One-Pot Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta

[sireesanwar]

Servings: 4 | Calories: 760 | Fat: 44g | Sugar: 5g | Carbs: 46g

This is probably one of the unhealthiest meals you can make but it is beyond delicious and great when you just want some kind of comfort food. I don't make it often and on occasion have doctored it a bit with chickpea or cauliflower noodles but ultimately it is better as is.

What You Need
2 cups chicken broth.
2 tablespoons ranch dressing seasoning mix (1-oz package)
8 oz cream cheese, cut into 1-inch pieces, softened
2 cups shredded deli rotisserie chicken
2 cups uncooked rotini pasta (6 oz)
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (6 oz)
6 slices bacon, crisply cooked and crumbled (about 1/2 cup)
Make It

1. In a 12 inch nonstick skillet, lay out as much bacon as possible. Put some water into the pan. The water helps the meat and fat of the bacon cook at the same time. Repeat on additional bacon if necessary. Set bacon aside on a plate in paper towel to absorb grease.
2. Leave bacon residue in pan. Stir broth and ranch dressing mix with whisk until well blended.
3. Add cream cheese chunks. Cook over a medium high heat 1-2 minutes or until the cream cheese just starts to melt.
4. Add chicken, pasta, and 1 cup of the cheese. Heat to boiling. Cover; cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, 12-14 minutes.
5. Adding crumbled bacon into pan and stir, continue cooking 1-2 minutes until pasta is tender.
6. Remove from heat.
7. Add remaining cheese to the top. Let melt then serve.

I use the Better Than Bouillon concentrate to make my chicken broth because I can make exactly how much I want. I also add a little more of the bouillon into the 2 cups of water to make it more flavorful.

Also, I rarely buy the rotisserie chicken so often I just use the frozen chunk chicken I buy from Costco. I eyeball how much to put in as so rarely measure it. Plus, sometimes you feel like more meat and sometimes you want less.

I've used turkey bacon. I like it but it isn't quite the same as real bacon.

As I said above, I have used alternative pastas. I have discovered mixing regular pasta and cauliflower pasta helps with taste and texture. The alternative pastas often cook at a different rate so you may have to add them at different times.

If you get down to the end of the cook time and the pasta isn't tender enough; I've added liquid but I think this happens typically if I've doubled the recipe or changed the pasta.

If you double it for a larger party (or leftovers) you don't need to double the cream cheese. I have added another 2oz when doubling just to keep the creaminess. Doubling it makes it too rich.

As a side, I always make roasted or sauteed broccolini or asparagus because I feel like I need a large dose of vegetables on the side of this. It is delicious but not the healthiest.