Barbecue Chicken Penne Melt

A dear friend is beautifully pregnant with baby #2.  She's looking for some freezer friendly food, so that's what I will be showcasing on the blog here over the next couple of weeks.  It will be nice to have some pre-prepared meals to pull out and heat and eat on those days {ok, weeks} when you just don't feel like making anything.

Today I made the BBQ Chicken pasta my mom made for us when we first came home from the hospital with the little one.  It was awesome because it's pasta based - so it freezes and reheats well - but it has barbecue sauce so it's a different spin on pasta and marinera.   Funny story: My sister and I were watching the Nate Berkus show over the summer, separately together, haha!  We both wrote out the basics of this recipe.  We were talking about what to have for dinner our first night home and we both discovered that we'd loved to try this recipe.  And it didn't disappoint!




On the menu tonight: Barbecue Chicken Penne Melt
1 lb mini penne
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups diced onions
4 to 6 cups shredded store-bought rotisserie chicken
1 qt bottle hickory-smoked flavored barbecue sauce
12 slices bacon, cooked until crispy and crumbled
1/2 cup chopped scallions, white and green part
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese


In a medium saucepan, cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente.  In a medium skillet, heat the butter and oil over medium-high heat and, when hot, add the onions and cook, stirring until softened and starting to brown.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Grease an 11 by 9-inch baking dish.  In a large bowl, toss the pasta with the chicken, 3 1/2 cups of the barbecue sauce, the bacon, scallions, and cooked onions.  In another bowl, stir together the cheeses.  Spread one-third of the pasta mixture in the prepared dish and top with one-third of the cheese mixture. Make two more layers of the pasta and cheese, cover with aluminum foil, and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove the foil and continue to bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, until the cheese is browned.  Remove from the oven, drizzle with the remaining 1/2 cup barbecue sauce and serve.

I halved the recipe because we had just restocked our little freezer at the grocery store and I had used some of the chicken intended in the soup yesterday.  That decision worked out well because when I went to the pantry to get the penne I knew I had, all I could find was a half a box of rotini!  Needless to say the rotini worked well too! :)

This is how I cook bacon, thanks to my mom's idea.  Put down a paper towel in a microwave safe dish (I always use a pyrex dish), lay out the slices of bacon, then cover with another paper towel.  I push the paper towel down on top of the bacon so it will stay in place and catch the splatter.  General rule of thumb is 1 minute per slice of bacon.  I usually do 30 seconds less and then add more time if I need it.  It saves a lot of time and mess.

Meanwhile, I shredded the chicken, (I used one breast and some leg meat that I had left.  One whole chicken would be all you need to get the 4 to 6 cups if you're using the whole recipe.  Note: It's easier to shred chicken when it's warm.  When you get home with the chicken, shred it, then put it in the refrigerator if you aren't going to use it that day.) cut up the scallions (I used 4), tossed in the onion, and the chopped bacon when it was done.

When the pasta was done, I added it to the chicken mixture with the BBQ sauce and mixed well.

This was the BBQ sauce I used - I happened to have it in the pantry.  I check the grocery store and stock up when any kind of sauce goes on sale so that I'll have it in the pantry and be ready for the Lazy Chicken recipe.  If you're going to make this entire recipe, you need 2 of these.  18 oz = 1/2 quart

I only made 2 layers and I didn't mix the cheese in another bowl.  I just put down a little mozzarella and then a little cheddar on each layer.  I didn't use all the recommended amount of cheese, just some sprinkled over the top.

Here it is all hot and bubbly.  I'll confess... it was close to 8:00 before this was done because I didn't start making it until around 7.  I forgot to read that you had to bake it for 30 minutes + 10 minutes more uncovered.  Soooo... I only cooked it for 25 minutes + 5 minutes more uncovered.  It was still tasty!

Serve with a veggie and you're good to go.  DH and I both had seconds and we're having it for lunch!

The verdict:This recipe can be pretty labor intensive because you've got several things going on.  But it is REALLY nice that the chicken is already cooked and all you have to do is shred it.  If you didn't have time, I don't think it would be the end of the world if you didn't cook the onions beforehand.  To me, the onions kinda lost some of their 'zing' I was hoping for.  You really want to make this to have some for the freezer later since it does take some work.  But that tang of the barbecue sauce and the rich, hearty texture of the noodles makes for a winning dish!

Enjoy!