🧀 Creamy Cheesy Crockpot Pasta Bake

Serves: 6
Prep: 15 minutes | Cook: 2½–3½ hours | Total: about 3¾ hours
Oven: None—this is entirely slow-cooker based.

Ingredients

• 1 lb (450 g) lean ground turkey or chicken
• 12 oz (340 g) penne or rotini pasta
• 1 small yellow onion, finely diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup unsweetened milk
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 4 oz (115 g) softened cream cheese
• ½ cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1½ cups shredded mozzarella, divided
• ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• ½ tsp smoked paprika
• ½ tsp black pepper
• ¼ tsp salt, or to taste
• 2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley

Directions

1. Brown the meat: Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the ground turkey or chicken for 6–8 minutes, breaking it up until fully cooked.
2. Add onion and garlic: Stir in the diced onion and garlic. Reduce heat to medium and cook for about 2 minutes.
3. Start the crockpot: Transfer the meat mixture to a 6-quart slow cooker. Add chicken broth, milk, tomato sauce, Italian seasoning, smoked paprika, pepper, and salt. Stir.
4. Add pasta: Stir in the uncooked pasta, making sure it’s mostly covered by the liquid.
5. Cook: Cover and cook on HIGH for 2–3 hours, stirring once halfway through if possible. Begin checking toward the 2-hour mark—the pasta should be tender but not mushy.
6. Add cream cheese: Stir in the softened cream cheese until completely melted and incorporated. If necessary, leave on LOW/WARM for about 5 minutes.
7. Add Greek yogurt: Turn the slow cooker to WARM or switch it off. Stir in the Greek yogurt until smooth and creamy.
8. Add cheese: Stir in ½ cup mozzarella and all the cheddar. Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup mozzarella over the top.
9. Melt: Cover and leave on WARM for 5–10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and gooey.
10. Finish: Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve hot.