Christmas Pasta Bake

Name: Christmas Pasta Bake
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Ingredients: 300 g Pasta shapes ((whatever you have)); 300 g Handfuls of shredded leftover cooked meat; 300 g Chopped up leftover cooked vegetables ((roasted carrots and parsnips, Brussels sprouts, brocolli, red cabbage)); 200 g Light creme fraiche; 3 tbsp Wholegrain mustard; 100 g Fresh herbs, (chopped); 100 g Cheese, (shredded or crumbled)

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If you are bored of making a Christmas leftovers sandwich every year, then why not give this Christmas Pasta Bake a try - it makes use of all your leftovers. Leftover meat, vegetables and cheese can all be added, so nothing goes to waste. Festive comfort food with minimal effort.

A vegetable pasta bake with a portion removed.

There are a lot of amazing Christmas leftovers recipes out there, but some of them are pretty elaborate and require a lot of extra ingredients to be bought, and that's not what using leftovers is all about. This is quick, easy and budget friendly too.

This recipe uses up pretty much all your Christmas leftovers and the only extra ingredients needed are ones you that you probably have in your cupboard anyway, like some pasta. Easy to adapt with whatever you have - it's great for feeding a crowd.

Looking for some other ways to use up Christmas leftovers? Why not try our Leftover Roast Beef Sandwiches, Leftover Turkey Curry and Turkey Soup.

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Why should you try it?
What you will need
Step by step
Christmas leftovers
What to serve leftover Christmas pasta bake with
Frequently asked questions
Extra tips
More Christmas recipes
Recipe

Why should you try it?

Nothing goes to waste - We hate wasting food, especially at Christmas time. This pasta bake pretty much uses anything you could have left over.
Vegetable packed - A dish packed full of veggies in case you haven't had many over the festive season. Roasted vegetables, leafy greens, throw them all in.
Budget friendly - It's easy to over spent at Christmas time, but this is cheap to make. The only extra ingredients it needs apart from leftovers is some pasta and creme fraiche.

What you will need

Pasta - Any pasta shape goes here. We wouldn't recommend spaghetti for a pasta bake, but something like penne or fusilli work well.
Meat - Whatever leftover meat you have from your Christmas dinner, shred it up and put it in this pasta bake. Turkey, chicken, beef and ham all work well.
Vegetables - As with the meat, whatever leftover vegetables you have can go in this. Roasted carrots and parsnips, brussels sprouts and red cabbage are all some of our favourites. You could add in some spinach for a green vegetable boost.
Creme fraiche - This is what adds the sauce part of the pasta bake. You could swap it for cream cheese and a little milk to loosen it up or you could do a tomato base sauce with a tin of chopped tomatoes.
Mustard - This adds a lovely flavour to the creamy sauce. We used wholegrain, but you could use Dijon if you prefer. Herbs - Fresh herbs really lighten the pasta bake up. Chopped parsley or basil work well.
Cheese - Had a cheese board over Christmas? Whatever cheese you have leftover can go on this. A base of grated cheddar is good for melting and then we like some goats cheese on top. Some crumbled goats cheese makes it feel really indulgent too.

Step by step

One: Add the pasta to a pan of boiling water and simmer for 12 minutes.
Two: Drain the pasta and add to back to a large pan and add in all the rest of the ingredients apart from the cheese. Mix well.
Three: Pour in to a large baking dish and then put the cheese on top.
Four:Bake in a preheated oven at 200°C/400°F/Gas 6 for 20 minutes.

A baking dish full of vegetable pasta bake.

Christmas leftovers

We love a pasta bake. It's one of the ultimate comfort foods and it doesn't get much easier than just mixing it all together and throwing it in the oven.

You can add some leftover turkey/chicken, any vegetables that didn't get eaten on Christmas Day and those little bits left on the cheese board, grate them all up and put them on top of the pasta bake. The only leftovers I don't recommend adding are chocolate, but what's "leftover chocolate" anyway?

Oh, and crumble bits of stuffing on top too. SO GOOD! You could also mix some breadcrumbs in to the grated cheese to add some extra crunch.

What to serve leftover Christmas pasta bake with

Garlic bread of course! Pasta and garlic bread are such a delicious match. Either buy some ready made, or make your own easy garlic bread by cutting up some French stick and spreading it with a mix of butter, crushed garlic and dried herbs. Then pop it in the oven for 10 minutes.

You could also keep it simple with a big green salad. The key to an epic green salad is to use a variety of greens, like romaine, spinach, kale and rocket. You want leafy greens, but crunch too. Then you need the perfect dressing. Why not try our Lemon Vinaigrette, Honey and Mustard Dressing or Tomato and Basil Vinaigrette. Why not try our Grilled Little Gem Salad too.

If you want vegetable side dishes, then why not try our Garlic Spring Greens, Roasted Tenderstem Broccoli, Easy garlic Green Beans, Crispy Air Fryer Broccoli or Roasted Lemon Asparagus?

Pasta bake covered in cheese next to a red towl and a plate of more pasta bake.

Frequently asked questions

Is a Christmas pasta bake healthy?

This is a creamy and cheesy pasta bake, so it isn't the healthiest thing in the world. But, it has a generous amount of vegetables in it, and is a great way to include more greens in your diet. You can always reduce the amount of cheese that is used too.

What herbs can you put in a Christmas pasta bake?

All those different herbs that you buy for all those new recipes you try at Christmas? Well, don't throw away half a bunch of 6 different herbs. Chop them all up and they can be thrown in too. This is a no-waste leftovers dish.

How to store Christmas pasta bake.

As this recipe uses up leftovers, the pasta bake should be eaten straight away. The leftovers cannot be reheated twice.

Is Christmas pasta bake gluten free?

To make this recipe gluten free, use your favourite brand of gluten free pasta. Also make sure that all the other ingredients used are gluten free and there isn't any cross contamination.

Can I double this recipe?

You can easily double this recipe and it doesn't change the cooking time. Just make sure that you have a big enough baking dish to hold double the ingredients.

Extra tips

If you want the top of this pasta bake to go really crispy, then you can put it under the grill for a couple of minutes.
For some adding extra flavour, add a pinch red chilli flakes to the mix.
Reserve a little of the pasta water to add to the sauce to make it nice and silky.
Make sure you don't fully cook the pasta, as it will cook a bit more in the oven and you don't want it going mushy.
You don't have to cook this in the oven. Everything can be heated on the hob (stovetop) for a few minutes once it is mixed together and then put it under the grill to melt the cheese and make it go crispy.
Feel free to use different types of pasta if you already have some in your cupboard.

More Christmas recipes

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