Chicken Florentine Artichoke Bake

I’ve been going thru recipes on Pinterest to find new ones to shake up meal times around here.  This one looked good, so I tried it on my last trip up to see my family.  I like to do a bit of cooking up there to give Mom a break… and besides, it is just fun!

 

Chicken Florentine Artichoke Bake

 

 

Ingredients

 

8 ounces dried bow tie pasta

 

1 small onion, chopped

 

1 tablespoon butter

 

2 eggs

 

1 1/4 cups milk

 

1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning

 

1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)

 

2 cups chopped cooked chicken

 

2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese (8 oz.)

 

1 - 14 ounce can artichoke hearts, drained and quartered

 

1 - 10 ounce frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained

 

1/2 cup oil-packed dried tomatoes, drained and chopped

 

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

 

1/2 cup soft bread crumbs

 

1/2 teaspoon paprika

 

1 tablespoon butter, melted

 

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain. In medium skillet cook onion in 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat about 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; set aside.

 

In bowl whisk together eggs, milk, seasoning, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. black pepper, and crushed red pepper. Stir in chicken, Monterey Jack cheese, artichokes, spinach, tomatoes, half of the Parmesan, cooked pasta, and onion. Transfer to a 13x9x2-inch baking dish or 3-quart rectangular casserole.

 

Bake, covered, 20 minutes. In small bowl combine remaining Parmesan, bread crumbs, paprika, and melted butter. Sprinkle mixture over pasta. Bake, uncovered, 10 minutes more or until golden. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

 

 

 

 

NOTES:  Here are some changes I made to the recipe (as I always seem to do).  After I boiled the chicken breasts to cook them, I reused the water to boil my pasta.  And I used Panko bread crumbs instead of soft bread crumbs as I wanted that crunch.

 

 

 

It is definitely a "keeper"!

 

 

 

 

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