Cheesy Chicken Pasta Bake is an easy Italian-inspired casserole that the whole family will love, featuring Greek yogurt, chicken breast, and lots of cheese!
This Cheesy Chicken Pasta Bake was made inspired by the “Chopped at Home” challenge with Sargento® cheese. For the challenge, at-home cooks are asked to get creative in the kitchen with your best dish, that must include the following ingredients:
- Sargento® Chef Blends™ 6 Cheese Italian
- Boneless skinless chicken breast
- Red bell pepper
- Greek yogurt
The dish can include other ingredients, but the focus should be the above. Easy enough, right?
Consistent with the Chopped television show, I wanted to make something in about 30 minutes that would win the hearts of the judges. In this case, the judges were Alida’s Kitchen’s most challenging food critics…my kids!
The verdict…they loved it! Adam had seconds and Greta had fourths (!!) Fortunately, Cheesy Chicken Pasta Bake is very easy to make,…which is a good thing because we will be making it often. Here’s what I did: First cook the pasta. While the pasta is cooking, saute onion, pepper and garlic. In the same pan, saute the chicken. Then mix everything together, pour it into the baking dish and bake until the cheese is gooey, bubbly delicious.
The Greek yogurt is added with the pasta sauce to give a creaminess while keeping things light and tasty. Cooking the chicken with the onion and pepper gives it a really delicious flavor. And the cheese…well, with a blend of Shredded Natural Mozzarella, Smoked Provolone, Fontina, Asiago and Parmesan, you know it’s going to be delicious. Serve with a simple green salad or a side of steamed broccoli, and your at-home judges will declare you a winner too!
- 1 box (16 ounces) pasta (I used Gemelli)
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 jar (32 ounces) pasta sauce (I used tomato basil)
- ½ cup nonfat Greek yogurt
- 2 cups Sargento Chef Blends Shredded 6 Cheese Italian, divided
- Preheat oven to 375F degrees. Spray a 13x9-inch baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large pot, cook pasta to al dente according to package directions.
- While pasta is cooking, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet. Add onions and pepper, and cook for 5 minutes, or until softened. Add garlic and cook for one minutes, or until fragrant. Move cooked vegetables into a bowl.
- Place chicken in the same nonstick skillet and cook until no longer pick (about 3 to 6 minutes, depending on the size of the pieces). Add vegetables and stir.
- Put pasta back into large pot. Add vegetables and toss to combine. Pour in pasta sauce and Greek yogurt, 1 cup cheese and stir until combined. Pour into prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and cover with foil to bake for 10 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted an bubbly.
What would you make for the Chopped at Home challenge? You can cook at home using Sargento for the challenge and enter the Chopped at Home contest for a chance to win $10,000!!! Find out more at the Chopped at Home page, and good luck!
Available in 30 versatile varieties, unique blends and distinct cuts, Sargento Shredded Cheese is always cut from blocks of 100% real, natural cheese. For more inspiration, check out the Sargento Pinterest page or visit Sargento.com for more information. The Chopped at Home Challenge gives viewers a chance to create their best recipe using the selected basket ingredients, including Sargento Shredded Cheese, for a chance to win $10,000!
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Sargento®. The opinions and text are all mine.
