Pasta Salad with Chicken

Wow, I haven't blogged in a really long time. Now that everyone in the family is back to being healthy, we can get back to our daily routine. That started tonight with a nice Monday night dinner, after a trip to the grocery store. This trip was really needed - we hadn't been to the store for over three weeks! So you can imagine why I haven't posted any dinner entries. How exciting is cereal and milk, or oatmeal? Not very.

Anyway, we needed something sort of quick since we didn't get home until 8:30. I added a twist to a pasta salad that my mom makes in the summer for our BBQ's.

Pasta Salad with Chicken

Ingredients
1 lb chicken, cut into bite size pieces
1 bag of frozen mixed vegetables (I used the Steamfresh medley of broccoli, cauliflower and carrots)
1 package of Good Seasons Zesty Italian dressing
6 ounces tri-color radiatore pasta
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions
Boil water for pasta and heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a saute pan for the chicken. While the water is boiling, prepare the dressing according to the package directions (you will need oil, vinegar and water to do this). When water comes to a boil, add pasta and cook for 8 minutes. At this time, also add the chicken to the saute pan, stirring every few minutes.

When there is 5 minutes left for the pasta, cook your frozen vegetables in the microwave. Drain pasta and put it into a large serving bowl. When the vegetables are finished, add them to the pasta. Add the red pepper flakes and stir. Once chicken is fully cooked, add it to the bowl and pour on about half of the dressing mixed above. Mix well, and top with cheese.