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Chicken Alfredo Lasagna Soup (Stephanie’s Recipe)

Ingredients

CHICKEN:
  • 1 pound chicken breast (about 2 large breasts)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for pan
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon lemon pepper
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
SOUP:
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 1½ cups half and half or heavy cream
  • 1½ cups whole milk
  • 1½ teaspoons Italian seasoning
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano
  • ½ teaspoon salt, adjust to taste
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • Dash of nutmeg
  • Dash of dried mustard
  • Dash of cayenne, to taste
  • 8 to 9 ounces lasagna sheets, broken into pieces
  • 2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped
  • ¼ to ⅓ cup freshly grated parmesan
  • 2 tablespoons basil, chopped
  • ⅓ cup shredded mozzarella, more to taste
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (optional, for thickening)

Instructions

MARINATE AND COOK CHICKEN
  1. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, Italian seasoning, lemon pepper, smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.
  2. Add chicken breasts to a large bowl, pour the marinade over them, and toss until evenly coated.
  3. Heat a drizzle of oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat.
  4. Sear the chicken for 5 to 6 minutes per side, until golden and fully cooked through.
  5. Transfer to a plate and let it cool slightly, then chop into bite-sized chunks. Set aside until ready to add later.
MAKE THE SOUP BASE
  1. In the same pot over medium heat, melt the butter and sauté minced garlic for 1 minute, until fragrant and lightly golden.
  2. Pour in chicken broth, cream or half and half, and milk, stirring to combine.
  3. Add Italian seasoning, oregano, salt, black pepper, nutmeg, dried mustard, and cayenne.
  4. Bring to a gentle simmer over low-medium heat to let the flavors meld together.
COOK THE PASTA
  1. Break lasagna sheets into smaller pieces and add them directly to the simmering soup.
  2. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking and cook for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the noodles are tender and silky.
FINISHING TOUCHES
  1. Add the chopped chicken back into the pot along with parmesan, mozzarella, parsley, and basil.
  2. Stir until the cheeses melt and the soup turns creamy.
  3. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
  4. Serve warm and enjoy!
OPTIONAL: THICKEN THE SOUP
  1. If you prefer a thicker consistency, ladle out 1 cup of the soup into a separate bowl.
  2. Whisk in flour until smooth, then pour the mixture back into the pot.
  3. Stir and let it simmer briefly until the soup slightly thickens.
Tips & Notes

Q: Can I use rotisserie chicken?
A: Yes! Shredded rotisserie chicken works perfectly and cuts down prep time.

Q: Can I make this ahead?
A: For best results, store the soup and noodles separately. Combine before reheating to keep the noodles from soaking up too much broth.

Q: Can I use other pasta shapes?
A: Absolutely. Bowtie, broken fettuccine, or any wide noodles work great if you don’t have lasagna sheets.

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Tuna Casserole-Kinsie & Cody Dennis

Ingredients:

  • 1-2 cans drained tuna
  • 1-2 cans cream of mushroom soup
  • 1/2-1 can milk
  • egg noodles (we like American beauty)
  • Cheddar cheese (add to taste)
  • Kellogs corn flake crumbs
  • sliced butter (thin pieces)
  • Lawry’s salt (add to taste)

Directions:

We do different amounts of tuna and mushroom soup and milk depending on your serving size. Do what you’d like!

Cook and drain noodles. Add milk, cream of mushroom, lawry’s and cheese then mix. Add into a baking dish. Lightly cover with Kellogs crumbs. Add thin slices of butter covering the top. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until butter is melted and top is slightly crispy.

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Animal Style Mac’n’cheese-Kate Jarvis (Brittney’s Friend)

Source: The Mythical Cookbook

Ingredients:

Caramelized onion:

  • 2 medium yellow onions
  • 2 Tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons sugar

Thousand Island:

  • 1/2 cup mayo
  • 1/4 cup ketchup
  • 2 Tablespoons finely chopped pickles
  • 1/4 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

Cheese sauce:

  • 5 Tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • 3 cups milk
  • 12 slices American cheese
  • 4 ounces shredded medium cheddar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 8 ounces dried macaroni
  • 20 crushed plain potato chips

Directions:

Finely dice yellow onions. Melt butter in a medium sauce pan. Add onions, salt, sugar. Stir periodically, should take about 20 minutes to reach a dark brown jammy texture.

Now, make the Thousand Island dressing. Whisk everything together (or just get some from in-n-out)

For the cheese sauce, melt the butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add flour, stirring and cook until it smells toasty and fragrant (about 3 minutes). Slowly add your milk, 1/2 cup at a time and stirring constantly to prevent any lumps and waiting until the mixture is bubbly and smooth before adding more. Cook until thick enough to coat the spoon. Remove from heat. Add cheeses and seasonings.

Assembly cooked noodles and sauce together and sprinkle with crushed chips. Bake for 15 minutes at 400. Top with caramelized onions and Thousand Island dressing.

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Baked Tortellini with Chicken Gratinati – Brittney and Alex love this

Yield: 4–6 servings (depending on the size of your dish)

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 14.5–ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
  • 1 teaspoon salt, divided
  • 1 pound of sliced bacon
  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  • 3 cups heavy cream
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1 cup grated Parmesan Reggiano, divided
  • 6 ounces shredded fontina cheese, divided
  • 1 1/2 cups finely chopped fresh basil
  • 1 tablespoon finely minced fresh garlic
  • 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast ,cut into bite sized pieces
  • 13-ounce bag frozen tri-colored tortellini (we used regular and it worked great)

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Place tomatoes into a strainer over a bowl and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt and let sit at room temperature while you prepare the rest of the dish.
  2. Cook bacon until crisp and drain on paper towels. Cut bacon strips into bite sized pieces and set aside. Reserve 2 tablespoons of bacon fat.
  3. In a medium pot, melt butter over medium heat and add flour. Cook for four minutes stirring often. While this is cooking, heat cream to hot but not scaled either in a small sauce pan or in the microwave.
  4. Add the hot cream to the butter and flour mixture one third at a time whisking on each third to form a smooth sauce. Add ½ teaspoon of salt, pepper, nutmeg, ½ cup of Parmesan cheese, 3 ounces of the fontina cheese, fresh basil and minced garlic. Stir to combine, heat to hot and remove from heat. Set aside.
  5. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  6. In a large saute pan over medium high, heat two tablespoons of bacon fat and cook chicken for about 1-2 minutes on each side. Should be slightly under-cooked as it will cook further in the oven. Remove cooked chicken to a dish or plate.
  7. Boil a pot of water and cook tortellini according to package instructions but remove from the water before the tortellini is fully cooked, as it will cook further in the oven.
  8. Depending on the size of your dishes, arrange four to six oven-safe, wide flat gratin-crème Brule dishes on a parchment-lined sheet pan and spray each dish lightly with pan spray. (We made in one pan instead and served from there)
  9. Spoon about two tablespoons of sauce on the bottom of each dish and spread to cover bottoms.
  10. Divide the cooked tortellini, cooked chicken, cooked bacon and the drained diced tomatoes among the individual dishes.
  11. Pour the sauce over each filled dish, dividing evenly.
  12. Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan and Fontina over the tops of the six dishes.
  13. Place the sheet pan in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until the tops are browned and bubbly.
Baked Tortellini with Chicken Gratinati - Inspired by the dish at Bertucci's, we think our version tastes even better!
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LEMON CHICKEN ORZO PASTA – Brittney uses this recipe

  • 3 teaspoons olive oil, divided
  • 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
  • salt and pepper
  • 1/4 cup  chopped onion
  • 1 cup orzo
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 1/4 cups low sodium chicken broth
  • 1 cup fresh asparagus cut into 1″ pieces
  • 3 to 5 ounces spinach, or kale
  • zest and juice from one lemon
  • 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving

Heat 2 teaspoons of the olive oil in a large non-stick or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. When the skillet is hot add in the chicken and season with salt and pepper. Sauté until the chicken is thoroughly cooked then remove it from the skillet onto a plate.

Add the remaining 1 teaspoon of olive oil to the skillet then add in the onion. Sauté for one minute or until the onion starts to soften.

Add in the orzo and garlic and sauté for about a minute. Pour in the chicken broth, stir everything together and bring it to a boil.

Once boiling, cover with a lid and reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer for approximately 5 minutes and then add the asparagus. Simmer covered for an additional 5 minutes, then add the spinach. Cook for one minute or until spinach is wilted. Remove the lid and if there is any excess liquid remaining continue to cook uncovered for another minute.

Add the cooked chicken back into the skillet and stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice and Parmesan cheese until everything is combined. Garnish with more Parmesan cheese, if desired. Serve immediately and enjoy!

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Parmesan Italian Pasta

  • 1.5 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast (We didn’t use that much. Only about 1/5 a breast)
  • 16 ounce bottle Olive Garden Italian Dressing. (Or any Italian Dressing. We only used about 1/2 a bottle of Zesty Italian and it was great.
  • 1/4 Cup grated Parmesan cheese (we used the read stuff not the bottled stuff)
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper (we used a little less of that too)
  • 8 ounce block of cream cheese

Add these after cooking time is up

  • 16 ounce package of penne pasta cooked according to directions and drained well
  • 1/4 Cup Parmesan Cheese

DIRECTIONS

  1. Add chicken to slow cooker
  2. Pour Italian dressing over the chicken. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese and pepper over that.
  3. Place cream cheese on top.
  4. Place lid on slow cooker. Cook on HIGH for 4 hours or LOW for 5-6 hours.
  5. When cooking time is almost done cook penne pasta on stove top according to directions on the package.
  6. Shred the chicken with 2 forks. Drain the pasta and add to chicken and sauce mixture. Stir. Sprinkle remaining Parmesan Cheese over the top.
  7. Serve and enjoy!
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Tomato Basil Pasta

  • 1 package Spaghetti
  • 2-3 TBS Olive Oil
  • 1-2 tsp. Garlic puree
  • maybe 1 to 2 TBS Basil
  • maybe 1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
  • Salt
  • Fresh Tomatoes, diced.

Cook pasta according to the directions on package.

Drain pasta and set aside.

In the same pan add 2 to 3 TBS olive oil and 1 to 2 tsp. garlic puree or minced garlic. Heat the oil and garlic. Add the pasta back into the pan. Add basil, salt, and Parmesan cheese. This isn’t an exact recipe as you can see. You just need the oil to lightly coat the pasta so the other ingredients stick to it. Add the garlic, basil, salt, and Parmesan as much as you like. Add the diced tomatoes and heat just till warm. The pasta is warm so it won’t take long.

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Chicken Lazone

  • 2 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1 tsp. onion powder
  • 1 tsp. chili powder
  • 1 tsp. paprika
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 tsp. black pepper
  • 2 pounds chicken tenders
  • 2 TBS butter
  • 2 TBS vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth
  • 2 TBS cornstarch
  • 2 TBS water
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 10 to 12 ounces spaghetti, prepared according to package directions
  • 2 TBS finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

PREP: In a bowl combine garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Add the chicken; toss with your hands to coat the chicken with spices.

COOK: Select SAUTE on the Instant Pot and adjust to NORMAL. When hot, add the butter and oil. Stir until butter is melted. Briefly saute the chicken, a few pieces at a time, on both sides and remove to a plate.

When all the chicken has been sauteed, press CANCEL, and add the chicken broth and chicken to the pot. Secure the lid on the pot. Close the pressure-release valve. Select MANUAL and cook on high pressure for 3 minutes. When cooking is complete, use a quick release to depressurize. Press CANCEL.

In a small bowl dissolve the cornstarch in the 2 TBS water. Push the chicken to one side of the pot and add cornstarch mixture. Stir to combine. Select SAUTE and constantly stir until sauce thickens. Press CANCEL and gradually stir in heavy cream.

SERVE: Serve chicken and sauce over spaghetti. Sprinkle with parsley.

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Slow-Cooker Pork Ragu

  • 8 slices applewood smoked bacon, chopped (half of a 12 oz package)
  • 1 1/2 lbs boneless pork shoulder, trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 1 1/2 cups chopped onions
  • 2 cups chopped carrots
  • 5 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 2 tsp dried oregano leaves
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth
  • 1 can (28 oz) fire roasted crushed tomatoes, undrained
  • 6 cups cooked rigatoni pasta (about 4 1/2 cups uncooked pasta)
  • Shredded Parmesan cheese, if desired
  1. Spray 5 quart slow cooker with cooking spray
  2. In 5 quart Dutch oven, cook bacon over medium-high heat 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until browned and crisp. With slotted spoon, remove bacon to small bowl.
  3. Season pork with 1/2 tsp of the salt and 1/4 tsp of the pepper. Add half of the pork to the bacon drippings in the Dutch oven, and cook 4 to 6 minutes, turning occasionally, until browned. With slotted spoon, remove pork from Dutch oven to slow cooker. Repeat with remaining pork.
  4. Add onions, carrots, remaining 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper to Dutch oven, cook 3 to 4 minutes, stirring frequently, until softened. Stir in garlic and oregano, cook 30 seconds. Add broth, heat to simmering, stirring to remove brown bits on bottom. Transfer mixture to slow cooker with pork. Stir in tomatoes and bacon.
  5. Cover, cook on Low heat for 8 to 10 hours or until pork is tender and easily falls apart. Before serving shred pork with 2 forks. Serve over cooked pasta. Garnish with Parmesan cheese.
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Jumbo Stuffed Shells

  • 1 package (12 oz) jumbo shells, uncooked
  • 4 cups ricotta or cottage cheese
  • 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 Tablespoon parsley
  • 3/4 teaspoon oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 3 cups spaghetti sauce

Cook pasta according to directions on package.

In a large bowl, stir together cheeses, eggs, parsley, oregano, salt, and pepper.

In 9X13 baking dish, spread 1/2 cup of spaghetti sauce.

Fill each cooked shell with about 2 Tablespoons cheese mixture. Layer one-half filled shells in prepared baking dish; spread one-half remaining sauce over shells. Layer remaining filled shells over sauce; spread remaining sauce over shells.

Cover with foil. Bake 35 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

Makes 8-10 servings.