Cheesy leek, chicken & pea pasta with chicken crumbs

Name: Cheesy leek, chicken & pea pasta with chicken crumbs
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 1 h 10 min
Total time: 1 h 25 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 2 Essential Leeks, trimmed, washed and cut into 2.5cm rounds; 1 pack 2 Essential British Chicken Legs; 3 tbsp Essential Olive Oil; 350 g frozen Essential Garden Peas; 350 g Essential Penne; 350 g tub Essential Cheese Sauce; ½ tbsp Essential Wholegrain Mustard; 1 clove/s garlic, crushed; 50 g wholemeal bread, torn into rough crumbs

A hearty pasta bake that’s comforting to make and eat - and costs under £2 a portion when using store-cupboard ingredients you already have at home.

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4.5 out of 5 stars(6) Rate this recipe

2 of your 5 a day

Serves4
CourseMain meal
Prepare15 mins
Cook1 hr 10 mins
Total time1 hr 25 mins

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Ingredients

2 Essential Leeks, trimmed, washed and cut into 2.5cm rounds
1 pack 2 Essential British Chicken Legs
3 tbsp Essential Olive Oil
350g frozen Essential Garden Peas
350g Essential Penne
350g tub Essential Cheese Sauce
½ tbsp Essential Wholegrain Mustard
1 clove/s garlic, crushed
50g wholemeal bread, torn into rough crumbs

Method

Preheat the oven to 200ºC, gas mark 6. Put the leeks and chicken into a medium roasting tin, drizzle with 2 tbsp olive oil and 4 tbsp water, then season well. Roast for 40-50 minutes, until the leeks are tender and the chicken is cooked through, the juices run clear and there is no pink meat. Once cool enough to handle, remove the skin and save, then shred the meat into the leeks and juices. Keep warm.
Boil the peas for 3 minutes in a large pan of salted water, then lift out with a slotted spoon. Add the pasta and cook for 11 minutes, or until tender. Heat the cheese sauce in a smaller pan, then tip in ½ the peas. Add the mustard and garlic. Blend, using a stick blender, until fairly smooth, then season with black pepper. Drain the pasta and tip into the roasting tin, along with the sauce and extra peas. Stir to coat.
Snip the chicken skin into a frying pan, add the breadcrumbs and 1 tbsp oil, then gently cook for 2-3 minutes to toast the bread and crisp the skin. Tip into a food processor, then grind into fine crumbs. Serve the green pasta with the crispy topping sprinkled over.

Cook’s tip

Roast chicken leftovers would be right at home in this recipe. Soften shredded leeks in a frying pan until completely yielding, then add the chicken to heat it thoroughly (if you have any chicken roasting juices or a splash of simple gravy, add that too). Combine with the hot pasta and sauce and serve topped with crunchy crumbs.