Baked Chicken And Pasta

I made this tonight for dinner and all things considered, it turned out pretty well.  It was a bit too spicy for me, but I know where I went wrong.  The recipe wanted green chilies and chopped tomatoes, but because I took the easy route, I put a can of tomatoes in green chilies.  Not only that, but I used a brand I'd never tried before.  Which, not surprisingly, turned out to be a lot hotter than the brand I usually get.    Next time I'm going to put tomatoes and green chilies lol.   But hey, nothing new here folks, just an average day in the kitchen ;)

Baked Chicken And Pasta

Ingredients:

• 1 pound cooked shredded chicken
• 1 medium chopped onion
• 1 cup chopped green pepper
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 4 Tbsp. butter
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 can of chicken broth
• 1/2 cup Half & Half
• 3/4 cup of shredded cheddar cheese (about 1/4 cup in the dish, and 1/2 for the topping)
• 1/2 cup of shredded part skim mozzarella 
• 8 oz. pasta noodles ( you can use any you like.  I used elbow macaroni), cooked al dente and drained
• 1/2 cup buttered Panko crumbs
• 1 4 oz. canned chopped green chilies
• 1 tomato, chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.
• Put water on to boil for your pasta.
• First, season your chicken with salt and pepper and cook on a medium heat until cooked through.  Let it rest about 10minutes so the flavors really sink in and chop it into small pieces.
• Melt 3 Tbsp of butter in a pan, then add you onion, garlic, and green pepper until tender.  
• Pour the flour over the vegetables and stir constantly for about 2 minutes.
• Add the chicken broth and continue to stir until a thick sauce has formed.  Add the half and half and stir until well combined.
• Add the tomatoes, green chilies, and 1/4 cup of cheese.
• Stir until the cheese has began to melt, then add the chicken and combine.
• Cook the pasta in the boiling water until al dente and then drain.
• Taste the chicken sauce mixture. Add more salt/pepper if needed.
• Pour the pasta in a large bowl, then put the sauce on top and mix through before transferring it to a casserole dish.
• Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup cheddar cheese on top of the pasta.  Distribute the mozzarella on top of the cheddar cheese.
• In a small bowl combine 1 Tbsp of butter with 1/2 cup panko. Distribute the panko on top of the cheese.
• Bake for 30 minutes uncovered, or until the casserole begins to bubble.

I loved the panko topping so much, I'll probably add more next time.  It was absolutely wonderful.  I'll also chop up my onions and peppers properly lol. I just used the frozen ones I had prepared for stirfry and had never got around to making.

Source:  Adapted from a recipe found at Themeaningofpie.com