Chicken Lasagna is a delicious pasta bake that will feed a family.
I’m kicking off January with a focus on casseroles, comforting and satisfying bakes that are perfect for these chilly days. First up, Two-Cheese Chicken Lasagna with Kale. With lasagna noodles, tender white-meat chicken, mozzarella and Parmesan, bacon, and a creamy Alfredo sauce — I mean, what’s not to love here? My twist on this classic recipe is kale, a great swap for spinach, which isn’t a welcome ingredient in our household.
You can parboil the noodles as I did or use oven-ready lasagna noodles to save a step. Let’s get cooking!
To make Two-Cheese Chicken Lasagna with Kale, which yields about 8 generous servings, you’ll need these ingredients:
5 strips of bacon
1 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves
6 leaves of Tuscan (curly) kale
2 cups shredded rotisserie or poached chicken breasts
2 (15 ounce) jars creamy Alfredo sauce
2 cups shredded whole milk mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
I use Tastefully Simple’s Makin’ Magic Chicken when poaching chicken. Poaching in chicken broth and dried minced onion also works. Because I parboiled the noodles for 8 minutes, I used just over 1½ jars of the Alfredo. Use both jars with the oven-ready pasta.
If you’d prefer spinach to kale, use 10 ounces fresh baby spinach leaves.
Follow these directions to make Two-Cheese Chicken Lasagna with Kale
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In large skillet over medium heat, sauté bacon until crispy. Remove to a paper towel to cool before chopping. Add onions to skillet and cook until translucent.
As onions soften, strip kale leaves and slice into fine ribbons. Add to skillet and cook for 2 minutes.
Stir Alfredo sauce into kale mixture. Turn off heat and stir in bacon.
Spray a 10-inch lasagna pan with non-stick and spread 1 cup of sauce on bottom of pan. Lay 3 lasagna noodles on top, followed by 1 cup of sauce, 1 cup of chicken and ½ cup mozzarella cheese.
Continue making layers with noodles, sauce, chicken, and cheese until all ingredients have been incorporated. Some of my layers used 2½ noodles — it doesn’t have to be precise; have confidence in your building skills! Sprinkle Parmesan on top to finish the casserole.
Cover with foil and bake 20 minutes. Remove cover and continue baking 30 minutes or until lightly browned on top and bubbly. Remove from oven and let stand 10-15 minutes before serving. An optional garnish is torn basil leaves on top of each slice or a whole leaf tucked to the side.
A kitchen tip
Two-Cheese Chicken Lasagna with Kale, like most casseroles, can be made in advance and baked later. To do this, simply follow steps 1 through 5 (obviously, don’t preheat your oven) and cover your lasagna pan with plastic wrap. Tightly wrap entire pan in aluminum foil. Store in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
If you have leftovers, Two-Cheese Chicken Lasagna with Kale will freeze well. It might be best to freeze in single servings, so wrap each slice tightly in aluminum foil and slip the packs into a zip-top freezer bag. Remember to label the bag and freeze up to a month.
What’s in a name?
Baked dishes have existed for thousands of years, but the word “casserole” is derived from the French term “casse,” which translates to saucepan. A casserole can be either the pan or the food that’s baked in it. These convenient one-dish meals took off in the 1950s thanks to the availability of lightweight glass and metal bakeware.
Not everyone is casserole fan; food and wine journalist John Mariana attributed casseroles as attribute this to the beginning of the dark ages of American culinary culture in his work, “The Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink.” That’s OK John; more for us plain folk.
There’s a cousin to the casserole — hot dish — folks in Minnesota and North Dakota bake. As far as I can tell from my research, a hot dish always is a one-pan main course (green bean casserole, for example, is not a hot dish) and is often topped with something crunchy, such as potato chips, crushed buttery crackers or — my favorite — tater tots.
About the blog
Three Women in the Kitchen is an award-winning food blog offering today’s home cooks comforting, hearty recipes with a personal touch. The website also pays tribute to Deborah’s mother, Katie Reinhardt, and paternal grandmother, Dorothy Reinhardt (the “three women” in the kitchen). Whether you’re an experienced or a novice cook, you’ll find inspiration here to feed your families and warm your heart. Subscribe today so you won’t miss a single delicious detail.
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