Chicken and Bow Tie Pasta

The original recipe is from myrecipes.com. In my usual manner, I did a few things differently. I added different cheeses to get the creamy effect that I was looking for. This makes the perfect amount of cheesy sauce. This is not a recipe for the diet conscious. A lighter version can be made by substituting fat free cream of mushroom soup, 2% Velveta, neufchatel, and low fat cheddar cheese. To save even more time, you can also use rotisserie chicken in place of the chicken breasts. We serve this dish with crusty French bread and either steamed asparagus or broccoli.

• Ready In: 40 mins
• Serves: 4-6
• Yields: 1 casserole

Ingredients

• 3  quarts water, salted
• 12  ounces bow tie pasta, uncooked
• 4  chicken breasts, boneless, skinless, cut into bite size pieces
• 1  tablespoon butter
• 1  tablespoon canola oil
• 1 1⁄2 cups chicken broth (divided)
• 1  celery rib, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 1  small onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 (10 3/4ounce) can  cream of mushroom soup
• 8  ounces Velveeta cheese
• 4  ounces cream cheese
• 4  ounces cheddar cheese
• 1⁄2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

• Garnish

• 1  cup  cheese crackers, crushed
• 3  tablespoons butter, melted
• 1⁄8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions

1. 350 degree oven.
2. Bring 3 quarts salted water to a rapid boil. Add the pasta and boil for 10 minutes or until al dente. Drain the pasta.
3. While the pasta is cooking, in a saute pan, melt the butter and canola oil. Do not let the butter brown. Cook the chicken pieces until slightly done. Do not brown. Add 1 cup chicken broth, celery, and onion at this point and continue cooking until the chicken is tender and done. Add the soup, cheeses, pepper flakes, and if needed, the remaining chicken broth, stirring until the cheeses are melted. Toss the pasta into the cheese mixture; pour into a buttered casserole dish.
4. Mix the crushed cheese crackers, melted butter, and cayenne pepper together. Top the casserole with the crushed cracker mixture. Bake only until the top has browned slightly.