Chicken and Broccoli Pasta Bake with green pesto is a great recipe for using up leftover chicken. The green pesto adds a lovely flavour and using cream cheese means you don't have to make a sauce. Just stir everything together and top with grated cheese and breadcrumbs for an easy one-pot family meal.
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Recipe Tips and Variations
- A chicken and broccoli bake is a great dish for using up leftover cooked chicken, perhaps from a roast. If you don't have enough, you can cook the dish using raw chicken then add in any leftover cooked chicken at the end. Remember if you are using leftover chicken that you should only re-heat meat once.
- I've used leeks and broccoli in this pasta bake but you could also use cauliflower, kale, mushrooms or peas or sweetcorn.
- Because I'm always looking for shortcuts, instead of a traditional bechamel or cheese sauce, I've used a basic cream cheese and flavoured it with green pesto. There's no extra cooking, just stir them in! Pesto works so well in a chicken pasta bake and really adds lots of flavour.
- When it comes to pasta shapes, you can use any. I've used spirals in this recipe as they stick to the sauce well. Use whatever you have, or even a combination. When cooking the pasta, as with all pasta bakes, you should cook the pasta until it is almost done but still has a little bite to it. This is because the pasta will continue to cook in the oven.
- For the topping, I like to use a cheddar cheese as it adds extra flavour. It's best if you grate the cheese yourself rather than buying it in bags pre-grated. Pre-grated cheeses contain added preservatives to stop it from all clumping together in the bag. It also means that it doesn't melt as well.
- I also take the opportunity to sprinkle over some breadcrumbs for added crunch. This is a great way of making sure bread doesn't go to waste. Breadcrumbs store well in the freezer and you can just sprinkle breadcrumbs straight from the freezer over the top of pasta bakes.
- If you are using fresh chicken, you can prepare this pasta bake in advance and keep it in the fridge for up to 48 hours.
How to make it
Cook the broccoli 
Fry the chicken 
Fry the leeks 
Stir in cream cheese 
Stir everything together 
Bake
- Pre-heat the oven to 190°C/375°F/gas mark 5. Cook the pasta in a pan of lightly salted boiling water until it's almost done but still has some bite to it. Steam the broccoli over the pasta for the last 5 minutes
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan and if you are using fresh chicken, fry until browned then set aside. Leftover chicken is already cooked so not needed yet.
- Fry the leek over a medium heat for about 5 minutes, then add the garlic and fry for a further 2 minutes.
- Add the cream cheese and pesto to the pan and stir until melted.
- Add the chicken, pasta and broccoli and stir together so the pasta is well coated in the sauce. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Tip into an oven proof casserole dish and sprinkle the grated cheese and breadcrumbs over the top. For the breadcrumbs, you can blitz a few slices of bread in a food processor.
- Bake in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is browned.
More Useful leftover Chicken Ideas
These are some more easy recipes for using up leftover chicken.
Sustainability
When buying meat, if you can, try to choose meat that has been bred as free-range and preferably from a local source. This will reduce the carbon footprint of the meat. Free-range or organic meat has higher animal welfare standards and a lower environmental impact than industrially produced meat. When buying vegetables, try to buy them loose without any packaging and from local sources. Although broccoli is available all year round, it's in season from October through to around April. You may be able to find some locally grown during these months.
Storage
Chicken and Broccoli Pasta Bake can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 days. If you are cooking straight from the fridge, add an extra 5 minutes to the cooking time. Make sure it's piping hot when re-heated. When re-heating, cover the top with foil to prevent the top from burning. Re-heat in the oven at 190°C/375°F/gas mark 5 for 20 - 25 minutes. This version doesn't freeze very well due to the cream cheese. It is perfectly safe, but the texture is ot the same and the cream cheese can turn a bit grainy in texture when frozen.
📖 Recipe
Creamy Chicken and Broccoli Pasta Bake
Chicken and Broccoli Pasta Bake with green pesto is a great recipe for using up leftover chicken. Easy to prepare with minimal prep time.
Ingredients
- 350 g penne organic, fairtrade
- 200 g broccoli cut into small florets, stems thinly sliced, organic
- 2 tablespoon olive oil organic, fairtrade
- 350 g chicken diced
- 2 leeks trimmed, thinly sliced, organic
- 2 cloves garlic peeled, crushed, organic
- 250 g low fat cream cheese organic
- 4 tablespoon green pesto organic
- 1 dash black pepper freshly ground, organic, fairtrade
- 1 dash salt optional
- 85 g mature cheddar cheese grated, organic
- 4 tablespoon breadcrumbs organic, optional.
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 190°C/375°F/gas mark 5. Cook the pasta in a pan of lightly salted boiling water until it's almost done but still has some bite to it. Steam the broccoli over the pasta for the last 5 minutes
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan and if you are using fresh chicken, fry until browned then set aside. Leftover chicken is already cooked so not needed yet.
- Fry the leek over a medium heat for about 5 minutes, then add the garlic and fry for a further 2 minutes.
- Add the cream cheese and pesto to the pan and stir until melted.
- Add the chicken, pasta and broccoli and stir together so the pasta is well coated in the sauce. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Tip into an oven proof casserole dish and sprinkle the grated cheese and breadcrumbs over the top. For the breadcrumbs, you can blitz a few slices of bread in a food processor.
- Bake in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is browned.
Notes
Tips
- A chicken and broccoli bake is a great dish for using up any leftover cooked chicken. You can use cooked chicken or raw chicken or a combination of both. Stir in any leftover cooked chicken at the end. Remember if you are using leftover chicken that you should only re-heat meat once.
- I've used leeks and broccoli in this pasta bake but you could also use cauliflower, kale, mushrooms or peas or sweetcorn.
- When it comes to pasta shapes, you can use any. I've used spirals in this recipe as they stick to the sauce well. Use whatever you have, or even a combination. When cooking the pasta, as with all pasta bakes, you should cook the pasta until it is almost done but still has a little bite to it. This is because the pasta will continue to cook in the oven.
- For the topping, I like to use a cheddar cheese as it adds extra flavour. It's best if you grate the cheese yourself rather than buying it in bags pre-grated as it will melt better.
- Sprinkling over breadcrumbs is a great way to make sure bread doesn't go to waste. Breadcrumbs store well in the freezer and you can use straight from frozen.
- If you are using fresh chicken, you can prepare this pasta bake in advance and keep it in the fridge for up to 48 hours.
Storage
Chicken and Broccoli Pasta Bake can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 days. If cooking straight from the fridge, add an extra 5 minutes to the cooking time. Make sure it's piping hot when re-heated. When re-heating, cover the top with foil to prevent the top from burning. Re-heat in the oven at 190°C/375°F/gas mark 5 for 20 - 25 minutes. This version doesn't freeze very well due to the cream cheese. It is perfectly safe, but the texture is ot the same and the cream cheese can turn a bit grainy in texture when frozen.Nutrition per serving
Calories: 842kcalCarbohydrates: 93gProtein: 34gFat: 37gSaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 89mgSodium: 652mgPotassium: 839mgFiber: 7gSugar: 12gVitamin A: 3315IUVitamin C: 61mgCalcium: 393mgIron: 5mg
The Nutritional Values are computer generated estimates based on industry standards and are provided as a helpful guide only.
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Beth 🌺
Quick to make and easy recipe to follow, and used up leftovers from a roast dinner.