Geez some people drive me crazy! How on earth are you going to rate this recipe when you haven't even made it??? & because of the calorie/fat content? Not at any point does this recipe say low calorie or low fat! To rate a recipe with 1 star because of what it "sounds" like completely defeats the meaning of this website. I've never commented before, but I am just amazed at some users sometimes!!! By the way...wonderful recipe!!! Will make again & again...& again!
As the submitter I would just like to say it is a comfort food food that my family and friends love.And was not meant to be lowfat. Hypertrophy I use a very large deep pot to mix it all in:)
Fantastic! Made it exactly as written and my whole family was delighted. As is often the case with pasta, the flavors "married" overnight and the leftovers rocked! I am pleading with those of you who feel compelled to give a negative rating to a recipe you've never tried to please resist the urge. If you read the ingredients and decide it is not for you because of calories, salt, fat, or whatever, why are you even reading the reviews and adding your opinion? The rest of us are not interested in your lecture, but rather the experiences of those who have actually made the recipe.
This was a very simple and tasty dish. I only made two small changes. I halved the pesto because the pesto at my store comes in 7oz containers and most people said they halved it anyway. I also used diced tomatoes but that's only because I grabbed the wrong can and didn't notice until I had already poured it in the bowl. I don't know what it tastes like with all 15oz of pesto and crushed tomatoes but it was just fine with only 7oz of pesto and diced tomatoes. Also this dish was very big. I had to pour it into a 9x13 casserole dish AND an 8x10 casserole dish. I had a party with 10 people and the 8x10 went untouched and there was about 1 serving left in the 9x13. If you're making this for a family of 4 or 5 you will definitely want to halve the recipe. I didn't give it five stars because it didn't "Wow Me!". It was very good and I'll definitely make it again!
Great family meal! I have made this dish three times in the last month, and the beauty of it is that you can "tweak" it every time and it's still delish! The first time I made it, I subbed tomato paste for crushed tomatoes as had an open can in the fridge--family loved it! Second time, used diced tomatoes and different cheese--another hit! Tonight, I actually used crushed tomatoes, but for the cheese I used a combo of mozarella, provolone, guida and parmesan, and added a little more spinach--family again fell all over themselves getting seconds! The only thing I've done consistently is halve the recipe, because it does make alot! And, I make my own pesto in the summer and freeze it in golf-ball size servings-and one of them seems to be just perfect. My family thanks you for posting such a great, pantry-adaptable recipe!!!
I loved this! but i think there is too much pesto it was a little bit strong and i added extra cheese on top before i added the crust topping it was amazing!
This was great. I used fresh tomatoes instead of crushed and I did not use the afrado sauce. I recommend this recipe to anyone.
I don't even have this in the oven yet and I'm giving it 5 stars. Have you ever seen 'What About Bob'? The scene where he is having dinner with his doctor and the doctor's family - that was me preparing this. SO GOOD. Tweaks - I halved the pesto, used diced tomatoes, omitted the spinach (didn't have any) & seasoned the chicken a bit. I did it all in one pan on the stove top with the exception of the bread crumb mixture, obviously. Poured it in the 9x13 pan, topped with the crumb mixture & popped it in the oven. It smells divine, too. Can't wait to get my eat on. This is not at all healthy - but outstanding. Thank you so much.
We've been making this for a few years now usually when we're expecting a crowd because this does make ALOT. We've since modified it to: reducing the pesto (we always have homemade in the freezer) & the shredded Italian cheeses by half substituting spaghetti or marinara (again homemade) sauce for the tomatoes (if we have some leftover otherwise we've also used fresh - roasted or not - tomatoes with success much better than canned) & we use the spinach if we remember to buy it leave it out if we forget never used the breadcrumbs - either way it's always a satisfying & relatively easy crowd pleaser - with or without the chicken even!!! (Oh & I forgot to mention that we almost always include sauteed zucchini yellow squash and/or mushrooms)
The combination of ingredients created some degree of palate confusion. I decreased the amount of pesto to 9oz and it was still too much. The finished product was a nondistinct presentation looking more like 'mush' with no appeal. I will not make this again. IF I needed to alter the recipe I would make penne with pesto add some chicken add some sun dried tomatoes and decrease the 4 cups of shredded cheese. One star was way to generous.
