Easy Enchilada Pasta

Since I pretty much live on Pinterest, I have seen a lot of recipes for baked enchilada pasta dishes. I was in the grocery store the other day and happened to pick up some enchilada sauce and diced green chilies. Ideas started forming in my head so I also picked up a box of pasta. I had a dilemma with what kind of protein to use in the dish. Most of the ones I have seen use ground turkey, ground beef, or shredded chicken. I dare to be different so I picked up some Al Fresco chicken sausage (you could use any of the proteins previously listed though). Boom. Easy dish, takes barely any time, and it's delicious.

Easy Enchilada Pasta

Photo Credit: Me

Ingredients (serves 6):

1 13.25 box of Rotini (I used Dreamfields)

1 10oz can of medium heat enchilada sauce

1 package of Al Fresco chipotle chorizo chicken sausage

1 4.5oz can of green chilies (I accidentally bought them whole but it took 2 seconds to dice)

4oz of 1/3 less fat cream cheese, room temperature

1 Tbl butter

1 Tbl oil

1/4 cup finely diced scallions

1/4 cup shredded jack cheese, just to cover dish

Sour cream to top each bowl with

Directions:

Set your oven to broil. Cook the pasta according the box. Meanwhile, heat your oil in a medium sized skillet on medium heat. Brown the sausage all the way around. Remove the sausage and dice into 1/4 inch circular pieces. Melt the butter in the still hot pan and add the enchilada sauce. Add the room temp cream cheese and whisk until it is blended well. Add the diced sausage and diced green chilies into the sauce mixture. Drain the pasta and add to a deep baking dish (I used an 11-cup one). Add the sauce to the pasta and mix well. Top the dish with your scallions, followed by your shredded cheese. Pop the dish in the broiler until the cheese is melted and golden (anywhere from 2 to 5 minutes). Serve yourself a bowl and top with a dollop of sour cream!

Nutrition Facts (with sour cream):
Calories: 486 per serving
Total Fat: 17.2g
Cholesterol: 72.1mg
Sodium: 830.5mg
Carbohydrates: 63.8g
Fiber: 7.4g
Sugars: 5.9g
Protein: 22.4g

Enjoy :)