Bacon Swiss Penne

By Addie

I was fortunate to inherit my grandmother’s recipe book, which includes the recipe for this rich and cheesy casserole. I’ve been eating it for years and still can’t get enough.—Joseph Sortor, Tampa, Florida

Ingredients

• 6 oz uncoooked penne pasta
• 6 bacon strips
• 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1 1/2 Tbsp butter
• 3 green onions, chopped
• 1 1/2 tbsp flour
• 2 cups milk or half & half
• 6 oz shredded Cheddar cheese
• 3/4 cups shredded Swiss cheese or Mozzarella
• 3/4 cups frozen peas, thawed
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/8 tsp thyme
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• Topping: (optional)
• 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
• 2 tbsp melted butter

Preparation

Step 1

1. Cook penne according to package directions.

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook bacon in batches over medium heat until crisp. Remove to paper towels; drain, reserving 4 tsp drippings. Crumble bacon and set aside.

3. Saute chicken in butter and drippings until no longer pink. Add onions, cook 1 minute longer. Stir in flour until blended; gradually add milk. Briing to a boil; cook and stir 2 minutes or until thickend. Stir in cheese, peas, pepper, thyme and bacon.

4. Drain penne; add to chicken mixture and toss to coat. Transfer to a greased 13*9 baking dish. In a small bowl, combine bread crumbs and butter; sprinkle over top. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.
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REVIEWS:

This was a hit with the whole family! Wiped the platters clean. However, I can see how it would have been bland. I added a few things. After chopping my chicken I tossed it in garlic and season salt then cooked it. I also added a half onion to the while cooking chicken. Accidentally...I doubled the pepper! But it was all very good this way! I think this could be very versatile recipe as well. You could substitute broccoli for the peas or add chopped left over ham. Bacon bits could be easily substituted for the real thing as well. Many different things could be done! But overall my family loved it!!

Great recipe. I left out the peas and added 2 cloves of garlic. This was excellent!

I had high hopes for this recipe because of the bacon and cheese, but we were sadly disappointed. The dish was very bland and no one liked it, not even my husband who likes everything. It needs some kind of seasoning. We will not be making this again.

This recipe is delicious! My 3-year old gave it two thumbs up! I prepared everything according to the recipe, but before baking it I divided it into 3 separate baking dishes - 2 went in the freezer for a future meals. I will say the prep time took me nearly an hour, and I'm a pretty good multi-tasker, so don't plan on making this if you have to get dinner on the table in a hurry!

While my husband and myself both liked this, we agreed that it is pretty bland. Needs a bit of a kick.... maybe garlic or something. Will experiment next time

When something is this unhealthy, it better be tasty! I did not love this!

Definitely needs something to kick it up a notch, but a very good starting point.