First published February 24, 2024. Last updated April 14, 2025 for editorial improvements.
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This ricotta chicken pasta casserole is what happens when comfort food gets a glow-up and decides to be the weeknight hero. Tender chicken, melty cheese, pasta, and spinach all snuggled up in a bubbly, saucy bake that's ready in under an hour-and yes, pulling that foil off halfway through is the secret to golden, gooey greatness.
If you're one of the millions of people that love my ricotta chicken you'll want to try this cheesy, easy casserole recipe.
🧾 Ingredients
🔪 Instructions
Cook pasta, drain, and set aside.
Mix spinach, chicken, cheeses, Italian seasoning, marinara sauce, black pepper, and salt.
Add the cooked pasta to the sauce/ricotta mixture and combine.
Spread into a baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese.
📖 Recipe
Ricotta Chicken Casserole
Print Pin Recipe Rate RecipeIngredients
- 3 cups cooked chicken, I used a rotisserie chicken
- 16 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1 cup baby spinach, chopped
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded from a block
- ½ cup parmesan cheese
- 3 cups penne pasta, uncooked or any medium-sized pasta
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 3 cups marinara sauce
- fresh basil, optional for garnish
Instructions
- Spray a 9 x 13 casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Preheat oven to 350℉.
- Prepare pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- Chop spinach and place in a large mixing bowl.
- Add chicken, ricotta cheese, 1 cup of mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, pasta, marinara, and a pinch of salt and pepper to the spinach.
- Mix well.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Top with the remaining 1 cup of shredded mozzarella.
- Spray foil with nonstick cooking spray to keep the cheese from sticking.
- Cover baking dish with the foil, cooking spray side down, and bake for 20 minutes.
- Uncover and cook an additional 10 minutes or until heated through and cheese has melted.
Notes
- Have picky eaters? Chop the spinach into small strips on a cutting board before mixing it with the other ingredients. It hides the spinach leaves-sneaky!
- Y'all know I'm a preacher of freshly grated cheese-it always melts and tastes better than the pre-shredded stuff!
- Cook your pasta until it becomes fork-tender-don't overcook it! Remember that pasta will continue cooking in the oven while the casserole bakes.
- Make sure you grease your baking dish and the underside of the foil that covers your casserole. The cheesy ricotta sauce sticks easily!
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
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Marye's tips:
Whole milk ricotta makes the best creamy sauce. The low-fat stuff is too thin and watery. You'll thank me for this tip!
💭 Things to know
- Have picky eaters? Chop the spinach on a cutting board before mixing it with the other ingredients. It hides the spinach leaves-sneaky!
- Y'all know I'm a preacher of freshly grated cheese-it always melts and tastes better than the pre-shredded stuff!
- Cook your pasta until it becomes fork-tender-don't overcook it! Remember that pasta will continue cooking in the oven while the casserole bakes.
- Make sure you grease your baking dish and the underside of the foil that covers your casserole. The cheesy ricotta sauce sticks easily!
- Garnish your delicious chicken pasta with fresh herbs, such as fresh basil or parsley, and some extra parmesan cheese!
📖 Variations
- You can also use cooked skinless chicken breasts or skinless chicken thighs instead of rotisserie chicken.
- Fresh spinach is best, but frozen spinach will do in a pinch. Just make sure you thaw and thoroughly drain it first.
- You're welcome to substitute the mozzarella with other melty cheeses like Monterey jack, Colby jack, or pepper jack for a slight kick.
- Any medium-sized pasta will work in this cheesy pasta recipe, such as ziti, rotini, farfalle (bowtie), or rigatoni.
- You can make Italian seasoning yourself with a blend of dried basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, marjoram, parsley, sage, savory, garlic powder, onion powder, and optional red pepper flakes.
- Add a little bit of lemon zest and fresh lemon juice to brighten up the flavors.
👩🍳 FAQs
Although I prefer penne pasta, you can use other sturdy pasta like ziti, farfalle (bowtie), rotini, or rigatoni.
Absolutely! Assemble the casserole in a 9x13 baking dish, then wrap the entire dish in plastic wrap then aluminum foil. You can freeze the unbaked casserole for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the fridge for at least 24 hours before baking.
🍽️ Serve with...
Full of fresh ingredients and a ton of flavor, Italian Green Bean Salad is a great side dish for this hearty casserole.
Sop up that gooey sauce with garlic knots baked to buttery perfection with a tender, soft center.
End your hearty meal with a refreshing dessert like my easy strawberry shortcake crunch ice cream cake.
This ricotta chicken casserole is hearty comfort food with an Italian flavor. There's no way the family isn't going to lick their plates when this is served!
In the mood for a different kind of comfort food? Try this chicken and stuffing casserole. It's old-fashioned, hearty goodness!
📚 Related recipes
- Baked Ricotta Chicken is the pasta-free version of this great recipe that's ready in just 30 minutes! It's a fan-favorite for good reason.
- Chicken Alfredo Lasagna is creamy, decadent, and oh-so cheesy-my recipe includes instructions for homemade alfredo sauce!
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta is another simple recipe that's perfect for busy weeknights, and is just packed with mouth-watering flavor.
Becky says
This casserole that my husband and I said "It's a keeper!" was also shared with our neighbors. They both gave it two thumbs up. I followed the recipe without making any changes. Loved how easy it was and it freezes well.
Stephanie says
I made this recipe and it turned out great! I used Rao's marinara sauce (a few ounces more than what the recipe call for) and also used 5% fat Good Culture cottage cheese instead of ricotta and lastly, I used red lentil pasta instead of regular pasta and it came out great and made the macros even better. I will definitely be making this again!