Dishing It Up Recipe Hop: Pasta Dishes--Chicken and Bows

With everyone trying to save money on meals, pasta dishes are a great way to go!  Pasta is very inexpensive, sometimes even free with coupons, and has a long shelf life.  It is also very versatile!  It is used in nearly every type of cuisine that I know of.  It come in all different shapes and sizes, and can be added to just about anything for a quick meal.

The recipe I am going to share with you today is called Chicken and Bows.  It is from my favorite freezer cookbook, and is written to make a double batch (one to eat right away, and one to freeze for later.)  Whenever I make this meal, my family gobbles it right up, and it is so easy to put together.

Ingredients:
1 16oz package of bow tie pasta (I have used other shapes..no big deal)
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/2 cup butter
2 cans cream of chicken soup, undiluted
2 cups frozen peas
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
1) Cook pasta according to package directions.
2)  Meanwhile, cook chicken and red peppers in butter over medium heat 5-6 minutes or until chicken juices run clear.
3)  Stir in the soup, peas, milk, and seasonings.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 1-2 minutes until sauce is heated through.
4)  Stir in Parmesan cheese.
5)  Stir in pasta and toss to coat with sauce.

Serve half immediately, and place the rest into a freezer container.  Cover and freeze up to 3 months.

I really like dishes like this because they are so easy to change up based on what you have on hand.  Any shape pasta will do.  Any color bell pepper will work.  Any vegetable added will be tasty.  I bet even a cream of mushroom or celery would suffice if you didn't have the cream of chicken.  I've even tossed shredded mozzarella on top when I've been out of Parmesan   I'm very big on using what you have instead of making another run to the store, so I improvise quite a bit. ;)

Here are some more pasta recipes from some great bloggers that I have teamed up with (** means they are part of our group).  Feel free to link up your own pasta recipe below, without the **.