Description
Crazy Good Casserole brings comfort straight to your dinner table with a delightful mix of hearty ingredients that blend perfectly. Grab your favorite baking dish and get ready to create a meal that’ll have everyone asking for seconds.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Protein:
- 4–5 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 6 strips bacon
Cheese and Pasta:
- 2 cups Monterrey Jack cheese
- 1 box (16 ounces) dried spiral pasta
Seasonings and Sauce:
- 2 cans cream of chicken soup
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Boil 16 ounces of spiral pasta in a large pot according to package directions at a rolling boil for 8-10 minutes. Drain thoroughly and set aside in a colander.
- Fry 6 strips of bacon in a skillet over medium heat until crispy and golden brown, approximately 4-5 minutes per side. Transfer bacon to paper towels and crumble into small fragments.
- Season 4-5 boneless chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Cook chicken in the same skillet over medium-high heat for 6-7 minutes per side until internal temperature reaches 165°F.
- Dice the cooked chicken into bite-sized chunks roughly ½ inch in size using a sharp knife.
- Grab a large mixing bowl and combine the cooked pasta, diced chicken, bacon crumbles, 2 cans of cream of chicken soup, and 1 ½ cups of shredded Monterrey Jack cheese. Stir until ingredients are evenly distributed.
- Grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray or butter. Transfer the mixed ingredients into the dish, spreading them evenly.
- Sprinkle the remaining ½ cup of cheese across the top of the casserole.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Slide the casserole into the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes until cheese melts completely and edges turn golden brown.
- Remove from oven and let the casserole rest for 5-7 minutes before serving to allow flavors to settle and mixture to cool slightly.
Notes
- Save time by cooking bacon and chicken simultaneously while pasta boils to streamline your cooking process.
- Choose thick-cut bacon for extra crunch and richer flavor in the final casserole.
- For a lighter version, swap cream of chicken soup with Greek yogurt and use reduced-fat cheese to cut calories.
- Customize the dish by adding vegetables like diced bell peppers or frozen peas for extra nutrition and color.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Casseroles
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6
- Calories: 555 kcal
- Sugar: 2 g
- Sodium: 870 mg
- Fat: 28 g
- Saturated Fat: 13 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 13 g
- Trans Fat: 0.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 38 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 41 g
- Cholesterol: 115 mg