I love casserole type dinners, probably because my mother made them frequently and then refrigerated the leftovers for our lunches on Saturday when she was working.
I'm also using all the “about to expire things from my freezer and cleaning out the canned goods from the shelves, so I can load it up for the holidays.
I ended up with quite an array of things. I made some wonderful beef stock and quarts and quarts of soup, plus freezing the rest for a brisk winter day.
Used the final peppers from the garden and a bag of tomatoes for stuffed peppers, too.
All I had left was to figure out something to do with the chicken and the quart container of milk that was frozen.
Originally, I planned to just bake the chicken and make some rice pudding as a side, but I came across this recipe and it looked so good I just had to try it.
I don't use Velveeta, but had lots of different hard cheese in the refrigerator and adjusted the recipe a bit by first making my own Velveeta from the block cheese, milk and a dash of cumin. Used the microwave to make it.
When I was ready for the recipe using the Cream of mushroom soup I had on the shelf, some of the tomatoes from the freezer (cook them down a bit for the best results), the cheese and chicken.
There are several versions of this dish on the internet, I combined two of them to create my own. That's another reason I love casserole type dishes, like soups, you really can't mess them up much by omitting an ingredient or adding another.
You'll simply get a slightly different flavor and use up some of the back of the shelf items you already have stocked.
I have to admit, I loved the crunchiness of the cheesy chicken spaghetti made in the oven, but if I were serving a lot of people or taking the dish somewhere, I'd opt for the one in the slow cooker.
Your family is going to love this one and you will too. It's easy! It's cheesy! It's simple! Those are three things I love in any dish. One last thing. I didn't use the whole chicken, only half of the cooked chicken.
With the rest, I chopped and added celery, onion, cheese cubes and onion and then mixed with my favorite dressing for a quick lunch the next day.
Yeah, I had extra bread and lettuce and decided to make chicken salad sandwiches for lunch.
Ingredients
- spaghetti cooked and drained (cooked and drained)
- Velveeta cubed (or Mild Cheddar Cheese)
- cooked chicken diced leftover chicken
- cream of mushroom soup
- cream of chicken soup
- petite diced tomatoes or Rotel tomatoes (drained)
- milk
- chicken stock
- minced garlic
- sliced onions
- bell peppers (cut in small cubes)
- celery
Step by step instructions:
If using the stove top
1 In a large pot, saute the garlic and onions. Then add the vegetables. Season with salt and pepper according to your taste. Stir to cook.
2 Now, add the cream of mushroom, cream of chicken and the Rotel tomatoes.
3 Add the chicken stock, mix them all together. Then you can drop the Cheddar cheese and chicken.
4 Add the milk and keep stirring until the cheese have melted over medium heat.
5 Stir until all ingredients are mixed well. Add spaghetti and serve.
If using the CrockPot:
1 Mix all ingredients and place into greased slow cooker. Stir every 30 minutes or so. Cook on low 2 hours or until all the Cheese have melted.
Notes:
You can be creative by adding your favorite vegetables like mushrooms, broccoli etcalso you can use bacon instead of chicken.
Watch the video
Full Recipe
Creamy Chicken Spaghetti
Ingredients:
- 16 oz spaghetti cooked and drained (cooked and drained)
- 1 lb Velveeta cubed (or Mild Cheddar Cheese)
- 1 cup cooked chicken diced leftover chicken
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup 10 oz
- 1 can cream of chicken soup 10 oz
- 1 can of either petite diced tomatoes or Rotel tomatoes (drained)
- ½ cup milk
- ¾ cup chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- ¼ cup sliced onions
- ¼ cup bell peppers (cut in small cubes)
- ¼ cup celery
Watch the Video:
Instructions:
For the stove top (You Can Watch the Video Above):
- In a large pot, saute the garlic and onions. Then add the vegetables. Season with salt and pepper according to your taste. Stir to cook.
- Now, add the cream of mushroom, cream of chicken and the Rotel tomatoes.
- Add the chicken stock, mix them all together. Then you can drop the Cheddar cheese and chicken.
- Add the milk and keep stirring until the cheese have melted over medium heat.
- Stir until all ingredients are mixed well. Add spaghetti and serve.
For the CrockPot:
- Mix all ingredients and place into greased slow cooker.
- Stir every 30 minutes or so.
- Cook on low 2 hours or until all the Cheese have melted.
Notes:
also you can use bacon instead of chicken.
Nutrition Information:
Please note that all nutrition information are just estimates. Values will vary among brands, so we encourage you to calculate these on your own for most accurate results.
Calleigh says
@Andrea,
You cook the pasta according to its package. Then, you can add the sauce.
Andrea L Miller says
It looks very good. If I were to use the crockpot do you put the raw spaghetti in or do you cook the spaghetti separately?
Kay Hughes says
This is an exact recipe that what I was looking for. Thanks for sharing the amazing recipe with us! that is very simple and easy to cook and I am always searching for new recipes like this.
Amy | The Cook Report says
This cheesy pasta sounds awesome! Sometimes you just need a treat like this 🙂
Andreya says
It looks so yummy with cheesy. I like spaghetti a lot. Thanks for sharing the quickest recipe.
Karen @ Seasonal Cravings says
This looks like a dinner my whole family would love and I can throw it together last minute. Comfort food at it's best
Ayngelina Brogan says
This looks like such a quick recipe, perfect for a midweek dinner.
sara | belly rumbles says
Sounds like the ultimate pantry cleaner/freezer dive recipe! You totally had me a cheesy. What person in their right mind does not love creamy and cheesy, with the addition of chicken in pasta!!!
Emma @ Supper in the Suburbs says
What a great way to use up all of those ingredients! I've got lots of random things lurking in my freezer. I could take a leaf out of your book!
Felesha Bell says
I absolutely love this version of spaghetti!! Pure comfort!!
Jagruti says
Spaghetti sounds delicious, creamy and filling.
Nayna Kanabar says
I love spaghetti and combined with this cheesy sauce must have tasted heavenly.
Ginny McMeans says
That sauce really does look creamy. My nieces will love this!
heather (delicious not gorgeous) says
this sounds super cozy! i'm sweating just sitting on my laptop at the moment, but in a couple months, i would be all over this (:
Deanna says
I love this recipe!! It perfect for dinner tonight I think!!
Sues says
Ooh this looks so creamy and delicious!!
Anita says
Easy and cheesy! Such a good combination in this wonderful pasta dish. This is going to be the perfect thing once the temperature starts to cool a bit 🙂
Luci's Morsels says
The texture and the flavors of this recipe look amazing! I have got to try this. Yummy! Thanks for sharing.
Liz @ I Heart Vegetables says
I've been on such a pasta kick lately! It's such a perfect weeknight staple! I bet that sauce is delicious!
Sophia | Veggies Don't Bite says
This looks like comfort food extreme! I love creamy pastas (although mine are all dairy free), such a great combo with carb filling pasta!
Linda says
Wow, I love pasta but I never tried to make it like this! It looks so luscious and simple at the same time. I'll try soon !