Lemon Cream Pasta

This is my go-to recipe for dinner. I've made this a bunch of times lately, and it's safe to say it's my kids' favorite dinner. Besides the broccoli, but one of these days they'll eat it.

I played around with a couple recipes and came up with this. You can add chicken to this if you're on top of things- but I'm not usually and thus it's meat-free a lot.

12 oz. penne

4 1/4 cups water
2 1/2 cups chicken broth (I use granules+water)
1-2 cups broccoli florets (depending on how much broccoli you want)
3/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (from the can- I tried grating it fresh once and it actually ruined this dish)
Juice of one lemon (or more to taste)

In a large pot, add the pasta, 3 cups of the water, and the broth. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until the liquid is very thick and syrupy and almost completely absorbed, 12 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. (If using frozen broccoli, add it at this step.)

Add the broccoli and the remaining 1 1/4 cups water. Cover, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until the broccoli turns bright green and is almost tender, 2-3 minutes.

Uncover and return the heat to medium-high. Stir in the cream, parmesan, (and the chicken if you added it) and continue to simmer, uncovered, until the sauce is thickened and everything is cooked and heated through, 1 to 2 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with grated parmesan.