Creamy Cheesy Chicken and Pasta Casserole

It’s a beautiful day today. It looks like it wants to rain and that’s a good day.

Now at one time or another many of us find ourselves in a situation where we don’t know what to do with leftover chicken. My Ron grilled yesterday and I have some leftover chicken.

Why You’ll Love This

I think you’re gonna love it.

I like the combination. You can use your favorite. I think they’re all good.

I love the corn and so does my ron because it’s a little sweet and tangy with a sour cream and it’s a perfect combination.

This is heavenly delicious and I’m sure children will absolutely love it and it’s super easy.

Ingredients

For the Pasta

• 2 cups small shell pasta
• Salt

For the Creamy Sauce

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup finely chopped onions
• 1/4 cup finely chopped orange bell pepper
• 2 large garlic cloves, finely minced
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• 3 teaspoons chicken flavor
• 2 hits cayenne pepper
• A little bit of salt
• A little bit of pepper

For the Casserole

• 3 cups leftover chicken, cut into small cubes (or shredded)
• 3/4 cup canned corn
• 1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 1/2 cups Monterey Jack
• 1 cup sour cream
• A little bit more pepper (optional)
• A little bit more cayenne pepper (optional)
• Green peas (optional)
• Broccoli (optional)

For the Topping

• 1/2 cup Monterey Jack
• 1/2 cup sharp cheddar
• Half a sleeve of crackers
• 3 tablespoons melted butter

Instructions

1. I’ve got my water boiling right here. I’m gonna add my salt. You want it nice and salty.
2. And I’m gonna add my two cups of pasta in here.
3. And I’m gonna cook it for about eight minutes just follow the directions on the back of the package.
4. So after eight minutes, I’m gonna drain it and I’m gonna rinse it really well.
5. So now I’m gonna add it into this bowl. I’m gonna cover it up and I’m gonna set it aside.
6. I’m gonna be using this skillet right here to make my creamy sauce and it’s nice and hot said on low medium.
7. I’m gonna add four tablespoons butter and I’m gonna move my butter around until it melts really well.
8. So now that my butter is nice and melted. I’m gonna add my onions. I have one cup of finely chopped onions.
9. So now that my onions are slightly translucent, I’m gonna add one fourth cup of finely chopped orange bell pepper.
10. And I’m also gonna add two large garlic cloves that are finely minced together.
11. And I’m gonna move all this around for about one minute.
12. So after a minute, I’m gonna add my all-purpose flour. I have three tablespoons.
13. I’m gonna move it around until it gets nice and cooked.
14. So my flour is well cooked. Now I’m gonna add my milk. I have one and a half cups of whole milk.
15. And I’m gonna add it in here slowly and I’m gonna whisk it.
16. As I continue to whisk it, it’s gonna slowly start getting thicker and thicker.
17. I’m gonna add three teaspoons of chicken flavor.
18. And I’m gonna add two hits of cayenne pepper. One, two.
19. I’m gonna add a little bit of salt.
20. A little bit of pepper.
21. And I’m gonna continue whisking it until it gets real nice and thick and creamy.
22. Now you want to taste it and adjust it if you have to.
23. I’m gonna turn off the heat and I’m gonna set it aside right here.
24. Now into this big bowl, I’m gonna add all my pasta. Just dump it in here.
25. And I’m gonna add my three cups of chicken.
26. I’m gonna add three fourths cup of corn.
27. Now I’m gonna add all my sauce in here.
28. I’m gonna add one and a half cups of sharp cheddar cheese.
29. And I have one and a half cups of Monterey Jack.
30. Now I’m gonna toss all this together.
31. Before I continue tossing it, I’m gonna add one cup of sour cream.
32. And I’m gonna add just a little bit more pepper. Or you can add a little bit more cayenne pepper if you want to do that.
33. And now I’m gonna toss it in real good together. Make sure that it’s all well combined.
34. Now this would be a good time for you to preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
35. I’m gonna spray my dish. This is a 10 and a half by nine and it’s two and a quarter inches deep. I’m gonna spray it lightly with some non-stick spray.
36. Now I’m gonna add all my mixture in here. I’m just gonna smooth it out.
37. Now I’m gonna add my cheese. I have one cup of cheese. Half is Monterey Jack and half is the sharp cheddar.
38. So I’m gonna add the Monterey Jack on top.
39. Now the sharp cheddar.
40. Now I’m gonna add the last topping in this little ziplock bag. I have half a sleeve of crackers. I’m just gonna crumble it up really good like that.
41. Now I’m gonna add my crumbs into this bowl.
42. And I’m gonna add three tablespoons of melted butter.
43. Now make sure that you have all these crumbs coated with butter. Just do the best you can.
44. So I have all my crumbs nice and coated. Now I’m just gonna sprinkle it on top.
45. Now I’m gonna stick it into my oven right on the center rack that’s preheated to 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
46. Or until it gets real nice and bubbly and golden brown from the top. Keep your eyes on it uncovered. Just like this.
47. And here it is. It’s been 35 minutes. Come take a look.
48. Now I’m gonna set it right here and I’m gonna let it cool for about 10 minutes because it’ll be a lot easier to serve that way.

Cooking Tips

You don’t want to burn your garlic.

You don’t want raw flour in your sauce.

You want to whisk it non-stop.

But you want to make sure that you don’t get it too salty because we’ve got other ingredients that are going to go in here and you don’t want to overdo it.

I like to add the sour cream at the end because you don’t want it to curdle. So once the temperature has come down in the bowl, you can add your sour cream.

You can add your favorite vegetables in here. Sometimes I add green peas. I just follow the package directions on frozen peas and then I add it in here. Now you can add broccoli just cut it up into small pieces and just blanch it and then put it in here. It’s all good.

It’s optional. If you want to just add your cheese, that’s fine. But this just gives it a little bit of a crunch and the sweetness of the crackers combined with a rest of the ingredients. It’s delicious.

Serving Suggestions

I’m gonna cover this up and I’m gonna be serving this with a salad. It just goes so perfect with it. You can serve it with anything you like on the side. But a cold salad just goes so well with this.

And when I serve the salad, I like to put some ranch dressing right on top because the tanginess of the ranch dressing and this casserole just goes so good together.

And I’m gonna enjoy it with some tropical punch.

So this is my creamy cheesy chicken and pasta casserole.