Baked Penne W/ Bacon, Chicken & Zucchini

I needed to use the last zucchini that I bought from the Farmer’s Market but not necessarily as a vegetable side dish for meat entrée. I felt like making a one-pot meal so I decided to incorporate the zucchini with a box of penne. A delicious Baked Penne With Bacon, Chicken & Zucchini was my masterpiece .

(Image © Dexie Wharton)

INGREDIENTS:
a box of penne, cook al dente
5 pieces of bacon, sliced in small pieces
2 boneless chicken breasts, cubed
3 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
1 sm can of cream of mushroom soup
1 cup of water
1 large zucchini, cubed
sprinkle of salt
sprinkle of black pepper
sprinkle of Italian seasoning
1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese

Brown the bacon. Then add the garlic. You could add finely chopped onions too if you want. I ran out so there’s no onion on this dish.

Add the chicken to cook. Stir in the cream of mushroom soup, water, salt, Italian seasoning and black pepper. Cook for about 2 minutes then add the cubed zucchini and grated Parmesan cheese. Only cook it for 1 minute then turn the stove off. You don’t want to overcook the zucchini since it’s still going to bake in the oven.

Drain the water from the penne. Combine the sauce mixture with the pasta. Stir to incorporate everything then transfer into a casserole pan. Sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese on top. Bake it in the preheated oven for 15 minutes in 355°.

(Image © Dexie Wharton)

Sprinkle more grated Parmesan cheese when it’s time to serve. The saltiness of the bacon blended well with the light flavor of zucchini. It was a perfect balance actually. Enjoy!