Baked Penne Pasta with Chicken

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and have ready a 8 inch round deep sided baking dish. An equivalent size will do.

Place the chicken between two sheets of parchment paper and pound it to about an inch thickness with a kitchen hammer. Then season the chicken both sides with salt and rub over the crushed garlic. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet set over high heat. Sear the chicken on each side for about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and cut into bite size pieces and set aside.

Cook pasta according to package, drain and set aside.

In a medium saucepan set over medium to high heat, melt butter until sizzling. Whisk in flour until you have a paste. Gradually start whisking in your milk. Continue doing this until you have added all the milk and you have a slightly thickened sauce. Reduce heat to medium low and add most of the cheese, both kinds, reserving a little for the top. Stir really well until all the cheese has melted into the sauce. Season with a little bit of salt and pepper and add the chopped parsley. Stir and remove from heat.

Add chicken, pasta and sauce to the oven dish and stir well to combine. Sprinkle over remaining cheese and bread crumbs and bake for about 20-25 minutes. Let stand a couple of minutes before serving