or until heated through.
Sprinkle remaining cheese on top and place back in oven until cheese is melted.
Serve with warm garlic bread!
(no one in my family likes spinach... I chopped it up real fine and none of us even noticed it) This is a great way to ad those extra veggies that we all need to eat more of.

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