Chicken and Bacon Casserole Recipe

When you combine chicken and bacon into a casserole you have a quick and easy dinner for any night of the week. This casserole uses a combination of seasoned chicken, bacon, Monterey jack cheese, cream of chicken soup and rotini pasta. I was a little skeptical of this recipe because of the canned soup but the end result was delicious. The best part about this recipe is the flavor that the bacon creates throughout the dish. The chicken is cooked in the bacon grease and the bacon flavor cooks into the casserole while it is baking. This recipe only uses 7 ingredients and can be prepared easily. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
6 strips of bacon
2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed cream of chicken soup
2 cup shredded Monterey jack cheese
16 ounces spiral pasta
1 ½ teaspoons ground black pepper
2 teaspoons garlic powder

Cooking Instructions:
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Heat a large skillet to medium-high heat. Add bacon strips and cook turning once until crispy. Drain on paper towels and crumble once the bacon has cooled. Season the chicken breasts on both sides with ground black pepper and garlic powder. Add the chicken to the pan with the bacon grease. Cook the chicken in the bacon grease over medium-high heat, turning at least once until the chicken is fully cooked (the internal temperature has reached 165 degrees). Allow the chicken to cool and then slice it into strips.
Step 2: While the chicken is cooking, cook the pasta according to package directions. Spray a 9×13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
Step 3: Drain the pasta, return it to the pot. Add the chicken, both cans of cream of chicken soup, crumbled bacon, and 1 cup of Monterey jack cheese. Stir and mix well. Pour into the prepared baking dish. Top with the remaining 1 cup of Monterey jack cheese.
Step 4: Place into the oven and bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes or until the cheese has melted and beginning to brown on top.
(Makes 6 Servings)