Italian Baked Chicken and Pastina

Cook Time: 40 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

* 1 cup pastina pasta (or any small pasta)
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 1/2 cup cubed chicken breast (1-inch cubes)
* 1/2 cup diced onion (about 1/2 a small onion)
* 1 clove garlic, minced
* 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
* 1 cup shredded mozzarella
* 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
* 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 1/4 cup bread crumbs
* 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
* 1 tablespoon butter, plus more for buttering the baking dish

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the
pasta and cook until just tender, stirring occasionally, about 5
minutes. Drain pasta into a large mixing bowl.

Meanwhile, put the olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat.
Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes. Add the onions and garlic,
stirring to combine, and cook until the onions are soft and the
chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes more. Put the chicken
mixture into the bowl with the cooked pasta. Add the canned tomatoes,
mozzarella cheese, parsley, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Place
the mixture in a buttered 8 by 8 by 2-inch baking dish. In a small
bowl mix together the bread crumbs and the Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle
over the top of the pasta mixture. Dot the top with small bits of
butter. Bake until the top is golden brown, about 30 minutes.

From: foodnetwork.com