Skillet Parmesan Asparagus Lemon Chicken Penne

Hi there! I planned on doing this post a little bit ago but my 16 month old daughter had one of those naps where she wakes up and is in a horrible mood and throws the biggest tantrum and just can't seem to recover. Please tell me I'm not the only one who goes through this! I wish I had a big bowl of this pasta in front of me right now after that meltdown, lol! Seriously though, this is one of our favorite meals, and it just so happens that my daughter absolutely loves it too. She devours it every single time I make it. We have this almost every week, it's that good! I think the main thing that makes it so delicious is the sauce that you make in the same pan that you saute the chicken in - it gives it incredible flavor! Please give this meal a try, i'm confident you will love it just as much as we do!

Ingredients:

1 lb (16 oz box) Penne Pasta

3 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast

1 Bunch Fresh Asparagus

1 Cup Heavy Cream

1 1/2 Cups Parmesan Cheese, shredded

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

4 Tablespoons Butter

1 Teaspoon Pepper

1 Teaspoon Salt

1 1/2 Teaspoons Seasoned Salt

1 1/2 Teaspoons Garlic Powder

Juice of 1 Lemon (small-medium sized)

Directions:

Rinse your chicken and trim it of any excess fat and cut it into big bite sized pieces (more like small strips). Heat your olive oil and 2 tablespoons of your butter in your skillet and once the butter has melted, add your chicken and season it with your salt, pepper, seasoned salt and garlic powder. 

While your chicken is cooking you can start boiling your pasta according to package directions. You can also wash your asparagus, remove the tough ends, and cut it into 1 1/2 inch pieces and place them into a microwave safe bowl, add a tablespoon of water, cover with plastic wrap, cut a small slit in the top and microwave for about 2 minutes (I find that mine is perfectly cooked with still a bite at that point - but all microwaves work different), set it aside after you're done. 

Once your chicken is completely cooked through and starts to brown nicely, remove it to a separate bowl. In the same pan you cooked the chicken in, add in your other 2 tablespoons of butter, once it has melted pour in your heavy cream and stir it, getting all the bits up off the bottom of the pan from the chicken. Once you have gotten them all up, add in 3/4 of your Parmesan cheese and stir until it has completely melted into the cream, then stir in your lemon juice. 

Your pasta should be done and drained and you can dump it into the skillet right over the cream sauce and also add your asparagus and your chicken and mix it all until everything is completely coated in sauce. Sprinkle the remaining parmesan over the top of the pasta and place the whole skillet into the oven and turn the broiler on until the cheese melts and starts to turn brown. *Note: If you don't have a skillet that is oven-safe, you can still make everything the same, just place a lid over the pan once you add the cheese over top so it can melt.