Chicken Noodle Casserole (Johnny Machete)

 Johnny Machete? It's delicious! It's not bad! It's twelve different colors!

Are you getting my references yet?

Maybe this will help...

That's right people! Gilmore Girls recipe #2 coming at ya!

I made this yummy casserole to have for lunch/dinner this week and boy did it turn out well! It's honestly a pretty basic casserole. You've got your box of rotini, your chicken breasts, and your mixture of vegetables. Can't forget the cream sauce of course!

I used a whole box of pasta and two large chicken breasts so this is definitely lasting me for a while. The book says it makes 8-10 servings and I could easily see that. But I also think that it would freeze well so that's probably what I'll be doing with it at the end of this week. 

Something I was thinking about after I made this is that neither recipe I tried from the Gilmore Girls cookbook seemed very Gilmore Girls-ey. Maybe because I chose the most boring recipes. I'm sure if I made the dessert sushi or the Santa burger it would be more thematic!

One note about this, it uses 3 cans of those little cream of mushroom soups. I checked the label and they had a lot of sodium so I didn't add any extra salt to this. But don't worry, it still has tons of flavor! Definitely some good comfort food to whip up.

What's your favorite type of casserole to make? Do you load up on the veggies? Let me know in the comments!

Recipe (from Eat Like a Gilmore):

2 large chicken breasts

Water

1 lb rotini or pasta of your choice

4 tbsp butter, divided

1 yellow onion, diced

1 carrot, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch rounds

1 large zucchini (or 1 zucchini and 1 yellow squash)

1 head of broccoli, chopped

3 cans cream of mushroom soup

1 cup milk

1/2 cup half and half (or 1/4 cup milk and 1/4 cup heavy cream)

1 cup sour creme

1 tbsp fresh thyme (or Italian seasoning)

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend

1. Boil chicken for 10 minutes or until fully cooked. Cut into 1-inch cubes. Set aside

2. Cook pasta for 7-8 minutes or until firm. Set aside

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

4. Melt 2 tbsp butter in a large pan. Saute onion for 2-3 minutes. Add carrot, saute for additional 2-3 minutes. Add zucchini/squash and broccoli. Saute for 5 minutes, stirring often. Set aside.

5. In a large pot, melt remaining 2 tbsp butter. Add mushroom soup, milk, half and half, sour cream, and thyme. Whisk together. Add in salt and pepper to taste (I did not add any additional because the soup had a lot of sodium). Simmer on low heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.

6. In a large bowl, combine pasta, chicken, and vegetables. Pour sauce over top mixture and stir until fully incorporated. Pour into a 9x13 baking dish. Cover top with cheese.

7. Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil, bake for an additional 10 minutes. Enjoy!