Cooler temperatures bring heavier sauces and warmer dishes to my table.  In the same way that I cannot get enough salad in the summertime, I am ravenous for platefuls of pasta with rich sauces in the winter.

This recipe for a baked pasta with chicken and creamy red sauce fits the bill perfectly for a cold day.  A rustic baguette and a little Caesar salad make it a meal fit for company.

I put this recipe together years ago after a trip to one of my favorite local Little Rock restaurants, Cafe Prego, but I have updated it a little and added Whitney’s photos.  It is most delectable if you marinate and grill the chicken according to the instructions, but it can also be made a little quicker with baked or boiled chicken, or even a cut up Rotisserie.

Whenever I make a baked pasta dish, I line the counters with 9 X 13 pans and make extras to freeze or give away.  Keeping meals in the freezer makes me feel less guilty should the opportunity arise to go on a last minute girl trip.  Anybody?

Chicken Prego

(makes enough for 3 9×13 pans)

Ingredients:

1 large bag chicken breasts (mine had 11 breasts)

3 16 oz boxes fettuccine

4 cups grated Parmesan cheese

3 cups grated Mozzarella cheese

1 1/2 sticks butter (12 tablespoons)

1 entire head garlic, cloves peeled and minced

2 jars marinara sauce

1 cup flour

3 cups heavy cream

1 teaspoon herbes of provence

salt and pepper

Olive oil for pans

Marinate chicken overnight in 1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1 1/2 cups olive oil, salt and pepper

Grill chicken, allow to cool and cut into chunks

Cook pasta a little less (9 minutes) than the package instructions, and divided into 3 9×13 pans, drizzled with olive oil.

Divide chicken among dishes.  Mix about 1 cup Parmesan into each dish.

Melt butter in large cast iron skillet or enamel Dutch oven.

Add garlic and herbes of provence and cook for about 4 minutes.

Turn heat to medium low and add 1/2 cup flour gradually. Stir in marinara sauce. Slowly add remaining flour. Let sauce thicken, stirring constantly. When all the flour is disolved, gradually add cream until sauce and continue to stir over medium heat until sauce is heated through. Salt and pepper to taste.

Divide sauce over the three dishes of pasta.

Mix in a little with two forks.

Combine remaining one cup Parmesan with three cups Mozerella and spread cheese on top of all three dishes.  (Dishes can be wrapped and frozen at this point.)

Cover with foil and bake at 400 degrees for around 30 minutes.  Remove foil and bake 5 more minutes.

Enjoy!

(Note: Allow 90 minutes to bake if the dish has been frozen.)

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My kids’ very favorite dinner is Pasta Carbonara, a creamy pasta with bacon.  They have called it “special pasta” for as long as I can remember.  Somehow we tricked them at an early age to into thinking that this very simple pasta dish is actually a fancy delicacy.  It is repeatedly requested for birthday dinners and celebration meals.  And we always make it at least once on a long camping trip.

I used thin sliced Petit Jean bacon and I have recently come into the the joy of cooking bacon in the oven.  Seriously, it makes life so much easier.  I can’t believe I haven’t been doing it for years!

Line a cookie sheet with parchment and bacon, cook for 15 minutes at 350 degrees F for evenly cooked bacon and no grease splatters on your shirts and aprons.  Yay!

Once your bacon is cooked, you’re ready to make “special pasta.”

Creamy Pasta with Petit Jean Bacon

Ingredients:

2 eggs

1/4 cup cream

1/4 cup butter (half a stick)

1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

8 slices thin Petit Jean bacon, cooked and crumbled into small pieces

1 pound fettuccine

1 tablespoon snipped parsley

Optional: 1 small zucchini and 1 small  yellow squash, sliced and sauteed in 1 tablespoon olive oil for about 3 minutes.  You can also substitute sauteed mushrooms here.

Directions:

Boil water for pasta and cook al dente. (a couple minutes shy of being done)

Drain pasta and then put it back in the pot, return pot to stove on low heat.

Add butter, stir until the butter is melted and pasta is all coated with butter.

Beat egg and cream together in a small bowl or glass with a fork.

Pour cream and egg mixture over the pasta and stir until it thoroughly coats the pasta.

Add bacon, cheese, parsley and squash (if using); toss to mix.

Season with coarsely ground pepper.

Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Bacon for Creamy Pasta with Bacon was provided by Petit Jean Meats, a local Arkansas company.  I am a member of their Blue Diamond Club, which basically means they send me products which I select and then share with you.  Subscribe to the Chino House via email (box on the top right of web page) so you won’t miss the chance to win a Petit Jean Thanksgiving Ham, coming soon!

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