Spicy Creamy Cajun Pasta Bake Food

SPICY AND CREAMY CAJUN CHICKEN PASTA

Steps:

• Combine ingredients for Cajun seasoning in a small bowl. Or, alternatively, use 2 tablespoons of your favorite Cajun seasoning. My recommendation is Frontier Cajun seasoning.
• Place 2 chicken breasts in a shallow bowl and coat on both sides with 1/2 of the Cajun seasoning. Save the remaining 1/2 of the seasoning for pasta. Note: be sure to use thinly sliced chicken breasts. That means if you bought large chicken breasts, slice each one in half horizontally.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat. Add the chicken breasts seasoned with Cajun spice and cook for about 4 minutes on each side. Turn off the heat, cover the skillet with the lid, and let the chicken sit, covered, off heat for about 10 minutes until it's completely cooked through. Remove the chicken to a plate and slice chicken thinly.
• In the meantime, bring a large pot of water to boil. Add pasta and cook according to the package instructions (that usually means somewhere between 10 or 15 minutes). Drain pasta.
• Add diced bell peppers to the same, now empty, skillet that you just used to cook chicken. Cook on medium heat for about 4 minutes until bell peppers are slightly softened. Remove 1/2 of the cooked bell peppers to a plate, leaving the remaing 1/2 in the skillet.
• To the same skillet with 1/2 of the cooked bell peppers, add the cream, the remaining 1/2 of the Cajun seasoning, and freshly shredded Parmesan cheese. Bring to a brief boil, reduce to simmer, and cook, constantly stirring, until the cheese starts to melt, for several minutes.
• Add drained cooked pasta to the skillet with the cream sauce and heat through on low heat. Season with red pepper flakes, more salt and extra cayenne pepper, if desired. Top with sliced cooked chicken and the remaining 1/2 of cooked bell peppers.

CAJUN CHICKEN PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Cook pasta according to package directions to al dente., Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, saute chicken in 1 tablespoon oil until juices run clear. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. In same pan, saute onions and peppers in remaining oil until tender. Add broth, soups, milk, Cajun seasoning and garlic powder. Bring to a boil; remove from heat., Drain pasta. Add pasta and chicken to soup mixture; toss to coat. Divide between two greased 13x9-in. baking dishes. Sprinkle with cheese. Cover and bake casseroles 20-25 minutes or until bubbly. Freeze option: Cool unbaked casseroles; cover and freeze. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350°. Bake casseroles, as directed, increasing time to 55-60 minutes or until heated through and a thermometer in center reads 165°.

CAJUN FETTUCCINE ALFREDO WITH ANDOUILLE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the fettuccine according to package directions.
• While the pasta cooks, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes. Add the scallions, celery, bell pepper, and Cajun seasoning and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Add the cream and simmer until slightly thickened, about 1 minute.
• Once the pasta is cooked, transfer it directly from the boiling water into the cream sauce using tongs or a pasta fork. Sprinkle the pasta with the Parmesan and toss to combine. Add a splash of the starchy pasta water to help the sauce thicken and coat the pasta. Top with chopped parsley and serve with additional Parmesan.

CREAMY CAJUN SHRIMP PASTA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dete; drain.
• Meanwhile, melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute shrimp for 1 minute on each side. Stir in garlic and cook for 1 minute. Remove shrimp from skillet (some shrimp may not be cooked completely) and set aside.
• Stir in flour and Cajun seasoning into the butter. Cook, stirring for 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk, then cook until thickened. Return shrimp to sauce and cook 1 to 2 minutes more until shrimp is done. Season with salt.
• Top pasta with shrimp sauce and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

CREAMY CAJUN CHICKEN PASTA

Steps:

• Place chicken and Cajun seasoning in a bowl and toss to coat.
• In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté chicken in butter or margarine until chicken is tender, about 5 to 7 minutes.
• Reduce heat add green onion, heavy cream, tomatoes, basil, salt, garlic powder, black pepper and heat through.
• Pour over hot linguine and toss with Parmesan cheese.