Chicken Spaghetti Casserole

What to do with boneless, skinless chicken thighs...hmmm. I went to the Pioneer Woman website (www.pioneerwoman.com) for a little inspiration and found it. I took one of her recipes and adapted it for my own Chicken Spaghetti Casserole. But let me warn you...this dish is soooo addicting. Andy and the boys gobbled, and I mean, really gobbled it down. YUM!



Chicken Spaghetti Casserole

5-6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 purple onion, minced
1 jalapeño, minced
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
10 oz. Greek plain yogurt
Pepper
Lawry's Seasoning Salt
Cumin
Whole wheat angel hair pasta
2-3 cups sharp Cheddar cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Fill a pot with water and bring to a boil.
3. Add the chicken and cook for 20 minutes.
4. Remove the chicken from the water. SAVE THE WATER.
5. Take 1 cup of the cooking liquid from the chicken out of the pot and reserve.
6. Add the pasta and cook until al dente.
7. Meanwhile, finely cut the onion and jalapeño (removing the seeds and membrane).
8. Cut the chicken into cubes or shred.
9. Drain the pasta and put into a large bowl.
10. Add the chicken, onion and jalapeño. Stir.
11. Add the mushroom soup and Greek yogurt. Stir.
12. Add pepper, cumin and Lawry's to taste. Mix.
13. Take the reserved water from the chicken that you set aside earlier. Add it to the bowl and stir around. It will be watery.
14. Add 1-2 cups of the shredded cheese.

**Side note: If you have a food processor, it probably came with a shredding disc and if you haven't been using it, you're missing out! It takes just a second to put the disc on and add the cheese. Ten seconds later, you have several cups of shredded cheese!





15. Mix the cheese in.
16. Spray a casserole pan with cooking spray.
17. Pour the mixture in the casserole dish.
18. Cook at 350 for 30 minutes. It will look a little soft and wet.
19. Let sit for 10 minutes and it will firm right up. YUMMY!

In the middle of cooking, I discovered that the pipe under my sink had broken and water was leaking everywhere! Oh boy! Towels to the rescue. Good thing Andy is plumber extraordinaire.



To go with this dish, I had some GORGEOUS purple and white carrots I'd purchased from the farmer's market this weekend. I peeled them, cut them on the bias and sautéed them in a little butter and olive oil. After 3 minutes, I added some California Madeira I had in the pantry and let it reduce for about 10 minutes. Then I added about 2 tbs of pure maple syrup and some pepper. I put the lid on, cut the heat down to low and let it cook and reduce a little further. The purple carrots turned the reduced liquid a beautiful purple. They were sweet, savory and a delicious addition to the meal.