Baked Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo Casserole

Pasta - To a large stockpot, cook the fettuccine according to package directions, drain, rinse, and set aside in a large bowl. Note - Save about 1 cup of pasta water for the alfredo sauce. While it cooks, make the alfredo sauce.

Alfredo Sauce** - To a medium saucepan, combine the butter, cream cheese, heavy cream, and heat over medium-low to melt, stirring nearly constantly to melt.

Add both cheeses, garlic powder, optional nutmeg, and stir to combine and melt the cheese.

The alfredo sauce needs to be fairly thin because it gets poured over the fettuccine and the noodles absorb the sauce in the oven so you don't want the sauce to be too thick. At this point, I recommend adding 1/2 cup pasta water to thin out the sauce, although eyeball and if it's already pretty thin, you can add none or less than 1/2 cup, using your judgment.

Pour the alfredo sauce over the fettuccine, stir and toss to combine and coat well, and transfer them to the prepared baking dish in an even, loose layer; set aside.

Chicken - Pound the chicken to an even and uniform thickness so it cooks through in the allotted baking time.

Drizzle it with olive oil, massage it into both sides, and sprinkle both sides of each chicken breast with salt and pepper.

Place the chicken on top of of the fettuccine and bake for about 20 minutes. If your chicken is thicker, you may need to bake an additional 5 to 10 minutes, bake as needed until done. While it's baking, made the bread crumb topping.

Bread Crumb Topping - To a medium bowl, add the bread crumbs, Parmesan, melted butter, and toss with a fork until small crumbly bits form.

Remove the baking dish from the oven, evenly sprinkle the 1 cup mozzarella cheese, and the bread crumb topping over the top, and return the the baking dish to the oven for about 5 minutes, or just until the cheese has melted and the bread crumbs are lightly golden browned.

Optionally garnish with fresh parsley.

Serve immediately with garlic bread, a Caesar salad, or as desired. Extra will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days. I have never frozen this because cream sauces sometimes don't tolerate the freezing/thawing process well so I've never tried. Reheat leftovers gently in the microwave or as desired.