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This chicken and bacon pasta bake includes tender chicken breast, lots of smoky bacon bits, lots of cheese, and of course pasta to make it all complete.
A creamy, savory sauce combines with all the other flavors to make for a fairly quick, make-again, one-pot meal the whole family will love.
If you’ve been around my blog for a while, you’ll know that I really love bacon. And cheese. And pasta.
Ha!
So this chicken and bacon pasta bake is no surprise! A one-pot casserole that includes all the goodness of chicken, bacon, cheese, and pasta is a real winner for most families!
This pasta dish is layered with chicken on the bottom followed by broccoli and bacon. On the top is the cheesy macaroni with extra cheeses and bacon loaded on top.
The whole mixture is then baked to give a nice browning to the cheesy top. A creamy, cheesy, bacony, pasta-laden, one-pot dinner for the whole family!
You may also love my Spaghetti Bolognaise recipe – simple yet so delicious pasta sauce!
BTW … My favorite cookware is my Milo cast iron Dutch oven and skillet. Maybe you’d like to add one of their lovely pans to your Christmas wish list this year … Tough and rugged, yet so easy to clean. And a dream to cook with! Check them out here (and I believe if you sign up for their newsletter you get 10% off your first order)
Total disclosure – The above links are affiliate links (and I will make some money if you purchase through one of them, but your price is the same whether you go through my link or directly – thank you for using my link 😉
Also wanted to mention that these photos don’t include my Milo skillet, as I hadn’t purchased it yet. It’s so much easier to deal with the coated cast iron pans versus the old style “raw” cast iron (clean up is a breeze!) And these pans are simply gorgeous!
Chicken and Bacon Pasta Bake
Ingredients
- 8 slices bacon, thick and meaty
- 1 pound chicken breast strips
- 1-1/2 cups macaroni, uncooked
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup shredded pepper Jack cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded or grated parmesan cheese
- 4 ounces sour cream
- 2 Tbs butter
- 1/2 cup cream or milk
- 1/4 tsp salt, more to taste
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper, more to taste
- 2 Tbs garlic, minced
- 2 cups broccoli florets
- 1 Tbs dry oregano
Instructions
- Cook bacon in iron skillet. May have to do two batches.
- While bacon is cooking, cook pasta according to package directions.
- When bacon is done, remove from pan and drain all but 2 tablespoons of bacon fat.
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Cook the chicken, garlic, and oregano in the skillet on low-medium heat for 5 minutes. Turn chicken, add broccoli, cover and cook 5 minutes more.
- When pasta is done, drain, add butter, half the cheddar and pepper Jack cheeses, all the parmesan cheese, sour cream, and milk. Stir and melt slightly on low heat for 5 minutes uncovered.
- Uncover chicken and broccoli mixture and crumble half of the bacon over top.
- Pour macaroni mixture over chicken/broccoli mixture.
- Top with the rest of the cheese and bacon and bake 15-20 minutes or until browned.
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