Creamy Chicken Alfredo

Creamy Chicken Alfredo is another one of our family favorites. In fact, it is my husbands all time favorite. Also, it is a crockpot meal and a freezer meal. Double time saver! This was a breakthrough in recipes for me because I use to buy this pasta and sauce mix from Costco for the convenience. It probably costs $12 per bag and serves 8. After a number of experiments, I figured out how they make this meal. Now this meal costs less then $6 for 8 servings.

Creamy Chicken Alfredo

Yield: 8 servings

2 packages Italian dressing mix*

1½ cups water

2 cans (14 ounces each) cream of chicken soup

2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese

2 to 3 tablespoons garlic powder

salt and pepper to taste

4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 package (12 ounces) penne or spiral pasta

1. With a hand mixer, beat together the Italian dressing mix, water, cream of chicken soup, cream cheese, and garlic powder in your crock pot.
   
2. Place chicken in the slow cooker and make sure the chicken is covered in the sauce mixture. Cook 3 hours on low. When done, whisk in 1 cup of milk to thin the sauce. Remove the chicken and shred it with two forks. Place the shredded chicken back in the sauce and salt and pepper to taste.
3. Meanwhile, cook pasta in boiling water for 12 minutes (al dente). Rinse with cold water in a strainer. Freeze pasta flat on a baking sheet for 1 hour. Remove from freezer and place two cups of frozen pasta in each sandwich-size zip-top bag.
4. When the sauce has cooled, place 2 cups of sauce in separate sandwich-size zip-top bags, label, and stack next to frozen pasta bags in freezer.

To serve: Remove the plastic bags and defrost frozen sauce in microwave for 2 minutes on high. There should be some ice chunks left in the sauce. Heat a skillet on medium-high heat. Drop one bag of frozen pasta and one bag of defrosted sauce into a skillet on the stovetop. Add 4 tablespoons water and cover with a lid. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until sauce is warm and creamy. Serve with crusty garlic bread and a salad. Top with fresh Basil if you have some on hand. Delicious!

*If you don't have a Italian dressing packet mix you can make this one from scratch:

Italian dressing packet mix (1 package): 1 tablespoon parsley, 2 teaspoons salt, 2 teaspoons sugar, 1 teaspoon garlic (bottled minced is fine or fresh), 1 teaspoon onion powder, ½ teaspoon basil, and 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes