Pasta with Chicken and White Sauce Casserole
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Creamy, cheesy and filling– This Pasta with chicken and white sauce Casserole is pasta tossed in a flavorful chicken, mushroom and spinach sauce, then topped with plenty of cheese and baked until golden brown. A super easy dinner idea and great meal prep dish!
Creamy Pasta Bake Casserole
If you have been in the mood for a chicken dinner that is creamy and delicious and your whole family will love, this healthy chicken alfredo bake is perfect for you. Everything from the perfectly seasoned chicken, to creamy pasta, all the way to the healthy spinach, gives this dish so much flavor.
Ingredients for White Sauce Chicken Pasta Bake:
Pasta and Chicken with White Sauce is easy to make and will delight your family and friends. Here is what you’ll need:
Pasta: Feel free to use any shape (ziti, penne or rigatoni) and variety (classic, whole-wheat, gluten-free pasta) of pasta that you prefer. I like to use Rigatoni pasta when I can, it is great for baked pasta dishes, and holds up well to thicker sauces such as the creamy white sauce in this recipe. If you can’t find rigatoni at your local grocery store, penne is a good substitute.
Skinless chicken breast: Cut into bite size pieces and cooked.
Olive oil: For cooking the chicken.
Salt & spices: Ground nutmeg, ground ginger and black pepper.
Alfredo sauce (white sauce): My alfredo sauce recipe is a lightened up version- made simply with low-fat milk, little butter, mozzarella cheese, and all purpose flour.
Shredded mozzarella cheese: Feel free to use part-skim or full-fat.
Fresh spinach leaves: I used baby spinach.
Fresh mushrooms: cooked with the chicken, just until wilted.
How to Make Pasta with Chicken and White Sauce:
- Cook the pasta. Cook your pasta according to package instructions, just until tender.
- Cook the chicken. While the pasta is cooking, cook the chicken in a large skillet with salt and spices. Add mushrooms and baby spinach to the pan and cook some more, just until softened.
- Prepare the white sauce. To make the white sauce, just add milk to a sauce pan. Stir in some flour to thicken, add butter and cheese and bring to a simmer. Season with salt.
- Layer everything together. Once your pasta, sauce, and chicken are all ready to go, it’s time to combine the white sauce bake! In your pasta pot, stir together the pasta, alfredo sauce and chicken until combined. Then spread half of the pasta mixture out evenly in a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Spread the the cooked on top . And repeat with the remaining pasta mixture, and sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese.
- Bake. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake for 20 minutes, or until the cheese is completely melted and has started to brown a bit on top.
- Add toppings. Remove and sprinkle with finely-chopped fresh parsley, if you’d like.
- Serve. Then dish it up while it’s s till nice and warm. Dig in and enjoy!
Tips for the Best Baked Chicken with White Sauce:
This chicken chicken baked white pasta dish is a real crowd pleaser as-is, but there are so many ways to customize it. Here are some possible chicken alfredo variations:
- Shred your own mozzarella cheese. If you want your cheese to melt well and stretch. Otherwise pre shredded cheese will taste just fine.
- For a different flavor, try using some pecorino romano or asiago cheese or parmesan.
- This dish can be assembled up to 3 days before you plan to bake it. Store it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to put it in the oven. Bring to room temperature before baking.
- Make it spicy. If you like spicy food, sprinkle lots of crushed red pepper into (and on top of) this casserole to give it a bit of a kick.
Is Chicken Alfredo bad for you?
In a regular chicken alfredo recipe, I would say yes, chicken alfredo is not the healthiest. But in this recipe we are not using cream cheese, parmesan or heavy cream. This recipe calls for low fat milk, and 1 tablespoon of butter which can also be left out. So I can safely say that this chicken alfredo recipe is a heathier version ?
Can you Make Baked Pasta in Advance?
This pasta bake can be made in advance and refrigerated. It will be good up to three days in the refrigerator. To reheat it simply cover the pasta in aluminum foil and bake it at 350 F for about 45 minutes to reheat it in the oven.
Can you Freeze Baked Pasta?
Yes! The best part about this dish is that it’s great for meal prep! Can be frozen for up to 3 months. Tightly cover the top of your dish with foil, then cover everything with plastic wrap to get as tight of a seal as possible. Thaw it in the fridge over night before baking. You can also bake it from frozen, just add additional 20- 30 minutes of cook time.
More Yummy Pasta Recipes:
Chicken Spinach Fettuccine Alfredo
Pesto Spaghetti with Chicken Meatballs
Lentil Soup with Pasta
Moghrabieh
There is nothing like delicious, creamy Alfredo covered in bubbly cheese straight out of the oven! I hope you try and love this low fat healthy alfredo chicken bake. If you do, please leave a comment and rating below, and let me know how it turned out for you. Be sure to snap a picture and tag me on Instagram @thesaltandsweetkitchen or share it on the Pinterest pin so that I can follow along.
Pasta with chicken and white sauce Bake
Pasta with Chicken and White Sauce Casserole
Ingredients
- 8 oz Rigatoni or Penne pasta
- 3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into strips (about 1 lb)
- 1/2 tbs ground nut meg
- 1 tbs ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- Salt to taste
- 3 tbsp all purpose flour
- 3 cups milk (low or full fat)
- 1/2 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella, divided
- 2 cup fresh spinach- cut into small pieces.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9"x13" pan with cooking spray.
- Cook the rigatoni or penne pasta according to the package directions, drain and set aside.
Prepare the chicken mixture:
- Thinly slice chicken breast into strips and slice the mushrooms thinly.
- In a large, deep skillet, heat olive oil over medium high heat, add the chicken, salt and spices and cook until light golden and cooked through- about 5-7 minutes.
- Add mushrooms and cook for another 5 minutes.
Prepare the white sauce:
- Meanwhile, in another sauce pan over medium high heat, add milk and flour and a pinch of salt. Whisking constantly to work out any lumps.
- Bring mixture to a boil, whisking frequently- The stirring process will avoid the mixture from sticking to the bottom of pot.
- Reduce heat to low and simmer for another 10 minutes or until the mixture thickens.
- Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese and butter.
- Taste the sauce and add salt if needed.
- Toss the cooked pasta with the white sauce, until everything is well coated.
To assemble:
- Split the pasta mixture into two halves.
- In a 9" x 13" prepared baking tray, pour the first half of pasta and white sauce evenly in the bottom of the tray.
- Add a layer of the cooked chicken, mushrooms and spinach mixture.
- Top with another layer of the pasta and white sauce mixture.
- Sprinkle with the remaining half of a cup of mozzarella cheese all over.
- Bake for 20 minutes until cheese is melted and begins to brown around the edges.
- Sprinkle with fine chopped parsley, if you'd like.
- Allow to cool for 5 minutes, cut into pieces, serve and enjoy!
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 315Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 73mgSodium: 315mgCarbohydrates: 23gFiber: 1gSugar: 7gProtein: 29g
Please note that the nutrition label provided is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator. It will vary based on the specific ingredients you use.