About once a week I put my foot down and I tell Eric, “YOU ARE TAKING CARE OF MISS PEPPER! I AM LIVING IN THE KITCHEN TODAY.” Normally, he argues with me a little because well, he’s a man. (Sorry, Babe. I know you’ll be reading this probably later tonight!)
I’m pretty sure he will forget that I called him out after I make something else to eat, so oh well.
Anyway- like I was saying, about once a week I dedicate a good portion of my day to the kitchen. I test out new recipes, I tweak old ones, I sing along to some Miranda. It’s really a perfect day.
Every hour or so food magically appears on the dining room table and Eric walks in like, “whoa, when can I eat this?” and I normally make him wait until it is cold and after I take some photos. I’m the worst!
But, he is the most honest with me when it comes to my recipes. Sometimes a little too honest. He’s quite the food critic these days. (hahaha!) Before I actually post a recipe It normally goes through a chain of people. Myself, Eric, and My mom. If we all agree that it is fabulous, then I tell you all that it is fabulous. We build a lovely relationship of trust, and you continue making my recipes, and my heart is happy!
It’s really a wonderful thing!
Okay, now that you know all of that. I will introduce you to one of my latest kitchen creations. Tex Mex Cheesy Chicken Spaghetti. I love me some Tex Mex! I normally don’t make it because it’s something I tend to get when we go out for dinner, but doing this blog now is helping me break out of my little cooking shell.
I still won’t put mushrooms in anything, don’t ask.
I hope you all enjoy!
-Xo, Star
(Eric is my fork holding model in this picture. I still didn’t let him take a bite.)
Tex Mex Cheesy Chicken Spaghetti
The perfect lightened up blend of creamy, cheesy, and a lil bit spicy spaghetti.
Ingredients
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 1 medium red or green pepper diced
- 8 ounces spaghetti noodles, dry broken into pieces (I use Ronzoni Smart Taste Thin Spaghetti)
- 2 cups chicken breast (cooked and diced/shredded)
- 1 cup nonfat cottage cheese
- 1 cup chicken broth low sodium, if available
- 1 1/4 cup reduced fat mild cheddar shredded
- 10 ounce can 98% Fat Free Cream of Chicken or Celery Soup
- 1 tsp Lawry's Seasoned Salt
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1/4-1/8 tsp cayenne pepper more or less depending on the level of spice you want
- cooking spray
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 and lightly spray a 9x13 casserole dish.
Put a large pot of salted water on, and boil the spaghetti noodles according to package instructions. Drain noodles.
Spray a skillet with cooking spray and cook onions, garlic, and green pepper until soft. In a large bowl add cottage cheese, 1/2 cup of the shredded cheese, chicken broth, cream of chicken/celery soup, cumin, cayenne pepper, seasoned salt, and chicken. Mix together well.
In the casserole dish add the noodles and chicken mixture. Stir until all mixed together and spread evenly into the casserole dish.
Top with the remaining cheese, cover with tin foil, and bake for 30 minutes. Cut into six servings. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1/6 of the casserole
7 Freestyle Smart Points (calculated with Weight Watchers Recipe Builder)
8 Smart Points (calculated with Weight Watchers Recipe Builder)
9 Points Plus (calculated with My Score Plus App)
370 Calories 9g Fat. 3.5g Saturated Fat. 39g carbohydrates. 4g fiber. 3.5g sugar. 30g protein. (calculated with My Fitness Pal)
Lora says
12/10/2018 at 6:57 pmI made this over the weekend and my fiance said it is his new favorite thing I’ve ever made!! I ended up adding the can of Rotel and it was delicious. Thank you so much for making such yummy recipes that don’t break the calorie bank.
Star says
12/11/2018 at 4:10 amSo happy you and your fiancé enjoyed!! I bet it was delicious with the Rotel!
Melissa Sparks says
12/10/2018 at 2:14 pmI’m even embarrassed to ask but do you think this could work with spaghetti squash rather than the pasta?
Star says
12/11/2018 at 4:11 amHi Melissa! Don’t be embarrassed. I’m honestly not sure because I haven’t tried it before with squash. I’m not sure I would love this particular dish with spaghetti squash, but if you love spaghetti squash. It just might be delish! Let me know if you give it a go.
Melissa Sparks says
12/12/2018 at 1:14 amI tried it tonight’s and WOW!!! I can only imagine how amazing this would be with actual pasta because it rocked my socks with the squash!!! One thing I did, which I think probably ended up being a happy accident, was forgetting to I put in the chicken broth. Completely forgot. The spaghetti squash has a lot of moisture though, which I was concerned about but it worked fine, since I forgot the broth. I’m sure the broth would of added even more flavor but despite my intentional and accidental alterations, it was amazing!!! I even had your zero point spaghetti sauce for lunch. You are a gem!!! Thank you!!!
Lora says
12/05/2018 at 8:29 pmDo you think this would be good with a drained can of Rotel added? Also, sorry if this is a double comment. I couldn’t tell if it worked or not.
Star says
12/05/2018 at 10:38 pmIt should work just fine!
Lora says
12/05/2018 at 8:25 pmDo you think this would be good with a drained can of Rotel added?
Lauren says
12/04/2018 at 4:34 pmHi. Could I use lean ground chicken instead of shredded chicken? Or would the texture be weird?
Star says
12/04/2018 at 4:49 pmI think it should be okay!
Chandra says
01/06/2018 at 10:39 pmHi Star. Would part skim ricotta cheese be an acceptable substitute for the fat free cottage cheese?
Chandra says
01/06/2018 at 10:39 pmHi Star. Would part skim ricotta cheese be an acceptable substitute for the fat free cottage cheese?
Chandra says
12/18/2017 at 12:46 amDid the smart points change with freestyle?
Star says
12/18/2017 at 10:12 amI’ll check! I haven’t gotten through all the recipes yet unfortunately!
Star says
12/30/2017 at 9:07 pmIt’s 7 Freestyle Points now. =)
Chandra says
12/18/2017 at 12:46 amDid the smart points change with freestyle?
Star says
12/18/2017 at 10:12 amI’ll check! I haven’t gotten through all the recipes yet unfortunately!
Star says
12/30/2017 at 9:07 pmIt’s 7 Freestyle Points now. =)
Denise says
02/05/2017 at 10:59 amI just found your site and this was the first recipe I tried. It came out fabulous- my super picky husband also loved it. I can’t wait to try some of the others!
So glad that I read the previous comment about the cottage cheese. I can’t stand it usually but I really couldn’t taste it here.
Star says
02/08/2017 at 12:10 pmSo happy you took the chance on cottage cheese and that you liked it! It really does disappear which I am very thankful for! I hope you enjoy whatever you decide to try next.
Denise says
02/05/2017 at 10:59 amI just found your site and this was the first recipe I tried. It came out fabulous- my super picky husband also loved it. I can’t wait to try some of the others!
So glad that I read the previous comment about the cottage cheese. I can’t stand it usually but I really couldn’t taste it here.
Star says
02/08/2017 at 12:10 pmSo happy you took the chance on cottage cheese and that you liked it! It really does disappear which I am very thankful for! I hope you enjoy whatever you decide to try next.
Lindsey says
01/28/2017 at 1:57 pmHi there what size casserole dish do you use?
Star says
01/28/2017 at 8:36 pm9×13/3 quart
Lindsey says
01/28/2017 at 1:57 pmHi there what size casserole dish do you use?
Star says
01/28/2017 at 8:36 pm9×13/3 quart
Brooke Anderson says
01/14/2017 at 9:45 amHello Mrs. Star, i was wondering if you could suggest a substitute for cottage cheese on your Tex mex cheesy chicken spaghetti. Thank you for your time!
Star says
01/14/2017 at 1:19 pmHi Brooke! I wish I could suggest an alternative. The cottage cheese keeps it lower in points, but adds immense amounts of creaminess. You could try a bit of sour cream instead or extra cheese, but if you are following weight watchers or counting calories they would more than likely change. If you are by any chance a cottage cheese hater and fear using it because of your distaste. I promise you, I am a cottage cheese hater! You don’t taste it. It took me a long time to try it out after hearing so many people use it in different casseroles, and I am so happy I ended up trying it. You do not taste it. I hope this helps! Let me know how it goes if you make it differently or decide to use the cottage cheese!
Brooke Anderson says
01/14/2017 at 9:45 amHello Mrs. Star, i was wondering if you could suggest a substitute for cottage cheese on your Tex mex cheesy chicken spaghetti. Thank you for your time!
Star says
01/14/2017 at 1:19 pmHi Brooke! I wish I could suggest an alternative. The cottage cheese keeps it lower in points, but adds immense amounts of creaminess. You could try a bit of sour cream instead or extra cheese, but if you are following weight watchers or counting calories they would more than likely change. If you are by any chance a cottage cheese hater and fear using it because of your distaste. I promise you, I am a cottage cheese hater! You don’t taste it. It took me a long time to try it out after hearing so many people use it in different casseroles, and I am so happy I ended up trying it. You do not taste it. I hope this helps! Let me know how it goes if you make it differently or decide to use the cottage cheese!
Leah Manecke says
12/29/2016 at 9:24 pmMy husband loved this recipe! He loves chicken spaghetti, and is always asking me to make it for him. I had been hesitant because the recipe I used was not weight watcher friendly. This one was perfect and points friendly and it was delicious!
Star says
12/30/2016 at 8:06 amI’m so glad your husband loves this! I used to make a version of Chicken Spaghetti that used almost 1 POUND of colby jack cheese! Sure it’s amazing, but I don’t even want to know the calories that went with it!
Leah Manecke says
12/29/2016 at 9:24 pmMy husband loved this recipe! He loves chicken spaghetti, and is always asking me to make it for him. I had been hesitant because the recipe I used was not weight watcher friendly. This one was perfect and points friendly and it was delicious!
Star says
12/30/2016 at 8:06 amI’m so glad your husband loves this! I used to make a version of Chicken Spaghetti that used almost 1 POUND of colby jack cheese! Sure it’s amazing, but I don’t even want to know the calories that went with it!
Mandy says
12/29/2016 at 8:50 pmLove anything Tex mex and this recipe did not disappoint!!
Star says
12/30/2016 at 8:22 amI’m so happy you liked it!
Mandy says
12/29/2016 at 8:50 pmLove anything Tex mex and this recipe did not disappoint!!
Star says
12/30/2016 at 8:22 amI’m so happy you liked it!
Betsy Maness says
10/08/2016 at 7:30 pmMade this tonight and it was uh-mazing! I didn’t have cream of chicken soup so I used cream of mushroom…still fantastic! Thanks for the recipe!
Betsy Maness says
10/08/2016 at 7:30 pmMade this tonight and it was uh-mazing! I didn’t have cream of chicken soup so I used cream of mushroom…still fantastic! Thanks for the recipe!
beth says
10/04/2016 at 8:50 amHow many calories does this come out too? thanks 🙂 looks so good!
Star says
10/05/2016 at 8:31 pmThis is a earlier recipe and I wasn’t adding the nutritional info. I will figure it out and post and get back to you!
beth says
10/04/2016 at 8:50 amHow many calories does this come out too? thanks 🙂 looks so good!
Star says
10/05/2016 at 8:31 pmThis is a earlier recipe and I wasn’t adding the nutritional info. I will figure it out and post and get back to you!
Claudia says
10/03/2016 at 10:25 pmWhat’s the nutrition facts? I do points plus. This looks delicious!
Star says
10/05/2016 at 8:32 pmI’m going to get the nutrition facts up tonight!
Claudia says
10/03/2016 at 10:25 pmWhat’s the nutrition facts? I do points plus. This looks delicious!
Star says
10/05/2016 at 8:32 pmI’m going to get the nutrition facts up tonight!