(Not Your Average) Chicken Spaghetti

(This recipe was first posted in conjunction with the Meijer Ad Week of 2/5/12 - 2/11/12)

The twist in this delicious chicken spaghetti recipe is the Mexican blend cheese.  It lends a unique flavor to the classic casserole.

Ingredients:

3-4 chicken breast pieces, cooked and diced

12 oz spaghetti (about 3/4 of a box) broken in half and cooked according to package directions
1 stick butter or margarine, melted
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp parsley
12 oz shredded Mexican blend cheese, divided
15-20 shakes garlic powder
15-20 shakes onion powder

dash each of salt, pepper, and/or Lawrys seasoning salt (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Wisk together butter/margarine, soups, milk, 2 cups of cheese, and spices.  Stir in cooked chicken and spaghetti.  Pour into a greased 9x13 baking dish.  Bake, covered, 50-60 minutes.  Uncover, top with reserved shredded cheese, and bake 5 more minutes or until cheese is melted.  Serve with bread and/or salad.

Options and Tips

• To precook chicken breast:  Trim all visible fat.  Bake, uncovered, 20-25 minutes at 400 degrees, turning breasts over halfway through cooking time.
• Using the "fresh split chicken breast" that's on sale this week will help keep down the cost of this recipe.  However, if you need this recipe on the table in a hurry, buy the bag of boneless/skinless instead.  "Fresh split" chicken breast is generally not skinless OR boneless, so it takes a lot more time to cut it up after cooking.  If you have extra time, and you like to prep ahead, buy a big pack or two of the split chicken breast.  Bake it all at once, skin and debone it (sometimes the skin comes off easier BEFORE baking), and then dice it.  Divide into two cup portions and freeze in Ziploc bags or freezer containers.
• Another way to keep down the cost of this recipe is to use dark meat instead of chicken breast.  If you've cooked up a whole chicken, use the leftovers in this recipe.
• This recipe freezes really well.  For smaller families, divide the casserole between two 8x8 or 9x9 casserole dishes.  Bake one for supper, and freeze one for later.  Put the reserved cheese in a ziploc bag and tape it to the foil on top of the casserole before freezing.
• To make this cheesy, creamy casserole a little healthier, use whole grain spaghetti...or if you're like me and you don't care for the texture of the whole grain stuff, use half regular and half whole-grain. 
• Did you know that a "shake" is a measurement?  OK, well it's not really...but it's how I make this casserole.  You can add more or less onion and/or garlic powder according to taste.  We like the seasoning, so my shakes are liberal shakes...but you might want to start with "light sprinkles" instead.
• If you like a little crunch in your casserole, add some water chestnuts or diced celery.  Other add-in ideas:  canned or fresh mushrooms, diced green or red pepper, diced onion, or even sliced black olives.

This recipe came from Ruth Baas.


This post is linked to Meal4Sharing at www.eat2gather.net
This post is linked to the Ultimate Recipe Swap over a Life As Mom.