Baked Buffalo Chicken Pasta.
Can you keep a secret?
Last night I went to a karate slash pilates slash bootcamp-ish slash heart attack class. I know. Your face? Your expression you are wearing right now? I was thinking the exact same thing. But my face was red and dripping with beads of sweat.
Anyway. That’s not the secret.
All I could think of during this class was cheese. Cheese on toast, cheese with jam, cheese on nachos, cheese in my face. If you find this peculiar then you really don’t know me. If you are not the least bit surprised, well then… you sure are neat. And I like you.
After flinging myself through the front door following my uncoordinated attempt at unarmed combat and eating four handfuls of peanut butter stuffed pretzels (I hear they are excellent for muscle recovery. write that down.), it dawned on me that peanut butter pretzels do not a dinner make. I had already spent a luscious 30 minutes with a quesadilla earlier in the evening, but when you jump, kick and squeeze your body into oblivion, you deserve a second dinner. It’s like a law or something.
Then I remembered the buffalo chicken mac sitting in the fridge and decided it qualified as a post-workout recovery meal.
Uh… wait a minute.
This is sort of like mac and cheese. Or it is mac and cheese. Can someone tell me what the difference between baked pasta and mac and cheese is? Educate me. It’s probably the cheese to pasta ratio. Copious amounts of cheese make up this buffalo chicken pasta. Maybe baked pasta doesn’t have lots of cheese. I don’t know.
But guess what? Now it does. That’s the beauty of this whole little deal we’ve got going on. I make things and name them whatever the heck I want. Sometimes you call me on it. Other times you look at me with googly eyes. Most times it is still delicious. Except for anything with broccoli. If I ever tell you something with broccoli is delicious, I’m lying.
I don’t care what you call it. Just get on it.
Baked Buffalo Chicken Pasta
serves 4-6
1 pound pasta (I used whole wheat orecchiette)
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and cut into chunks
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon flour
1 1/2 cups milk
4 ounces freshly grated monterey jack cheese (I used half a brick) + more for topping
1/3 cup freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese + more for topping
1/3 cup buffalo wing sauce
1/3 cup panko bread crumbs
salt and pepper to taste
for garnish: 3/4 cup chopped green onions, 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, 1/2 cup gorgonzola cheese, additional buffalo wing sauce
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Prepare water for pasta and cook according to directions.
While pasta is cooking, heat a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the butter, and once it’s melted and bubbly add the flour. Whisk together to create a roux and cook for 1-2 minutes until mixture gets a bit golden in color. Add milk, stir and turn down heat to low. Continue stirring until milk thickens. Add in grated cheeses and continue to stir until mixture is smooth. Stir in buffalo wing sauce. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.
Spray a baking dish (9 x 13 is fine, I used a round 4-inch deep dish) with non-stick spray. Add pasta and chicken, then pour cheese sauce over and mix throughly until everything is coated. Sprinkle with additional grated cheese and bread crumbs. Bake for 25 minutes or until cheese is golden brown. Remove from oven and immediately top with gorgonzola, green onions and cilantro. Drizzle with buffalo wing sauce.
And save me some? I’m still hungry.
281 Comments on “Baked Buffalo Chicken Pasta.”
Oh this looks amazing. I need to make it for my husband to win best wife award:-) By the way, whenever I am a the gym I just think about the breakfast I’m about to have!
I think this will go down in history as the greatest thing you will ever do for mankind.
Incredible Jessica! Definitely counts as post workout fuel ;)
heheh- I often think of food while I’m teaching or working out. Its motivation…so its cool ;). I don’t know the difference between mac and cheese and a pasta bake. I think it must be the amount of cheese in the dish? But I don’t know how one decides when you make the leap from a bake to mac and cheese. Any how, making a kicked up buffalo version sounds awesome and looks delicious
The real question is… did you like the class?
And I think it should be called baked buffalo chicken mac n cheese. Because it’s so mac n cheese. And maybe you should put some broccoli in it – broccoli is good for workout recovery. I heard that somewhere. Write it down. ;)
Everything is better with buffalo sauce. What brand do you use?
I use Frank’s Buffalo Wing.
Same here! I love that stuff!
OK, this just looks crazy delicious! I am a sucker for Buffalo Chicken Dip and this just has all that goodness, plus pasta- yum.
This looks super good — I love the shot of the gooey cheese being poured on top. I wish that bowl of pasta was my mouth.
I don’t care what you call this. Serve me some and I’ll eat it!
It’s strange, though. Whenever I workout and feel like a foot from death, I always want cold chocolate milk. Or just anything COLD for that matter.
In fact that’s exactly how I felt last night while doing your circuit workout from Melissa’s blog…
Hahah! Glad you tried it.
The bootcamp sounds like fun! I mix my workouts up like that all the time…so I don’t have time to get bored. The pasta…dang that looks good! I love hot sauce, so smothering mac and cheese with it sounds so good!
I just bought whole wheat orecchiette last week! I want this!
I just found it last week too! I was so excited.
Totally agree. After an intense workout, one dinner is not enough!
I just have to say how amazing I think you are. I am always so inspired by how many food ideas you can come up with that are always so delicious and creative and fun. Love you!
Thanks so much Tina – that means so much to me! You are the best! <3
nate will die…he LOVES all of the buffalo-inspired recipes you’ve ever made (because, ahem, i’ve made them all)! looks like i know what’s for dinner sunday night :)
Wow that class sounds…awesome….
Yuuuum!!!! Will definitely bookmark this recipe!!!
And that exercise class??? sounds amazingly difficult! did you like it?
It really wasn’t too too bad – I liked it but it didn’t keep my heart rate up the entire time, which is what I like.
i want to go to that exercise class!
I consider it a pasta bake if the cheese is sprinkled on top and then baked…mac and cheese if it is melted and ooey gooey throughout. This recipe looks delicious. We use Ken’s buffalo marinade a lot – it has a great taste and not all that bad for you (I think). I am envious of you for not only the food you make but also because you work out…and enjoy it. I want to be like that.
wondering if this is possibly an acceptable breakfast dish?
For sure. :)
Oh this looks amazing and is certainly well deserved after that workout!
oh wow, I want this!
This looks fabulous! And you used whole wheat pasta, so it is absolutely healthy!
Right?!
I have to make this for my buffalo-crazed hubby.
I love how so many of us fantasize about food during workouts. You would not believe the number of folks at the gym who watch Food Network while on the cardio machines. LOL!
I know! I always watch it while at the gym too.
Looks fabulous! My roommate is a cheese-a-holic… maybe I’ll bust this one out for her bday meal!
looks delicious!!! i’m a HUGE fan of anything buffalo-chicken + cheese. the other day when i was crying to my husband about feeling inadequate, in the back of my mind i was also thinking: block of monterey jack. block of sharp cheddar. mac and cheese for one? i think so. (but i should have added buffalo sauce!).
Hahahah.
AMAZING post-workout meal!
Absolute amazing!
ugh anything buffalo style steals my heart anyday, everyday
That looks amazing! For me it would be baked pasta, as mac and cheese is a cooktop not oven dish (and not the blue box). I try to not think about food when I workout, instead my to do list is running through my head. The only problem is I forget half of it before I can get it wrote down.
That looks completely amazing! I totally think about food during workouts too. It gets me through long runs! :)
Jessica – I just discovered your site yesterday, and I am so in love… I kept paging through recipes and murmuring “oh sweet heavens”, and emailing links to myself …
This looks incredibly delicious. … Mac & Cheese (baked pasta?) has always been one of my love languages!
Thanks so much Amy!
Another reminder of why my husband probably wishes he would have married you.
Alas, he’s stuck with this Jessica, but thank God for your delicious meal inspirations or I might have to start like shaving my legs all the time and telling him how great he is.
I’m thinking this will be the perfect eat-while-I’m-sitting-on-the-couch-and-watching-hours-and-hours-of-college-football this fall :)
Oh man…. this looks awesome. I love buffalo wings and buffalo chicken pizza is my favorite… so this is definitely going on the menu!
Making a grocery list now…
O yum! I love buffalo and of course all things cheese! I’m adding it to my list of recipes to try ASAP!
Freaking yum. That looks so good.
I think it’s reasonable to contemplate food during a workout. I think about brownies during most of my swims.
I wanna make the sauce and put it over veggies. I hope that’s OK with you and you don’t consider it defiling of your recipe.
Hmmmm…. gotta think about that one.
Last night my boyfriend informed me that he’s not a huge fan of any mac and cheese that I’ve ever made him. Not that it’s a fault by me, he just doesn’t really like mac and cheese. I know, I know – I was shocked too. Then he proceeds to tell me that he wants to eat a bit healthier. Guess he’s on his own for dinner cause I’m definitely making this! I <3 cheese!
How is that even possible?! Not like mac and cheese?!
I know, I was slightly appalled
I’m drooling.
I’m also sad for my waistline.
This looks absolutely amazing. I love anything buffalo chicken. What fantastic photos too!
lmao, you crack me up. “cheese in my face” ahaha. I think the same things! I need to make this. Now.
So this seriously has two of my favorite things and looks ah-mazing. Buffalo Chicken + Pasta?? I am SO in! Looks delish, girl!
My expression definitely goes to the pasta, not to the workout class. ;-) That looks amazing.
Is it wrong to admit, that second photo makes me wish my mouth was under that cascade of sauce, catching it all in? Maybe.
But all of the above just means one thing: I want to make this.
And I can totally relate to the thinking about cheese thing during a workout. Mostly in the context of working the damage of the cheese off my thighs…
Never wrong at all.
Looks wonderful. I typically watch Food Network while on the treadmill…
Great minds think alike, I posted a recipe for Buffalo Baked Chicken Pasta this week too! (http://eatingchalk.com/2011/05/09/buffalo-take-me-to-san-fransisco/)
I am making this tonight….and I can hardly wait!
Let me know if you like it!
Brilliant. I think you like Buffalo Chicken as much as I do.
I want that, but I haven’t worked out in, oh, about 4 months. Is that still allowed?