Do you struggle with making quick and easy dinners? I tend to put off thinking about dinner until the very last second. Then I’m scrambling to have a hot meal ready when everyone is hungry. Keeping pasta, chicken, and cheese on hand makes it easy to put together a quick 30 minute meal. I like to buy rotisserie chickens from Sam’s club and freeze bags of shredded chicken for future meals. Another great option is to keep some canned chicken in the pantry. Our family loves anything that has buffalo chicken in it. This Easy Buffalo Chicken Dip is the number one snack request for our movie nights. So, for this easy dinner recipe I decided to combine our favorite dip with a cheesy pasta casserole. Added pasta noodles to cream cheese, hot sauce, and melted cheese made this the best buffalo chicken casserole ever! Our oldest son said this pasta dinner tasted just like the buffalo chicken dip, only heartier! Gotta love a pan full of cheesy pasta goodness that everyone loves and wants every week.
Buffalo Chicken Pasta Recipe
Combining buffalo chicken, cheese, and pasta in one casserole creates a meal that everyone will love. This Buffalo Chicken Pasta Bake is delicious and can be on the table in 30 minutes.
yield: 6 SERVINGS prep time: 10 MINUTES cook time: 20 MINUTES total time: 30 MINUTES
Ingredients
- 2 cups (8 ounces) uncooked, penne pasta (or substitute cooked cauliflower)
- 1 - 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
- 3/4 cup ranch dressing
- 1/3 cup hot sauce
- 2 cups shredded, cooked chicken (or 1 - 12.5 ounce can chunk chicken breast)
- 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- green onions, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray an 8-inch casserole dish with nonstick spray.
- Cook the pasta noodles, according to the package directions. Drain and drizzle with a little bit of olive oil to keep them from sticking.
- Stir together the cream cheese, ranch, and hot sauce until creamy.
- Add the chicken, 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, and cooked pasta noodles to the cream cheese mixture and stir to combine. Spoon into the prepared dish.
- Combine the remaining two cheeses and sprinkle over the top of the pasta. Bake for 20 minutes, or until cheese on top is melted.
- Remove and serve immediately with green onions, hot sauce, and ranch drizzles. Serves 6.
Notes
If you are using canned chicken, drain and break it apart with a fork before using.
