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I recently discovered the Secret Recipe Club, brain-child of Amanda Formaro, of Amanda’s Cookin’, and decided to join the fun in June. Every month, participating blogs are assigned another foodie blogger’s website. They browse the recipes on their assigned site and select one to prepare for that month’s secret recipe club, putting their own creativity, flair and nuances into the mix. At the exact same time, on the exact same day, all the recipes are posted and the secret recipe blogs are revealed. It’s a fun way to find new recipes and meet other foodie bloggers. For June, I was assigned Debbi Does Dinner…Healthy and Low Calorie.
So, what was the recipe post that made my tastebuds dance, just looking at the picture? I visited Debbi’s site and the recipe on her homepage, that day, was calling my name. I definitely put our own family’s spin on it, but Debbi was my inspiration for this absolutely delicious and easy recipe. The recipe that inspired my June Secret Recipe Club submission is her Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Shells. I incorporated my family’s love of Mexican and southwest flavors and created these heavenly Mexican Chicken Stuffed Shells. You’re gonna want them for dinner, tonight!
Mexican Chicken Stuffed Shells: Warm, spicy and delicious! We served them with fresh fruit.
You could definitely cut this recipe in half, if you’re cooking for a smaller crew. We had company for dinner and I made 38 stuffed shells. The recipe left me with about 1 1/2 cups of extra filling, which was promptly devoured for lunch the next day in tortillas!
Hearty, delicious chicken and pasta dish with a little southwest or Mexican kick. These are filling and comfort food at it’s best! Make them for company and you’ll be the hit of the party!
Ingredients
- 4 cups chicken breast, cooked and chopped
- 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 6 green onions, diced
- 1/2 each of red, green, yellow, & orange bell peppers (or 2 whole bell peppers of your choice), diced
- 3 (8 oz.) blocks cream cheese, softened (not melted)
- 2 cans diced tomatoes with chiles (don’t drain) (Rotel or store brand, either works)
- 1/4 - 1/2 cup chicken stock
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 cup of picante sauce
- 38 large pasta shells, cooked al dente
Instructions
- Cook pasta shells in well salted, boiling water until al dente (still have a little bite to them) If you cook them too long, they will be difficult to stuff, plus they will have additional cooking time, once they are stuffed. Drain the pasta and set aside while you make the filling.
- Cook, drain and dice enough chicken breast to make 4 cups. I always have homemade chicken stock and pre-cooked diced chicken bagged in my freezer. You could use canned chicken broth if you prefer.
- To make the filling, mix diced chicken, drained black beans, green onions, diced peppers, and cumin in a large mixing bowl. Thoroughly incorporate all the ingredients.
- In a separate bowl, mix the cream cheese, chicken stock and undrained tomatoes with chiles. When thoroughly combined, pour it over the chicken mixture and mix well. (If you have trouble incorporating the cream cheese and tomatoes, you can heat it slightly in the microwave.)
- Spread 3/4 c. picante sauce in the bottom of a large baking pan. (I used 13x18x2, but I’m guessing that two 9×13′s would also work.) Reserve the final 1/4 cup, for later.
- Using a spoon, or your fingers, fill each of your cooked and cooled pasta shells, setting them into the picante covered pan. Continue until all shells are filled and arranged in the pan.
- When the pan is full, drizzle the shells with the remaining 1/4 cup of picante and then sprinkle with the shredded cheddar cheese.
- Cover the baking pan tightly with foil and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
Here’s how to make them.
- Boil pasta shells to al dente, then drain and cool them while you mix up the filling.
Drained and cooled shells, ready to be stuffed.
- Dice the chicken, peppers and green onion. (My chicken was pulled from the freezer, pre-cooked and diced. Freezer cooking is a great time-saving idea for recipes like this.)
Diced onions and peppers
- To make the filling, mix diced chicken, drained black beans, green onions, diced peppers, and cumin in a large mixing bowl. Thoroughly incorporate all the ingredients.
Chicken, beans and veggies mixed.
- In a separate bowl, mix the cream cheese, chicken stock and undrained diced tomatoes w/chiles (Rotel). When thoroughly combined, pour it over the chicken mixture and mix well.
Mix the softened cream cheese with the undrained diced tomatoes and chiles to create a delectable sauce for your chicken and veggie mixture. Blend the sauce with the chicken and veggies.
Creamy, spicy, delicious sauce for your filling. If you have trouble incorporating the tomatoes and cream cheese, you could heat it slightly in the microwave.
- Spread 3/4 cup of picante sauce in the bottom of a large baking pan.
Spread a thin layer of the picante sauce over the bottom of your baking pan and reserve the last 1/4 cup of sauce for later.
- Stuff each of your cooled shells with the delicious chicken, cheese and veggie filling you just created and arrange the shells over the picante sauce in your baking pan.
- Drizzle remaining 1/4 cup of picante sauce over filled shells.
Filled shells, drizzled with remaining 1/4 cup picante.
- Sprinkle shredded cheddar over the entire pan of stuffed shells. Cover tightly with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
Close up of baked shells.
These were a huge hit and went quickly. We did end up with a few leftovers at the end of the meal, which heated beautifully in the microwave the next day. There was also a little of the chicken/veggie/bean filling left over, which we used in tortillas shells. Yum!
Every new recipe needs its official taste testers. These girls are tough critics and gave a combined 4 thumbs (and two forks) up to this yummy dish!
Check out all the other delicious Secret Recipe Club entries for June.
They’re going to make you SOOOOO hungry!
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Oh man, that just looks absolutely awesome. What a delicious dish.
That filling looks amazing – I think I could eat it alone, straight out of the bowl!
Anne, I did. It was delish!
I’ve seen “stuffed shells” starting to trend and this recipe looks excellent. I’m working up to trying one of my own. Cheers!
Glenda, I had no idea we were both doing the Secret Recipe Club! How fun! I love that you went Tex-Mex on this dish, you know it’s near and dear to my heart. Will have to make, STAT.
Amber, I didn’t realize it either! How cool is that!!???!! We love Tex-Mex, here, in the Midwest, too.
Great to “see” you, again!
Great looking shells, love the flavors inside them.
Oh wow! These look great!
Not only do they look great but seeing it done makes them look like a doable dinner. I sometimes avoid ‘stuffing’ thinks in lieu of ‘grilling’ things for the time element but I do believe these would be worth the time!
Barbara, you can definitely do this. It’s very simple.
You can’t go wrong with these. They look great!
Love this Mexican twist on this dish! It looks delicious…yum! Great pick for the Secret Recipe Club
Yum, this looks so good! I love stuffed shells, but I have only ever made them with Italian flavors before…love the idea of making them Mexican-style!
I’ve got to make these very soon, what a great recipe! YUM!
Visiting from Secret Recipe Club. I love the mixture of beans, vegetables, etc for the filling. I am your newest follower. I would love it if you followed me back.
Thanks for stopping by Judee. Can’t wait to check out your site!
What a great fusion recipe! This sounds like a winning dinner to me =)
I love Debbie’s blog! These look delicious!!
Love the colors in the filling. I’m going to have to give this recipe a try.
What an awesome way to take a traditional Italian dish and change it up with Mexican flavors. This dish sounds amazing!
I can’t wait to try these! Thanks for sharing!
Omg, I have Italian stuffed shells on our menu for next week. Now I totally want to change it to this recipe. Great step by step pics!
Oh wow. I usually never comment on savory posts, but this on looks soo good, I just had to. Send over a pan please
Thanks, Avanika! If you’re ever in S.E. Nebraska, give me a shout out and we’ll whip some up.
Debbie has a great blog and I love to go there for low calorie options! Your shells look yummy!
That looks really good!! I’m definitely going to try this recipe.
Those shells look amazing. I am a huge fan of Italian and Mexican food and this dish seems to combine them both in a wonderful way.
You have combined two of my favorites to total deliciousness! Mexican and Pasta. Your right, I do want them for dinner tonight!
These.sound.awesome!! I love stuffed shells and I love anything Mexican. Perfect blend!
Oooh, I could go for a big plate of these right now! I love stuffed shells but always get stuck in the marinara/meat sauce rut. Can’t wait to give this one a try!
I was on vacation all week so I had to schedule my post and I didn’t get to see the recipes until today! I’m so glad you liked these, I love your spin and they sound awesome with all that cream cheese! I actually made and posted chicken enchilada stuffed shells a couple weeks earlier, they were awesome, different from yours though, but they still had that mexican flair. Great blog, glad I found it!
Thanks, Debbi! I love your site and am anxious to try more of your recipes!
Wow this looks fantastic, what a great recipe!! Love your blog and so glad to be a new follower!
Grinning from ear-to-ear! Thanks so much for stopping by. Looking forward to “seeing” you around the blog.
Hi, could these be frozen ?
thanks
Jennifer, yes I would cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and then freeze them, right before baking. I think they would cook best if you thaw them completely before baking, but you could also just add some extra baking time if you bake them from frozen (sort of like a frozen lasagna).
I’m sorry. I made these tonight. Pain in the *ss to make, very soupy texture, makes enough for an ARMY, lots of filling leftover and so-so flavor. I followed the recipe exactly, too. Will not be making this again.
Sorry to hear, you didn’t enjoy them, Zippy. They’re one of my family’s favorite meals and often requested by guests. And yes, it’s definitely enough to feed an army.
As I mention, throughout my blog, and in this recipe which calls for 38 large shell noodles, I rarely have a meal where I am not feeding my own large family and several other people. I also tend to batch cook and freeze 1/2 for another meal, if we’re not having company. You would definitely need to cut the recipe in half if you are serving fewer than the 12-15 people stated in the recipe. Thanks for sharing your experience and I hope you’ll find a recipe more to your liking on your next visit! Have a great week!