Pesto Ranch Pasta Bake

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #OnePanPronto #CollectiveBias

You guys, I am a FAN of pasta. A really big one. So, I was really excited to try out the Barilla Pronto Pasta and make my favorite meal of all time with it.

I trust the barilla brand because I know I am getting something that tastes authentic and is all natural. The Barilla Pronto Pasta is really cool because it allows for one-pan pasta meals to be created with no need to wait for water to boil, and no draining required.

This recipe is fast, easy, and the whole family will love it. I am serious about that one, My one-year-old and my two year old both ate it, which never happens.

I made this meal pretty kid-friendly but you could also add in a few other optional ingredients for the adults like mushrooms or artichokes. If you need another kid-friendly meal idea, check out this simple penne with pepperoni and cheese. I’m sure we will be making that one soon.

From start to finish this meal probably took me less than 30 minutes because you don’t need to wait for water to boil and you don’t need to drain the pronto pasta. No colander needed! The pronto pasta had a great texture and I couldn’t tell a difference from the regular version.

You can make your whole meal in one pan. After mixing the pasta and ingredients I baked it in the oven so everything could get crispy and melty, so I technically used two pans, but if you have a cast iron skillet you can do this recipe all in one.

I found all the ingredients for this recipe at Walmart. The barilla pesto saunce and Pronto Pasta will be found in their pasta aisle

For every box of Barilla® Pronto™ purchased at Walmart between 7/31/2016 and10/31/2016, Barilla® will donate 10 meals to kids in need through No Kid Hungry, up to half-a-million meals.*

*$1.00 can provide a child with 10 healthy meals. This amount is based on the individual experiences of grant recipients. Contributions will be used to reach the highest number of children facing hunger in America. Share Our Strength is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization.

Heres what you will need for this recipe:

• 1 box Barilla Pronto Pasta (you can choose from penne, rotini, or half-cut spaghetti)
• 1 jar of Barilla Pesto
• 1 packet of ranch dressing mix
• 1 cup of cooked chicken (rotisserie chicken from your grocery store will save you the step of cooking it)
• 1/4 c chopped sun-dried tomatoes
• mozzarella cheese

Additional add-ins (optional):

• artichokes
• mushrooms
• spinach
• pine nuts

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°

Cook pronto pasta according to the directions on the box. Mix in a jar of pesto sauce, ranch dressing mix, chicken, and sun-dried tomatoes.

Transfer mixture to a baking dish and top with mozzarella cheese.

Bake for 15-20 minutes. Enjoy!