Buffalo Chicken Pasta

Credit: Hodgson Mill (recipe on side of pasta box)
Recipe:
1 12oz box Hodgson Mill Whole Wheat Penne
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast cubed
2 tsp vegetable oil, divided
1-2 tsp hot sauce
1 cup celery, sliced
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
1 cup low-fat bleu cheese salad dressing
1 cup low-fat mayonnaise
3/4 cup skim milk
2 Tbsp bleu cheese, crumbled

Prepare pasta according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, combine paprika, salt, garlic powder and pepper, sprinkle over chicken stirring to coat. Add 1 teaspoon of oil to a large skillet and heat over medium to high heat. Add chicken to skillet and saute, stirring frequently, until chicken is golden brown and cooked through, about 4 minutes. Add hot sauce; cook 1 minute. Remove chicken from skillet. Add remaining teaspoon of oil to skillet; add celery and onion and saute about 2 minutes.

Combine mayonnaise, dressing and milk in a small bowl. Add to vegetables in skillet. Add chicken. Stir constantly and cook until heated. When pasta is done, drain and return to pot. Add contents of skillet to pot and mix well. Transfer to serving dish and sprinkle with bleu cheese. Serve immediately. Serves 6.

Cochran Review: I made a few substitutions in an effort to make this healthier and we do not like bleu cheese dressing:
- Sorry Hodgson Mill, another whole wheat pasta was on sale. So, I ran with that.
- I upped the garlic powder from 1/8 tsp to 1/4 tsp.
- I used Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil from Wildtree instead of vegetable oil.
- I sliced the red onion in large slices instead of chopping it so we could remove them easily. We like the flavor of onions, but do not appreciate the texture.
- I replaced mayo with plain Greek yogurt.
- Instead of bleu cheese salad dressing, I used a block of brie (w/ rhine removed) and some feta crumbles.
- We topped it w/ leftover feta crumbles instead of buying bleu cheese crumbles, and additional hot sauce.
- I didn't combine the spices and then put them on the chicken. I put the oil in the pan, the chicken, and dumped spices as I measured them. It saved a step and worked fine.

This dish was SO yummy! We really enjoyed it and would love to have it again. I used 2 teaspoons of hot sauce and I wouldn't even say it had a kick... in fact, I would say 2 teaspoons is very kid friendly. So, we topped our dishes after they were plated with a few more shakes of hot sauce! Yum! I served it with raw celery and carrot sticks. The recipe states it serves 6. I'd say it serves 3 adults, unless you have larger sides than I offered. Enjoy!

Pic of our meal is the picture shown above.