Penne Tricolore - Vegetarian or Not

I saw this and was worried by the lemon. However, it was delightful. For my lactose intolerant friends, leave out the cheese. One way we made this go a bit farther was adding chicken. I will place my chicken "recipe" at the very bottom after the notes for you who would like to add it in.

Penne Tricolore

(Optional: 1 - 2 chicken breasts cubed)
3/4 pound(s) penne rigate
*1 small zucchini, seeded and cut into 2-inch-long matchstick strips
*1 small summer squash, seeded and cut into 2-inch-long matchstick strips
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch-long matchstick strips
1/2 cup(s) Kalamata or other black olives, pitted
1/2 cup(s) chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup(s) grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
1/4 cup(s) olive oil
Grated zest from 1 lemon
1 1/2 tablespoon(s) lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon(s) salt
1/4 teaspoon(s) fresh-ground black pepper

Directions

1. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the penne rigate until almost done, about 11 minutes. Add the zucchini, summer squash, and carrots and bring back to a boil. Cook until the vegetables and penne are just done, about 2 minutes longer. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water. Drain the penne and vegetables.
2. In a large bowl, toss the pasta, vegetables, 6 tablespoons of the reserved pasta water, olives, basil, Parmesan, oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. If the pasta seems dry, add more of the reserved pasta water. Serve with additional Parmesan.

*Notes: Seeding Zucchini and Summer Squash: Because the zucchini and summer squash are boiled in this recipe, it's a good idea to seed them first. Otherwise, the pulpy seeds get water-logged. To remove them, cut the zucchini or squash into quarters lengthwise. Then simply cut off the seeds.

Chicken:

1-2 chicken breasts, cubed
1-2 Tbsp. olive oil
Lemon Pepper

Directions:

1. Put olive oil into skillet and warm up.
2. Place chicken into skillet and add Lemon Pepper to taste. By taste, this does not mean that I'm encouraging you to lick raw chicken. I use a lot of lemon pepper, but I didn't measure it. I covered the pieces thoroughly. If you like a lot of seasoning, put a lot. If you don't, don't.