Baked Chicken Penne {Freezer Meal!}

We get a lot of emails requesting ideas for freezer meals.  So first off, let me show you all something.  See over there to the upper left? (Feed readers, come on over so you can see this too!) See how there's a big icon with a picture of a magnifying glass?  That icon will take you to a page with all kinds of search options on it.  One of the options is a drop down menu full of categories.  I'm pretty sure there are a lot of you who don't know that exists because we get emails on a weekly basis telling us it would be helpful if we listed all of our freezer meals in one place.  Well guess what, we already have!  Just select "Freezer Meals" from that drop down list and you can browse through everything that's freeze-able.  See?  We're so helpful :)

Now onto today's meal.  This is another great one to make for a Valentines Day dinner.  I make a pasta dish quite often that is almost identical to this, only I use my Guiltless Alfredo sauce.  It's actually become a Valentines Day tradition for my husband and I.  This version is a bit naughtier, and richer and completely delicious.  And the bonus is that it makes enough for 2 pans, one to eat and one to freeze.  It takes more time to make than my quick guiltless version so I like that when I put in the time to make it I get two meals out of it!  It's a creamy cheesy sauce with penne pasta, sundried tomatoes, and mushrooms.  I don't even like mushrooms and they're fantastic here.

To begin, boil penne pasta in some salted water.  You'll want to cook it just a couple minutes short of al dente.  Check the back of the box and it will tell you how long to cook until the al dente stage and just knock a couple of minutes off of that.

While the pasta is boiling heat up a skillet with a little oil in it.  Season your chicken with salt and pepper and then pop it in the skillet to sizzle up.  It will be done in about the same amount of time as the pasta.  After it cools for a minute, slice it up.

Since your skillet is already hot and oiled, toss the mushrooms in there to saute for a few minutes

Now you'll start making the sauce.  It begins with a roux.  That may sound like a scary word, but it's not, I promise.  In a large pot you'll melt some butter and then add some flour (to thicken) and some minced garlic (because everything is better with garlic)

As you whisk that together to cook you'll add in milk and bring it to a simmer to form the sauce.  Then you'll throw in the mushrooms as some sundried tomatoes.

I seriously LOVE sundried tomatoes.  Just had to get that out.  Then off the heat you add in a mixture of parmesan and provolone cheeses, some salt and pepper, and  your chicken.    It's that easy!

Pop it into 2 dishes.  One to eat and one to freeze, or two to freeze, or two to eat.  You're the boss, you pick.

If your going to eat one now, then sprinkle more cheese on top.  If you're going to freeze it, then put it in a baggie.

To eat immediately, just bake it for about 25 minutes so all of the flavors melt together and the cheese gets all bubbly

 

Baked Cheesy Chicken Penne
based on a recipe by Martha Stewart

• 6 tablespoons butter, plus more for baking dishes
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 1 pound penne rigate
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 8 ounces each), halved horizontally
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour
• 6 garlic cloves, finely minced
• 6 cups whole milk
• 10 ounces white or cremini mushrooms, trimmed and thinly sliced
• 1 cup sliced oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained
• 1 1/2 cups shredded provolone* (6 ounces) you could also make that 1/2 mozzarella
• 1 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan (about 6 ounces)

*Note on Cheese:
Sometimes provolone cheese can be hard to find.  I don't always encourage the use of pre-shredded bagged cheeses (because 've found they usually contain additives and therefore don't melt or taste as good), but in this recipe I've used a *good* quality one, like Sargento, and it's turned out great.  Actually in this batch I used Sargento's Provolone/Mozzarella mix.  You'll find that with packaged cheese mixes, provolone is often mixed with other white cheeses and that's totally fine.  Just try to find one that is mostly provolone, like a 50/50 mix.  The other easy option is to go to the deli department where you can buy sliced cheese.  Just ask for a 6 oz chunk and you can grate it yourself. 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400. Butter two shallow 2-quart baking dishes. If you're going to freeze one, use a disposable foil pan.  In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta 3 minutes short of al dente; drain pasta and set aside.
2. While pasta is boiling, heat oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Season chicken with salt and pepper; cook until opaque throughout, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Halve each piece lengthwise, then thinly slice crosswise.  While chicken pan is still hot, toss the mushrooms in and saute until golden brown (3-4 minutes).  Use a little extra olive oil if needed.
3. In a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy pot (I just use the pot I cooked my pasta in), melt butter over medium. Add flour and garlic; cook, whisking, 1 minute. While whisking constantly, gradually add milk; bring to a simmer.  Keep whisking frequently as sauce thickens, about 1 minute more. Add mushrooms and tomatoes; cook 1 minute. take the pan off the heat and and gradually stir in provolone and 1/2 cup Parmesan.
4. Add chicken and pasta to pot; season with salt and pepper to taste. Divide pasta mixture between baking dishes.  If freezing, place remaining parmesan cheese in a zip-top baggie.  If cooking, sprinkle on top.
5. Bake, uncovered, until top is golden and bubbling, about 25 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Freezer instructions:

To freeze, prepare through step 4 and then let pasta cool.  Cover pan well with plastic wrap.  Place extra cheese in baggie (for topping) on top and then cover entire pan well with foil.  Freeze for up to 3 months.  To bake, preheat oven to 400.  Remove foil and plastic from pan and set cheese baggie aside.  Place foil back on pan and bake for about 1 1/2 hours.  Remove foil, stir pasta, and top with cheese.  Return pan to oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until mixture is hot and bubbly throughout.

We hope you all have a wonderful Valentine"s day!  Make sure to tell all of your loved ones that you love them! (Oh, and eat lots of chocolate :)