A light chicken dish

It's summer time here in Florida, which means weather over 100 degrees and just about the same level of humidity. It is blistering hot! That usually means that when it comes time for dinner we don't want something straight out of the oven every night. Sometimes it's nice to have a refreshing dish. And this just happens to be that dish!

It's from Publix (Apron's Simple Meals), which just happens to produce some of my favorite recipes. Who would have thunk it?!

Chicken with Cream Bruschetta Pasta

Ingredients:
2-3 sprigs fresh basil rinsed (I used dried basil)
2 plum tomatoes rinsed (I used 3 - will explain later)
1 (8oz) package garlic/herb flavored spreadable cheese
1/2 cup reduced-fat milk
8 oz tomato trinity mix (fresh diced tomatoes, onions, bell peppers) (I did not use - again, will explain later)
3 chicken fillets (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon canola oil (I used EVOO)
8 oz dry linguini pasta

Directions:
1. Fill large saucepan half full of water. Cover and bring to a boil on high for pasta.

2. Chop basil leaves coarsely. Cut tomatoes in small pieces. Place cheese in medium bowl; whisk in milk until smooth. (I didn't realize until I got home that the package of cheese I bought was only 4 oz. I highly recommend buying 8 oz because while we made due, you do need to use quite a bit of this sauce mixture over the top of the dish in order to make sure your pasta isn't dry.) Stir in tomatoes, basil, and tomato trinity mix; set aside. (Publix did not have the trinity mix when I was buying my ingredients, so I just bought an extra plum tomato and used that, then diced up some onion as well. I decided to skip using any bell pepper.)

3. Preheat large saute pan on medium-high 2-3 minutes. Season both sides of chicken with salt. Place oil in pan; swirl to coat. Add chicken; cook 4-5 minutes on each side or until golden. (If your chicken is thick, you may want to butterfly it in order to cook evenly. I didn't realize this at first and the outside got done much faster than the middle). Meanwhile, stir pasta into boiling water. Boil 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until tender.

4. Reduce heat on chicken to medium; cover and cook 5 more minutes or until internal temp reaches 165. Use a meat thermometer (I don't have one!)

5. Drain pasta. Remove chicken from heat; cut inot 1/2-inch thick slices. Arrange chicken over pasta and top with cheese mixture. Serve.

This was a pretty good dish; Jeremy really liked it. It was pretty refreshing because nothing is too warm. I would have liked it better with more cheese sauce on top, hence why you should remember to get 8 oz! But, I will definitely make this again!