Easy, creamy, cheesy and gluten-free! This Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo recipe will take only 30 minutes from stove to table for a quick weeknight dinner.
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I love pasta and I love cheese, but mostly I love a quick dinner that I can pull together with minimal effort, and this one is it. I use gluten-free fettuccini here, but I’ve also been known to use gluten-free rotini or penne. TIP: If you don’t need the gluten-free option, just replace that with your favorite fettuccini brand.
I like to use fresh broccoli whenever possible, but I have used frozen broccoli florets and they work, too. I always use boneless, skinless chicken breasts and cook them myself because the yummy drippings and seasonings from the chicken get incorporated into the Alfredo sauce, adding to the yumminess.
Most of the work is done in my stainless steel skillet (all except the boiling/cooking of the pasta.) Do you have a workhouse stainless steel skillet? If not, may I suggest this one:
Give this recipe a try and add it to your easy weeknight dinner rotation!
- 1 package gluten-free fettuccine pasta, cooked according to package instructions
- 12 ounces broccoli florets, fresh or frozen
- 2 boneless, skinless thin-sliced chicken breasts
- ¾ cup chicken broth
- ¾ cup ½ and ½ (or milk)
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- Himalayan sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (I use gluten-free)
- In a large pot, bring salted water to a boil and cook pasta according to package instructions. Before the pasta has reached al dente, and during the last 3 minutes of cooking, add broccoli florets (frozen or fresh) and finish cooking. Remove from heat and drain well. Set aside. (TIP: Try to cook the pasta during the last 10 minutes of making the Alfredo sauce so that the pasta will be fresh and not sitting and clumping together while you finish the sauce.)
- In a large skillet, heat 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil over medium heat. Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Add chicken to skillet, cooking each side about 4 minutes or until center is cooked through. Remove from heat and cut into bite-size chunks.
- Return skillet to the burner and melt butter over medium heat. Add flour to skillet and whisk until lightly browned. Slowly whisk in chicken broth and ½ and ½, stirring constantly, until incorporated. Add garlic powder and pour in heavy cream, stirring constantly until slightly thickened.
- Add Parmesan cheese and stir until well combined. If mixture becomes too thick, just add a little more more ½ and ½, as needed.
- Finally, stir in the pasta, broccoli and chicken. Gently toss to combine; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately.
DON’T FORGET TO PIN AND SAVE!
I must try this recipe for my boys, they love pasta!
Oh, I hope you do! Who can resist pasta and cheese?! 😉
Yum!! Looks delicious, the photos are making me so hungry lol Great meal for the cool weather.
I know, right?! It’s a favorite around here!
Sounds amazing! Saving for later!
Thank you so much!
This looks amazing! I’m excited that it’s a gluten-free option. I’ll pin for later to try it!
Yay – hope you like it! 🙂
I don’t think there’s anything more comforting than chicken and broccoli alfredo! Great recipe!
Definitely comfort food! 🙂
What I love about this dish is that it’s perfect on an average Wednesday night, or as a special meal. It looks delicious, and so easy!
Right?! Easy and delicious = win-win!
This looks soooo good! I am all about pasta and all about quick meals. I had a stainless steel pot and hated it. I burned everything and no matter ho much I cleaned it, it still looked like it had never seen dish soap. Do you have any pointers?
HI! I feel your pain – I used to burn my SS pans, too! Ack! I learned that I needed to de-glaze the pan immediately after I cooked something sticky or that had “burn factor.” Plus, I was was cooking stuff on high when medium heat would have been much better. 😉 All you do is remove and/or plate the meal/food you cooked in the pan and then add water to the pan/skillet, return it to the heat, bring it to a boil and using a stainless steel spatula, begin scrapping the burned material off the bottom of the pan. It should come off easily with the help of the boiling water. Remove from heat, pour out and dispose of the gunk and wash the pan. However, if you have a pan that has caked on gunk from re-use, I suggest following the advice in this video.Hope that helps!!! http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/how-to-clean-burnt-pots-scorched-pans-140547