Chef Boyardee Transforms Into Savory Muffins With One Genius Move

As the famous ad says, oh boy oh boy, Chef Boyardee. This brand of canned pasta products with flavors like meaty ravioli, lasagna, and spaghetti and meatballs is a childhood nostalgia food for some and a favorite struggle meal for others. Either way, it's an easy way to heat up a hot dinner in only a few minutes. Regardless of what you think the best variety Chef Boyardee is, have you ever thought of using Chef Boyardee as an ingredient rather than a meal in itself? To give an especially tasty example of doing this, baking Chef Boyardee pasta in muffin tins with a little extra cheese can make hot, savory, individual-sized spaghetti muffins.

There are a few things you'll need to bear in mind when making Chef Boyardee muffins. The first is that not all varieties of the canned pasta will work for this "muffin hack." While spaghetti is a hit and the lasagna noodles can potentially work as well, the company's famous ravioli doesn't fit into the muffin tins in the right way for the dish to come together. You'll also need to drain the pasta before adding it into the muffin tins; the tomato sauce flavor will still be there through the light coating on the noodles, but draining keeps the muffins from turning soupy. Add in four beaten eggs, fill the greased muffin tray with the mix, top with parmesan cheese, and bake for fifteen minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Serve hot out of the oven, and enjoy.

Spaghetti muffins not really your thing? Or maybe you liked them so much that you wonder what other recipes Chef Boyardee can be used for. Admittedly, canned pasta dishes don't lend themselves to an especially diverse array of meals (if you don't like tomato sauce, you probably shouldn't be buying or cooking with Chef Boyardee to begin with), but they can be used for a few easy, comforting meals that may sometimes surprise you. If the base recipe is boring you, those spaghetti muffins can be enhanced with assorted vegetables for a more filling meal with additional flavors and nutrients.

On the other hand, you can try using meat or cheese ravioli from Chef Boyardee (whichever your favorite may be) for a cozy, cheese-topped ravioli bake. Some people also swear by Chef Boyardee ravioli (sauce drained) as the base for a plate of St. Louis-style toasted ravioli made in the air fryer (be sure to save the drained sauce to heat up in a ramekin for dipping). If you really want to go rogue and bring in the double-carb delights, the Australians have a way to push the envelope. In the Land Down Under, Chef Boyardee and other canned spaghetti products are used in a toasted, cheese-laced sandwich known as the "spaghetti and cheese jaffle," also known as a "toastie." Give it a try. Just do yourself a favor and avoid the unhealthiest canned pastas on the market when you do.