Chicken Alfredo Cheesy Bake (Printable Version)

Tender chicken and al dente pasta baked with rich, creamy Alfredo sauce and melted cheese.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Pasta

01 - 12 oz penne or rigatoni pasta

→ Chicken

02 - 1 lb cooked chicken breast, diced or shredded

→ Sauce

03 - 4 tbsp unsalted butter
04 - 4 cloves garlic, minced
05 - 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
06 - 2 cups whole milk
07 - 1 cup heavy cream
08 - 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
09 - 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
10 - 1/2 tsp salt
11 - 1/2 tsp black pepper
12 - 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg (optional)

→ Topping

13 - 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
14 - 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
15 - 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley (optional)

# Step-by-Step Guide:

01 - Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
02 - Boil pasta in salted water until just al dente. Drain and set aside.
03 - Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute until fragrant.
04 - Whisk in flour and cook for 1 minute constantly, forming a roux.
05 - Gradually whisk in whole milk and heavy cream. Simmer gently for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring until sauce thickens.
06 - Stir in Parmesan and mozzarella until melted. Season with salt, black pepper, and optional nutmeg.
07 - Fold cooked chicken and drained pasta into the sauce, ensuring even coating.
08 - Transfer mixture to the baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.
09 - Bake uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes until the top is golden and bubbling.
10 - Allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with chopped parsley if desired.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • It comes together in under an hour, but tastes like you've been cooking all afternoon.
  • The bake sits in the oven doing its thing while you can actually sit down for a minute.
  • Every bite is creamy, cheesy, and packed with tender chicken—no dry, sad pasta here.
  • It's the kind of dish that turns a regular weeknight into something people actually remember.
02 -
  • Don't rush the roux or skip the whisking when you add the milk—lumps are the enemy and they're hard to fix once they've set in.
  • The pasta continues cooking in the oven, so stopping at al dente is crucial; overcooked pasta in a bake is where comfort food goes to die.
  • Freshly grated cheese actually melts and tastes better than pre-shredded, which sounds pretentious until you taste the difference.
  • The bake will bubble at the edges before the top is golden—that's the perfect time to pull it out, before the top gets too dark.
03 -
  • Keep your heat at medium when making the sauce—high heat can cause the cream to break and your sauce to split, which nobody wants to fix.
  • If your sauce seems thin after adding the cheeses, you can always let it simmer a bit longer to thicken up further before mixing everything together.
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