The entire family will fall in love with this Asparagus Chicken Penne Parmesan Bake and believe me when I say your going to make this over and over again.

Oh my, I have made myself a happier mama with this delectable pasta bake! So flavorful, light, creamy and a wonderful change up from the usual week night pasta bakes. To say this Asparagus Chicken Penne Parmesan Bake is made frequently in my household is an understatement. The only disappointment I’m having is that everyday that I made this delicious dish there was nothing but cloudy skies here in Illinois. This being the third attempt to make for a recipe post not getting the picture I craved, I decided to wait no longer to post it. I do not own a photography food lamp and only use natural lighting for my food photos. Being optimistic that the weather here will cooperate with me is a dangerous assumption. I will hopefully make this amazing dish one day when the sun is shining, then it can show off the true beauty of this dish.
Asparagus Chicken Penne Parmesan Bake Ingredients
I’m in love with this particular cream sauce which has a lot of chicken stock added to it. Adding chicken stock to the sauce thins out the creaminess while adding tons of flavor at the same time, keeping the pasta very moist while still allowing you to taste the sharpness of the parmesan cheese. Do not forget a pinch of red pepper flakes to aid in giving a punch of flavor to make this dish balance perfectly. To compliment the flavor of the sauce add a very light coating of cayenne to your chicken breast before grilling. Adding these two very intense spices in a very small amount will not make the dish spicy, but aid in giving the dish extra flavor. Of course if you crave heat you can go as crazy as you like with the red pepper and cayenne.
The best part in making a huge pasta bake is the leftovers (if your lucky)! This particular dish tastes amazing reheated the next day and that’s my kind of pasta bake!
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Asparagus chicken Penne Parmesan Bake
Ingredients
- 3 chicken breasts
- 1 pound asparagus
- 1 pound penne pasta
- 1.5 tablespoons of olive oil
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 4 garlic cloves pressed or minced
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2.5 tablespoons flour
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 1/3 cup chicken broth
- 1 1/2 cups freshly shredded parmesan plus 3/4 cup shredded parmesan for topping
- Salt and pepper
- Cayenne
Instructions
- Boil salted water in large stock pot for pasta
- Preheat oven to 375F
- Split the three chicken breast in half
- Salt and pepper the chicken
- Lightly coat both sides of chicken with cayenne
- Cook the chicken using grill pan, outdoor grill or my personal favorite Breville Panini Press and Grill
- Place chicken aside with foil over to keep warm
- Lightly steam the asparagus just until fork tender
- Boil noodles until al dente
- For the sauce, in saucepan add butter olive oil and garlic over medium heat and sauté until butter is melted
- Add red pepper flakes, salt and pepper
- Whisk in flour
- Add milk, chicken broth, and bring to boil, lower heat and stir until thickened
- Add 1 1/2 cups freshly shredded parmesan and stir until melted, adjust seasoning if needed
- Chop chicken and asparagus adding to the pasta
- Pour cream sauce over pasta, chicken and asparagus, mixing to combine
- Place in 9×13 baking dish and sprinkle remaining 3/4 cup of shredded parmesan cheese on top
- Bake at 375F for 15 minutes just until cheese is melted
- Category: Main Dish
Mmmmmmmmmm! Made this today. Super tasty! I only had broccoli on hand but next time I will def make it with asparagus. Love it!
★★★★★
Karolina, never tried with broccoli but it sounds like a delicious substitute! Thanks for your review! Let me know when you try the asparagus in comparison! 🙂