Sunday was another hot day here in Central Texas. The temptation to eat ice cream for dinner was great, but I didn't have any ice cream at home. Instead, I tried out this Lightened Up Cajun Chicken Pasta. I started by bringing a pot of water to a boil and had Mike dice a tomato and scallion. Normally, I would have had him chop up a red bell pepper, too, but I forgot to buy one. I cooked the pasta for about 10 minutes. While the pasta was cooking, I heated up some olive oil in a pan and cooked the Cajun seasoned chicken breasts for about 5 minutes on each side. Once they were done in the pan, I put them on a foil lined baking sheet and cooked them in the oven at 375, cooking them until they reached 165. Next, I heated up some more oil in the pan and added garlic, cooking until soft and fragrant. I added in the milk and brought it to a simmer. Then, I added in the water-cornstarch mixture and let the sauce thicken. Finally, I turned off the burner and mixed in the parmesan cheese. I stirred in the cooked pasta. After the chicken had cooled, I cut it in to bite sized pieces and added it to the pasta. We plated the pasta and garnished with tomatoes and scallions. This dish was great. I can't eat a lot of creamy sauces because they upset my stomach, but this lighter version was perfect. It was light, but still had good flavor. The lightened version was great on a hot summer day. There were some leftovers, but not too many leftovers to be overwhelming. I could see this dish becoming a staple in our house.

The New Austonian