P is for Pasta Bake for The Kids Cook Monday

Pasta bakes can be a great dish for children to help prepare for dinner.  With the pasta and the protein (mince, chicken pieces, canned tuna) usually precooked, the remainder of the preparation and assembly can usually be done by school aged children under adult supervision.  Older children can even be responsible for putting the pasta onto boil and frying the chicken or mince.  Once the pasta bake is assembled it just needs a little while in the oven. Bottled pasta sauces make preparation even simpler and adding plenty of veggies means pasta bakes are budget friendly too.

We normally use a tomato based sauce for our pasta bake but this week we chose a creamy Honey Mustard sauce to go with chicken pieces for a nice change.  Bee helped prepare the veggies by breaking up the cauliflower florets into small pieces and snipping the capsicum strips with scissors.  Not all veggies need to be cut up with a knife.  Breaking up by hand, snipping with scissors and grating are ways for young children to be involved without the need for a sharp knife.

Honey Mustard Chicken Pasta Bake

Serves 4

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Ingredients

300g dried penne pasta

400g chicken thigh fillets, cubed and cooked or leftover roast chicken meat

150g mushrooms, sliced

1/2 small cauliflower, cut or broken into small pieces

1/2 large red capsicum, diced

2 medium zucchini, diced

1 bottle (500g) Honey Mustard simmer sauce

1 cup grated tasty cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius.

2. Place a large saucepan of salted water on to boil.  Cook pasta according to packet directions. Drain.

Bee breaking up the cauliflower.

Snipping the capsicum with scissors.

3. In a large bowl mix together the cooked pasta, chicken, vegetables and sauce.  I find mixing it in a large bowl is easier for young children to manage rather than trying to keep it all in the baking dish.

4. Pour the pasta mix into a large baking dish.

5. Sprinkle over the grated cheese.

6. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.