Creamy Chicken, Bacon & Tomato Pasta

Submitted by senseicheryl

"This recipe was featured in an email from the www.kraftfoods.com website."

 

• Ready In: 25mins
• Ingredients: 8
• Yields: 4 1 3/4 cup servings
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 3 cups whole wheat bow tie pasta, uncooked (farfalle )
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces
• 3 slices crumbled cooked bacon
• 1 (14 1/2 ounce) can Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained
• 4 ounces neufchatel cheese, cubed
• 1⁄2 cup water
• 1⁄4 teaspoon pepper
• 3 tablespoons parmesan cheese, grated

directions

1. COOK pasta as directed on package.
2. MEANWHILE, cook chicken in large skillet on medium heat 5 to 6 minute or until chicken is done, stirring occasionally. Add bacon, tomatoes, Neufchatel cheese, water and pepper; mix well. Cook 3 minute or until Neufchatel cheese is completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring frequently.
3. DRAIN pasta; place in serving bowl. Add sauce; mix lightly. Sprinkle with Parmesan.
4. KRAFT KITCHEN TIPS: How to Prepare Perfect Pasta - To prepare perfect pasta, follow the package directions to ensure that enough water is used for cooking the pasta. Add the pasta to the boiling salted water and cook until al dente (tender but still a little firm to the bite), stirring frequently. To prevent pasta from sticking to the pan, add it slowly to plenty of boiling water and stir frequently while cooking. Adding oil to the cooking water is not recommended because some sauces may not cling to pasta coated with oil.
5. Food Facts - Some cooks prefer to drain the pasta well to prevent excess water from diluting the sauce, while others like a little moisture to help prevent pasta from sticking together. In any case, reserve a few tablespoons of cooking water to add to pasta if it starts to stick together or if you want to dilute the sauce.

Reviews

[Elyse T.]

This may be one of my new favorite go-to's. The bacon is perfect for keeping the chicken moist and adding extra flavor. I also added half a zucchini and only used one tomato (it's all I had). It's delicious! I topped it with basil for some color as well. I also only used 2 cups of noodles as the rest of the fixin's are filling enough.

 

[sbera007]

That was really good. I also subbed turkey bacon, reg. diced tomatoes and milk (for the water). I doubled the bacon since I was using turkey bacon. I added some basil, oregano, garlic, and sauteed zucchini. I also added the Parmesan to the sauce. I would say the servings are a little off. I only used 2 cups of noodles and I would say it was more like six servings. This was a light and delicious meal with a little garlic cheese bread!

 

[chefpam]

It smells great, but looks a little scary. Adding in the pasta later helps with the scariness of the sauce. The taste is great. I used diced tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano. I also used whipped cream cheese as that is all I had. I used the water and thought at first it would make it too soupy, but it didn't. I did do 3 cups pasta and I would say 6 servings as well. I put the pasta and the sauce in a big bowl to serve and after gently mixing added basil and oregano to the Parmesan cheese to top with. It looked prettier then and the added herbs really added to the overall flavor. We will make this again. Sooooo easy and fast!

 

[AcadiaTwo]

Great delicious flavor. I used crushed tomatoes only because my can was mislabeled and I used a different pasta which I know as pasta ruffles. Thanks for posting! This recipe was made for the Potluck tag game.

 

[lindsay]

I actually substituted with turkey bacon, lf cream cheese and regular tomatoes and it was amazing!!