This Cheesy Chicken Pasta is an easy meal that you can have on your dinner table in under 30 minutes.  Gooey cheese and chicken in an easy pasta recipe will have everyone licking their plate clean in a hurry.

Can I get a hoorah?  We are two weeks into this school year, and homemade dinner recipes are still being made and served by yours truly after school each day.  

Not to pat myself on the back or anything…ok, fine.  I’m totally over here giving myself mad props.

I mean, when making dinner is not your strongest skill, you have to congratulate yourself every once in a while when you have made a few delicious meals in a row.  Am I right?  

You can thank this Chicken Supreme Pasta Bake and this Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Bake for my love of making gooey, cheesy dinners.  These dinners got me going on this crazed pasta fetish.

Cheese and pasta are the first thing I think of when I start to get dinner started each day.  I should probably widen my options before my family gets burned out on the cheesy goodness!

Speaking of widening options, let’s talk about kids and their eating habits.  Our kids have never been super picky about what they eat.  I am so thankful that they pretty much ate everything we fed them when they were little.

As our youngest has gotten older though, he has gotten picky.  He only has a handful of things he likes to eat.  I swear that boy would live on ramen noodles, if we would just let him.  The other thing he likes are chicken strips from Steak & Shake.

He has this crazy idea that they are different from any other place. We keep trying to convince him that other chicken strips taste just like those ones, but he argues up and down with us and won’t eat them for dinner.

We have started buying canned chicken at Sam’s and Costco to make this Grape Pecan Chicken Salad in a hurry on busy nights.  Would you believe that our son actually likes this chicken?  I couldn’t believe it either!  I am so excited that he has widened his food options to include a protein.

The next time we were at the store I may have grabbed another package of canned chicken. Of course, give it a few weeks and he will probably be over it.

So, the other afternoon when I started rummaging in the cupboard for easy dinner ideas, I pulled some canned chicken out and decided to add it to an easy pasta dinner. The first question our youngest asked was what kind of chicken was in the pasta!

He was all smiles when he found it I had used his favorite chicken.  Just so you know, rotisserie chicken, leftover grilled chicken, or cooked chicken all work great to make the best chicken pasta too.

This meal actually only has a few ingredients in it, and most of them are probably already in your cupboards or pantry.  You can add your favorite vegetable to this one pan cheesy chicken dinner.  You could add peas, broccoli, or tomatoes in place of the peppers.

How to make Cheesy Chicken Pasta:

1. Start by boiling the noodles.  (full recipe below)
2. While those are cooking, sauté chopped peppers in butter, then stir in flour and milk to make a white sauce. 
3. Add handfuls of cheese to the roux, and let it melt into gooey goodness.
4. Stir in the chicken and pasta, season it to taste, and serve it up.

Easy Cheesy Chicken Pasta for dinner time gets smiles all around the table!  Never mind trying to add new dinners to our meals, I think I’ll just stick to making cheesy pasta forever!

More easy pasta dinner recipes:

• Cheddar Broccoli Chicken Lasagna Rolls
• Spicy Parmesan Shrimp Scampi
• Chicken Parmesan Meatball Casserole
• Three Cheese Macaroni and Cheese
• Chicken Alfredo Ravioli Lasagna

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Cheesy Chicken Pasta

Yield: 6 servings

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

This Cheesy Chicken Pasta is an easy meal that you can make in under 30 minutes. Gooey cheese, pasta, and chicken will have everyone licking their plates clean.

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Ingredients

• 8 ounces penne noodles
• 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup diced red peppers
• 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
• 2 Tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 3 cups shredded cheddar jack cheese, divided
• 1 (13 ounce) can chunk chicken (or 1 1/2 cups shredded chicken)
• 1 Tablespoon ranch seasoning powder
• pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Prepare the noodles according to the package directions. Drain when finished cooking.
2. Melt the butter in a large skillet. Add the peppers and sauté for 1-2 minutes.
3. Add the garlic and flour and stir and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
4. Slowly whisk in the milk and cook on medium until thick. Add 2 cups of cheese and stir until melted and creamy.
5. Stir in the cooked pasta, chicken, ranch powder, and 3/4 cup cheese. Season to taste with pepper.
6. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup cheese on top and cover until the cheese melts. Serves 6.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 424Total Fat: 28gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 89mgSodium: 582mgCarbohydrates: 21gFiber: 1gSugar: 1gProtein: 23g

Nutrition facts are an estimate and are not guaranteed to be accurate. If you need special diet advice, please see a registered dietician.

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