Pasta with Tomatoes, Broccoli and Chicken    

I swore, when I was younger, that I would never say this, but things were different when I was a kid. Mom was always there when I got home and dinner was a family event. She always served it at the same time and dinner was always homemade.

Times change though. Moms work, dads work, kids have school and are involved in after school activities, and sometimes, schedules collide. I look at women now and think, “How do they ever get everything done?” Women of today are adept at juggling. And not just their schedules, but work schedules, household schedules, and kid schedules. While dads are helping more and more, it typically still falls to mom to hold most of the home life together. That means keeping everyone on schedule and on time. It’s a challenge.

It’s hard to get the laundry done some days, let alone put a homemade dinner on the table every night. Some nights it probably feels like your feet hit the ground running from the moment you wake up until your head hits the pillow at night.

So, it’s Girl and Her Kitchen to the rescue. Here is a dinner that’s fresh, tasty, and family friendly.

And the best part: It takes only about 20 minutes from walking into the house to putting dinner on the table. (Give or take a few minutes to take off your coat and give greetings!) It’s full of flavors that will satisfy everyone’s hunger…and their taste buds. You won’t have to give up anything with this one. Cherry tomatoes burst with juicy sweetness, the chicken is savory and satisfying, and the broccoli adds that fresh green you crave and your body needs. Plus, it’s pasta, and who doesn’t love that?

So, take your coat off, hug the kids and husband, get a pot of water on the boil, and let’s get dinner on the table.

Pasta with Tomatoes, Broccoli and Chicken

1/2 pound pasta
1 1/2 cups fresh broccoli
1 Tsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic minced
1/2 cup red cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup yellow cherry tomatoes, halved
2 cups cooked diced chicken
salt and pepper

Cook pasta according to package directions

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté for one minute. Add tomatoes and cook until the skin begins to pucker and they soften a bit, about 2 minutes.

Add in chicken (I like to use rotisserie chicken available at grocery stores or leftover chicken. More time saved.) and heat through. Salt and pepper to taste.

Steam Broccoli until it’s bright green and slightly softened. Pour cooked broccoli into serving dish. Add cooked and drained pasta.

Pour in tomato and chicken mixture and stir, gently, until blended. Serve with Parmesan cheese.

That’s all there is to it. A lovely homemade dinner on the table in 20 minutes. Now, off to that ball game, or play, or night class, or yoga class or…