Skillet Chicken Pasta with Broccoli and Sun-Dried Tomatoes -- The Casserole That Follows Her Out the Door

Amber came home for the weekend before her ER externship starts. She looked thin — thinner than she should be — and I made fried chicken immediately because that's the response protocol when a Hensley child appears underweight. She ate a breast and a thigh and two biscuits and said "I haven't eaten this well in a week." A week. My daughter, the nursing student who tells patients about nutrition, hasn't eaten properly in a week. The cobbler's children go barefoot. The nurse's daughter goes hungry.

Amber and Clay sat on the porch Saturday night and talked for three hours. I didn't listen. Connie wanted to listen. I told Connie no. They need to be siblings without parents for a minute. They need to say the things that siblings say when the audience is limited to the two people who grew up in the same house and share the same DNA and understand each other in ways that no parent can access. They laughed. They were quiet. They laughed again. When they came inside, Amber's eyes were red and Clay's weren't, which means Clay made her cry and also means Clay is probably right about whatever he said, because Clay's emotional intelligence is higher than his emotional expression, which is like saying a lake is deeper than it looks.

This week's recipe: Amber's going-away casserole. A chicken broccoli rice casserole that I make when kids leave, because casseroles are the food of transitions — portable, sturdy, reheatable. Cook rice. Steam broccoli. Mix with shredded chicken, cream of mushroom soup, sour cream, shredded cheddar, salt, pepper. Pour into a baking dish, top with more cheese and crushed Ritz crackers. Bake at 350 for thirty minutes. It's not fancy. It's not Appalachian. It's a casserole, which means it's American in the deepest sense — a one-dish meal designed to feed people who don't have time to sit down and eat properly, which describes every stage of life from college to the grave.

I sent Amber back to UK with the casserole, a quart of frozen soup, and a bag of biscuits. She loaded them into her car and hugged me and said "I'm going to be okay, Dad." Everybody keeps telling me they're going to be okay. Clay says he'll be okay. Amber says she'll be okay. Connie says we'll be okay. Everyone is okay. I'm the one standing in the driveway watching cars leave and wondering if okay is a destination or a wish.

The casserole I describe in the story above is the version I make by feel — no recipe card, just the muscle memory of having sent a child back to school more times than I want to count. When I sat down to write it out properly, I kept coming back to this skillet chicken and broccoli dish, because it carries the same logic: chicken, broccoli, something rich to hold it together, and enough volume to fill a container that fits in a college kid’s refrigerator. Amber needed real food more than she needed anything fancy, and this is exactly that.

Skillet Chicken Pasta with Broccoli and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 25 min | Total Time: 35 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 8 oz penne or rotini pasta
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• 1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and roughly chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. In the last 2 minutes of cooking, add the broccoli florets to the pot. Drain together and set aside.
2. Season and sear the chicken. Pat chicken pieces dry and season generously with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken in a single layer and cook 5–6 minutes, turning once, until golden and cooked through. Transfer to a plate.
3. Build the sauce. Reduce heat to medium. Add garlic and sun-dried tomatoes to the same skillet and cook 1 minute until fragrant. Pour in chicken broth, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Stir in heavy cream and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook 3–4 minutes until the sauce thickens slightly.
4. Combine everything. Return the chicken to the skillet along with the drained pasta and broccoli. Toss to coat everything in the sauce. Add red pepper flakes if using. Stir in Parmesan and cook 1–2 minutes more until the cheese is melted and the sauce clings to the pasta.
5. Taste and serve. Adjust salt and pepper as needed. Serve directly from the skillet, topped with additional Parmesan. To pack for travel, cool completely before transferring to a lidded container — reheats well with a splash of broth or water.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 480 | Protein: 36g | Fat: 18g | Carbs: 42g | Fiber: 3g | Sodium: 420mg