Why this blog??

Why this blog?? I often find myself stressing over what to make for my family for dinner. We live a busy life and some meals need time to prep, cook and let's not forget shopping for everything you need. I love cookbooks and websites, but there are so many recipe's at times it is overwhelming. The recipe's I will be posting are things I actually made. I will tell you if they are easy or more time consuming. I will also tell you if they are good. Most of these are recipe's I have made for years and continue to make because they are easy or quick and my family loves them and i know yours will too! I will also try to at least once in a whlie try a new recipe I've found on line or in a book and honestly rate it. I always encourage others to send me their favorite recipe's as well! I am a mom... not a chef. But I am a mom who enjoys cooking for her family and making a somewhat healthy meal (some days more healthy than others:) ) In each recipe I will share how I recommend serving it, any substitutions I can think of that are also good, or ways to prepare ahead of time to make the cooking part seem quicker! I am not a photographer, as you can see... most of these pictures are taken from my phone camera, so may not be the best! I love to hear from others who have made these recipes and what they have done to change the recipe... please post comments! Thank you! To "like" me on facebook, go to this link... It's What's Cookin

Friday, February 10, 2012

Chicken, Mushroom, Broccoli and Rice Casserole


This is another recipe I can thank Pinterest for... Originating from For the Love of Cooking. I followed the recipe almost exactly, except I added shredded cheddar cheese to the top before baking. This is a great, easy recipe for a weekday meal. Great for pot lucks. Kids and husbands love it too! It's a whole meal all in one! I will say, this dish tastes much better than it looks!

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 onion- chopped
  • 1 lb mushrooms quartered
  • 1 stalk of celery diced (I love celery so I used 2 stalks)
  • 1 box of Farmhouse Long Grain & Wild Rice (or your favorite brand), prepared per instructions (I used a 6oz box of Near East Long Grain and Wild Rice- Original)
  • 2 cooked chicken breasts, cubed (You can use left over chicken, rotisserie chicken or what I did was I put 2 chicken breasts in a Fry pan with olive oil and Montreal Chicken Seasonings. Seared both sides and then placed chicken in 400 degree oven until just done. Then I shredded with two forks. I prefer shredded chicken over diced)
  • 1 6-8 oz can of sliced water chestnuts, diced
  • 1 cup of broccoli florets
  • 1 10 3/4 oz can of Cream of Chicken soup
  • 1 10 3/4 oz can of Cream of Celery soup
  • 1/4 cup light mayonnaise (I used Kraft Mayo with Olive Oil)
  • Salt and pepper to taste     

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare rice per instructions. In a heated pan add 1/2 tbsp oil and cook mushrooms until golden brown – remove from pan. Add the other 1/2 tbsp of oil to the pan and cook onions and celery until soft. Using a steamer, steam broccoli until just fork tender, then cool. (I added fresh broccoli florets to a big bowl with 1T of water. Placed paper towel over bowl and microwaved for 3 minutes.  In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well.
  2. Put into a baking dish and cover with cheese. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes prior to serving. Enjoy.



I seared and then baked chicken I seasoned well and then shredded it.



Steamed broccoli, chopped onion, diced celery, can of sliced water chestnuts (that I diced), and quartered mushrooms

Brown mushrooms in some olive oil

Make rice per package instructions

Saute onion and celery in olive oil

Diced water chestnuts

Put all ingredients into a big bowl


Mix well

Put mixture into casserole/baking dish (either a 9x13 or I did two smaller casserole dishes and made one for a party and put the other in the fridge to make for dinner tomorrow night. I could probably freeze it too, but I'm looking forward to it again:)

I added cheese to the top. Cheese makes EVERYTHING better!

Bake at 350 for 30 mins

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