Day 142: Chicken & Broccoli Alfredo Lasagna

So, it's a good thing I have a gym membership and enjoy going to group ride, group power, and on my morning runs because these past 2 recipes have not been beach-body friendly!  On Sunday we had my parents over for dinner and I served spaghetti and meatballs.  My mom ate some but also informed me that she's given up eating pasta.  Randy looked at me and basically told me that wasn't an option for us! :)

I have two beliefs when it comes to food and my blog (ok, maybe more, but here are two): 1) True "foodies" who are committed to the culinary arts create recipes more based on the food (origins), taste, ingenuity, and eye-appeal rather than on the latest diet.  2) Being health-conscience doesn't have to mean giving up entire food groups--eating less of certain things (or less in general) and exercising are super beneficial!

With that, I give you:
Chicken & Broccoli Alfredo Lasagna (For the "healthy" version--just eat half of what you normally would.) ;)
Abby loved this meal!  By Randy and my standards, I wouldn't say I "hit it out of the park" yet.  I need to make it a little more moist and make a little more of the alfredo sauce, pesto, and chicken.  So, that being said, I'm not 100% ready to give out a true recipe at this moment.  I'll post the pictures of each step and let you know the basic ingredients.  If you're a confident cook, I'm sure you'll come up with something yummy!  If you require a little more guidance in the kitchen, don't worry--the full recipe is coming soon!

I marinated my chicken in Italian dressing all day, then grilled it in my grill pan.

I shredded my chicken once it was cooked through and cooled slightly.

Here's the start of broccoli pesto.  Broccoli and garlic in the food processor and stream in olive oil while pulsing.

Voila!

To make alfredo sauce, start with a roux.  If this scares you--don't let it!  Start with butter, garlic, and red pepper flakes.

Add flour and whisk 1-2 minutes.  There's your flavored roux for the alfredo sauce!

Add milk--it starts thin!  Bring it up to a bubble and whisk continuously.

And there's your nice, thick sauce.  Ready for a heat reduction and a handful of grated parmesan cheese--alfredo sauce!

Start by layering the sauce in the 13 x 9 pan.

For a quick lasagna, make sure you use "Oven Ready" noodles--no boiling!

On top of the sauce, layer the noodles, then the broccoli pesto.

Then the chicken--and start all over again!

Top it off with freshly grated parmesan cheese!

Yum!

I served it with a caprese salad--an intense flavor combination--not sure I would do that again.  But, it's a good thing we had the wine to cleanse our palettes!