This is my own personal recipe but was adapted from this original recipe you can find through allrecipes.com . Also, I highly suggest Supercook.com — This is GREAT resource to help save money on groceries but still cook up some DELICIOUS recipes. You create a FREE account, insert all the different ingredients you have in your fridge and pantry, and it provides you with a plethora of diverse recipes you can instantly make, as well as recipes you can make for buying only a few extra ingredients. I highly suggest it for monthly/weekly meal planning. 🙂
Anywho…here’s my recipe:
Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole with Veggies
Prep time: 30 min Total time: 1 hr Serves: 6-8
Ingredients:
2 lbs chicken/chicken tenderloin
1 onion, quartered
2 stalks celery
4 bay leaves
1 stick butter
8 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
2 chicken bouillon cubes
2 tablespoons chicken broth
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
2 cups cooked white rice
1 (7 oz) can sliced mushrooms
1/2 zucchini, thinly chopped
1 corn cob, cut corn off
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 cup fried onion chips
Directions:
1. In a large pot, boil the chicken with the onion, celery, and bay leaves until done. Let chicken cool until you can handle it, then shred chicken meat.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 C)
3. In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Stir in the flour and cook for about 1 minute. Slowly stir in the cold milk and chicken bouillon cubes (stir around to make sure they dissolve). Stir in the cheese until it is melted in and mixed well. Then add the chicken broth.
4. In a large 1.5 quart casserole dish, combine the chicken, rice, mushrooms, zucchini, onion, and corn. Stir in the cheese sauce. Here you may also add salt and pepper to taste, but I found the seasoning to be fine without.
5. Optional topping: Smooth top of casserole out and sprinkle extra shredded cheddar around the outside edge, then sprinkle fried onion chips on inside- The cheese and onions will add a nice top coat with extra flavor to the casserole when it’s finished.
6. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 C) for about 35 minutes or until bubbly.
If you try it, tell me what you think of it or how you altered it. Have a blessed day!
