A delicious Creamy Chicken and Broccoli Pasta Bake made with cream cheese for the sauce, chicken pieces, and broccoli florets and topped with melted cheese. An easy one-pot meal with minimal prep. It's also perfect for using up leftover cooked chicken and is easily adapted to help avoid food waste.
One-tray meals are perfect for mid-week and so easy to put together. Some of my most popular tray bakes include Lemon Chicken Tray Bake or Sticky Sausage Tray Bake or Tray Baked Cod with Mediterranean Veg.
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Ingredients
- Pasta - any pasta shapes will do such as rigatoni, penne, fusilli or shells for example. These will hold the sauce nicely. For a healthier version, use whole wheat pasta, but remember it has a longer cooking time.
- Chicken - use any boneless skinless chicken meat. Chicken breast fillet or tenderloin or thighs. Thighs are my favourite as they stay moist and are also cheaper than breast meat. This is also a great recipe for using up leftover cooked chicken from a roast (rotisserie chicken)
- Broccoli - fresh or frozen broccoli.
- Leeks - leeks are high in nutrients but low in calories and a great way to add more vegetables.
- Cream cheese - I've used a low-fat version, but you can use full fat. The cream cheese melts to make a delicious sauce which replaces a traditional roux or cheese sauce.
- Green Pesto - adding green pesto to the sauce is optional, but brings lots of flavour. I use a simple basil pesto.
- Cheese - grated or shredded cheese is sprinkled over the top of the pasta bake to create a delicious gooey topping. It also helps keep the pasta bake nice and moist. Use any hard cheese such as mozzarella for a milder flavour or a cheddar which has a sharper more tangy taste. Grated parmesan cheese is also a good option for a pasta bake. It is always best to grate or shred the cheese yourself. Pre-packaged varieties won't melt as well as they contain anti-caking agents.
- Milk - adding milk makes the sauce go further and ensures there is enough to coat the pasta. If you use low-fat cream cheese, your sauce may look a little grainy but will taste just fine.
- Breadcrumbs - I always like to add breadcrumbs to pasta bakes as they give a nice crispy topping. It's also a really handy way to use up bread that may have gone a little dry and avoid food waste. Remember, you can freeze breadcrumbs and use them straight from frozen.
See recipe card for quantities.
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. Add the broccoli to the pasta for the last 5 minutes. The pasta and broccoli should be slightly undercooked as they will continue cooking in the oven.
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, milk, and pesto (optional) to the pan and stir until melted.
Add the chicken, pasta, and broccoli back to the pan 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 or shredded cheese and breadcrumbs over the top.
Bake in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is browned.
Hint: Once your pasta bake is cooked, let it rest for 5 minutes to allow it to firm up and make it easier to serve. Pasta will continue to absorb the sauce once cooked so if you leave it for a few hours, the amount of sauce will not be the same.
Substitutions
Gluten-Free - using gluten-free pasta will make this chicken pasta bake suitable for gluten-free diets.
Variations
Pasta bakes are great for using up leftovers and you can add in a variety of fresh vegetables. If you do add more vegetables, you will also need to add more sauce or your pasta bake will be too dry. Stir in enough cream cheese and milk so your ingredients are well coated in your sauce.
- Vegetables - other vegetables that work well are sweetcorn, peas, cauliflower, mushrooms, kale, or spinach.
- Frozen Vegetables - you can cook this dish with frozen vegetables. However, you should add them to the pasta water for the last 2 minutes to defrost. Adding frozen vegetables directly to the sauce will make it too watery.
For an alternative pasta dish with similar ingredients, try my Creamy Chicken Leek and Mushroom Pasta.
Equipment
You will need a large pan to cook the pasta and a large frying or skillet pan, big enough to hold all the ingredients.
An oven proof casserole or baking dish. The size will depend on if you add any extra ingredients.
Serving Suggestion
It's perfectly ok to serve this chicken pasta bake on its own as it's very filling. However, it does go well with a green salad or a side of extra vegetables such as peas, sweetcorn, green beans, mangetout, sugar snap, or snow peas.
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.
Buy vegetables 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 reheating, 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. Remember if you used chicken that was already cooked, you should not reheat the pasta bake as meat should only be reheated once. You can, however, eat it cold.
This version doesn't freeze well due to the cream cheese. It is perfectly safe, but the texture is not the same and the cream cheese can turn a bit grainy in texture when frozen.
Top tip
Remember to undercook the pasta and broccoli before adding them to the pasta bake. The pasta and broccoli will continue to cook in the oven. Take off 2 -3 minutes from the cooking time on the package.
FAQ
Adding frozen vegetables to a pasta bake will make it watery. Defrost them first by adding them to the pasta water and cooking for a couple of minutes. Adding more vegetables to the recipe will mean that more sauce is needed.
Pasta absorbs liquid from the sauce as it cooks. More pasta will mean that more sauce is needed. Also, the pasta will continue to absorb sauce once cooked so if you leave your pasta bake for a few hours, it will not have as much sauce.
Related
Looking for other easy pasta bake recipes like this? Try these:
📖 Recipe
Creamy Chicken and Broccoli Pasta Bake
Ingredients
- 350 g pasta shapes organic, fairtrade available
- 200 g broccoli cut into small florets, stems thinly sliced, organic
- 2 tablespoon olive oil organic, fairtrade available
- 350 g chicken diced
- 2 leeks trimmed, thinly sliced, organic available
- 2 cloves garlic peeled, crushed, organic
- 250 g low fat cream cheese organic available
- 200 ml milk organic available
- 4 tablespoon green pesto (optional) organic available
- 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. Add the broccoli to the pasta for the last 2 minutes350 g pasta shapes, 200 g broccoli
- 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.2 tablespoon olive oil, 350 g chicken
- Fry the leek over a medium heat for about 5 minutes, then add the garlic and fry for a further 2 minutes.2 leeks, 2 cloves garlic
- Add the cream cheese, and stir until melted. Add the milk and pesto and stir together.250 g low fat cream cheese, 4 tablespoon green pesto
- 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.1 dash black pepper, 1 dash salt
- Tip into an oven proof casserole dish and sprinkle the grated cheese and breadcrumbs over the top.85 g mature cheddar cheese, 4 tablespoon breadcrumbs
- Bake in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is browned.
Notes
Ingredients
- Pasta - any pasta shapes will do such as rigatoni, penne, fusilli or shells for example. These will hold the sauce nicely. For a healthier version, use whole wheat pasta, but remember it has a longer cooking time.
- Chicken - any boneless skinless chicken meat will work. Chicken breast fillet or tenderloin or thighs. Thighs are my favourite as they stay nice and moist and are also cheaper than breast meat. This is also a great recipe for using up leftover cooked chicken from a roast (rotisserie chicken)
- Broccoli - fresh or frozen broccoli.
- Leeks - leeks are high in nutrients but low in calories and a great way to add more vegetables to this chicken pasta bake.
- Cream cheese - I've used a low-fat version, but you can use full fat. The cream cheese melts to make a delicious sauce which replaces a traditional roux or cheese sauce used in other pasta bakes but is way simpler.
- Green Pesto - adding green pesto to the sauce is optional, but does bring lots of flavour. I use a simple basil pesto.
- Cheese - grated or shredded cheese is sprinkled over the top of the pasta bake to create a delicious gooey topping. It also helps keep the pasta bake nice and moist. You can use any hard cheese such as mozzarella for a milder flavour or a cheddar which has a sharper more tangy taste. Grated parmesan cheese is also a good option in pasta bakes. It is always best to grate or shred the cheese yourself. Pre-packaged varieties won't melt as well as they contain anti-caking agents.
- Milk - adding milk makes the sauce go further and ensures there is enough to coat the pasta. If you use low-fat cream cheese, your sauce may look a little grainy but will taste just fine.
- Breadcrumbs - I always like to add breadcrumbs to pasta bakes as they give a nice crispy topping. It's also a really handy way to use up bread that may have gone a little dry and avoid food waste. Remember, you can freeze breadcrumbs and use them straight from frozen.
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
The Nutritional Values are computer generated estimates based on industry standards and are provided as a helpful guide only.
Beth 🌺
Quick to make and easy recipe to follow, and used up leftovers from a roast dinner.