Chicken Fajita Baked Pasta Recipe

This casserole is easy to make and yummy to eat! Check out the recipe below.

Background:

For those of you who know me, I am not “the cook” at our home. When Neal and I married almost 35 years ago, I was teaching full-time and in graduate school. Neal decided that if he wanted to eat delicious food, he would need to learn how to cook it. Years later when our children were little, I was in charge of bathing children and Neal continued to be our cook. Over the years, he has gotten better and better! Cooking is one of his many talents.

Neal is constantly looking online for recipes and then altering them to make them better! I am blessed by his culinary talents and constant experimentation with recipes! We eat tasty food! However, my waistline does not always benefit from his delicious cooking!

Ingredients:

• • 1 pound of ziti pasta
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 chopped onion
  • 1 chopped bell pepper
  • 1 pound boneless chicken breast OR 2 cups cooked chicken
    • We purchase a Publix Deli Oven Roasted Chicken, either original or lemon pepper.) NOTE: One chicken typically yields approximately 4 cups of diced chicken. I freeze the extra chicken meat and have it on hand for other recipes.
  • 2 cans diced tomatoes (drained and rinsed)
  • 1 – 16 ounce container of sour cream
  • 2 – 8 ounce packages of cream cheese (softened)
  • 1 package of taco seasoning
  • 1 package of ranch mix
  • 1 – 15 ounce can of black beans (drained and rinsed)
  • 1 – 15 ounce can corn (drained)
  • 8 ounces of taco cheese
  • Avacado diced on top when serving (optional)

Directions:

1. 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
   2. Noodles: Fill a large pot with water and lightly salt. Bring to a boil. Stir in ziti noodles and continue to boil (uncovered), stirring as needed, until softened (about 8-11 minutes). Drain and set aside.
   3. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add chopped onion and green pepper. Cook and stir until soft (5-7 minutes). Remove onion and pepper from the skillet.
   4. Place chicken in the skillet. Cook and stir until the meat is not pink (7-10 minutes) OR use the chicken pulled and chopped from a Publix Deli Oven Roasted Chicken.
   5. Combine salsa, cream cheese, sour cream, taco seasoning, and ranch seasoning over low heat. Cook until the cream cheese is melted.
   6. Mix ziti, chicken, the mixture from step 5, black beans, corn, and onion/pepper mixture, and taco cheese in a large bowl.
   7. Spray a large casserole dish and pour the mixture into the dish.
   8. Bake for about 20 minutes. Remove and add the remaining taco cheese to the top. Bake for about 10 more minutes (until cheese is melted).

Enjoy this yummy casserole with family and friends!

Notes:

• • Because there are only two of us (empty nesters), we typically portion into a few smaller casseroles after mixing all the ingredients. We cook one smaller casserole and freeze (using gallon Ziploc bags) the remaining for future use.
  • We sometimes take frozen casseroles when we camp (we have an oven in our camper) or when we go on a ski trip (rent a condo) because it is easy to thaw and cook.
  • We typically serve this casserole with Sister Schubert’s Dinner Yeast Rolls.

Bon Appetit!

Let me know what you think or if you have any questions by posting below.

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