Broccoli Cheddar Chicken Casserole

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray the bottom and sides of the 9x13 cooking dish and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk milk, cheddar cheese soups, and salt until smooth. Set aside 1 cup of this mixture for later.

To the remaining mixture, add uncooked rice. Then pour the mixture into the 9x13 dish.

Cut chicken breasts into 1-inch pieces and season with your choice of chicken seasoning (lemon pepper, kickn chicken, or just salt, pepper, and garlic powder).

Arrange the chicken and frozen broccoli on top of the soup mixture in the baking dish. Pour the reserved soup mixture on top of everything.

Cover the dish TIGHTLY and place it in the oven. Bake for 1 hour.

When you are close to the end of the baking time, put together the topping:

Crush the Ritz crackers into a small bowl. Melt the butter and add to the crackers. Add the garlic powder to the crackers and mix with a fork until all the butter is absorbed.

When the oven is done, take the casserole out of the oven, uncover it, and add the cracker mixture to the top of the casserole. Put it back in the oven for another 15 minutes (uncovered).

When done, remove from the oven and let it rest for at least 15 minutes. (This lets the rice finish cooking!)

 

You can use any chicken seasoning. I like "Kickn Chicken", but there are a lot of chicken seasoning blends out there. In a pinch, just hit it with salt, pepper and a little garlic powder.

Make sure to cover the chicken with foil TIGHTLY. The rice needs steam to soften properly, so don't let it escape. Using INSTANT white rice will fix this problem. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND INSTANT WHITE RICE!!

Raw chicken is nasty. Wash your hands and all surfaces after handling.