I have a great one-pot meal to share with you all today. It's one of my favorites! Yes, it tastes delicious, but one of the reasons I love it is because it's so easy. You don't even cook the pasta beforehand- just throw everything together in a 9x13 pan and bake it for an hour! See- EASY.
To save time, I use already cooked, diced chicken {or use canned chicken or buy a rotisserie chicken from the store! I also like to chop and freeze veggies beforehand, so in this case, the onions and bell pepper- measure out what you need and it's done. Or you can just chop the veggies when you make the dish of course.
Chicken Cacciatore Bake
- 1 14-16oz box of Penne pasta
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 3 cup cooked, diced chicken
- 1 can diced tomatoes {undrained}
- 1 can tomato sauce {14-16 oz}
- 1 can chicken broth
- 1 can sliced mushrooms {I'm not a huge fan of canned mushrooms, but I don't always have fresh on hand!}
- 1 diced bell pepper {I use a yellow one}
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp dried basil
- salt & pepper to taste- I always shake a little on it
- 1/2 tsp minced garlic {1 clove}
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray.
Are you ready for these very difficult, elaborate instructions? Add all ingredients except for the Parmesan cheese to the pan. Stir to combine.
Cover the entire pan tightly with foil that's been sprayed with cooking spray on the underside. The noodles have to cook, so you need the heat to stay trapped in the pan.
After 30 minutes, remove from the oven and stir. Cover pasta with cheese and replace foil. Cook for another 30 minutes.
Enjoy!
Notes: If you use whole wheat pasta, add an additional 1/2 cup of chicken broth and cook for another 10-15 minutes, testing for doneness. Likewise, if you use a more delicate type of pasta, I'd reduce the cooking time to 40-45 minutes- like say for bowtie or rotini pasta.
