Tomato & Pesto Chicken

Jeremy and I tried this recipe for dinner last night, and it was delicious! We made some changes to the original recipe (of course!), and it turned out great. I'm getting to be a pro at forgetting to take a picture, when we try new recipes. I'll try to get better at that. The main differences between the original recipe and what we did... we cut the recipe in half, we used chicken thighs instead of breasts, and we cut the broccoli and chicken into small pieces. Anyway, this is a dish that we'll definitely make again.

Tomato and Pesto Chicken
Adapted from Hunts.com

Ingredients:
4 oz dry penne pasta, uncooked (4 oz = 1¼ cup)

Hunt's Tomato & Pesto Chicken

1½ cups small fresh broccoli florets (we used a 9 oz package of frozen broccoli)

1 Tbsp olive oil
3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into bite-size pieces (we used thighs)

½ can (or 7.25 oz) Hunt's® Diced Tomatoes, undrained
½  can (or 4 oz) Hunt's® Tomato Sauce
¼  cup soft cream cheese spread
8 tsp refrigerated basil pesto

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions.
• If using fresh broccoli florets, add for the last 2 minutes of cook time.
• If using frozen broccoli florets, steam in microwave (then we cut the broccoli up to be in smaller pieces) and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
3. Add chicken; cook 3-5 minutes or until lightly browned.
4. Add undrained tomatoes and tomato sauce; bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover.
6. Simmer 5-8 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in centers (165°F).
7. Remove chicken from skillet; keep warm. (not sure how necessary it is to remove chicken at this point... we cut it into bite-size pieces, rather than leaving the chicken thighs/breasts whole)
8. Add cream cheese to sauce remaining in skillet; stir until cream cheese is melted completely.
9. Stir in pesto; simmer 2 minutes to thicken slightly.
10. Drain pasta.
11. Add pasta, broccoli, and chicken to skillet; stir together.
12. Serve.