Impress your loved ones with my delicious Marry Me Chicken Pasta Bake recipe. Made with tender chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, cheese and a creamy sauce, this dish is sure to win over any heart.

One of my favorite meals as a child was a creamy pasta bake my mom used to make to repurpose leftover pasta and whatever other ingredients she had to hand. This recipe was referred to as a “pasta soufflé” in Greece – basically cooked pasta mixed with creamy Bechamel sauce then baked in the oven.

I was feeling pretty nostalgic for this childhood fave and decided to make it for my children, using our beloved Marry Me Chicken recipe as the inspiration.

This frugal recipe can be made using leftover cooked pasta (my mom usually used spaghetti), shredded rotisserie chicken and the usual “marry me” recipe suspects: sun-dried tomatoes, spinach and freshly grated parmesan cheese.

A baked casserole in a rectangular dish, featuring golden brown, melted cheese and mixed herbs on top. The dish is partially cut, revealing layers of pasta and visible greens.

Our Pasta Bake Ingredients

This recipe uses Béchamel as the creamy sauce – it sounds fancy in French but this is also known simply as “white sauce” and probably familiar to you as the base for mac and cheese and topping for lasagna.

Our Bechamel sauce is made with butter, flour and whole milk and flavored with nutmeg, Dijon mustard and plenty of grated Parmesan and Gruyere cheese. Once you make the sauce, this dish is a breeze – you add your choice of cooked pasta, chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, chopped spinach and bake it in the oven until golden.

Using store-bought rotisserie chicken is an easy option but you can also use leftover roast chicken or shredded chicken you have meal prepped.

Ingredients for a pasta dish are arranged on a surface: flour, nutmeg, mustard, butter, spinach, pasta, salt, garlic powder, paprika, pepper, cheese, sundried tomatoes, milk, and chicken.

How to Make Marry Me Chicken Pasta Bake

↓ For the full ingredients and detailed method, jump to the recipe card.

Make the Sauce

Melt butter over low heat in a large skillet. Sprinkle the flour over the butter and stir with a spoon to form a paste (this is called a roux in French). Gradually add milk into the pan, whisking well to incorporate it into the roux.
Cook the sauce for 2-3 minutes once all the milk has been added, stirring in the grated Nutmeg, mustard, garlic powder, paprika and salt. Take the sauce off the heat and add the the grated cheese, stirring well so that it melts. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the sauce to prevent a skin forming, unless you are using straight away.

A collage of four images showing the steps to make bechamel sauce. Top left: stirring flour and butter. Top right: adding milk to the mixture. Bottom left: whisking more milk into the mix. Bottom right: sauce topped with grated cheese and seasoning.

Make the Pasta

Bring a large pot of water to the boil, add a teaspoon of salt and your choice of pasta and cook for 2 minute less than what the pack instructions. We want the paste to be al dente as it will cook further in the sauce. Drain the pasta and tip back into the pot. Add a little butter and toss together and set aside.

Put It All Together

Set two cups of the white sauce aside to use as the pasta bake topping. Add the cooked pasta, sun-dried tomatoes and spinach into the remaining sauce and toss well to combine.
Grease a baking dish with butter and sprinkle with a little cheese. Add the pasta mixture into the dish and level. Top with the reserved Bechamel and sprinkle with (even more!) cheese.
Bake in a 375°F (190°C) preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until the top is golden and the cheese has melted.
Rest for 10 minutes then sprinkle with chopped fresh basil or parsley. Cut into squares and serve with a simple green salad. Delicious!

Three images show the stages of preparing a pasta bake. Top left: Cooked pasta with sauce and sun-dried tomatoes. Top right: Mixed with fresh spinach and cheese. Bottom: The dish in a casserole, topped with grated cheese, ready to bake.

Recipe Notes

You can stir some heavy cream into the white sauce if you like – it is plenty rich as it is though… Use 2% milk instead of whole if you prefer a lighter Bechamel.
Use freshly grated Parmesan cheese in the sauce. The boxed kind is likely to turn your silky sauce into a grainy mess…
My mom made her pasta soufflé recipe using spaghetti or bucatini, cutting the long strands into smaller pieces to make the dish easier to serve. You can use rigatoni or penne pasta pasta if preferred.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. This recipe is not suitable for freezing.
Your pasta bake may fall apart slightly as you try to slice it – that’s ok! Rest the dish for 10-15 minutes before serving so it can keep its shape better.

A slice of freshly baked lasagna being lifted from a baking dish. The lasagna is golden brown with melted cheese on top and visible layers of pasta, vegetables, and sauce. Sprinkled with herbs, the dish looks appetizing and savory.

Check Out My Other Pasta Recipes!

Recipes

Marry Me Chicken Pasta Bake

Our Pasta Bake Ingredients