Enjoy the lovely smell of chicken pasta bake cooking in the oven with Mary Berry's simple recipe. The cook reveals how to make a deliciously smooth and cheesy sauce that adds to the flavour of the dish.

Paired with fried chicken, this pasta bake is a lovely midweek dinner that one will want to come back to again and again. And, as there is enough to feed up to eight people, it's a great recipe for when you want to store the leftovers in the fridge or freezer. While the meal is incredibly easy to make, it's also a meal you can reheat whenever you fancy.

Chicken pasta bake

Serves: six to eight people

Ingredients

• Butter, for greasing
• 250g penne
• One onion, roughly chopped
• Three skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into finger-thin strips
• One tbsp paprika
• Two tbsp olive oil
• Salt and black pepper

For the sauce

• 50g butter
• 50g plain flour
• 750ml hot milk
• One tsp Dijon mustard
• 100g Parmesan cheese, coarsely grated
• Two large tomatoes, deseeded and cut into small cubes

Method

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 220C (200C fan/gas seven). Butter an ovenproof dish.

Cooking

Cook the penne with the onion in boiling, salted water; once cooked as per pack instructions, drain and rinse with cold water in the colander.

Meanwhile, coat the chicken strips with paprika, salt and pepper and then heat up a bit of oil in a large frying pan. Fry the chicken over a high heat for about two minutes, until golden-brown, then set aside.

Making the sauce

Melt the butter in a large saucepan, add the flour and whisk. Cook for one minute, then gradually add in the hot milk.

Whisk over a high heat and allow to boil for four minutes. Stir in the mustard, half the cheese and season with salt and pepper.

Add the cooked pasta and onion to the cheesy sauce, stir together, then put into the ovenproof dish.

Scatter over the tomato, top with the remaining cheese, and bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Serve and enjoy.